Anyone work for a firm that does a set salary and then you get an almost guaranteed bonus for the rest? Boutique firm keeps reaching out. They offer $100k salary and then 2 bonuses a year if you hit utilization. They are saying each bonus would be $25k, to equal an overall $150k. I'm super hesitant on this but the recruiter keeps pushing. Looks for feedback if anyone has heard about or done this

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Ask the recruiter:

What is the utilization target?
What percentage of employees at your projected level hit that target in 2018, 2019 & 2020?
What is their pipeline of work?
How many clients do they currently have?
How long have these clients been with the firm?
What types of projects are they running?

If they refuse to answer any of the questions, walk away.

likehelpful

If you hit utilization. I would not take it.

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They are lying lol. I used to be at a boutique. When they hired me they said you get a bonus every quarter. Well I was there for over five years and never received a bonus. Not just me, it was firm-wide.

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I wouldn’t call that “almost guaranteed”

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By definition, a bonus is not guaranteed. That salary is low too, considering you’re in consulting. If you’re at a big firm now, you’ll likely see significant movement in your comp over the next few years. I’d stay put, if I were you, unless there are other variables to consider, which you haven’t mentioned yet.

Also, what do you mean by “set salary”? Aren’t all salaries set, in the sense that your base pay will not vary with hours worked or other variables?

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Ah, got it. Thanks for clearing that up.

I’m saying that a 100k salary is low, in the context of consulting professionals. As an exit opportunity, I wouldn’t go for it, unless you have other considerations, like work-life balance, in mind.

150k is much better, but I personally wouldn’t depend on the 50k variable pay. I’ve made the mistake in the past of banking on a bonus, only to be bitterly disappointed.

If I were you, given what I know, I’d stick around where you are for long enough to get another promotion or two. THEN exit for a salary closer to 200k.

Our bonuses are guaranteed based upon rating. They're not based on firm performance or anything it's individual (although in theory if business really tanked they might not pay out in full).

I walked away from a job offer similar. Quarterly bonuses “for turning up”. Yeah, that won’t work for me. If I get it guaranteed, write it in the contract. If it’s not, it’s not.

Agree with the others. Setting a bonus based on utilization gives them way too much power. What if you’re 2% away from target and your project ends - it may be in their best interest to keep you on the bench for an extra couple weeks to avoid increasing your costs by 25%. It also signals they’re not confident in their pipeline and want you to take on their risk. Fine if you get equity, but as a junior member of the firm, that’s a shitty trade off.

Also a bonus purely based on utilization says you are a cog in their machine. If your performance doesn’t matter but just showing up does, then that’s what everyone at the firm is going to do. The only incentive is to be just above average so you keep getting staffed...but that’s it.

Ask the recruiter how you ensure you hit your utilization targets if you’re not selling work then maybe make a decision based on what she says. I wouldn’t take it since you can influence your util because you’re probably not selling work.

Thanks all. I’m passing. The recruiter kept trying to tell me everyone loves this model(I know it’s their job to push), so wanted to be sure others thought the same as I did

Ugh he won’t let up. Told him again it would t work for me and this is what I get back 🤦🏼‍♀️


That’s exactly the point, though. Everyone gets bonus, only one person hasn’t hit it in 7 years.

The bonus structure isn’t the same as other companies who sometimes make it difficult for you to achieve.

Our bonus is simply tied to your billable hours. On average 160 hours per month over a 6 month period. 40 hours per week.

In 7 years 1 person didn’t hit it. We have very high retention rates etc.

I appreciate your decision, just want to make sure you understand, it’s not a gamble. We’ve had consultants come from other companies and be wary of our model but now they are thriving and trust the model.

But like I said, I totally appreciate your judgement and it has to be right for you. That’s the main thing

And also, we have people here who are making over $200k per year on this model and it works for them. So I totally appreciate your concern. But I just wanted to let you know it’s not as big as a risk as it sounds. I do agree it sounds risky 👍🏻

Agreed M2. If no one ever misses bonus, I would try to negotiate a higher base and less of a bonus percentage. If it’s nearly “guaranteed” anyway, shouldn’t make a difference to the company

Parts of FTI do this. What firm is this?

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