Hi there,

Congrats on your new consulting job! To your questions:

Q1. Is it appropriate to express the types of projects that I don’t prefer? How to frame this in a delicate language? 

• It is totally normal that you share your staffing interests
• I suggest you do it in a positive way stating what you do prefer
• When you are new joiner, you have less leverage to influence your staffing so be patient with your first assignments

Q2. For the project types that I want to express interest, how specific / narrowed down should it be? How should I “label" the interested field that I am interest in?

Focus on three things:

• The industries you are most interested in (e.g., banking, telco, retail, etc.)
• The type of projects you want to try (e.g., M&A, strategy, digital, etc.)
• The skills you want to acquire (e.g., conceptual PS, Excel modelling, client communication, etc.)

All the best in your new role!

Alberto

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Hi,

Sharing my perspective having worked in consulting for >8 years and at both T2 and MBB firms.

1. Is it appropriate to express the types of projects that I DON'T prefer? How to frame this in a delicate language?

• Yes, you are allowed to express your preferences
• Your personal preferences (in addition to your growth needs) are variables that are typically considered when staffing makes a decision
• You can say something like “I would prefer not to do [xxx type projects] if possible”

2. For the project types that I want to express interest, how specific / narrowed down should it be? How should I “label" the interested field that I am interest in?

• In theory can be as specific or as narrowed down as you want to be
• The challenge is finding a reasonable balance - which also depends to a certain extent on the size of your office and respective practice areas (e.g. a huge practice area (PA) will have the diversity of projects within that PA)
• For a start, I would suggest having a preference in terms of
  • Industry (e.g. consumer, banking)
  • Function (e.g. strategy, deals, ops)

Lastly, some key thoughts and advice for you, having gone through the ranks and having battled staffing decisions before:

• Many things are out of your control
  • You could for sure have very strong preferences, but if you really understand how things work, the reality is that sometimes you will get staffed on projects that you do not want to do (happened to me before)
• Keep an open mind
  • Therefore, it is extremely important to keep an open mind especially as a new consultant
  • You may think you don't like or a topic is ‘boring’ but might change your mind after actually doing it
  • Furthermore, there is always something to learn and improve on even if you don't like the topic 
• Focus on doing well no matter what you are staffed on
  • Showing you are a good consultant is what you need to be focused on in your early years
  • Once you build your reputation, you have much more ‘pull’ or ability to exert influence on your staffing decisions
  • It also opens you up to more internal opportunities (e.g. mobility programs) that you can explore
• Build a strong network
  • Depending on the firm, having a group of partners that are willing to staff you can greatly influence your staffing to your benefit
    • And partners want to staff you if you are a strong performer 

All the best!

Hi there,

Before answering your questions directly, some advice on labeling projects to prioritize. 

Here's my personal experience:

• 'BORING PROEJCTS´: I never much cared for ‘HR projects’ before working at McKinsey but the most exciting thing I worked on was related to organizational design for a new joint venture, which kind of falls into that category and was an amazing experience.
• ‘EXCITING PROJECTS´: Conversely, I was staffed on strategy projects with McKinsey that sounded awesome but turned out to be really quite ‘boring’ with poor leadership, terrible clients. More than once I was ’fooled' and only learnt through experience on how to avoid this.

Bottom line, forget about the labels and do your due diligence by talking to people who know what's going on and are going to be candid with you. This will be much more valuable in your decision making process.

As for your questions:

1. Is it appropriate to express the types of projects that I DON'T prefer? How to frame this in a delicate language? Yes, this is something you can generally discuss with the staffing team. However, you need to be able to justify this well with either well-formulated mobility restrictions, specific development goals, etc. If you can articulate reasonable arguments and come prepared with alternative suggestions that could be a good solution for the firm, you should be fine. However, at the end of the day you can't insist on anything and need to show your willingnes to do what it takes if it comes down to it.
2. For the project types that I want to express interest, how specific / narrowed down should it be? How should I “label" the interested field that I am interest in? I used to get very specific during my time at McKinsey and have regular coffee chats with Partners & APs, in order to understand what projects are in the pipeline and also get my name on the radar. This can be a good idea in addition to talking to staffing only. However, be careful with ´self-staffing´. It's good practice to always coordinate with the staffing team and don't confront them with decisions already made. Keep them on your good side!

Hope this helps a bit. Best of luck!

Moritz

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(editiert)

Oh, I remember this call. 

I remember that I had designed this very complex staffing preference order and it was completely useless. 

Needless to say, the way staffing works differs a lot between firms and offices, but in general, it's important to know that as a starting consultant you have little to no say in the process. 

Instead, I'd recommend you keep it simple, and focus during the call to connect and develop a good relationship to the staffer. That matters more than anything. 

Then, do mention if you have 2-3 preferences which are in line with your long-term development. 

But don't be one of these people who has 15 criteria (like I was :) ) because you're only making life more difficult for yourself. 

Staffing is important in your first 2 years or so in the firm. It's when you don't have a strong network yet and you need the staffers to find you work. Afterwards, if you've developed good relationships with different Partners, you can take care of yourself. 

Here are two articles with advice on how to set things up for yourself when you join in consulting:

• Expert Guide: How to Become A Distinctive Consultant
• Expert Guide: How to Manage for Lifestyle in Consulting

Best,

Cristian

———————————————

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Hi there,

Congrats on the offer!

1. Is it appropriate to express the types of projects that I DON'T prefer? How to frame this in a delicate language? 

Hi there, yes! but, you have to manage this well. Indicate this if/when they ask. But also say you are flexible. I.e. don't demand, but indicate/let them know!

2. For the project types that I want to express interest, how specific / narrowed down should it be? How should I “label" the interested field that I am interest in?

The way you've labelled them is correct! Remember, networking is going to be huge as well as performing wlel on projecrs, building up a reputation, etc. In the beggining you have the least sway.

Remember also that all of this does depend on firm + office.

Here's some more reading to help: 

https://www.preplounge.com/en/articles/tips-for-consultans
 

https://www.preplounge.com/en/articles/pros-and-cons-of-working-at-a-top-consulting-firm

Hey,

1. Is it appropriate to express the types of projects that I DON'T prefer? How to frame this in a delicate language? 

Depending of the firm, you have some leeway in choosing the projects you'd like to work on. For example, when you start at McKinsey, you receive a list of the ongoing projects and you can pick those you'd like to join and also those projects that you don't want to participate in.

Although, it's not good if you reject projects too often, since you may end up in a situation when nobody at the firm wants to work with you and you may get laid off as a result.

Please remember that a consulting firm is not a meritocracy, but a business with an aim to generate income. As an employee of that company you are expected to help the company generate this income in exchange for the salary paid to you. Even if it requires working on projects you are not really interested in.

2. For the project types that I want to express interest, how specific / narrowed down should it be? How should I “label" the interested field that I am interest in?

For instance, if I say I am interested in (1) Deals-related projects - M&A, PMI, DD, etc (2) Consumer-related projects (customer strategy, customer experience), would this be too “broad” and vague?  

Your selection of functions / industries doesn't seem broad or vague to me. IMO it's ok to express your specific interests. I would even go further and try and organise networking chats with the partners of the practices you want to work at so that some of them may take you under their wing.

Good luck!
Nick
 

Hi there,

1) Is it appropriate to express the types of projects that I DON'T prefer? How to frame this in a delicate language? 

Probably the easiest way is to mention the projects you would rather prefer, although it is not per se wrong to mention the ones you don’t like if you do so politely and explain it's just a preference.

2) For the project types that I want to express interest, how specific / narrowed down should it be?

A reference to the type of project (eg due diligence) or industry (eg energy) should be fine.

Good luck!

Francesco

Giving a recommendation on how to say something depends on the specific culture background of the office. In some you can and should be more direct, in others, you can be less direct. But here you ask to be “delicate”, so I think I understand your concern and how you want to phase things.

1. The best way to state in a delicate way that you don't want to do something is to put it in context of preference. For example, you would rather to projects of XYZ type as opposed to ABC type. This way you are stating: what you really want; what is neutral; and what you want to avoid.

2. Narrowing down to a specific practice, function or industry is not vague at all. It is actually the right level of specificity (assuming there's a “right level” at all). 

You could go even deeper… but then it starts becoming like looking for a needle in a haystack, i.e., the likelyhood of having a “Digital customer experience optimization project in Energy” starting at that specific moment and needing a generalist is very low at any given point in time. Meaning that even if you ask for it, the staff manager is more likely to just look for something at the broader level.

Hi there, 

1. Yes, but depends also on the firm. At McK for instance there is a strong believe in authoring your own journey, at other firms there is a stronger culture of loyalty to certain practices. So navigate carefully and I'd recommend even taking a career coaching regularly to run through such scenarios. 

2. It's a good starting point and at the beginning of your career journey also sufficiently concrete. 

Warm regards, Frederic