Referral at Oliver Wyman

Hey there :)

For Oliver Wyman, the best way to get a referral is usually through direct networking on LinkedIn; reaching out to consultants or alumni from your school who are now at OW. A short, tailored message explaining your background and why you’re interested in their office helps a lot. Another option is to use your own network (former colleagues, friends of friends) and see if anyone has a connection at OW India or Dubai who could pass your CV along. Sometimes university career services or alumni associations can also make introductions.

So I’d recommend focusing on targeted LinkedIn outreach and tapping into your existing network, that’s how most people manage to secure a referral.

best,
Alessa :)

Not directly, but I can walk you through the process of getting one. 

You will find it directly in this guide:

• Expert Guide: How To Get Referrals Via LinkedIn?

If you have any specific questions, feel free to reach out directly. 

Best,
Cristian

Hi there,

coaches here usually don't provide referrals - for various reasons. Your best shot is to network with current employees at your target firm. There is some literature on PrepLounge on how to best go about that.

A referral is just a door opener such that the recruiting team will look through your application more thoroughly. Depending on the seniority, tenure and advocacy of the person referring you, you have a better chance of getting a first round interview. The more senior the person referring you is, the better. The longer the tenure of that person with the firm is, the better.

The reason is that such voices carry more weight than referrals coming from super junior or brand new people. They typically know the HR folks better and have been involved in recruiting activities for a while so it is usually assumed that they have a good grasp of what types of candidates with which sets of qualifications the firm needs. However, any referral is ultimately better than no referral. 

Ideally, you get a referral from someone from the same office (or same country) you are applying to. But again, a referral from someone within the same firm but different office or country organization is still better than no referral.

A direct rejection after the CV screening stage can still happen - even with a referral. In that case the recruiting team usually provides some feedback to the person having given the referral. So you should follow up with them to better understand the rationale in case that happens. On the flipside, you can still get an interview invite when you just apply online without a referral - the probability might just be lower - unless your CV is “stellar” on a standalone basis.

And as always, factors such as economic conditions and headcount/budget planning of the individual firm also matter significantly in these decisions - but they are not within your control.

Best

It doesn't work. You can't get a referral by asking for it over the internet.