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Working for client that has family member

consulting family staffing
New answer on Jan 16, 2024
8 Answers
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Anonymous A asked on Jan 15, 2024

As a junior consultant, is there any restriction on working for a client where you have a family member, if it's a fairly large company and the family member is not directly involved with the project?

Have you ever come across policy around this or is it more discretionary?

Wonder if it could be any conflict of interest.

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Cristian
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replied on Jan 16, 2024
#1 rated MBB & McKinsey Coach

Discretionary. 

It depends on how critical that family member is to the project and also how involved you are in that project. 

The only thing that you need to do is to discuss it with your case team, i.e., reach out to the Partner and the staffer. Try to assess on your own beforehand whether you think it's going to be a problem or not, and then bring a solution for it (so you don't just go there with a problem). 

But don't worry too much about it. I've seen a few situations like these and they ran smoothly. 

Good luck!
Cristian

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Udayan
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updated an answer on Jan 15, 2024
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Almost always a non issue. Happens more frequently than you'd think and works out just fine. As a partner it's a different story as you're the one responsible for winning the contract etc. 

Just let the team know about it and you'll be okay. 

(edited)

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Nikita
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replied on Jan 15, 2024
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Hey,

“the family member is not directly involved with the project”

Not an issue in this case, you can even avoid mentioning it to anybody on the team.

Regards,
Nick

 

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Francesco
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replied on Jan 16, 2024
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Hi there,

Q: Is there any restriction on working for a client where you have a family member, if it's a fairly large company and the family member is not directly involved with the project?

If the person is not directly involved with the project, there should not be issues assuming you follow the usual confidentiality policy. In any case, I would recommend to:

  1. Check if anything related to this topic is reported in your contract
  2. Disclose the information to your manager

Best,

Francesco

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Dennis
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replied on Jan 16, 2024
Ex-Roland Berger|Project Manager and Recruiter|7+ years of consulting experience in USA and Europe

Hi,

I would mention it to your manager. Just because it would be awkward if it came up later in some other way and you hadn't mentioned it yourself. 

If there is no direct connection with the project and your family member, it shouldn't matter at all. However, the partner of your firm might even want to use that connection strategically at some point. But that is not something you need to concern yourself with at this point. Just be transparent with your team.

Best

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Brad
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replied on Jan 15, 2024
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Not a problem at all - happens all the time.

 

It's good practice to lead the Partners on your team know though.

B.

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Ian
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replied on Jan 16, 2024
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Hi there,

The clients are huge firms. Often with tens of thousands of employees. This is fine!

If they're not within the project or in a related team, you should be just fine. Even if they are, you often just need to disclose it.

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Florian
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replied on Jan 16, 2024
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Hi there,

Definitely not a conflict of interest if the family member is not involved, however, as always transparency is key. Mention it to your project manager at the beginning of the project.

All the best,

Florian

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Cristian gave the best answer

Cristian

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