MBB waiting several months after final round to make decision?

In a situation where several months have passed since your final round with MBB, and despite positive feedback, there's been no concrete offer or clear update, it's essential to consider the possibility of various outcomes:

Competitive Process:

• MBB firms often attract top talent, and the competition is fierce. Even if your interviews went well, there might be other exceptional candidates in the pool.

Budget and Hiring Constraints:

• Companies, including prestigious consulting firms, may experience budget constraints or changes in hiring plans. Economic conditions or shifts in business priorities could impact the hiring process.

Waitlist or Deferred Decision:

• Being on a waitlist is a possibility, but it's also possible that the firm has deferred making a final decision for strategic or operational reasons.

Policy on Timely Communication:

• Some firms have policies to communicate decisions within a specific timeframe. The fact that you haven't received a clear decision may be an indication of internal challenges or uncertainties.

Changing Organizational Needs:

• The needs of consulting firms can change over time. Your profile may align well, but organizational needs might shift, affecting the hiring decision.

Internal Processes and Bureaucracy:

• Large firms, especially those with complex organizational structures, may have bureaucratic processes that contribute to delays in decision-making.

While these considerations may sound pessimistic, it's important to stay realistic and manage expectations. Continue with your job search and explore other opportunities. Maintain a proactive stance in following up, but be prepared for the possibility that the MBB opportunity may not materialize. Use this experience as a learning opportunity and a stepping stone for your future career endeavors.

Wow, that's really long. 

Very very long. 

But it also sounds like you did the best that you could in following up with them. 

They might still get back to you with an offer, but at this point, I'd also move on and look for other opportunities as well. I can imagine this is frustrating but this happens often you have only a couple of leads to work with. 

Sharing with you an article with a few principles to keep in mind when you're planning an application strategy:

• Expert Guide: Build A Winning Application Strategy

Good luck!
Cristian

This seems to be something different than a waitlist. A waitlist would be a situation where they made some offers and are keeping some people on hold with the expectation that some of their initial offers will be rejected.

This seems more like the case where they are undecided on where the market is going or unclear on their business pipeline - and if they sell a few larger projects or see demand picking up they'll extend the offer.

Hi there, sorry to hear! Definitely not a common scenario. MBB usually gets their act together within a few weeks. Must be a local hiring velocity issue. Ping me a DM with details on your office and position, happy to provide my perspective on next steps then. Warm regards, Freddy 

Hi there,

this is frustrating. I have heard about a scenario like this once before and the underlying reason was that the respective country/region of the firm did not have clarity on their budget and headcount targets for the next year. But instead of communicating that to candidates, they kept them in a holding pattern.

Unfortunately this is not something you can influence, especially since you have already taken the steps within your control (i.e. following up regularly). Please make sure you continue your recruiting efforts in the meantime in case the offer in the above case doesn't pan out.

Best of luck

Hi there,

Sorry to hear you have been waiting for that long. This is very unusual at MBB. It looks like they are reconsidering the recruiting targets on the region before extending more offers. 

I suggest you to be a little more patient and keep following up ever 2 weeks or so.

Best,

Alberto

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Check out my latest case based on a real MBB interview: Sierra Springs

Hi there,

The most likely situation is that their pipeline fell out from under them. They likely thought they needed x new hires and actually need x minus n new hires.

You're not quite waitlisted, but they're probably keeping you on standby for when projects/work pick up again.

But look, yes, ultimately, you need to “behave” as if you don't have the offer. Keep networking with and applying to other firms AND, keep case prepping to be ready for when/if they do reach out!

The Most Common Pitfalls in Case Interview Preparation

How to Get a Consulting Internship - Tips and Tricks

Hi there,

Sorry to hear about the situation, it should be quite frustrating. In terms of your question:

Q: I can only assume I’m on some kind of waitlist. Thoughts?

From what you shared it seems the company stopped recruiting/ is trying to understand the exact headcount.

I would recommend focusing on other firms. If you do manage to get another offer, you can reach out again and see if they can provide a definitive answer.

Good luck!

Francesco