Switching from hospitality? Is it possible?

Short answer: Yes

One of the best consultants in the Sydney BCG office was a professional violinist at the Sydney Opera house prior to starting.

The Partner on my first project was a former professional flautist.

I worked with doctors, dentists, lawyers, musicians, english majors, etc. 

What to do

There a lot you can do, but #1 would be getting some consulting-related experience on your resume to show you're serious about this. Join clubs, communities, organizations, and, importantly, apply to a bunch of experiential consulting programs (Where you do consulting projects for free to get experience).

Here's some additional reading to help (internship tips apply to full time tips): https://www.preplounge.com/en/articles/how-to-get-a-consulting-internship-tips-and-tricks

Hi there!

First of all, speak with somebody who knows how the industry works. 

Feel free to reach out to me or one of the other experts on the platform. Alternatively, try reaching out to friends or other contacts via LinkedIn to learn more about the industry. Here's how to conduct these conversations:

• Free Guide: How To Handle Networking Calls and Get Referrals

At the moment it's a bit difficult to help you because we don't know why you're not getting your foot in the door. Are your applications rejected at screening? Are referrals an issue? Are you not identifying the right firms?

It could be any of the above and many others. You can also take a look at this other guide which lays out how to develop a winning application strategy:

• Free Guide: Build A Winning Application Strategy

Most of my candidates are experienced hires either moving into consulting or moving between firms, so feel free to reach out and I'm happy to advise you. 

Best,

Cristian

Hi,

Yes, this is definitely possible. Consulting is one of the industries that really do not care what field of study you study / what your background is. 

What they must be convinced of however, is that you possess the necessary traits / skills / capabilities that they are looking out for. 

Without knowing more about your specific situation, we can only give general pointers. So your next step really should be to 1) develop a really clear understanding of the expectations and 2) ensure your application meets those standards and 3) start networking.

All the best!

Hello,

It is absolutely possible to switch from hospitality to consulting. People join consulting from all walks of life!

My advice on where to start would be:

1. Figure out what firms and positions you are interested in targeting

2. Learn about networking in the consulting world, and network with consultants at those firms

3. Do lots of research on consulting roles, responsibilities, and the application process

Once you're clear on all of those things, you will be well-positioned to start your applications.

Hi there,

Q: I am starting to wonder if I will ever be able to switch from hospitality to consulting? Or where should I start and what should I do?

Depending on your CV, you could have the option to switch now. In case that doesn’t work, you might consider an MBA if feasible and apply again after it.

If you want to get an invitation from a top consulting firm you should work on 3 things.

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1) CV

The key elements they will look for and that you can optimize are:

• University brand
• Major
• GPA
• Work experience
• Experience abroad
• Extracurriculars and volunteer experience

The fact you don't have consulting experience is not a problem if you structure your CV correctly.

Red flags include:

• Low GPA
• Lack of any kind of work experience
• Bad formatting / typos
• 3-4 pages length
• Lack of clear action --> results structure for the bullets of the experiences
• Long paragraphs (3-4 lines) for the bullets of the experiences with irrelevant details
• Long time gaps without any explanation

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2) COVER LETTER

You can structure a cover in 4 parts:

1. Introduction, mentioning the position you are interested in and a specific element you find attractive for that company
2. Why you are qualified for the job, where you can report 3 skills/stories from your CV, ideally related to leadership, impact, drive and teamwork
3. Why you are interested in that particular firm, with additional 1-2 specific reasons
4. Final remarks, mentioning again your interest and contacts

In part 2 you can write about experiences that show skills useful in consulting such as drive, problem-solving, leadership, teamwork and convincing others.

It is important that in part 3 you make your cover specific to a particular firm – the rule of thumb is, can you send the exact same cover to another consulting company if you change the name? If that’s the case, your cover is too generic.

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3) REFERRALS

To find a referral, you should follow three steps:

1. Identify the people that can help you
2. Write to them a customized email
3. Have a call and indirectly ask for a referral

You can find more information on networking and referrals here:

▶ How to Get a Consulting Invitation 

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BONUS: INTERVIEW PREPARATION

After you managed to get an invitation you need to find out how to pass the interview. You can find more on that at the link below.

▶ How to Prepare for a Consulting Interview

Best,

Francesco