McKinsey Digital London - Hiring?

Hi,

Regarding your questions:

1. Usually there would be limited spots for topic specific roles, like Digital, Cyber, Operations, etc. while general tracks are hiring on a rolling basis with a changing number of slots to hire each round.
2. Yes, I wouldn't call it a freeze, but definitely slower hiring, due to lower number of engagements and also due to over-hiring in 2022. 
3. Topic specific consultants are just like regular consultants in their career progression, the main difference would be the type of engagements you'd be staffed on. This can play to your benefit or your loss, depending on that topic's specific performance. For digital I would say with GenAI and everything else going on, this shouldn't be a problem.
4. Usually digital projects will be staffed with a mix of regular, topic specific, and data/IT people, due to the both strategic and technical aspect of these kinds of engagements. 
5. If you're interested in consulting, even in general engagements, and you're at a point in your career this seems like a good choice, I would go ahead and apply to the general consulting role for 2 reasons: 

• A LOT of consulting engagements these days are digital anyways, either Digital Transformation, GenAI implementation or any other digital projects, so it's highly likely you'll get to do those types of work anyways. 
• Usually, at least at BCG, you can switch to expert tracks in later steps in your career in consulting, even if you start out as a generalist. Depending on the office, you have to choose your affiliation after about 1-2 years of work, then you can affiliate with digital/tech practice areas.

In any case, good luck in your consulting journey, and feel free to reach out for more questions about consulting/MBB/case interviews, etc.

Best,

Yuval

Hi there,

To your questions:

Is there a hiring freeze due to over hiring or low number of available engagements in this space right now?

Digital hiring has been reduced across Europe but you can  still expect a few hirings every year.

Are both regular and digital associates subjected to the same up and out retention policies?

Digital and generalist associates are subject to the same everything (policies, salaries, career path if not applying for expert track).

Are Digital projects typically purely staffed by Digital associates and managers, or is it a mix or you have regular associates flexed on depending on consultant availability.

There are rarely pure Digital projects so you can expect a mix of digital and generalist profiles. I've done several projects at McKinsey only with Digital profiles but this is not the norm.

Should I wait or just apply as a regular associate? I am happy to do general work despite having significant Digital expertise.

If you have a lot of digital expertise I suggest you apply to a digital position. You can create a more clear value proposition there to 1) access the interview process and 2) if you get the job, to differentiate from other generalists

Best,

Alberto

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Hi there,

1. Yes, hiring is not the best at the moment. Slightly better than last year but still lagging compared to the year before, unfortunately.
2. Yes, everything is the same for both roles in terms of development, terms and conditions, pay, etc.
3. Projects are usually staffed as a mix. You could also land on a non-digital project, even if you are part of the digital practice. However, in McK you have a lot of say what projects you get staffed on or not.
4. If you want to apply now, I'd just go ahead and to it. The experience will be almost identical, and if you really want to work on digital projects you can make that work through networking once you are in. For instance, I started as a generalist but already at the end of my first year committed to a specific practice.

Cheers,

Florian

Hi there,

I would be happy to share my thoughts on your questions:

• First of all, I would highly advise you to get in touch with the recruiting department of McKinsey London to find out about most of these questions for certain. That said, hiring in London seems to have slowed down further.
• Moreover, the 'up or out' policy is generally firm-wide, but its application may vary by department or the nature of roles. Staffing on digital projects often involves a blend of digital and regular associates. The decision to staff depends on the project requirements and the available talent pool.
• Lastly, if you have significant digital expertise, that is a valuable asset, and applying for a regular associate role does not preclude you from digital work.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to best prepare your application, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Hi there,

Quite simply, things change. It is needs dependent and timeline dependent. That's why it's so important to network! (To see what's happening/available in relation to you).

There's not quite a hiring freeze at these firms (remember, they have 20% churn and they HAVE to bring in new blood each year as part of their up or out model).

You should apply when your networking reveals they 1) have openings for you and 2) are interested in you

Some more reading to help: How to Get a Consulting Internship - Tips and Tricks

I suggest you reach out to the recruiter to ask whether they are recruiting for Digital instead of assuming that what is online is all they are offering. 

Digital products typically have mixed staffing. Overall there are more generalists than Digital. But, Digital is growing super fast, and they have been recruiting aggressively over the past few years. 

If the recruiter says they only have generalist roles, then you can also go for that and then transition into a digital role later, especially since you already have digital experience. 

Best,
Cristian