MBB as a single mom

Hey, 

It is possible, but managing a consulting career at MBB as a single mom will be very challenging, especially with the travel and long hours. However, many firms are becoming more supportive of work-life balance, offering flexible work arrangements like part-time (80%) or reduced travel roles. Having support from your mom, a nanny, or au pairs could help you manage, but you’ll need a strong and reliable setup.

As for timing, applying when you feel ready and have your childcare structure in place is crucial. Some MBB offices, including those in Germany, might offer programs like parental leave or return-to-work initiatives, which could ease the transition. You could also consider applying when you have secured more consistent childcare arrangements.

I know a partner I worked with in Germany who did exactly this! She always traveled with her child (and partner/grandma etc.). Therefore, somehow everything is possible! :) I would just try it out! It's tough, but if consulting is your goal, it can be feasible with strong planning and firm support.
 

Good luck, 

Alessa :)

Let me be blunt here - you won't see your child much during the week, and you will mostly be outsourcing the parental role to other people (during the week). Please understand that you will need a very strong backup plan with redundancy (i.e., people supporting you need to be 99% reliable).

Also please notice that children at that age still require a significant amount of attention from the people they are attached to. 

The workload requirement is clear, and the schedule flexibility is not significant. You may of course discuss your options with HR, as well as (later on) discuss with the staffing manager a preference to have home-office projects (but even those will be quite demanding during the week).

It's not just about the workload - it's also about the ability to recover, which may be impaired (e.g. who will manage sick nights?). 

You should also be discussing this with your pediatrician as this is not only about the parents career, but also about the development implications on the child.

Hi

I admire your aspiration, and would never advise someone not to achieve a goal that you feel strongly about - but I can assure you this would be a tremendous challenge. You might find yourself in 'survival mode' during your time in the firm. That said, if you are aiming for ~2yrs then it's certainly do-able.

There are plenty of ways to rationalise how it might work, what personal operating model you choose, personal support at home, but it will be tough no doubt about it - the firm is flexible but you are still expected to deliver. I had a small family during my time and found it challenging to rationalise staying long term.

JMO - wish you all the best!

Hi there,

Alessa and Peter already provided some great insights!

Just to add a few points to consider:

• The typical work week away from home starts Sunday evening if you fly out early or Monday morning with the earliest flight and ends Thursday with one of the later flights; You can work from home or your home office on Fridays
• Work hours including team dinners etc. during the week (except Thursday and Friday) are usually from 8.30/9am until 10/11pm/midnight
• For some projects, you might have to travel further outside of Europe/Germany, meaning you'll stay on site for weeks, not a couple of days
• For some projects, you might travel several times a week (if the client has several locations you need to cover). For instance, I had one project with a client location in the middle of nowhere and another location, so I flew home > client location 1 > client location 2 > home every week from Sunday evening to Thursday night for the full project duration. I had one project with peak weeks where I had 6 flights to take (outlier case but possible) twice
• For some projects you might have to attend workshops and meetings at the other end of the world with relatively short notice. For instance, I had to fly Europe to Hong Kong twice for 1-2 days of meetings. Sometimes you spent more time travelling than on the ground, not even adjusting to the time zone
• The schedule can be very unpredictable overall and logistics always move. I remember an occasion where I packed and was ready to go to the airport when I received the call that the project did not materialize. Another time, I was at the airport booking the flight shortly before boarding due to a change in circumstances

I guess it's possible but also adding a lot of stressors to an already unpredictable and stressful environment for all parties involved.

All the best to you!

Cheers,

Florian

Hi,

I am not a parent / do not have a kid, but just based on seeing my friends who are juggling family + MBB work in Singapore (where there is cheap, easily accessible support be it through domestic helpers or family), if I had to give a "yes or no" answer I will say no this is not possible. 

My best friend is a mom of 3 at BCG, and she has made alot of trade offs career wise to do projects that are only based in Singapore, and even then she struggles to carve out enough time, despite having 2 sets of in-laws. 

If you get put on a travel case - you are travelling 4 days a week. Combine that with the intense hours of a 'bad' case.. yes you could still do the job but you'd be giving up alot of involvement in your kids life, and this gets worse the more senior you become.

80% is a concept that sounds nice but based on my experience/observation is -really- hard to actually operationalize.

Ultimately, if we think about possibility, yes there is always an argument for possibility, but likely that would mean 'outsourcing' alot of your tasks and time of your role to someone else (nanny, parents etc), which then becomes a question of your own philosophy/perspective of how involved you need to be with your kids. And looking at how a sizeable portion of consultants (dual parent) who leave MBB leave because they feel the MBB lifestyle is at odds with their family goals, then I would infer that for a single parent its more likely a "no" than a "yes".