Why not just go for both! :) If you had to choose then I would go with the local EM/partner who the recruiters of the local office know and will take the referral more seriously. Additionally, I wouldn't make a difference between a partner vs. senior partner, unless they are super senior (e.g., regional head, global industry head, etc.) at that firm.

Hi there,

A referral is just a door opener such that the recruiting team will look through your application more thoroughly. Depending on the seniority, tenure and advocacy of the person referring you, you have a better chance of getting a first round interview. The more senior (manager level and above) the person referring you is, the better. The longer the tenure of that person with the firm is, the better. 

The reason is that such voices carry more weight than referrals coming from super junior or brand new people. They typically know the HR folks better and have been involved in recruiting activities for a while so it is usually assumed that they have a good grasp of what types of candidates with which sets of qualifications the firm needs. But any referral is better than no referral.

Ideally, you get a referral from someone from the same office (or same country) you are applying to. But again, a referral from someone within the same firm but different country organization is still better than no referral.

A direct rejection after the CV screening stage can still happen - even with a referral. In that case the HR team usually provides some feedback to the person having given the referral. So you should follow up with them to better understand the rationale in case that happens. On the flipside, you can still get an interview invite when you just apply online without a referral - the probability is just lower on average.

And as always, factors such as economic conditions and headcount/budget planning of the individual firm also matter significantly in these decisions - but they are not within your control.

Best

Hi there,

If you have already secured them I would go for both – just be transparent with the second person that you got another person referring you as well.

In terms of prioritization, I would consider 1st the local partner or the senior partner abroad (weight will basically be the same unless the senior is really very senior) and 2nd the local EM.

Best,

Francesco

Hi there,

I'd go with a local one but it doesn't make much of a difference - a referral is a referral - i. e. any ( and both) of them will work.

Cheers,

GB

Hello!

Congrats for that networking fruits.

In theory, all of them weight the same. However, if I had to choose, I would choose seniority.

However, why choosing at all? I would ask for both of them, that cannot harm

Hope it helps!

Cheers,

Clara

Hi,

You can get a referral from anyone in any country for McK and BCG. It's not the case for Bain where you need a local referral.

• Having a referral from the local office is better (since the person can ping HR or get some informal feedback)
• Having a referral from a senior partner is better since it'll have more weight

Best

Honestly, I'd just be happy with any referral!

That said, I would take a senior partner over anybody anywhere. If it's below senior partner, then I'd prioritize same country/region

Try both. If you'd have to decide between two, the local EM is preferable IMHO.

I d go for both!

Here more thoughts - also depends on the country and especially on the "money pool" the partners are connected to. E.g. in Germany, despite MBB having multiple offices across the country it would absolutely be OK to go for office A with a referral from a partner from office B (because there is one centralized Germany or DACH HR). This would of course look very differently in the US.

Best,
Denis