Reason for MBB office transfer

Hi there,

Congratulations on the offer! In terms of your question:

Q: I was wondering if fiance/legal civil union would count as significant other/valid reason for transfer within the MBB system? 

It is usually difficult to transfer before you start - normally you need to have some seniority to move between offices. If the two offices are connected somehow that might be easier though. 

If you want to ask now, you should do so by contacting HR of the office that extended the offer, presenting your current personal issue.

If they say no or you are willing to wait a bit, you could try to move once got some seniority, then the likelihood will be higher.

To maximize your chances you should ideally:

• Have one or more partners in your target office favoring the transfer
• Have one or more partners in your home office favoring the transfer
• Have a strong performance
• Have or be able to get working rights in your target office

It might be easier to try to target a project in the new office while you are based in your current one, create relationships and then do the full transfer. However, that also depends on the flexibility of the office.

Best,

Francesco

Hi there,

Your best shot would be to get started in location A and seek a transfer ASAP to location B. It's tough but not impossible!

There's a long list of criteria, of which your personal situation ranks low (but not at the bottom). Primary criteria are: 

• Residence permits
• Need for new hires (typically high everywhere but higher in some locations…),
• Size and quality of local talent pool
• Your particular background

However, the above is worth nothing if you fail to network through PD, Partners, etc., or don't have a strategy. For example, try to secure a project first in location B and then get local Partner support for a permanent transfer (that's one of various strategies).

You have to somehow manage to create a strong pull from location B at a pretty high level. Once you have that, you will be able to transfer one way or another.

Hope this helps a bit. Best of luck!

Hi there,

First of all, congratulations on the offer!

I think this is an interesting question that may be relevant for many people. I would be happy to share my thoughts on it:

• It's understandable that you would want to consider your fiance's career when deciding whether to accept a job offer. Transferring to a different office within a consulting firm can be challenging, and it's not uncommon for firms to require a valid reason for the transfer.
• That being said, every firm has its own policies and procedures for transferring employees to different offices, and it's difficult for me to say for certain whether your fiance's career change would be considered a valid reason for a transfer within a specific consulting firm. You may want to ask the firm directly about their policies on transfers and whether your situation would qualify for a transfer.
• It's also important to consider that transferring within a firm can be a complex process and may not always be possible. It's possible that even if your fiance's career change is considered a valid reason for transfer, there may not be an available position at the desired office at the time you request the transfer.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to address your specific situation, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Hi there, 

It's indeed quite difficult and nearly impossible if you want to do it before even starting the job. I had the exact same situation when I started and in the end I couldn't transfer at all (though the problem on my side was rather that I didn't speak the local language).

My suggestion would be to approach HR over a call and explain to them the situation. Don't be demanding and instead try to problem solve together with them to see what the avenues of action could be. 

If nothing works, you could then consider applying for a transfer after your first year. The more seniority you have, the easier it will be. 

Best,

Cristian

Hi there,

It depends on the MBB.

As a general rule, transfers and global mobility are easier in McK vs. BCG vs. Bain.

As with all such cases, I would reach out to HR as soon as possible and let them know about your change of circumstances and work with them on a solution.

Office transfers are possible if:

1. Valid reason (I think you have one)
2. Proper management of the process (involving HR and partners in the current office and the target office)

The latter is often only possible after you start, so you could work on a solution where you start in your original office, then network your way into the target office.

Cheers,

Florian

Hello,

Here are my thoughts:

1) While reuniting with a partner is indeed a very strong reason for wanting an office transfer, it seldom happens at the stage at which you are at.

2) Wanting to change the location at the offer stage may only happen if a) the location to which you want to transfer to has a very high demand for staff and b) the location at which you want to transfer from can easily find suitable candidates to fill in your place

3) If that is not the case, then the best way forward is to start working at this location while clearly indicating to the firm that you have an intention to transfer as soon as possible.

4) The best that they could do is to staff you on certain projects in geographies where your fiance is based, but this also happens with much luck.

5) After 18-24 months, you can formally apply for a transfer request provided that you have a great performance track record.

Hope this helps!

Rushabh

Hello!

I think the most straight forward thing is to talk to the company, explain the situation, and ask whether you could directly start in the new geography (since, as you say, transfers can get complicated and take time). 

Maybe they are super accommodating and there is not even an issue after all! 

Hope it helps!

Cheers, 

Clara

I know that if you are a strong performer and have a valid reasons such as a partner-location problem, moving is not too challenging.

You will need to wait a year or so realistically but it is worth stating your case now. It may even help to network with the office you want to go to.

Hi there,

Look, it's going to be hard. However, you have some “ammunition”.

The only thing you can (and should) do is talk to HR. Explain your situation (be earnest/honest and open about it).

Make sure they can see this was not pre-meditated and say you're open to figuring out options.

A marriage or civil union definitely bolsters your case for an office transfer. That being said, transfers before starting your role especially international ones are extremely unlikely to be accepted for a myriad of reasons. 

The best thing to do is to set up a call and explain your situation to HR. They will be beet able to guide you on what is likely vs not. There is no standard practice for complicated issues like this one.