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I’m currently working as a solutions consultant at Adobe. It’s my first job from graduating and I’ve been here for 2.5 years. I want to move into Consulting in banking. Do you think it’s a good choice & that I’ll have a good work/life balance? UBS Bank of England HSBC Barclays Bank of America Citi Bank
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Rising Star
Brace yourselves NYC. Heaters are coming.
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Additional Posts in M&A - Mergers and Acquisitions Professionals
Ok, what does ‘F’ mean
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I work in KPMG in Strategy. I worked at another Big 4 firm. I would NEVER go back there. Here I am surrounded by supportive people. The word LIFE is actually in WLB. At the other Big 4 firm, I worked on a major divestiture pretty much 7 days a week, 12 hours a day, for months on end. When I finally said I need some PTO they made me feel guilty and punished me on my review. Then after 18 months of this grueling scheduling and left, they begged me to come back.
At KPMG I have colleagues that actually support me in my career progression. I make more here than at the other B4 firm as. Comp can always be better though. I actually have time to spend with my family. When I first started here, I hadn't taken any PTO in 3 months. The lead partner of the practice called me up and said "We give you PTO because we want you to take it." So I took my PTO and still got a great year and review.
I don't care about supposed prestige or how it relates to other firms anymore. I came from a "supposedly" more prestigious firm. I would never go back there even if you doubled my salary. I work with a lot of great clients here. It's not all unicorns and rainbows here but I actually look forward to working with about 90% of my colleagues here whereas that was inverted at the previous firm. I maybe liked working with 10%.
The overall leadership in DAS IT Strategy is awesome. We have actual leaders. They listen to our concerns and actually try and address them in meaningful ways. I actually want to work for them. I would say IT Strategy is a hidden gem in the M&A space to work for. I've been in IT for a long time. I worked in industry before getting into consulting. If I were a client, I would hire us before I'd hire almost anyone else knowing what I know now. There is a good blend of purely mgmt consultants as well as people who have real life experience in the related industries.
Thanks. What is comp for an M if you have an MBA from t-15 school. And what is the performance bonus ? 20%?
Correct me if I’m wrong but KPMG strat is built in-house while other B4 acquired their shops (PwC & Booz, D & Monitor, EY & Parth). So it is a given that KP lags a bit behind in reputation. Saw the firmwide DAS email though and was impressed by the recent hires. A lot of talent are being poached from T2 shops and the practice as a whole is growing rapidly
Mentor
Agree with EY1. KPMG’s strat group poaching talent is nothing new. It has been that way since the beginning. They brought in a bunch of partners from MBB years ago and many of them left. Now that said, I don’t think it’s a bad place. The culture is actually really good. But I think a younger person will get better development at one of the other 3.
WLB varies by client and deal type. Had a few rough ODDs with PE client and got run into the ground but that was the exception so far. In every diligence there is usually one terrible week but they do try to get you a break.
Comp at Manager has a wide range, so would need to know yoe, MBA, etc.
DM me if you want to discuss and/or want a referral. I’m a Director in the group.
Coach
Why do you want to commit hara-kiri with your career by joining KMPG M&A group ? There are better options.
Mentor
I used to work there and can offer some perspective. KPMG’s M&A group is under Deal Advisory & Strategy (DAS). Generally the Deal Advisory side is the FDD business and other accounting focused services. Strategy is where the M&A consulting services sit (ODD, PMI, etc.). The leader of DAS came from FDD (that should be very telling). The FDD team is really good and has a great reputation. My opinion is the Strategy group is a tier below equivalent groups in EYP, S&, and Deloitte Consulting. Culture is pretty good. Hours are like any other M&A practice.
Mentor
K4 I agree that it won’t make much of a difference from an outsider’s perception of your experience. But my experience has been better at Deloitte Consulting vs KPMG. Better training, resources, etc.
How much does a Strategy Director (M&A) in TMT make? They’ve been recruiting like crazy and poaching talent
Interesting to hear. I am one in the low-mid $200’s, and with talk of “robust” VC and increases this year I hope to be more like mid-high range. This hiring outside for $300k but not looking in the rear-view makes no sense.