What’s good, fam. I’ve been trying to write more entries lately because I feel so bad about that GSB Round 2 applicant who’d asked me some questions only to have me respond to him after the deadline for that round. I know that this is a side thing for me, but I still feel a strong allegiance to all of you who follow this joint, so it definitely stays with me when I feel like I’ve let someone down. At any rate, I’m going to try to do better with responding going forward…or at least to not have 4+ weeks pass before getting to emails. I don’t know how well i”ll do with it (y’all know how the workload can be in Consulting), but I’ll try my best. You know, if I’m going to continue to be the best in the B-school blogging game, I’ve got to step up to my past greatness ;-D
Anyways, the email that I’m responding to in this message is from an IT consultant who has recently submitted his business school applications to a couple of schools. He’s asked me some pretty specific questions that I’m probably not the best person to answer, but I’ve done my best to give him a good answer. I think I’m going to start doing some background research on several topics (i.e. talking to recruiters across firms and Bschool admissions people) because I’m finding that many of the emails I’ve been getting lately have touched areas that I’ve had to guess at. Now, I’ve just got to figure out how to connect with folks that i can use as research subjects. Until then, y’all will just have to rely on whatever I can come up with on my own, which doesn’t seem to be half bad if I do say so myself
And, I can’t post this entry without wishing everyone a Happy Valentine’s Day. I know that it’s a manufactured holiday to help sell greeting cards, flowers, and candy, but it’s always nice to celebrate something, isn’t it?
——————
RS wrote:
“Hello Marquis,
How are you doing?
Happy New Year! Thank You once again for such an informative blog. It has tons of information for aspiring B-school applicants like me.
I have submitted my applications for a couple of B-schools (Stanford and Univ of Chicago). And I am really excited the way my applications have come out and the way the application process has changed my thought process. I am eagerly awaiting an interview call I owe you a special thanks – especially for “The WOW Factor” blog entry – It really helped a lot while writing my applications.
Frankly speaking, the business school application process has opened up my mind, has stimulated me to find what matters to me and find what are my career aspirations are (as famous Stanford essay questions say
. And now, I do not want to slip into oblivion just checking the forums and application status for the next couple of months. I am starting to think alternate ways of reaching my long term ambitions even if I do not make to the B-schools. On the other hand, I believe that the effort I put in now will help me with the recruiting, networking and other stuff if I get into B-schools.
Diving into my question,
I have an engineering background. And I am working for a leading IT Consulting firm for the past 5 years. I have designed and implemented IT solutions for clients across 3 different continents. Looking at my long term career ambition, I see moving into Strategy Consulting business quite imperative at this point in time. And, I have started to prepare myself for the case interviews and behavioral interviews as well. Furthermore, I have been reading quite a few articles on vault and wetfeet. Also, I have been shortlisting firms based on my requirements (size of the firm, kind of projects they do, geographic preference, etc..). I wanted your suggestions on reaching out and applying for firms.
— How do you rate one’s chances of moving from IT consulting to Strategy consulting without an MBA? Based on your experience, do you think – will strategy consulting firms give a shot at interviewing applicants like me?
— I have read a number of articles which talk about networking and how it helps one’s recruitment into Strategy Consulting firms. Having done my under-graduation outside US also seems to push me onto a negative scale. I have been trying hard to check with people I know to get in touch with folks from different Strategy Consulting firms but I do not seem to be very successful. Can you give me some pointers on how to go about this? Alternatively, do you suggest sending across my customized (resume + cover letter) to individual firms directly hamper my chances (rather than going through one of their employees)?
— Being a career changer, do you suggest some kind of certifications which might help highlighting my candidature?
And I really appreciate your time and energy in answering these questions for me. Thank You !
Best Regards
RS”
——————
My response:
RS,
I hope this response finds you doing well. Thanks for checking out my blog and thinking of me as a resource for your questions about Bschool and Consulting. Also, thanks for the shout out about that “The WOW Factor” blog entry…that might be the entry that I’ve put the second most thought into over the past four years of writing my blog (with my ‘Lessons learned about Bschool’ entry being #1 in that department), I’ve been thinking about your questions for a couple of days and I’m not sure how much help I can be, but, as always, I’ll try my best.
OK, in the spirit of the characteristic “structured problem solving” that one finds in strategy consulting firms, let’s address your questions in order:
1. “How do you rate one’s chances of moving from IT consulting to Strategy consulting without an MBA? Based on your experience, do you think – will strategy consulting firms give a shot at interviewing applicants like me?” –> Based on the stories of people I know, the strategy firms are open to bringing in candidates with IT consulting backgrounds as long as they have a strong work history and demonstrate the traditional structured problem solving tested for in the case interview process. I think I wrote an entry or two about transitioning from IT Consulting to strategy consulting in the past, so I won’t go into too much depth on the topic here, but I know of folks who have done it. Your chances of making the transition would be much easier if you go for a firm that has a practice or sub-focus that deals with the IT strategy side of business, such as McKinsey Business Technology Office, Accenture’s Communications and High Tech group,
and Booz Allen’s Government Practice, because your background would prepare you to provide value to clients immediately. Please note that I said “IT strategy side of business”, which isn’t the same as “IT Consulting”. When I say “IT consulting”, I’m referring to doing IT systems development and implementation and dealing more with hardware, software, ERP systems, etc that the clients will use day-in and day-out. When I say “IT side of business”, I’m referring to providing a client with guidance on how to leverage IT to grow their business and push it to the next level in performance…this may include some implementation on the back-end at some point, but figuring out how to make IT work as a core component of a business strategy and overall performance booster is much different than setting up the actual out-of-the-box system that company will run.
2. “Can you give me some pointers on how to go about this? Alternatively, do you suggest sending across my customized (resume + cover letter) to individual firms directly hamper my chances (rather than going through one of their employees)? ” –> Hmmmmm…networking within the consulting industry is tough because I dont know if there are any associations which bring together folks across the different firms. I know plenty of people who work at other strategy firms, but that’s because they either went to school with me, are longtime friends of mine, or I met them through other friends of mine. What you could do is try to do some informal networking with folks from other firms through colleagues at your own firm…you could go to dinners, happy hours, and similar events where you could connect with friends of folks you work with and get an in that way. I’d guess that you’re right in that it is helpful to have an “in” at a consulting firm when you’re applying (I recently wrote an entry about that), but it isn’t necessary. I know of several people who went into strategy firms as experienced hire candidates without knowing someone who worked at their employer beforehand. These people put together dynamite resume and cover letter packages and simply applied to their firms online to get themselves in front of recruiters. This seems to be an effective method as long as a candidate can compile a strong application submission and his/her background meets the needs of a particular firm. It may take longer for this method to work in your favor, but, if you’re patient enough to wait it out, it can indeed work.
3. “Being a career changer, do you suggest some kind of certifications which might help highlighting my candidature?” –> I wish I could help you out with this one, but I’ve never heard of any certifications associated with strategy consulting. It’s a little different in this specialty of management consulting as compared to IT Consulting where some of the technical certifications might help you get ahead on your career path. You might want to ask some other folks in strategy consulting about this question because there may be some certifications that I haven’t heard of yet.
Good luck with your business school applications and I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you on the GSB application. Hopefully, you’ll be getting the good word from my man DB in a couple of months. Also, good luck on your networking efforts in the Consulting arena. Take care.
-Marquis
Anyways, the email that I’m responding to in this message is from an IT consultant who has recently submitted his business school applications to a couple of schools. He’s asked me some pretty specific questions that I’m probably not the best person to answer, but I’ve done my best to give him a good answer. I think I’m going to start doing some background research on several topics (i.e. talking to recruiters across firms and Bschool admissions people) because I’m finding that many of the emails I’ve been getting lately have touched areas that I’ve had to guess at. Now, I’ve just got to figure out how to connect with folks that i can use as research subjects. Until then, y’all will just have to rely on whatever I can come up with on my own, which doesn’t seem to be half bad if I do say so myself
And, I can’t post this entry without wishing everyone a Happy Valentine’s Day. I know that it’s a manufactured holiday to help sell greeting cards, flowers, and candy, but it’s always nice to celebrate something, isn’t it?
——————
RS wrote:
“Hello Marquis,
How are you doing?
Happy New Year! Thank You once again for such an informative blog. It has tons of information for aspiring B-school applicants like me.
I have submitted my applications for a couple of B-schools (Stanford and Univ of Chicago). And I am really excited the way my applications have come out and the way the application process has changed my thought process. I am eagerly awaiting an interview call
I owe you a special thanks – especially for “The WOW Factor” blog entry – It really helped a lot while writing my applications. Frankly speaking, the business school application process has opened up my mind, has stimulated me to find what matters to me and find what are my career aspirations are (as famous Stanford essay questions say
. And now, I do not want to slip into oblivion just checking the forums and application status for the next couple of months. I am starting to think alternate ways of reaching my long term ambitions even if I do not make to the B-schools. On the other hand, I believe that the effort I put in now will help me with the recruiting, networking and other stuff if I get into B-schools. Diving into my question,
I have an engineering background. And I am working for a leading IT Consulting firm for the past 5 years. I have designed and implemented IT solutions for clients across 3 different continents. Looking at my long term career ambition, I see moving into Strategy Consulting business quite imperative at this point in time. And, I have started to prepare myself for the case interviews and behavioral interviews as well. Furthermore, I have been reading quite a few articles on vault and wetfeet. Also, I have been shortlisting firms based on my requirements (size of the firm, kind of projects they do, geographic preference, etc..). I wanted your suggestions on reaching out and applying for firms.
— How do you rate one’s chances of moving from IT consulting to Strategy consulting without an MBA? Based on your experience, do you think – will strategy consulting firms give a shot at interviewing applicants like me?
— I have read a number of articles which talk about networking and how it helps one’s recruitment into Strategy Consulting firms. Having done my under-graduation outside US also seems to push me onto a negative scale. I have been trying hard to check with people I know to get in touch with folks from different Strategy Consulting firms but I do not seem to be very successful. Can you give me some pointers on how to go about this? Alternatively, do you suggest sending across my customized (resume + cover letter) to individual firms directly hamper my chances (rather than going through one of their employees)?
— Being a career changer, do you suggest some kind of certifications which might help highlighting my candidature?
And I really appreciate your time and energy in answering these questions for me. Thank You !
Best Regards
RS”
——————
My response:
RS,
I hope this response finds you doing well. Thanks for checking out my blog and thinking of me as a resource for your questions about Bschool and Consulting. Also, thanks for the shout out about that “The WOW Factor” blog entry…that might be the entry that I’ve put the second most thought into over the past four years of writing my blog (with my ‘Lessons learned about Bschool’ entry being #1 in that department), I’ve been thinking about your questions for a couple of days and I’m not sure how much help I can be, but, as always, I’ll try my best.
OK, in the spirit of the characteristic “structured problem solving” that one finds in strategy consulting firms, let’s address your questions in order:
1. “How do you rate one’s chances of moving from IT consulting to Strategy consulting without an MBA? Based on your experience, do you think – will strategy consulting firms give a shot at interviewing applicants like me?” –> Based on the stories of people I know, the strategy firms are open to bringing in candidates with IT consulting backgrounds as long as they have a strong work history and demonstrate the traditional structured problem solving tested for in the case interview process. I think I wrote an entry or two about transitioning from IT Consulting to strategy consulting in the past, so I won’t go into too much depth on the topic here, but I know of folks who have done it. Your chances of making the transition would be much easier if you go for a firm that has a practice or sub-focus that deals with the IT strategy side of business, such as McKinsey Business Technology Office, Accenture’s Communications and High Tech group,
and Booz Allen’s Government Practice, because your background would prepare you to provide value to clients immediately. Please note that I said “IT strategy side of business”, which isn’t the same as “IT Consulting”. When I say “IT consulting”, I’m referring to doing IT systems development and implementation and dealing more with hardware, software, ERP systems, etc that the clients will use day-in and day-out. When I say “IT side of business”, I’m referring to providing a client with guidance on how to leverage IT to grow their business and push it to the next level in performance…this may include some implementation on the back-end at some point, but figuring out how to make IT work as a core component of a business strategy and overall performance booster is much different than setting up the actual out-of-the-box system that company will run.
2. “Can you give me some pointers on how to go about this? Alternatively, do you suggest sending across my customized (resume + cover letter) to individual firms directly hamper my chances (rather than going through one of their employees)? ” –> Hmmmmm…networking within the consulting industry is tough because I dont know if there are any associations which bring together folks across the different firms. I know plenty of people who work at other strategy firms, but that’s because they either went to school with me, are longtime friends of mine, or I met them through other friends of mine. What you could do is try to do some informal networking with folks from other firms through colleagues at your own firm…you could go to dinners, happy hours, and similar events where you could connect with friends of folks you work with and get an in that way. I’d guess that you’re right in that it is helpful to have an “in” at a consulting firm when you’re applying (I recently wrote an entry about that), but it isn’t necessary. I know of several people who went into strategy firms as experienced hire candidates without knowing someone who worked at their employer beforehand. These people put together dynamite resume and cover letter packages and simply applied to their firms online to get themselves in front of recruiters. This seems to be an effective method as long as a candidate can compile a strong application submission and his/her background meets the needs of a particular firm. It may take longer for this method to work in your favor, but, if you’re patient enough to wait it out, it can indeed work.
3. “Being a career changer, do you suggest some kind of certifications which might help highlighting my candidature?” –> I wish I could help you out with this one, but I’ve never heard of any certifications associated with strategy consulting. It’s a little different in this specialty of management consulting as compared to IT Consulting where some of the technical certifications might help you get ahead on your career path. You might want to ask some other folks in strategy consulting about this question because there may be some certifications that I haven’t heard of yet.
Good luck with your business school applications and I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you on the GSB application. Hopefully, you’ll be getting the good word from my man DB in a couple of months. Also, good luck on your networking efforts in the Consulting arena. Take care.
-Marquis
Cannot agree with you more Marquis! Great insights!