Getting a referral - OW Dubai / London

Hi there, 

technically it does not really matter too much if she or a more Senior person refers you, a referral will go a long way with HR. But this is a good opportunity to network, hence, I would ask your friend if it is possible to have a quick chat with that more senior person. He or she might put in a good word for you if the conversation goes well. 

More importantly though, which office do you want to apply for? At least for BCG the referral program was regional. I.e., that friend of yours could only refer you for Dubai if she is from that system herself. And oftentimes the recruiting processes are local as well. So you would have to have two separate processes running, one for Dubai and one for London. I would check that with your friend before you guys submit anything. Might put you in a position where you need to prioritize one over the other. 

Best, 
Sebastian

Hello there,

Would it be advisable to get a referral from her or through a more senior person (introduced by her) from the local OW office to apply to a position in Dubai / London?

 Try to get the referral from the senior person and if you fail in getting it, then ask her to do it. Both will work, but the former carries more weight and may accelerate your resume evaluation.

Good luck!

Best,

Mari

Hi there,

I would definitely try to get in touch with the more senior person as this comes with some benefits like a stronger referral, more insights into the company culture, an updated hiring perspective.

Cheers,

Florian

Hey there 🙂, since you're applying for an experienced hire role (Associate and above) at OW Dubai/London, getting a referral is definitely a smart move!

Your friend at the Senior Consultant level can still provide a helpful referral, especially if she can strongly vouch for your skills. However, for more impact, getting introduced to a more senior person (Manager/Principal/Partner) would be ideal—referrals from higher-ups carry more weight, particularly for experienced roles.

A good approach: Ask your friend to introduce you to someone senior at OW, ideally in the Dubai/London Private Capital practice, and then request a referral through them. That way, your application has both a strong internal push and relevance to the specific office/practice.

Since you're currently in SEA, you might also want to highlight your relocation readiness in conversations to make it clear you're committed to the move.

Best of luck! Let me know if you need help structuring the outreach. Best, Alessa 😇

Definitely get the referral from her - typically consultancies will have to fill out some information about how they know you when making a referral. Getting your friend to do the referral ensures authenticity, this will only help!

Best,

Will

Whatever referral you can get is the best one you can get. If you can a more senior one, sure, if not, just leverage your friend.

All the best!

Hey there, 

Here are some general principles:

• It's better to apply with a referral vs not
• The more senior the referral, the better

All the best