Consulting Resource Guide

Overview of Consulting Consulting is both a function and an industry. As a function, consulting is the process of advising clients regarding their organizational and strategic challenges and opportunities and recommending strategies to meet their goals. Most consulting projects proceed through the following steps: 1) defining the parameters of the project and issues and questions to be answered, 2) gathering data and performing analysis, 3) making recommendations and, in some instances, 4) playing a role in the implementation of the recommendations. In strategy consulting, there are thousands of large-scale firms around the world, as well as smaller firms and individual practitioners. Consulting organizations approach their businesses in a variety of ways. Some are generalists and cover a wide range of issues and industries. Examples of large, multi-issue strategy-focused firms include McKinsey & Company, Boston Consulting Group, Bain & Company and Monitor Group. Other consulting firms specialize in a particular industry or policy area (health care, education, telecommunications, economic development, etc.) or type of support (for example strategy development or human capital management.). Examples of specialized firms include Cambridge Leadership Associates, Chartis Group, NERA Economic Consulting, and IHS CERA. Some consulting organizations serve as contractors to governments and work alongside governmental and non governmental implementers over a period of years. Examples include Booz Allen Hamilton, Chemonics, Dalberg, J.E. Austin Associates, Inc. and John Snow, Inc. If you are considering a career in consulting, you should first determine whether you enjoy the role consultants play, and second whether you want to apply consulting skills to a particular issue area in a specialized firm or to a broad range of topics in a generalist firm. Exploring Interest in Consulting To determine if consulting is right for you, create a roadmap to investigate the career path. 1. Research the industry and particular firms a) Reading general publications regularly such as The Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times and The New York Times is important to build and maintain your knowledge of the current issues and context within which clients operate. Vault is a useful resource for researching consulting. Please find further information on how to access it in the Recommended Reading section of this guide. Browsing JACK is helpful in developing a list of consulting organizations that have particular interest in the skills and experience offered by HKS students and alumni. 2. Speak with a variety of people to hear their perspectives and recommendations, including classmates who have worked in consulting, faculty, alumni, and prospective employers. 3. Test your interest and develop your skills. a) Take some case-based courses and/or courses which incorporate consulting projects as part of the course requirements. If you like case-based courses, it may be a good indication that you will enjoy consulting.

b) For MPP students, think strategically about your Policy Analysis Exercise (PAE). Your PAE can be an effective tool for developing your consulting skills and helping you clarify your interests in the function. Choose your topic based on your interest, and select a client who may be a potential employer, effective contact, and/or reference. c) Participate in student groups and other activities that give you the opportunity to develop skills, particularly in management and leadership. For example, the International Consulting Organization provides students with the opportunity to work as volunteers on international development consulting projects. 4. Review case preparation books and complete practice cases. It is important to practice cases frequently with others. See below, the Recommended Reading, Firm websites for Practice Cases and Other Resources sections. Review McKinsey Quarterly and Harvard Business Review. 5. If you need to improve your GRE or GMAT quantitative analysis scores, retake the test(s). 6. Attend OCA-sponsored consulting events. 7. Based on your research and networking, decide whether the role of generalist, specialist, or both attracts you. Next, develop a list of target organizations and set priorities for your search. If you are considering a particular location, familiarize yourself with the types of clients your target firms serve in area where you will live to ensure there is a good match with your interests, knowledge areas and skills. Outside the U.S., firms often strongly prefer HKS candidates from their country or region. 8. Watch employer deadlines, which could be as early as late September.

OCA Consulting Events* Typical OCA consulting-related events include:

Consulting fairs in the fall to showcase employers Employer briefings Case interview preparation session Student consulting panel, an opportunity to hear from students with consulting experience For students who are offered an interview with a firm, individual practice case preparation sessions are available with an HKS student who has worked in the consulting industry. After receiving your offer to interview, contact Paula Koczera at paula_koczera@harvard.edu to be connected with a student who can help you

*Check KNet for specific dates and times for all consulting events.

OCA Resource Guide: Consulting 2012

Skills Required The skills required in consulting align well with the HKS curriculum and the fundamental principles of analysis, management and leadership. You should be prepared to discuss these synergies when presenting the value of an HKS degree in interviews. The profile of a good consultant includes: Intellectual and Analytical

Passion for consulting and problem-solving; understanding of the industry and the work of consultants Interest in leading-edge framework and concept development and/or knowledge of content area specific to firms practice area Ability to synthesize data Interest in working in a client service organization Strength in analysis and comfort with quantitative analysis and concepts

Management

Project management Team-orientation, ability to lead, but also willingness to collaborate Strong presentation skills Listening skills Marketing and sales skills Ability to work under pressure and to meet deadlines Energy and resilience for extensive travel and long working hours

Recruiting Timeline and Process Most firms hire in the fall for full-time opportunities and in late fall/early winter for summer internships. Typically, a candidate may have up to three rounds of interviews with a firm before receiving an offer. Often, the final round is with representatives from the regional office for which the candidate is being considered. Watch JACK, KNet and firm websites for opportunities, deadlines, and processes. Develop a targeted resume for consulting and, if required, a targeted cover letter for each application. Many large strategy consulting firms develop formalized summer internship programs and utilize the programs to test and locate a large percentage of their full-time hires. In smaller consulting firms, summer internships may not be a standard part of the business model, but they can often be arranged on an ad hoc basis.

OCA Resource Guide: Consulting 2012

Interview Preparation Case-based Interviews In preparing for case interviews, your first step is to determine if the firms in which you are interested currently utilize case studies in their interview process. Employer websites, recruiters, students and alumni who have worked with the firm and OCA are reliable sources. Preparation for case-based interviews requires significant time and is an ongoing learning process. Take time to develop your analytical framework. Plan to pace yourself to develop your skills over a semester, as lastminute cramming is rarely effective. Considering that preparation and practice are key, practice with friends, classmates and/ or the Harvard Graduate Consulting Club. Case questions are role plays. There are a variety of types of case questions including brain teasers, market-sizing questions and business problems. Each requires the ability to perform basic mathematical calculations in your head. Market-sizing questions, sometimes known as back-of-the-envelope questions, ask you to determine the size of a certain market (i.e. estimate the size of the US cell phone market) or the number of units in a current market (i.e. How many restaurants are there in New York City?). Cases can, and often do, encompass a market-sizing question within a larger business question (i.e. Google wants to enter a new market. How big is the market and how should it enter it?). Often, all you have to work with are assumptions and logic. The interviewer is more interested in learning about your analytical thought process than in receiving an exact answer. The interviewer wants to see how you arrive at a reasonable estimate. You can ask for additional data, information and/or clarifying questions before proceeding with your analysis. Ask the most important questions first, and gauge the interviewers receptivity to additional questions. For interviews in nonprofit consulting, there may be a programmatic approach to the case study, i.e.: the organizations mission is to reduce poverty and it has $1 million that it can deploy for programs. You are provided with the scenario and data including demographic, market and potential scope of impact data and are asked to develop a recommendation. OCA provides membership to an online case preparation website, CaseQuestions.com. To access this site, you must enter through the HKS-CQI portal. This information is also available on the OCA KNet page under Useful Job Search Resources. Behavioral Interviewing Most firms use behavioral interviewing in conjunction with case interviewing. Behavioral interviewing operates on the principle that past performance is a predictor of future performance. Read the OCA guide, Interviewing that Works: Stand Out from the Crowd to begin your preparation. If you are not experienced in behavioral interviewing, meet with an OCA coach to discuss interviewing technique and/or arrange a mock interview. Compensation Consulting salaries vary widely depending on the type of consulting firm and a candidates level of experience. Vault.com, Wetfeet.com, indeed.com, glassdoor.com, PayScale.com and salary.com provide information on compensation levels, and OCA coaches can provide data on recent salaries offered to HKS graduates. Generally, large strategy consulting firms offer salaries of more than $100,000 and smaller firms, particularly those with government and nonprofit clients, offer salaries in the range of $70,000 to $100,000. Very small firms may offer less. These are simply guidelines, however; your specific situation and the nature of the hiring organization will determine the offer you receive.
OCA Resource Guide: Consulting 2012

Representative Firms Company/Organization Accenture (Management Consulting, Health and Public Sector Strategy Practice) Analysis Group Who do they hire? How many? A small practice area. Does not hire every year. Will give maybe one offer per year. Finance background/ knowledge is preferred. Prefers those with MBA in addition to MPA/MPP, but other students should consider applying. Will hire three to six HKS grads each year. Hiring varies significantly from year to year ranging from 1 to 12 hires; Will hire grads at different levels. Prefers those with MBA for U.S. offices. Many international offices are specifically looking for MPAs, MPPs and MPA/IDs. Must have some solid work experience. Hires a few HKS grads each year. Focus on nonprofit consulting. Spinoff of Bain & Co. Has hired several HKS grads in recent years. Uses internship as recruiting tool, so no direct fulltime hiring. Hires anywhere between one and eight graduates. Hires across all programs. Excited to hire HKS graduates. Requires one to two years of work experience for most common role Hires across all programs. They think highly of military backgrounds and previous consulting experience. They will typically make between three and six offers each year. Additional Notes Accenture, apart from the Health and Public Sector Strategy Practice, does not recruit at HKS U.S.- based jobs only

Bain & Company

One of The Big Three Global company U.S. Citizenship required. A current security clearance is helpful One of The Big Three Global company

Booz Allen Hamilton

Boston Consulting Group (BCG)

The Bridgespan Group

Censeo Consulting

Important to apply to the right job level: Assoc. Consultant vs. Consultant. Read the descriptions carefully to make an informed decision. U.S. Citizenship required

Deloitte Consulting

E&Y Government and Public Sector Advisory Group IBM Global Services

U.S. Citizenship required for federal positions. Will consider international students for state/ local practice. U.S. Citizenship required U.S. based jobs only Salary is competitive with The Big Three U.S. Citizenship required

OCA Resource Guide: Consulting 2012

LMI Government Consulting

Hires for public policy fellows a professional development program. Prefers students with previous consulting experience. Should have at least three years of work experience. About 50% of hires also have an MBA

U.S. Citizenship required Washington, DC only Students must take a written quantitative exam in round one and be comfortable with case interviews One of The Big Three Global company

McKinsey & Company

Monitor Group

Hires only a few graduates each year. Prefers previous consulting or industry experience

Sometimes recruits on campus, but not every year Global company

U.S. National Park Service Busi- Hires about 12 interns each sum- This particular opportunity is only for mer from target business and pol- the summer, but is great consulting exness Plan Internship icy schools. No set intern profile. perience. U.S. Citizenship required UPD Consulting Thinks extremely highly of HKS U.S. based jobs only graduates. Analytical skills and an interest in state and local government and/social policy required. Internal consulting role. Should have at least three to five years of solid work experience, preferably in consulting and/or government. Unique role in the federal government. Opportunity to work directly with the Director of the Secret Service. Competitive salary/benefits.

U.S. Secret Service

Recommended Reading The following resources may be helpful in exploring consulting: Case in Point: Complete Case Interview Preparation, Marc Cosentino* Flawless Consulting: A Guide to Getting Your Expertise Used, Peter Block How to Conquer Your Case Interviews, David L. Ohrvall* Make Your Case: Master Consulting Interviews, WallStreetOasis.com ** The Management Consultant: Mastering the Art of Consultancy (Financial Times Series), Richard Newton Plunkett's Consulting Industry Almanac Strategy+Business, Booz Allen Hamilton
OCA Resource Guide: Consulting 2012

Vaults Career Insider We have recently added Vaults Career Insider to our collection of resources. Create your individual account in Vault by visiting our Useful Career Resources page at OCA on KNet and clicking on the Vault tab. Guides of particular interest for consulting include:

Vault Guide to Consulting Vault Guide to the Case Interview Vault Guide to the Top 25 Consulting Firms, Asia Pacific Edition

www.wetfeet.com offers career tools and information. The organization also has career guides on consulting and practice case books available for purchase. _______________________________________________________________ * Available through the Harvard Library system. ** A reference copy is available to review while in the Office of Career Advancement. Firm websites for Practice Cases In addition to the practice case resources above, what follows are links for interview preparation and practice cases provided by firms. Check websites of other firms in which you are interested for their offerings: www.mckinsey.com/careers www.joinbain.com/apply-to-bain/interview-preparation/default.asp www.bcg.com/join_bcg/default.aspx www.monitor.com/JoinMonitor/InterviewPhilosophy/tabid/168/L/en-US/Default.aspx Additional Harvard Resources

Harvard Graduate Consulting Club: http://www.harvardgraduateconsultingclub.com/. Headquartered in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, and including members from HKS, HLS, and many other Harvard graduate schools, the purpose of the Harvard Graduate Consulting Club (HGCC) is to bring together like-minded individuals and expose them to the world of consulting by providing opportunities to develop business acumen through a series of diverse activities and networking events. The club hosts many workshops on interview tips and case practice as well as business knowledge seminars throughout the year. Every year in the summer, the club offers two popular programs: the MIT vs. Harvard Case Competition and the Mini-MBA program. There is also an opportunity to participate in consulting engagements in the Volunteer Consulting Group. For more information, please visit http://www.harvardgraduateconsultingclub.com. If you have any questions, please visit OCA or send an e-mail to Paula at paula_koczera@harvard.edu.
International Consulting Organization, an HKS student group Consulting Magazine: www.consultingmag.com and www.KennedyInfo.com
Links to external websites and resources are provided for informational purposes only and do not represent endorsement by the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

OCA Resource Guide: Consulting 2012