MBB Exit chances after being counseled out

Question

Hi everyone,

I’d appreciate some honest advice from the community.

I joined an MBB firm as a consultant after spending more than 5 years in industry. Unfortunately, I was counseled out a bit after the one-year mark, and by the time I leave I will have a hair over 1.5 years of tenure.

I’m currently targeting corporate strategy roles. I don’t have a strong industry preference. My main goal is to join a true strategy function, ideally outside of the industry I worked in before joining MBB. However, after applying actively for a couple of months, I’ve received very few interviews, and I’m starting to lose confidence in my chances.

I’m worried that I may end up having to go back to the same type of role I had before MBB. It feels like this would be a step backwards, and I can’t shake the feeling that joining MBB will have been “for nothing” if I end up in the same spot, especially with the pressure of eventually being unemployed very soon.

Do you think I still have a realistic chance of landing a corporate strategy role given my background, my tenure and the circumstances of my exit? Or should I start preparing myself to return to a role similar to my pre-MBB role?

I’m also considering applying to other MBB or Tier-2 firms in another geography to increase my tenure in strategy consulting. However, I’m concerned that being unemployed might raise questions, and I’m also worried about risking a similar experience again.

Answer 1

1. Why you’re getting few interviews

There could be several reasons, some of which you can control, others you can't:

Most corporate strategy roles require 2.5–5 years of MBB experience; 1.5 years is on the junior side.
Your résumé or cover letter/narrative may not match what strategy teams expect.
Geography/visa constraints or industry mismatch can filter you out automatically (e.g., if you're applying to the US and need a visa).

DM me if you want. I'd be happy to help assess what you might be doing wrong here, before you decide to explore other paths. Maybe there are some things we can tweak to increase your chances of getting more interviews.

2. Your actual chances for corporate strategy

You might have some chances for junior strategy roles (Strategy Analyst/Associate, Strategy & Ops, some internal strategy teams).
You are not competitive for manager-level or “Head of Strategy” roles. These usually require much higher tenures (5-7 years of MBB). Landing corporate strategy is possible, but you need to target the right seniority and potentially broaden your search. What seniority roles have you been applying to?

3. What to do next

Being counseled out is not a deal-breaker if explained briefly and neutrally. But you need to have a coherent narrative for why you stayed for only 1.5 years in consulting after making the pivot from the industry. If your timeline is tight, consider adjacent roles (Strategy & Ops, Chief of Staff) or Tier-2/boutique consulting to extend your strategy tenure. Doing it in another geography can also help explain why you left MBB to join a Tier-2 firm (e.g., couldn't transfer internally, so decided to apply to other companies).

Answer 2

This is an incredibly tough spot, and the feeling that the past year and a half might be "for nothing" is completely understandable. Let me assure you, it wasn't. You have the MBB brand on your CV now, and that foundational training doesn't disappear.

Here is the reality check on your job search: the combination of an experienced hire background, short tenure (under two years), and the looming forced exit is what is filtering you out. Corporate HR screens are fundamentally risk-averse. They see the short duration and assume performance management issues, especially in a pure corporate strategy function that often relies on candidates who are known quantities (i.e., those who stayed for the standard 2-3 years). Your applications are likely being blindly screened out before the hiring manager even sees the quality of your pre-MBB experience.

You cannot rely on passive applications right now. Your immediate focus must be twofold: leveraging the network and being strategic about role titles. First, use your current firm affiliation—while you are still technically employed—to network aggressively. Talk to alumni, former project clients, and anyone in your extended MBB cohort. A warm introduction bypasses the HR filter that is currently killing your chances.

Second, pivot your search away from pure Corporate Strategy (which is often the most competitive and risk-averse function) and target roles where your five years of prior industry knowledge is highly valued, but now requires strategy skills. Think about roles like Strategy & Operations, Corporate Development, or Chief of Staff positions in a growth company—these are functions that appreciate the hybrid background and often have less rigid screening criteria than a Fortune 50 corporate strategy department. Trying to jump back into consulting now (especially MBB) is extremely risky; those performance metrics follow you, and the chance of recurrence is high. Get a good exit, stabilize your career, and then look for the next move in 2-3 years.

Hope this shift in perspective helps you land strong. All the best.

Answer 3

I'm sorry to hear about this. It must feel terrible.

Honestly, there's not only one path.

What's certain, though, is that it wasn't all for nothing. I'm sure you learned loads, and even this experience in and of itself matured you.

You could apply to other consulting firms, if you want to be in consulting. I know multiple examples of people who struggled in one firm but excelled in another.

You could apply to industry roles, if you feel you'd want to do that sort of work again because you realised consulting is not your cup of tea.

Or you could decide to pursue further education or qualifications. MBA / MiM programs are an example of this but not the only avenue.

Meaning, for now, it makes sense to think through all these options and see which is closest to your heart.

I'm sure things will move in the direction you want them to.

Best,
Cristian