Hello - my partner round got scheduled after two months of wait and ping pong finally (which is supposedly the final round) but with a caveat that hiring freeze is there since Jan 2024 and may last for 6-7 months with Deloitte ME.
Now my question is that why this partner round is even happening when there is a hiring freeze? and what if partner okay me, offer won’t be rolled out right ?
can someone pls help me decode this hiring strategy?
Hi there,
Great question and one that I suspect many others are grappling with.
If you take a long run view of consulting, it’s more of a supply driven industry than you’d expect. A firm has a pyramid-like structure, with the partners at the top and the analysts at the bottom, and they need to maintain that shape.
If you add another partner, who then sells more work, the firm grows but as does the requirement to fill out the base. So the name of the game in professional services is to grow your pyramid as fast as possible by promoting partners, whilst still maintaining a certain quality (e.g. if you promote a partner who then sells nothing, that dilutive to the earnings of the other partners).
With that in mind, you can see how important a pipeline of recruiting activity is. Even though there are few partners being created (and many are being fired) presently, and therefore few new analysts are needed, there will be a time when they want to accelerate out of the downturn so need a big base of future analysts. And this is a talent war, so I’d rather get your signature than let someone else get you.
So yes, your start date may get rolled (though you may get an extra sign on bonus or funds to go do something for 6 months – yay!) but you will start.
Therefore, I encourage you to nail the partner interview (and create some tension with other firms if possible), get your start date and then enjoy the paid time off if you can. It doesn’t happen often in life!
Are you interviewing for an analyst? Something about your note suggests you might be coming in more senior. If so, there are some differences in the case studies, fit interview, etc. Send me a note if you’d like to discuss, or if I can help any other way.
Good luck!
B.
Congrats on making it to the partner round, this is a great achievement as it is!
Regarding your questions, consulting roles are filled on a rolling basis. Usually there are 3-4 rounds per year (this changes between firms and between Geographies). A hiring freeze won’t necessarily mean an interview freeze, as you may actually start working quite a while after you’ve been given an offer. In my case I was given the offer in July, and started working in November, in one of the busiest times for consulting firms, so I can this taking even longer in the current business climate.
I would interview but keep my options open to have the best opportunity set up for the time you really want to start. If you’re willing to wait to start and enjoy the time off, that could be great, but it’s always good to have a plan B just in case.
Hope this helps and good luck in your interview!
Yuval
They're likely to give out the offer now, but only have the start date in July.
I would however, proceed with caution. With Big4 I've seen cases where they will keep you waiting until the new budget is approved and hiring targets are defined… and then they realize they cannot give out every offer they promised…
Hi there,
the partner round is probably happening so that they could incentivize you to still wait for them in case they give you an offer.
If it is already scheduled, you might as well take the interview and see what happens. If you are not pressed for another job, you could even wait out the hiring freeze if you really wanted to join them.
However, if you need a new job ASAP, then you probably shouldn't wait for this firm but be applying left and right already.
So it really depends on how urgent it is for you to start a new job.
Good luck
Hi there,
Not so bad news!
Having people ready to go and in the pipeline gives them flexibility. Things can change quickly, especially in dynamic regions like the Middle East.
Once you have an offer and a starting date in the future, they could also ask you to start earlier if needed.
All the best for the final round!
Cheers,
Florian
I loved you writing ‘can somebody please help me decode this hiring strategy?’
In short, they are not starting new consultants at the moment because the market is down, and they are overstaffed.
But they probably think you are a strong candidate, and they could give you an offer that has a starting date after the freeze.
That's about it.
Best of luck!
Cristian
Hi there,
Brad and Pedro are exactly right here.
1) Things can change. A bunch of projects could be won, and they'd like to be ready
2) Timelines (for projects and hiring and training) are long, and so they often like to have start dates locked away into the future
Remember to never put all your hopes on one firm. Keep networking + applying to other firms, AND keep case prepping….good luck!
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Hi there,
It looks to me they like your profile and want to check the fit for when they are hiring again. Then you will decide if you want to wait to join them or leverage this offer with other potential consulting firms you interview with :)
Best,
Alberto
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Check out my latest case based on a real MBB interview: Sierra Springs
Hi there,
Q: Why this partner round is even happening when there is a hiring freeze? And what if partner okay me, offer won’t be rolled out right?
If they mentioned this before the final, most likely is to anticipate that the starting period will be in a bit if you pass the final.
Good luck!
Francesco
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