| Topic Name: |
Experienced Exec Switch to Consulting |
| Message Name: |
Realistic but not fooled |
| Date Posted: |
05/25/2007 |
| In Reply To: |
It sounds like you might be hoping that someone:
* Who works at a top mgm't consulting firm.
And
* Who is in a position to know about an opening that you are qualified for (or believe that you are).
And
* Who reads messages posted anonymously on the Vault Job Search forum.
Will
* Do something to make it likely that you'll get an interview for a high-level job at their firm.
In my 20 yrs. of professional experience assisting job hunters - including some that I've helped get positions at top-notch consulting firms...
it's my opinion that unless you get very very lucky, it's unlikely that a firm is going to be very interested in interviewing someone for a high-paying job who isn't well-connected at that firm.
That's why I suggested to you that you should just fire off your resume to a slew of them and see what happens. That's about all you could realistically do even if someone HERE were to tell you that they believe that the XYZ firm sometimes hires people like yourself. You're still going to have to go thru the process, so your chances won't be much, if any, better. And, at all the better firms, no matter who you send your resume to, it'll go to HR for screening.
The only other thing you might consider doing since you're doing a do-it-yourself search, is to join a Networking group and hope to connect with someone there that can be helpful to your cause.
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| Message: |
Thanks for your comments. I'm possibly naive but I hadn't thought that somebody at a top firm would be reading this post and voila I would get a hot lead on a job opportunity. However, that type of advice or outcome would be great. Here is what I'm looking for.
In my consulting career I've have had the opportunity to jv my firm's resources with some of the top mgmnt consulting firms - BCG, Bain, AT Kearney, AD Little, Mercer and Kurt Salmon. I have first hand experience how the aforementioned companies .....
1. Staff and manage projects
2. Treat the firms they partner with
3. Develop solutions and implement strategy.
4. Treat "experienced pros" versus staff developed in the traditional mgmt consulting manner.
And frankly, I sometimes witnessed first hand a dichotomy in how people were assigned work based on whether they "were nutured here" versus came from the "outside" and it affected the results of the engagement....
My goal of this post isn't to go into a diatribe about the skills that experienced professionals have versus what the recruited from MBA school talent at these firms have. Successful teams have leaders, mentors, specialists and many skilled people working on all manner of a project's development and outcome. However......
1. I'm keen to know if there are specific firms that have track records (or are more open minded) when it comes to hiring experienced professionals.
2. If there are such firms - what would make a seasoned pro attractive to them?
I want my search to have rational expectations and positive results. There's no fooling myself here - the culture at these firms are very much geared to working your way up the ladder - I've read all the bios of senior leadership at these firms and I haven't read a leader's bio that says he just joined the firm. Likewise, most engagement managers that I've worked with have several years of experience at that particular firm.
So far, I think I've gotten my answer - the hiring process at these firms isn't going to "fast track" me to the opportunity to be offered employment.
Thanks.
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