From Tier 2 to Top Tier Consulting Firm

Question

Hellooo, do you have experience with shifting from consulting firms such as Strategy&, ATK, Roland Berger, Oliver Wyman towards MBB? Are your chances better or even worse? When is the best timeframe to take this step? Thanks!

Answer 1

Hello,

I have known several people who joined a BCG Paris after having work for a few years in other consulting firms (either top 20 or boutique/specialized)
Evaluation criteria during cases interviews will remain roughly the same. Of course they will expect more maturity. They also keep track of previous interviews so they will expect to see significant progress on the weakness they have seen in your first interviews. HR are usually willing to help and explain what went wrong, so be sure to understand that thoroughly. Call back the HR if needed.

However, to make MBBs interested in your profile again in a few years, I would advise you to get experience on the sectors where MBBs have needs.
In BCG Paris, there are a lot of financial services / IT / digital cases. Bain Paris works a lot on M&A…
So, if you acquire experience on insurance or digital in banking while working at your top 20 consulting firm, BCG will be more interested in your future application, than if you work for the public sector for instance.

Also, when recruiting « lateral hires », MBBs tend to divide by 2 the experience you have. So if you work for 2 years in another consulting firm, you will be hired in the same position as someone who worked for 1 year in the MBB. Considering this, I think that 2 or 3 years may be a good time to re-apply, especially if you got promoted in your firm to prove your progress.

Hope this help!

Anne

Answer 2

Excellent question.

This is really not an easy move, and will be difficult at best. But I have seen it happen among some of my colleagues that went from goetzpartners, arguably a tier-2 firm, to MBB. I think chances are better than for lateral hires from the industry just due to the fact that you already posess the consulting skill-set.

I believe chances are best when you have deep, demonstratable expertise in a very specific field where the Tier 2 firm is on par with MBB - let's say Berger in Germany for automotive.

And you will most likely not manage to get a promotion along with it, but rather move horizontally. While a move from MBB to tier 2 or to another firm in the same tier is often sweetened with a move up in the hierarchy.

Hope that helps,

Elias

Answer 3

Hi Anonymous,

as Vlad said, timing for the application is good, although you will likely join as a new hire. The alternative would be apply with a 2-year experience, in this case they will probably recognize you as an analyst (McK) or associate (BCG) with 1-year seniority; there would be less slots for such position though, as it would not be the traditional entry level one.

From the point of view of HR it is totally normal to receive such applications, however you will have to come out with a good story why you did not apply for MBB after graduation (or if you did and got rejected, how you improved in the meantime).

As Vlad mentioned, referrals can be of substantial help to boost your application; at the following link (second post) you can find some reference on how to structure the referral process:

https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/open-house-at-bcg-311

Hope this helps,

Francesco

Answer 4

Hi,

Sharing my experience having made the switch from Kearney to MBB.

Are your chances better or even worse?

If you are referring to chances of getting in, then I would say that it is not a bad thing to come from a T2 firm as MBB firms have in recent years shown greater appetite and need for lateral hires coming from consulting
If you are referring to the ability to succeed on the job, then this depends on various factors including your own abilities/skills, but based on personal experience the transition and adapting is challenging

When is the best timeframe to take this step?

Theoretically, you could make the jump anytime, but I see 2 typically good ‘junctures’ to make the switch
- Junior level (1-3 years in)
  - You are still a generalist and would have the generalist skillset advantage over fresh grad hires
  - You are not giving up much by switching in the early years
- Senior level (Partner or just before partner)
  - You already have a demonstrated sales record / industry expertise
  - You are able to bring your clientele with you
Of course, people do make the switch at manager/principal level, but MBB is often very hesistant of bringing in lateral hires directly into this role and you would definitely need to take a tenure cut if you join

Last but not least, my take on this having made the switch is: if a chance opens up, make the switch. The benefits of MBB are significant :)

Answer 5

Hi,

From the interviewer perspective, it is totally fine, since you aim at boosting your career and skills.

From the HR perspective - it depends on the company and the country you are applying in. I know the examples when one year in Tier2 company was enough to apply for McKinsey and Bain, while BCG was looking for more experience.

To be on a safe side I would try to apply using a reference. Thus you will significantly increase your chances to be invited for a test/interview and the consultant who made a reference will earn some money. Of course, it should be someone you know, not just a random person from Linkedin.

Typically if someone makes a reference he has to point out why you are a good fit for the company and something exceptional about you. So make sure that he provides that information

Best,

Vlad

Answer 6

Hi,

I agree with what Francesco wrote.

Transitions within consulting firms are quite common and occur in many directions. I know many people who have successfully switched from tier2 to MBB, from tier2 to tier2, and from MBB to tier2. I personally belong to both the last and first categories: I started at Bain, then switched to A.T. Kearney and very recently got an offer from another MBB (which I eventually declined because I decided not be a consultant anymore).

Regarding competition (based on my experience), I had found it easier to get invited to an actual interview as an experienced hire vs. when I was applying to an entry level position: that is probably because after some years in consulting you have proved that you can do the job and, starting from the Senior Consultant/Senior Associate grade, you probably have also developed a specific expertise on a specifi industry/function. Nevertheless, expectations (as Francesco correctly pointed out) were much higher: I was expected to go deeper on the tested skills (especially on structuring the approach, leading independently the case, and communication) and at the same time to show a higher degree of maturity.

A last point: starting from the Senior Consultant/Senior Associate level it is very unlikely that you will have to take the test part.

Cheers,

Jacopo

Answer 7

Elias is exactly right - few more data points on this:

1. A classmate of mine spent 2 years at Infosys (tier-2), but started from ground 0 at Strategy& (bottom of tier 1 perhaps?); a year later, he still thought it was definitely worth it - and he is now about to make partner there!

2. While interviewing at BCG (as an industry hire), I was competing against a consultant from Strategy& who wanted to move up the chain; I got in, he didn't

3. My very first BCG partner was an ATK senior principal who came to BCG as a junior principal; years later, he was extremely happy with that move

4. While at BCG, one of my colleague had done 2 or 3 years at a boutique firm earlier, and he was outstanding at BCG, promoted early & all; now a principal

Bottom line: You can switch/move up, but it is no slam dunk and that might mean losing a couple of years of tenure; if you do manage the feat however, odds are you'll be really good and have a successful career in that second company if you are a cultural fit

Good luck,

Guennael -

ex-BCG Dallas

Answer 8

Hi Anonymous,

moving to different companies is definitely common (the average turnover in consulting companies is around 3 years, and some of those that leave move to other consulting companies). That doesn’t mean it is easy though – it could actually be more competitive than entry level as you will still have strong competition but less slots available.

The process is similar to the one for entry level with some differences in the following areas:

Test: You can sometimes skip the test part
Fit: There will be higher expectations on questions on leadership, impact and drive in an interview compared to new hires (using McKinsey as a benchmark for the fit part)
Case: Case expectations will be higher as well – there will be less mistakes allowed to pass
Communication: As an experienced hire, you will have more client interaction responsibilities than new hires, thus they will test more this side during the interview (eg checking how do you react to pressure, how clearly you communicate your thoughts and clarify information, etc)

Best,

Francesco

Answer 9

Hi!

Chances may be the same or different depending on the following factors:

Economic cycle - is the company actively hiring or not?
Your expertise - i.e. they sold lots of retail projects and need a retail expert
Business school - in your case you'll get a post-business school role

Most probably you will get the same post-business school position (e.g. Associate at Mckinsey). Big 3 companies rarely hire for manager roles and 2 years in a different tier is definitely not a game-changer here

Answer 10

HI,

Yes, it's possible to swtich. Many have done it within MBB and from Tier 2 to MBB.

Recruiting process differes from company to company and office to office, as you will be treated as an expierenced hire. However, the structure remains the same- case+fit.

Cheers!

Answer 11

You confirmed exactly the assessment of some colleagues. Thank you very much Elias!

Answer 12

Dear A,

Generally, I would say that you have chances, because you have already have some experience in consulting. And to increase your chances I would recommend you to work on networking and to apply with referrals.

If you need any help, feel free to reach out.

Best,
André

Answer 13

Congrats on getting these interviews in the first place! We are looking for the same qualities in the written case as... (read entire answer)

Congrats on getting these interviews in the first place! We are looking for the same qualities in the written case as in the verbal one. You should have 1 hour to prepare so the... (read entire answer)

Answer 14

Hallo, in Deutschland wurde er laut HR in den meisten Büros abgeschafft und wenn, dann wird ein Test nur für bestim... (read entire answer)

Hallo, in Deutschland wurde er laut HR in den meisten Büros abgeschafft und wenn, dann wird ein Test nur für bestimmte Practices verwendet. Die Aussage war von September '15.

Answer 15

Neil, I was an experienced hire as well, so can definitely relate. The hardest part for your will likely be to get... (read entire answer)

Neil, I was an experienced hire as well, so can definitely relate. The hardest part for your will likely be to get an interview. McK is probably most open, assuming you have a... (read entire answer)