Dears,
How are consulting firms performing in the region given the budget cuts, specially McK, BCG and S&? Is it a good time to join the profession in general or is it wiser to wait for sometime untill there is more clarity? Could we see layoffs within MBB and S&?
Thanks!
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Hi Anonymous
Unfortunately most companies and industries are impacted by COVID and MBB + S& are no exception. They are still hiring but at reduced rates and I don't expect that trend to change significantly in the next year
From what I hear from friends- MBB in Europe / US have not had major layoffs but they have accelerated the process of managing out under-performers. Based on the news - some of the tier-2s have had redundancies but this has been in the region of ~10% which is lower than a lot of other industries
So your main question - "is it a good time to join?". Answer - depends on what is your alternative is. If you are fortunate enough to work in an industry that is not impacted by COVID then possibly not but otherwise it is as good a time to join consulting as any other industry and again consulting is nowhere near some of the hardest hit sectors
Best
Dear Anonymous,
Surprinsingly, a lot of the consulting firms in the Middle East have never been as busy as they were in the past weeks & months, since they had to navigate their clients through a period of doubt and uncertainty. Most of those companies were able to sell new projects to their clients, but not at the same price point. They had to review their pricing strategy and offer discounts to their clients.
Having said that, the region is still going through a massive transformation, and a lot of companies & governments would still need the support of consulting firms. So I believe that the volume of business would remain stable (and potentially grow in 2-3 years), but the type of engagement would differ (more strategic & digital transformations, due diligences, PMIs, etc.)
Mehdi
Dear A,
In general, the Middle East economy and its consulting sector were hit pretty much by the COVID situation so far. Some companies are reducing salary and laying off people, as is the case for the Big Four. For example, EY-Parthenon or KPMG are paying only 25 percent of salary to their consultants who are on the beach. Other companies have also started the upper out process to that extent but nevertheless, the big companies like McKinsey, BCG, S&, and Kearney are doing pretty well in the reaching, even though the hiring for most of the consulting firms was postponed over the spring and summer, it is going to resume in September.
The intake will be however significantly reduced, so it will be only 30 to 40 percent out of the level of the last year (this means that it would be less than a half of the level of last autumn) As for McKinsey, it was extremely wise: they have intensified the recruiting process and they are trying to reallocate top talents from other companies-competitors to McK. Therefore, the recruiting perspective of this firm is pretty good. BCG has a pipeline very full at the moment with the previous candidates and first of all needs to sort this out. Nevertheless, they will still be doing the intake in autumn. Strategy& has largely posed the activities for this year and will resume hiring by the end of this year for a starting date in 20/21. Kearney has been also freezing their recruiting process for the Middle East whole region until very recently and is going to resume the application process starting in September when everyone is back.
To sum up, what I can see from the market, of course, there would be fewer chances than in the last year or compared to previous booming years to get inside consulting.
However, these chances will still be there for all three or four companies. You simply need to be better prepared than at any time because the competition will be more severe.
If you need any further insights into the Middle East region and specific companies, then drop me a line. Happy to share them with you and happy to get your offers!
Best,
Andre
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Thanks for your answer. Do you happen to know about Roland Berger?
Hi there,
MBB
No direct layoffs, but bonuses have been cut in most cases and the up-or-out process has become a bit stricter
Big 4 / Tier 2
Depending on the company there have been any combination of direct workforce cuts (Deloitte), salary sacrifice (KPMG), and bonus cuts (most, if not all).
In terms of whether it's good to join the profession, yes it still is! Even if these companies aren't growing, so many people leave each year that they still need new people joining. The reputational advantage and exit opportunities are all holding strong AND arguably, these are more important than ever in today's world.
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