What does "strategy & corporate finance" practice do?

Question

Hi all, would like to seek your advice on “strategy & corporate finance” practice:

Is this a specific practice at MBB? I'm a bit confused by the name - so does it mean this practice focuses more on M&A related strategies (such as inorganic growth), while PIPE only focuses on CDD?
Is investment banking the most appropriate background to join this practice? For those whom I've known working in this role, most of them come from an investment banking background.

Answer 1

It is a specific practice related to inorganic growth strategies such as mergers and acquisitions. Having a background in time card calculator and investment banking is really beneficial for entering this practice, as many professionals in this role have a background in investment banking.

Answer 2

Hi,

Thanks for the question - practice area coverage/scope can be fairly confusing, and having spent many years in consulting, I can safely say sometimes it is even confusing to people within the firm, especially as these practice areas are periodically redefined and have their boundaries redrawn.

Is this a specific practice at MBB?

First of all, its important to understand that there are typically 2 types of practice areas in global firms
- Industry practice area (e.g. Banking, Consumer Goods, Principal Investors & Private Equity etc)
- Functional practice area (e.g. Operations, Strategy, Organization etc)
“Strategy & Corporate Finance” is a functional practice area and hence alignment to this practice area focuses on work related to the topic, which is often industry agnostic
- i.e. you could theoretically help clients of any industries with Strategy & Corporate finance problems/topics
M&A as a functional capability/expertise can be included in Strategy & Corporate Finance (at least in BCG it is), but this just refers to the functional expertise and again may apply to non-PIPE clients (e.g. MNC who wants to acquire another player)
Practically what does this mean
- If you are part of the PIPE ringfence
  - This means that you will deal with PIPE clients, (e.g. PE, Sovereign Wealth Funds, maybe some VCs et)
  - You will help PIPE clients with the different types of projects they need support on, which includes not just CDD but other types of work as well (e.g. fund strategy, portfolio optimization)
- If you are aligned to Strategy & Corporate Finance practice area
  - This means that you typically have expertise in this topic area and may be staffed on a variety of industries as long as the topic area is relevant
- In reality - the more senior you become, most people have at least 1 alignment of each, i.e. 1 x industry practice area and 1 x functional practice area

Is investment banking the most appropriate background to join this practice?

IB can be an advantage especially on the transactions related expertise and/or finance related topics
However, in reality, what's more important is the ability to
- Start doing projects of this topical area
- Have senior practice area leaders want to work with you and keep you in the practice area
The above does not necessarily mean you need an IB background and many people with diverse backgrounds end up working in Strategy & Corporate Finance

Hope this answers your questions.

All the best!

Answer 3

Fantastic answers form the other coaches. Make sure to network to learn more as well!

Answer 4

Hi there,

definitions and scope vary quite a bit by firm. In general, expect work centered around..

Vision and long-term strategic priorities
Portfolio strategy and M&A
Optimization of shareholder value (→ value creation)
Financial performance improvement

Suggest you visit MBB company websites to derive specific scope for each firm.

Regards, Andi

Answer 5

Hi there!

The names of practices change so often that it's rather difficult to keep up with them.

Your best bet is to read their website and then to have a chat with somebody who actually is in that practice at the moment.

Sharing with you a guide on how to conduct the conversation with them:

Free Guide: How To Handle Networking Calls and Get Referrals

Best,
Cristian

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Answer 6

The "strategy & corporate finance" practice at MBB focuses on a broad range of strategic financial topics, including M&A, corporate strategy, capital allocation, and value creation. It often involves inorganic growth strategies like acquisitions. While an investment banking background is common, other finance-related experiences can also be valuable for joining this practice.

Answer 7

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