Mckinsey Signing Bonus Negotiation

Hi there,

Congratulations on the offer! In terms of your question:

Q: The signing bonus is approximately 10% of my base salary. Do you think there is room for negotiation or will that put me in bad position? Do you think I should negotiate?

Normally in consulting the base salary for a given position is fixed for everyone. What you can usually negotiate is:

• The signing bonus
• The relocation bonus
• The seniority you join 

The easiest way to negotiate is to have an “opportunity cost”, ideally due to another offer. If you don’t have any reference point for why they should offer more than 10%, I would personally not bring up the point.

Best,

Francesco

There's no harm in explaining to HR that you earn more currently and would like a higher base to be level with your experience. They will not rescind the offer unless you state things like you won't join without it etc. If you're polite and have a strong rationale they will not mind the ask. 

Hi there,

There is always room for negoation.

Consider hiring a coach for $200-$400 for help on getting $10k more. Seems like a good ROI to me!

My advice is to always negotiate. But, you need to do it in the right way. 

Hi there,

First of all, congratulations on the offer from McKinsey!

I would be happy to share my thoughts on your situation:

• First of all, it's common in the consulting industry for the signing bonus to range from ca. 5% to 15% of the base salary, though it varies depending on the firm and the location. In your case, the 10% bonus seems reasonable considering the industry standards.
• Moreover, negotiations are generally accepted in the consulting industry, but should be approached with tact. In your case, I would advise you to prepare a clear and logical argument for a higher signing bonus, perhaps leveraging your previous experience or the competitive salaries at tier-2 consulting firms in your country.

You can find more on this topic here: Salaries in the consulting industry.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to best prepare for your upcoming negotiation, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Hi there, 

Congrats on the offer!

Do you have leverage?

as in, do you have another better offer?

If not, then don't try to negotiate because you're not in a good position to being with. 

Base salaries and bonuses tend to be set up front at the big firms. So they don't expect or enjoy much negotiation. 

And since now recruitment is rather tight, your position is ever weaker. 

Anyway, enjoy the job and here are some guides to get you started off to being a distinctive consultant:

• How to Survive Your First Year as a Management Consultant
• The Truth About Consulting Work Hours: What You Need to Know

Best,
Cristian

Hello,

I think you have nothing to lose from negotiating if you do so politely and reasonably - the worst they can say is no. 10% is fairly standard, but it seems like you have a good argument (your years of experience) and some research on salaries to back up your case. I'd recommend spending some time preparing your pitch so you are ready for the negotiation. Best of luck!

Hi there,

while no chance on your base salary, you can try to negotiate on the following items of your comp:

1. Signing bonus - you can definitely try and it is particularly promising when you have cross-offers. There is a certain degree of discretion for signing bonus, but you need to have sound reasoning / foundation to back it up.
2. Relocation bonus - quite common practice to include / push for more, if you need to move city. If you relocate within the same city, usually the firm won't care.

Hope this helps.

Regards, Andi

Hello, 

This is for which location and what starting date if you don't mind me asking?