Currently at a boutique consulting firm focused on CDDs. Mostly niche industries - what are recommended courses of action for exits? Is CDD consulting a good path to stay in / looking to hop firms? Or is it best to target corp strat / dev opportunities? All insight is appreciated

Great question! CDD (Commercial Due Diligence) experience at a boutique firm can open several solid exit paths, depending on your goals.

If you want to stay in consulting:

• You can leverage your CDD expertise to move into a larger strategy firm (e.g., OW, LEK, EY-Parthenon), especially those with strong DD practices
• Highlight your analytical rigor, exposure to investment logic, and ability to synthesize insights quickly
• Target firms with strong Private Equity or Deal Advisory practices, as they value this experience highly

If you want to pivot to industry:

• Corporate Strategy or Corporate Development roles are a great fit, especially in sectors you've covered during CDD work
• Your skills align well with market analysis, investment screening, and strategic planning
• PE portfolio companies or large corporates with active M&A arms will especially value your background

General Advice:

• Emphasize structured thinking, client impact, and independent ownership of workstreams
• If your experience is too narrow, consider broadening exposure (e.g., take on growth strategy projects if possible)

Both exits are strong, the key is aligning with where you want to grow. Let me know if you’d like help tailoring your CV for either path.

All are viable paths, it really depends on which one you want to go for at the end of the day.

Might make sense to start by first talking with some people who are currently a few years ahead of you on each track. Get a sense from them as to how they're experiencing the job and how they would approach things differently if they were in your shoes. 

This sort of clarity and perspective might help you more than anything else. 

Best,
Cristian

Hi,

I worked in BCG's PE practice, so sharing a couple of my thoughts here. 

I would say the first thing you should ask yourself is what is your mid/long term objective - where do you want to be, what kind of work do you want to be doing etc.

From a CDD POV, the most 2 directly relevant exits would be

1. Larger consulting firms, joining specifically their PE practice
2. Corp dev / M&A teams in corporates

Therefore "good path" or not really depends on what you'd like to achieve. If you wanted something broader, what I would suggest is try and use your experience to join MBB - and then from there you will have much broader exit options. 

All the best!

I love CDD. But exit opportunities are limited and are the ones you mentioned... either other consulting firms or corporate strategy and corporate development roles. And you are unlikely to focus on a specific industry.