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The one that really puzzles me is management consulting. Finance, law, and tech are at least intellectually extremely engaging, as well as well-paid. Isn't mana

by twic 4y ago

The one that really puzzles me is management consulting. Finance, law, and tech are at least intellectually extremely engaging, as well as well-paid. Isn't management consulting just running round showing people bullshit powerpoints?

xyzelement 4y ago
It has this reputation but it doesn't match my 2nd hand experience. Dated two management consultants in my life. One was deeply involved in deciding the next CEO of Disney after a few years out of college, as an example. The other reported being basically in charge of a turnaround effort at a fortune 500 company. Both examples required them to deeply understand the situation and the options and then to advocate for the path they have chosen. Seemed fun and impactful.
- MichaelZuo 4y ago
  Are you sure they weren't exaggerating? It's difficult to imagine they would be anything more than assistants to the real decision makers.
  - hd95489 4y ago
    It’s possible they were young and couldn’t see the big picture of who was power playing where and how
  - xyzelement 4y ago
    // anything more than assistants to the real decision makers. Of course but it's the same thing. Executives and the board make the decisions and take responsibility for them. But generally they make these decisions based on the framing and options presented to them by people who work for them. As a consultant, you get to decide what dimensions matter to the decisions, gather data and arguments, and present the executive with a choice. The executive skill is to have oriented you around the right topics, deciding whether to trust you and your analysis, and ability to stand behind the decision made. The "assistants" do the work to enable this. It's a big deal.
- twic 4y ago
  > deciding the next CEO of Disney Anyone can do that, it's Bob Iger.
TrackerFF 4y ago
Consulting is great if you really don't know what you want to do, but need to join the workforce. Pay is seemingly great, you get to travel a lot, you're exposed to a bunch of different industries and companies from the highest level. The McKinsey/Bain/BCG prestige factor can open a lot of doors down the road, and you probably get a solid network of future titans of industry. I haven't worked as a consultant, but that was the sales pitch we got. And I've at least noticed that a many startups tend to have ex-consultants onboard as founders or executives.

by twic 4y ago

xyzelement 4y ago

It has this reputation but it doesn't match my 2nd hand experience. Dated two management consultants in my life. One was deeply involved in deciding the next CEO of Disney after a few years out of college, as an example. The other reported being basically in charge of a turnaround effort at a fortune 500 company. Both examples required them to deeply understand the situation and the options and then to advocate for the path they have chosen. Seemed fun and impactful.

MichaelZuo 4y ago
Are you sure they weren't exaggerating? It's difficult to imagine they would be anything more than assistants to the real decision makers.
- hd95489 4y ago
  It’s possible they were young and couldn’t see the big picture of who was power playing where and how
- xyzelement 4y ago
  // anything more than assistants to the real decision makers. Of course but it's the same thing. Executives and the board make the decisions and take responsibility for them. But generally they make these decisions based on the framing and options presented to them by people who work for them. As a consultant, you get to decide what dimensions matter to the decisions, gather data and arguments, and present the executive with a choice. The executive skill is to have oriented you around the right topics, deciding whether to trust you and your analysis, and ability to stand behind the decision made. The "assistants" do the work to enable this. It's a big deal.
twic 4y ago
> deciding the next CEO of Disney Anyone can do that, it's Bob Iger.

TrackerFF 4y ago

Consulting is great if you really don't know what you want to do, but need to join the workforce. Pay is seemingly great, you get to travel a lot, you're exposed to a bunch of different industries and companies from the highest level. The McKinsey/Bain/BCG prestige factor can open a lot of doors down the road, and you probably get a solid network of future titans of industry. I haven't worked as a consultant, but that was the sales pitch we got. And I've at least noticed that a many startups tend to have ex-consultants onboard as founders or executives.