Pivoting from big tech to consulting

Hi,

In terms of preparation I'd recommend you to do 3 things:

1. Start by building the theoretical foundation, then practise with peers, and use a coach for the fine tuning at the end. Do not jump straight into mock cases without the basics, but do not get stuck in the theory either.
2. Get your CV and cover letter properly reviewed. Your story needs to be clear, and the move from Amazon to strategy consulting needs to look intentional.
3. Prepare fit as seriously as case. Candidates coming from industry often over-index on the case and then lose points on a fit conversation they assumed would take care of itself.

In terms of application, I'd strongly look to get an internal referral. Nothing else you do at the application stage moves your odds as much as a referral, especially if you are a lateral hire. Also, I'd assume your tenure gets roughly halved. Even with four years at Amazon, entering at the next step up (consultant level at BCG, for example) is not automatic, and you may well come in as an associate with experience.

Overall your profile has real strengths. Even if you do not come from a target school, Amazon is a strong brand and you are playing at home in that market, so with the right preparation this move is definitely doable.

Hope it helps and feel free to drop me a message if you think I could be useful along the way.

Federico

my view:

1. You are more hirable than you think Saudi national + Amazon + Riyadh location is a strong combo. MBB offices in KSA are hiring aggressively for Vision 2030 work and prioritize local nationals. Non-target school matters much less at 2 to 3 years experience than it did at graduation. Your work brand now carries the weight

2. Positioning your Amazon experience BD Consultant is a good title to translate. Reframe your work as:

• Strategic (market analysis, partner selection, growth thesis)
• Analytical (data-driven decisions, sizing, business cases)
• Client-facing (managing partners = managing stakeholders) Weak: "managed seller accounts" Strong: "advised leadership on X category strategy, drove Y in incremental GMV through Z initiative" Every bullet needs a number

3. Timing and target

• Apply within 12 months, not 24. The Riyadh MBB hiring wave is peaking now
• Target: experienced hire / associate lateral, not analyst. Your Amazon time counts
• Apply to MBB and Tier 2 (Kearney, OW, Strategy&, Roland Berger) in parallel. Tier 2 in Riyadh is also very active and pays well

4. What to build in the next 6 months

• Case prep (start now, aim for 30 to 40 cases before applying)
• One "strategy-flavored" project at Amazon you can talk about for 10 minutes in FIT
• Network with Riyadh MBB consultants on LinkedIn, ex-Amazon ones especially, coffee chats convert well in KSA
• Arabic-language business news fluency, they will test market knowledge

5. Realistic expectations Do not expect to enter as a Senior Associate. Most Amazon-to-MBB pivots at your level come in as Associate/Consultant. Salary jump is real, but the level reset is normal. Focus on the 5-year trajectory, not the entry title

Net: apply within 12 months, prep cases hard, network locally. Your profile fits what Riyadh offices are actively looking for

Happy to go deeper on any of these

Hi there,

You're in a stronger position than your "non-target, big-tech" framing suggests - so let me be direct about what actually moves the needle, in priority order.

Your single biggest asset is being a Saudi national in the Riyadh market. This isn't a small thing. MBB and Tier-2 firms in Saudi are under real pressure to build Saudi talent (Saudization / Vision 2030 localization), and nationals are actively sought for the Riyadh offices. That advantage can outweigh the non-target degree substantially. Lean into it - you are exactly the kind of candidate these offices are told to hire more of. Combined with the ex-Amazon pattern you already spotted on LinkedIn, your target path is well-proven, not speculative.

Second: get the application in through the right door. You have two realistic routes and should run both. (1) Apply directly as an experienced hire to the Riyadh offices of McKinsey, BCG, Bain, and the strong Tier-2 players (Strategy&, which is particularly deep in KSA, Kearney, Roland Berger, Oliver Wyman). (2) Get a referral - and this is where the ex-Amazon connections matter. Reach out to those people you found on LinkedIn: a short, specific note (Saudi national, currently at Amazon BD, targeting the Riyadh office, would value 15 minutes of their perspective). Junior consultants who made the same jump refer generously, and a referral materially raises the odds your CV gets a real look rather than sitting in the pile.

Third - and this is the honest gap - the case interview is what will actually decide it. Your profile gets you the interview; your casing gets you the offer. This is the most common failure point for big-tech pivots: strong on business sense and drive, underprepared for the specific live skill of hypothesis-driven structuring, clean quant under pressure, and delivering a crisp recommendation. Budget serious months for this. Do 30–50+ practice cases, ideally with real partners (peers on this platform, then a coach for the last mile). Don't underestimate it because your day job feels "business-y" - the interview rewards a specific format that has to be trained.

Fourth: sharpen the "why consulting" story now. You need a coherent narrative that turns Amazon BD into a strategy pitch: you've worked commercial/ growth problems from inside one company and want to solve them across industries with better tools and faster learning. Tie it to the Saudi growth story if it's genuine - firms in Riyadh love candidates motivated by the transformation happening in-market. Avoid leading with "high salary and exit options" in interviews; that's fine as personal motivation but reads as thin if it's your stated why.

On MBB-direct vs Tier-2: apply to both in parallel, same cycle. Strategy& and the other strong Tier-2s in KSA are excellent seats in their own right, do real strategy work, and are not merely a consolation - and casting wide also takes the desperation out of your MBB interviews, which paradoxically helps.

Prioritized next steps: (1) start casing seriously this month, (2) map and message ex-Amazon contacts at target Riyadh offices for referrals, (3) build and rehearse your "why consulting / why now / why KSA" story, (4) apply directly to MBB + top Tier-2 Riyadh offices in parallel. The one-to-two-year timeline is realistic - the limiting factor won't be your profile, it'll be how well you prepare for the case.

Happy to run a first diagnostic case or pressure-test your story whenever you want.

Best,

Leo

Hi,

I actually think you are in a better position than you realize.

Amazon is a well-recognized brand in the Middle East, and many consultants in Riyadh have made similar moves. The fact that you found former Amazon employees at MBB is a good sign that this path is realistic.

If I were in your shoes, I would focus on four things over the next 12–24 months.

First, perform exceptionally in your current role. Try to get involved in projects with clear business impact, cross-functional stakeholders, and measurable results. Those experiences translate much better to consulting than routine operational work.

Second, start networking now. Since you are targeting Riyadh, connect with consultants in those offices, especially people who also came from Amazon or non-target universities. They can provide insights into the recruiting process and, eventually, referrals.

Third, invest seriously in your application. A strong consulting-style CV and solid case interview preparation will matter much more than the fact that you did not attend a target university. As a Saudi national, you also have an advantage because firms continue to invest in local talent.

Finally, do not focus only on MBB. Apply to Tier 2 firms as well. Once you are in strategy consulting, moving between firms later is much easier than breaking in for the first time.

Overall, I think your biggest challenge is not your background. It is making sure your Amazon experience is positioned as consulting-relevant rather than just business development.

If you would like, feel free to send me your CV. I would be happy to share some feedback on how I would position your experience for MBB and Tier 2 applications.

Best,

Soheil

Hi,

Being a Saudi national in Riyadh is already a huge asset, and to some extent it offsets the non-target degree. Every consultancy in the Kingdom as far as I am aware is under pressure on Saudization targets.

My suggestions are:

1. Fix your profile: What they will look at is whether your Amazon experience reads as commercial and analytical rather than operational. Focus your CV around quantified business impact (e.g. deals closed, revenue influenced, processes you sized and improved) and get onto the most strategic, cross-functional projects you can inside Amazon over the next year.

2. There are two routes in and you should run both: The GMAT/GRE + MBA is the clean path if you want to reset entirely, but it isn't necessary in your case. The experienced-hire route as a Saudi national with experience at Amazon is very realistic, in both MBBs and Tier 2 firms (Strategy&, Kearney, Oliver Wyman, Roland Berger), lateral moves from Tier 2 into MBB happen constantly.

3. Try to leverage internal referrals: You already found the ex-Amazon people at MBB Riyadh, use that! Make a short outreach, ask about their transition rather than for a job, and let the referral follow. An internal referral is worth more than anything else you can do in the next twelve months. Also go to the firms' local recruiting events.

On timing: give yourself twelve to eighteen months. Use the first six to build the profile and the network, then start applying while you're still in a strong position at Amazon.

Last thing, be ready for the case interview to be the actual bottleneck. Start practising well before you apply, not after.

Hope it helps,
Franco

Hi there,

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

• First of all, your profile is much better positioned for Riyadh than you seem to think, and I would advise you not to wait one or two years. Being a Saudi national with a brand name like Amazon on your CV and already being on the ground in Riyadh is exactly the combination the offices there are short of, and the non-target university matters far less once you have work experience to show. So I would advise you to apply immediately - contrary to what other coaches have said, there is no cyclical hiring in the Middle East - and you can very well try applying as an experienced hire, but it's unlikely consulting firms will accept it, and they'll downgrade you to an entry-level role.
• Moreover, the part you control most is how your application files read. Business development at Amazon often gets written down as a list of tasks, and that is what gets screened out. I would advise you to rewrite every bullet as a result with a number in it. On top of that, those ex-Amazon people you found on LinkedIn in the Riyadh offices are your best asset, so reach out to a few of them, ask for a short call and then for a referral, because an internal referral moves your CV to a different pile. Also, considering working with an experienced coach like me to perfect your CV.
• Lastly, I would strongly advise you to start with case and personal interview preparation now and not only once you have submitted your application. The bar in Middle East offices is the same as anywhere else, and the gap between an Amazon background and a consulting case is bigger than most candidates expect. And for anything office-specific, like the industries the Riyadh offices focus on or their application timelines, I would advise you to reach out to the recruiting department and/or current consultants of those individual offices, since unfortunately nobody else can tell you for certain.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to best prepare your application files, for your upcoming pre-interview assessments and/or interviews, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen