I am graduate from BBA, marketing major and now work as an material control position in industry of manufacturing and supply chain and the question is what is the things I should do to get basic and can go through step by step to learn how to be a management consultant.

Hi,

Honestly, your current background is already more relevant to consulting than you probably think.

A lot of consulting work, especially in operations and supply chain consulting, is very close to what happens inside manufacturing companies:
planning, inventory management, process improvement, coordination across teams, KPI tracking, reducing inefficiencies, etc.

So I would not start by thinking: “I need to completely change my background.”

Instead, I’d focus on learning the consulting way of thinking and communicating.

If I were in your position, I’d probably do it step by step like this:

First, spend some time understanding what management consultants actually do day to day.
Not just “strategy,” but the real work: solving business problems, analyzing data, presenting recommendations, working with clients, etc.

Then start learning case interviews slowly.
At the beginning, even 1–2 live cases per week is enough.
The important thing early on is understanding:

• how to structure problems
• how to communicate clearly
• how to think logically under pressure

You do not need to master advanced frameworks immediately.

At the same time, try to connect your current experience to business impact.
For example, instead of saying: “I work in material control,”

think more in terms of:

• improving efficiency
• reducing waste
• coordinating operations
• supporting supply chain performance

That’s much closer to consulting language.

And honestly, because you already work in manufacturing/supply chain, operations consulting firms could actually value your profile more than a completely generic business profile.

Best,

Soheil

Hi, you’re actually in a good starting position because manufacturing and supply chain experience is very relevant for consulting, especially operations and transformation work.

The important thing is to approach this step by step instead of trying to learn everything at once.

If I were in your position, I’d focus on four things.

First: understand what management consulting actually is.
Watch real case interviews, read a few casebooks, and learn:

• how consultants solve problems
• how they communicate
• how projects are structured

You don’t need advanced theory at the beginning.

Second: build structured problem-solving skills.
This is the core skill in consulting.

Start practicing:

• breaking problems into parts
• prioritizing issues
• analyzing root causes
• making recommendations clearly

Case interviews are actually a good way to train this.

Third: improve business communication.
Consulting is not only about having good ideas — it’s about explaining them clearly.

Practice:

• speaking in a structured way
• summarizing key points
• being concise

Even in your current job, try to communicate more like a consultant:
“What is the issue, why does it matter, what should we do?”

Fourth: learn basic business and analytical skills.
You do not need to become an expert immediately, but get comfortable with:

• Excel
• PowerPoint
• basic finance/business concepts
• simple data analysis

And honestly, your current role can already help you a lot. Supply chain and manufacturing teach:

• operations
• process improvement
• stakeholder management
• problem solving under constraints

Those are very transferable skills.

My advice would be:

• start with fundamentals
• practice consistently
• don’t compare yourself to people already deep into consulting prep

It’s a skillset that can absolutely be learned step by step.

hey! 

I would say focus on three basics: learn structured problem‑solving through simple case basics, build business fundamentals with short courses in strategy and finance, and get small internal project experience so you can show impact. Once you have these foundations, start applying to junior analyst roles and grow step by step.

Best, Alessa

The path is real but realistically takes 3 to 5 years from where you are. Step-by-step.

First 6 months. Read foundational books, Case Interview Secrets, Case in Point, Pyramid Principle. Build Excel and finance basics through Coursera. Read business news daily.

Next 12 months. Reframe your material control role around impact, not duties. Volunteer for any operations improvement or cost reduction projects. Consider Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or APICS CSCP for credibility.

Then pivot to a consulting-adjacent role, internal strategy team, business analyst, or Big 4 and Indian boutiques like RedSeer or Praxis.

Long-term, plan an MBA. ISB, IIM PGPX, INSEAD, IMD. Score 720+ GMAT.

Lean into operations and supply chain consulting, not pure strategy.

Good luck.