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Smart Connected Products team within Industry-X of Accenture Capability Network is looking for folks with relevant work experience (Consulting, Connected Products and Platforms, Product Management, Innovation, Urban Mobility, Smart Cities etc.) of 8+ years (including pre-MBA experience) for executive positions - Level 7 & above.
Please reach out to me if you have a relevant profile.
You can DM me and I can share the JD.
Thanks
Accenture
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Does AAS pay the same as FDD?
LETS GO ATLANTA BRAVES!!!
Chief
Additional Posts in All Things MBB
Do any of the MBB’s do DD for VC clients?
Mentor
Anyone want to run Bain-style cases with me?
Bain & Company Is it truly easier to get in a smaller MBB office?
Have heard a lot for different opinions on these. The logic is that it’s easier because there is a lot of supply in cities like NY, Chicago and SF, but the counter argument is that the offices with less supply are also way smaller and have a lot less demand.
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McKinsey & Company Bain & Company Boston Consulting Group
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I’m interested in comp. I’m a C-suite at a PE backed company and deliberately chose this path as I want to be an operator and a CEO. However, my comp is low as my company is small. Amazing experience and title but I’ve scarified a pretty penny. Curious what comps to expect in a large fund in a PE ops role.
DS1: are you ex-MBB?
Thanks for doing this!
What are your thoughts on ops vs investment; if you had the chance to start it all over, would you start in IB and aim for the investing team?
I would personally not do the investment side. It has ~40-50% higher compensation but it's 100% life absorbing. It leaves very little space for anything else in your life outside of work. Also 95%+ of the work in investing is for deals that don't happen, which can be very frustrating.
Finally, success rate in investment is much lower than at PE Ops. And many PE Ops professionals go on to take C-Level or CEO roles and end up making a lot more money than PE Investors through Equity comp.
What did your work experience look like? What kinds of projects were you on?
I worked 1 year before MBB, then worked 2.5 years pre-MBA and 3 years post MBA (was close to junior partner promo). I did like 50% transformation, 25% strategy and 25% DDs.
IB or MBB. Which one is better for PE exits. I would assume MBB better for PE ops and IB better for PE Deal but can you do PE Ops from IB?
Ah I see. Thank you. Did a internship in ops Strat but I’m sure that won’t be enough haha
1) Is Ops “up or out” in any sense? Is it possible to just stall at e.g., Director for life?
2) How valuable do you think a top MBA is in this path? One nice thing about MBB is sponsorship potential, but staying that long prevents one from making a pivot to Ops at a more junior level, so am curious how you’d think of the trade off there
Coach
M6. First, perform really well at McK. Get great performance ratings, get promoted, etc.
Second (if you already have the above) network your way into firms by reaching out to MBB alumni, school alumni, etc. Make sure to highlight that you've obtained top performance ratings and you're 100% focused on moving to PE Ops.
Third, accept that you might have to take a step back on title (e.g., Associate or Sr. Associate) but 1st year comp should be equal or higher to MBB and comp trajectory from there will be much higher.
Others may have other strategies.
In a similar position right now. 4 YOE in Consulting. Close to PL promo but wanna move to PE.
Have studied my ass off to get into a Deal Team, and truly believe I could do well in an interview, but getting a foot in the door is pretty tough rn.
Am considering PE Ops instead.
How do you feel about comp difference vs Deal Team? Are you still confident that staying in PE Ops will allow you to build substantial wealth?
Thank you!!
BCG 6: Yes I have heard that one before. You have to have a good story why that is not a problem for you. Mine is that one of my favorite PLs at BCG was actually 4y younger (I’m in EMEA; he joined out of undergrad, I joined after Master’s, also he’s a superstar) than me and I have no issue accepting guidance from someone when they are clearly better/more experienced at their job
What do you find more satisfying than mbb days?
I get paid multiples more, my opinion really matters, I get to be accountable and intellectually honest, I see the results of my work and I have to put up with very little BS. (And the people are not insecure overachieving assholes). Also my exit oops are real C-Level roles vs chief strategy officer or chief of staff.
Does it make sense to go into PE Ops if I only do transformation work? And is home work location typically flexible?
It can be done but I'd suggest you get some Strategy and DD experience to round out the strength of your CV.
Coach
Given interest in this post I created a bowl dedicated to PE Ops https://joinfishbowl.com/bowl_znsbth57di
What’s a typical day look like? How much of your job is opportunity identification vs actually driving the results?
There is no typical day. I would say identification and delivery are equally important. You won't survive 2 months if you fail at either.
What is PE Ops?
D1, thanks for the guidance. So technology consultants from b4 are not targeted hires then I suppose?
2 questions for you, from the perspective of someone junior to you but intrigued by your path - thanks for doing this!
1) When do you think is the right time to make the MBB -> PE Ops transition? Do you feel you did it at the right time, or wish you had gone earlier?
2) What do you feel were the most critical elements of your past experience that made you a good fit to transition to PE ops? Purely the MBB label? The actual engagements you worked on? B-school reputation? Personal connections?
Love it. Thank you for the honesty! Super helpful.
As someone who exited MBB a year back into a Product role, is it possible to get into PE Ops now? Would I need to rely heavily on networking?
Yes, if you performed excellently in MBB. Yes, networking is the way.
I’ve found definitions vary firm to firm. What is the nature of most of your work? Is it more FP&A and a conduit to the PE, or are you hands on operating for first year? Mostly cost out work? Thanks
Coach
Neither of the above. It's (1) working with management and the board to identify the highest value creation initiatives (which literally can be anything at all, this is a true general management role) and (2) helping the team execute by being a thought partner, hiring and managing a consulting firm, doing the project oneself and/or taking an interim role.
OP love this thread thanks!
Is there much value placed on M&A engagements? Did a some diligence, integrations, and M&A strategy.
Great thanks!
Thanks for doing this! How did you plan your transition? Any specific type of projects that you targeted at MBB to help with the pivot?
Thank you, very helpful!
Coach
Same. A friend offered a referral to come back (other MBB’s) but I can’t find it in me to iterate on pages all day
Sorry, what? You mean banking?
What are the best recruiting firms for PE ops in your opinion?
I wouldn't know. I talked to all the usual suspects (e.g., Charles Aris, H&S) but I ended up getting the job through networking.
Thank you so much for doing this, this is super helpful! Can you share more about your networking process (realize you mentioned above you networked with undergrad/MBB/B-school alumni etc)? Did you have to go through HHs? And did you consider exiting MBB earlier (ie right after B-school)?
I did direct networking through email / LinkedIn. Worked with HHs but it turned out to not matter. I think I reached out to 100+ people and had at least 25 conversations before I got the job.
What experience do I need? I’ve done a lot of DDs and high level strategy, with more transformation, procurement and value engineering work more recently. But I’m an AC and haven’t run a whole transform effort e.g. as a PL
Best to start trying to move now and find a fund with a clear career path for Associates