German Fluency MBB

Hey there,

1. It should not play a major role since even in Germany, the project language for most engagement is English. On top of that, if you work with German teams, your client-level German will develop very rapidly (within 1-2 projects) if you are already at the level you are talking about.

2. Definitely. You will quickly pick up the level needed. Apart from that, showcase your willingness to learn + your excellent analytics and leadership abilities. You should be fine :-) I know a couple of non-natives from McK Germany who did very, very well.

3. I have heard of some cases (skill-building, not necessarily language-related). 

Bonus tip: If you are at McKinsey with global staffing, try to get an engagement outside of Germany if you feel more comfortable.

All the best to you!

Cheers,

Florian

I had a very similar experience when I was hired by McKinsey in Chile with A2 level Spanish only. Also I am German, so let me explain from my perspective:

1. The more specialized you are, the more forgiving everyone involved. In other words, if a client or CST ask for a specialist for subject x, they can’t always expect them to speak the local language. If you work as a generalist, however, you’re competing with a huge candidate pool of capable native German speakers. It will be tough to keep up! In my case in Chile, I was somewhat specialized and the competing talent pool was much smaller, so they hired me despite my language deficits. Bottom line, it will put you behind native speakers (all else being the same).
2. Yes, of course. If you are capable and have a winning personality and the client doesn’t mind speaking “Denglisch” as we say (Deutsch & Englisch) you can leave a great impression. However, it will wear you out much quicker! Consulting is all about the human connection and you will be talking a lot, which will tire your brain 3x faster than a native German speaker. Add some frustration and increasing pressure on top of that and things may spiral quite quickly.
3. McKinsey gave me the most amazing Spanish language training in Chile (expensive training and I couldn’t be staffed for a couple of weeks). However, I was in a good and very competitive position to ask for it. This may be different for someone in Germany due to very different competitive landscape.

Hope this helps a bit. Best of luck!

Hi there,

I worked and know several colleagues who were nonnative speakers and probably around a similar level of German when they joined the Firm. 

1 - No, but it really depends on the client and the industry. There are some very traditional industries where clients don't even want any English business terms and all in German written and verbally. The projects will be mainly German-speaking but in many DAX companies, English is also spoken a lot and people are more open-minded.

2 - Yes, definitely. You might just need to practice and work a bit harder to make sure you are well prepared for presentations etc. Some mistakes here and there are completely fine, as long as it is easy to understand you. However, you will get probably the feedback to improve your German and there will be the expectation that you will learn fast.

3 - I didn't hear about language courses per se but there are a lot of courses on all types of communication which might help you, too. It certainly doesn't hurt to ask as firms offer individual budgets for self-development.

When at Bain, I worked in Spain but I am not a native Spanish speaker. My spanish was enough to hold a conversation, but I clearly had limitations.

I still worked with Spanish clients, but those with more international environments/team, meaning that many of the meetings were held in English (but not all) and the presentations were also prepared in English. Of course, some meetings wer still in Spanish. I usually wouldn't be alone there.

And they would offer weekly Spanish classes with an individual tutor.

I would bet you will have a similar experience - being assigned to projects where german will be less of an issue, and getting support in improving your language skills.

Hi there,

I had a somehow similar experience although in a different industry. I worked in Germany in a VC fund knowing zero German (they did not care about the local language).

1 - Would that cause me any problems in the future or limit my chances to be staffed here locally? I am working A LOT on my german currently, but it takes time to get it to the upper level.

The main problem will be with networking (both with colleagues and clients). Even if you are fine during the job, you will have fewer opportunities to connect with the team / client compared to local candidates. It may not be a big issue at the beginning but long term this could limit your ability to grow unless you become fluent.

2 - Is it possible to still give a great impression during projects with limited german? 

Yes. However you may miss the benefits of networking as mentioned above.

3 - Would MBBs support you with language courses etc … ?

I am pretty sure they will. I took an English course when I joined BCG fully sponsored by them so I believe that should be possible in your case for German as well. You can check with HR.

Best,

Francesco

Hi there, 

I first applied in Germany but couldn't go ahead as my German is not C1 level. Unless you are an expert hire, meaning you are not bound to the region/country to work, you are expected to have at least C1 local language knowledge to work with local clients, as local projects are done in 90% in the local language, not English. 

Lucie

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