subject: The Guaranteed (if Hard) Approach To Getting A Job In Management Consulting Market [print this page] A career in the business consulting places you above others in terms of career status. It is a really competitive market to break into - but the rewards are a work life and learning curve that is unsurpassable by any other industry. Working on projects for the top most companies in many industries you will jump on an accelerated learning curve.
It's a job for many. But why do you get a job in this market when it is so much in need?
Get to the root of the issue by looking at their demands - look at them like clients. Experience and education are your own reflection of these skills and you will need to transform them into a mirror of those consulting capabilities.
Here are some tips on how to go about this.
1. Learn to understand what drives the consulting industry: There are many market research firms, and studies available via web research that will tell you a lot about what the consulting industry is about. Your goals are:
A) Learn what a consulting market overview does typically from hour to hour. Understand the type of the job. Best approach is to go and talk to some consultants in the businesses you are interested in.
B) Learn how consulting companies generate cash. All business is about the revenue and cost equation and that includes the strategy consulting. Look at the streams of income and identify what value levers are pushing them. What drives their costs. You will already be ahead of 90% of your competition if you truly understand these things.
C) Find out what the latest competitive and client issues are in the market. What could the future of the strategy consulting be? What sort of issues are partners of consulting firms considering today? What appears in their nightmares? If you understand and have investigated these issues, it will be easy to impress and connect with your interviewer (a partner who has to manage his consulting firm)
2. Identify the future growth areas of the industry: kennedy information analysis firms are a portfolio of skills and capacities all wrapped up in their people - the individuals that make up their business. The easiest way to make yourself a great prospect for strategy consulting industry companies is to attain the right talents that fit their array of needs. Examine and explore the talent needs for the strategy consulting industry by looking at exactly what type of work they need doing on client projects. Exploring the latest press releases by the management consulting companies is where you start - because that's their growth areas. What did the consultant say in the FT this week? Guess what, the areas the consulting firms publish research and white papers on are the areas they are growing in typically. It's really not hard to find these.
3. Mirror the needs of the consulting firms: Now that you have identified some growth areas how can you mirror the skills in talent that they are looking for. What electives can you pursue that are relevant? Figure out how you can use your curriculum at school or extra curricular investments to get relevant experiences? Nothing else should have time put towards it except these subject areas. The requirements of the strategy consulting market company's recruiter will appear filled on every line of your CV. If you are unable to get a job in consulting when you graduate from school you should get a job in a relevant skill area. Then later it will be easy to jump into consulting with a CV that fits exactly the consulting firms' needs.
4. Final touch - your academic record: Unfortunately the reality is that competition is difficult out of school so make sure you get the best possible grades. Compete out all of your student peers to be top of class. Focus. Work hard. The investment and effort you make today will reward you many times over as you get access to a life in terms of career and financial rewards that was inaccessible before.
