McKinsey vs Boutique investment banking

Banking consulting investment banking McKinsey
Neue Antwort am 20. Okt. 2021
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Anonym A fragte am 19. Okt. 2021

What are your thoughts on McKinsey associate vs investment banking associate at a reputed mid cap boutique bank? (Post MBA)

I recognize that they are different industries and it depends on my long term career goals, but I'd love to hear general opinions and advice on how I should think about this. Thanks very much :) 

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Agrim
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Some differences according to me - personal opinion:

  • Career progression is faster and easier in consulting. The tenures are fixed, the career path is fixed, and its also easy - you just keep improving your areas of development and ta-da! Investment banking career progression is longer and more uncertain
  • Life balance is better in consulting. Companies have policies geared towards making life a bit better compared to the ruthlessness of investment banks. For example - long unpaid leaves and sabbaticals.
  • Learning & development is better in consulting. Companies train you in the responsibilities of higher positions as you climb along. Investment banks do not generally focus on your personality development as much.
  • Long-term prospects are better in consulting. It is more suited to a life-long career compared to investment banking which suffers from more burnout cases.
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Francesco
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Hi there,

This is how I would approach it:

  1. Define what is important for you in terms of a career. How/where do you see yourself in 5-10 years? What would you enjoy most? Try to eliminate the “noise” on what people think/expect you should do (a great book on that is The 80/20 Principle - Richard Koch)
  2. Check which career path could lead you more easily there. Check the alumni of the two companies and see which are more present in the field you want to go to
  3. Talk with alumni of the two companies (ideally also alumni of your MBA) who already got in that field. Try to understand if you would like to follow the path they had and collect your opinion on the best path

It may not be possible, but if you have the chance to do an internship first in at least one of the two industries, that would help to see if your expectations are confirmed.

Best,

Francesco

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Hagen
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Hi there,

This is indeed an interesting question which is probably relevant for quite a lot of users, so I am happy to provide my perspective on it:

  • Generally speaking, it really depends on your long-term career aspirations.
  • While an early career in strategy consulting will most certainly provide you with a wide range of skills and opportunities, entering into investment banking will prepare you very well to banking- and finance-focused opportunities.
  • In my own opinion - but I might be biased here - I feel that an early career in strategy consulting offers you a superior skill set in case you might think of an industry role later on, especially when it comes to interpersonal skills.

In case you want a more detailed discussion on how to best decide on your personal best career entry, please feel free to contact me directly.

I hope this helps,

Hagen

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Ian
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Hi there,

If you could tell us your long-term career goals that would help :)

Also, consider that you are on a consulting site so you will get baised opinions!

Try Reddit, Quora, and Fishbowl to hear a bit more from your peers!

My personal view is that McK leads to much more flexibility long-term as the number of roles that you can pivot into is much much hire. Moreover, the reputation/brand of McK is far far superior and widespread to the boutique bank, which is huge for your resume. If we were comparing McK and JP Morgan, that might be a different equation!

That said, as mentioned, I'm baised :)

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Anonym am 19. Okt. 2021

Thanks so much! I'm still defining my long term career goals, I have always gravitated towards the banking/PE path, but getting McKinsey is forcing me to consider consulting.. Especially since, like you pointed out, the choice is between boutique banking and top tier consulting. Also, any thoughts on McKinsey's PE practice?

(editiert)

Pedro
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bearbeitete eine Antwort am 19. Okt. 2021
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Which one would you rather learn:

  1. How to run a (corporate) business (strategy consulting)?
  2. How to invest and make a investment deal (investment banking)?

Both are important for a business person, by the way, but they bring different perspectives. As I started to reach the higher ranks in consulting, I came to appreciate more and more what you learn in Banking (in M&A and PE, not in the other areas).

(editiert)

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Udayan
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You have some great answers here. My approach is rooted in the longer term goals you have. The reality is that lifestyle at both jobs suck. Investment banking has brutal hours and McKinsey used to have insane travel with long hours to boot. At the end of the day both are good options depending on what you want to do after (assuming you dont want to be a consultant or I-Banker in the long run)

Choose I-Banking if

  • You want to work in a PE/VC firm - they highly value the skills from banking
  • You want to specialize early in a sector - you will be asked to choose a sector or apply to a sector quite early on
  • You want a longer term career in finance (think CFO in the long run)
  • You enjoy working with detailed Excel models and will be excited to do so in any role

Choose McKinsey if

  • Your longer term vision is geared towards more business pursuits and less focused on finance
  • Strategy is an area you want to be known for
  • You dont mind or even enjoy working on perfecting your communication skills on PPTs and even Excel as at the end of the day it is all about making it easy for the client to understand your work.
  • You think the prestige of the McK name can be helpful (not true for everything - largely for strategy and related roles thats it)

Best,

Udayan

 

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Adi
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Agrim

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