| Topic Name: |
Federal Practice Consulting |
| Message Name: |
Answers |
| Date Posted: |
12/29/2005 |
| In Reply To: |
I just received an offer with Deloitt at the SC level. I think many things about the firm are attractive, I have found the recruiting process to be professional, and I yearn to do more strategic work as opposed to the administrative things I am tied up in right now. But I have these concerns:
1. Travel ?? I worked in a job for 5 yrs traveling 40+ weeks a year 4-5 days a week, I know I cannot do that anymore, especially with a young child. Does the average employee travel in the Federal practice?
2. How flexible is flex time ?? currently I pick up a child from day care which means I come in earlier and leave a little earlier some days ?? is this likely do-able as a consultant ?? it has been for my current employer.
3. What are the hours like, the combination of dealing with a 80 minute commute both ways into DC pretty much already adds and extra hour to hour and a half of time besides an 8-9 hour day. Is the norm 40-45 hour weeks with an occasional 60+ hour week or the reverse?
If someone would be willing to talk please give an e-mail, I??d love to chat with someone for 10 minutes or so.
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| Message: |
1.
In general, the Fed Practice will try to keep you local, especially if you are in the DC area. The Govt doesn't like to pay travel for consultants, so it's beneficial for the firm to keep you near by.
That said, government projects are often long-term, multi-year projects. If you land on a project that is out of town, you may find yourself traveling 4 days a week (or even 5 days). My guess is that 80% of the federal practice employees in the DC area are local and 20% are traveling.
2.
Flex-time will depend on your manager and project. In some cases, it may be held against you when the rest of the project team is on-site until 7p or later and you are leaving before 5p. Other times, you'll have an understanding team. In general, consulting is not a family friendly career. The firm is full of people that put their career before anything else and some of those people without a family don't understand the pressures of work/family balance.
3.
Your average work week will be 50 hours. 45 billable hours are expected each week, in addition to administrative office work (t&e, career development, networking, proposals, etc). You will get some slow weeks where you sneak by with 40 hours, but most weeks will be 50+. During peak project times and during the occasional proposal, hours may spike to 70+, but those weeks are not too common.
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