Archive | transition

Recently-graduated Chemical Engineer interested in Consulting

Categories: career, consulting, professional advice, transition

The email below came to me from a recent college graduate who wants to make a transition into management consulting. He majored in Chemical Engineering and went into a pharma company right out of college. Now, he’s realized that consulting is the right path for him and he’s looking for my advice on whether it makes sense to make a move and, if so, how he can make that move.

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VC wrote:

Hi Marquis,
I have looked through your website and many other websites now and have not found an adequate answer to this question.
I am a recent

… Read the rest

Advice for a paralegal looking to move into Consulting

Categories: Business, career, career path, consulting, management consulting, professional advice, transition

The email below is from a relatively recent college grad who currently works as a paralegal at a large law firm, but strongly desires to make a transition into management consulting. One complication for him is that he’s only been in his current job for about 6 months and isn’t sure how making a jump so soon into his job will affect the way that consulting firms will look at him.

Tough situation, right? Check out the text below to see the advice that I shared with him.

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JH wrote:

Hi Marquis,

I’ve graduated from the U. Va. in

… Read the rest

How to bounce back from being laid off

Categories: career, career path, guest bloggers, other sites, transition

In today’s economy, many people around the world have had to deal with the shock involved with being laid off. For most people, being told that their employer no longer needs their services is a huge surprise and can lead to fear, apprehension, financial strain, and, worst of all, depression. Having been laid off earlier in my career, I understand how difficult it can be to come back from such a blow.

I’ve wanted to write a post on this topic for a while, but my schedule hasn’t really allowed me the time to think through how to best present … Read the rest

Question about transitioning to a “Big 3″ Consulting firm as an experienced hire

Categories: career, career path, consulting, Financing the MBA, management consulting, mba, professional advice, transition

The email below is from one of my visitors who was seeking advice on how to transition to a Big 3 Consulting firm (i.e., McKinsey, Bain, and BCG) in an Analyst role as an experienced hire. Consulting firms usually hire Analyst-level talent directly after school, so the move that this reader is targeting can be a tricky one. I know a few people who have done this, so I definitely have a few ideas on the topic.

His question is similar to ones that I’ve received a few times before, so, luckily, I was able to refer him to a … Read the rest

Active duty military soldier with future interest in Consulting

Categories: career, career path, consulting, management consulting, mba, professional advice, recruiting, transition

The email below came in from an active duty soldier in the U.S. Air Force who is interested in pursuing a career in Consulting after his time in the service ends next year. He’s close to completing his MBA at a non-top-tier MBA program (he has done his coursework while in the military) and he’s wondering if that would hinder him from having a shot at a big-name firm.

I might have mentioned this before, but I’ve got a soft spot for folks in the military because several of my family members have served. I hope that my advice is … Read the rest

Advice for making a career change to consulting

Categories: career, consulting, mba, Networking, transition

What’s going on, folks. The email below has been in my Inbox for about 5 months now and I feel terrible that I’m just now getting the chance to address it. Fortunately, the member who sent it is currently employed, so there isn’t time pressure for a response. That said, I still feel bad for taking so long to respond to it. I hope to be caught up on things soon.

The member who sent the email is currently employed as a Sales Representative, but would like to transition to Management Consulting, preferably at McKinsey, Bain, or BCG. His big … Read the rest

Conversation with Tanisha Drummer, Strategy Professional and Former Management Consultant

Categories: Business, Business School, career, career-life balance, consulting, Conversations, entrepreneurship, Leaving job for Bschool, mba, my peoples, professional advice, Stanford GSB, strategy, transition

In this entry, you’ll be introduced to Tanisha Drummer, a Strategy professional and former Management Consultant. Tanisha is a friend of mine from my years at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and has done some really interesting things in her career. Tanisha is a former Management Consultant in Accenture’s Strategy Practice, where she focused on Marketing strategy for 4 years before business school and 1.5 years afterward. She’s been in her current Corporate Strategy role at US Cellular for over a year now and has been having tremendous impact.

I’m tempted to give you more background on her … Read the rest

Transitioning into Consulting as an experienced hire from the auto industry

Categories: auto industry, career, consulting, Finance, mba, recruiting, strategy, transition

The message below is from an auto industry professional who is interested in transitioning to Management Consulting. He has a solid 10 years of auto experience and an MBA, but, during his previous attempts at applying, he hasn’t received any interview invitations. He’s asking for my read on his situation and for guidance on whether he has holes in his profile. I have a feeling that his earlier lack of success might have been tied to timing and the economic downturn, but I can’t be 100% sure of that. I gave him a quick read on his profile in my… Read the rest

14 surprising first careers of famous people

Categories: career, career path, interesting articles, other sites, transition

In some of my recent issues, I’ve tried to share the lesson that people can come from a variety of backgrounds and still have successful business careers. Many visitors to this site are aiming for drastic career transitions into business, but conventional wisdom often leaves people thinking that it isn’t possible. Before I applied to business school, I remember hearing that people needed to major in Business Administration in undergrad and do either investment banking or management consulting afterward to have a shot at being a successful businessperson in the long-term. I’m so glad that I didn’t listen too intently… Read the rest

An announcement from me and an introduction to my strategic approach to the job search (Part I)

Categories: About Marquis, career, career path, interview advice, job search resources, professional advice, transition

Hello, everyone. I’d like to start this entry by wishing everyone a Happy Easter. I hope everyone who celebrates this holiday remembers the true reason for the celebration and is able to be with loved ones on this family-focused holiday. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get down to Virginia to spend it with my family, but they all know that I would have been there if I could. I’ve definitely got to get down there for Mother’s Day though.

Second, I would like to announce a pretty major change on my end. I recently decided to pursue a new career opportunity and, … Read the rest

Question about Stanford’s MS&E program as prep for management consulting

Categories: career, consulting, Education, pre-MBA grad degrees, software engineer, transition

The message below is from a reader whose story mirrors my own very closely…He was a Computer Science undergrad who moved on to a career as a Software Engineer, which he has been doing for five years. And, like me, he has lost his passion for that line of work and sees a transition to business as the way to achieve his goals. Unlike me, he seems reluctant to pursue an MBA and, instead, he is looking at Stanford’s Master’s program in Management Science and Engineering. In his message, he asks some questions about the program and, although I am… Read the rest

Question about my future in the for-profit education space

Categories: About Marquis, career, Education, shout outs to me, transition

The email for this entry comes from an MBA aspirant who is trying to decide between applying for Stanford’s MBA/MA.Ed program or the JD/MBA program, but his email has nothing to do with questions about either kind of program. Rather, he’s wondering what my plans are, if any, to work in the for-profit education space. I seldom get emails asking about me, so I enjoyed responding to this one. I haven’t really figured out whether I’ll do any work in for-profit education in my career, so I described some of my very early thinking on the matter.

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TW wrote:… Read the rest

Techie with questions about career switching after an MBA

Categories: Business School, career, consulting, mba, professional advice, Technology-related, transition

Hey, everyone. Two entries in one weekend…wow, this is the first time I’ve been able to do that in while. I’ve been pretty busy as of late because of work and life stuff, so I haven’t had a chance to sit down and write any new content for the site. It’s much easier for me to provide links to externally provided content than to create it myself when I’m on the real life grind. I set the goal of completing a couple of responses before the end of the weekend and now that’s done. I might actually try to knock … Read the rest

Experienced technology professional looking to transition into Management Consulting

Categories: career, consulting, IT consulting, professional advice, Technology-related, transition

The email below is one that has been in my Inbox for more than seven months now. I’ve looked at this reader’s message many times over the past few months, but the email was too long for me to want to tackle it any of those times. For some reason, I took a look at it again today and figured that I might as well knock this one out to get it over with. As you can see, this email is not only long but it also asks me hella questions, both of which are no-no’s that I’ve stated several … Read the rest

Recent interview of for a GMAT prep company’s website

Categories: About this blog, application process, Bschool admissions, Bschool experience, Business School, career, interviews of me, Stanford GSB, Technology-related, transition

What’s good, folk. One of the funny side effects of having done this blog for so long is that I’ve developed a sort of brand around providing great information about business school life and am approached to do interviews about it every now and then. Recently, I was approached by the founder of a GMAT prep company called GMATPill.com with a request to be interviewed as a part of its “Post-GMAT/Pre-MBA Interview Series”. The founder of GMATPill, Zeke, is a Stanford graduate and former management consultant, so y’all KNOW I couldn’t say ‘no’ to the request for an interview…Plus, it … Read the rest