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FAANG colleagues I wanted to share an experience that I hope doesn’t occur at your orgs. I got an offer for a PM role with Capital One that I was so excited about. After sending a negotiation letter however, the team withdraws my offer saying I’m no longer a good fit . I was respectful and only asked for things that my existing org offered, and made it clear I was happy to adjust if not feasible. I’m beyond disappointed and hurt :(
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Accenture has the highest entry level and MBA level pay. And the best WLB and exit to tech
As someone who values WLB/Comp and exiting to tech I’d choose Accenture.
Look beyond base comp for this comparison. No chance Accenture has the same bonus levels as the other 3. Not to mention the profit share at Kearney and LEK
Hours are a different story, but I’d optimize for fit, pay and type of work over that
Accenture matched BCG pay bumps y’all -
UG hires - $100k
MBA hires - $175k
Don’t sleep on Accenture for having relatively great WLB, amazing wealth creation (great 401k match and ESPP programs), and being well positioned from a tech/digital perspective which is easy to use to your advantage when it comes to exit ops.
Thank you!!
Rising Star
Never Accenture lol
Ha!!- so both you and the Accenture OP are associates and lighting up the thread regarding pay discussion? Jeez
Rising Star
These comparisons are always tough. All's I can say is that personally, I've loved my time at Kearney. Interesting and impactful projects, great people.
A few common distinctions:
- LEK is the strongest of the bunch in pure LS work. Also strong in CDDs. They tend to travel less because of the volume of DDs as well
- Accenture is the most credible in digital and tech. If that's your jive, ACN is a strong fit
I'm assuming that this is ACN Strategy btw.
OP - I personally think you might not be able to join as an associate.
PhD friends with multiple YOE joined as SBA (senior business analyst, pre-MBA rank).
Joining as an associate without an MBA is still very hard at K if you don’t have credible and substantial prior experience in consulting.
You should probably clarify that with your recruiter.
Rising Star
Want to do CDD? LEK. Want to do ops? Kearney. Not sure what you want to do? EY-P.
Pay is slightly better at LEK/Kearney; so if you know what you want to do, go there.
I am in Strategic Ops practice. Long hours because WFH environment and because of the nature of that type of work.
Kearney's US profit sharing plan is fantastic. We really should publicize it more. 10% of your gross pay amount (base + bonus) is contributed to your 401(k), on top of a 25% match of your own 401(k) contribution.
Rising Star
Best of luck MS, but honestly I'd suggest you buckle in and focus on securing an offer before jumping the gun and thinking about where you're going to end up.
I work at Kearney. I really like it. I have not tried the others. I would probably like that too. I am rather easy to satisfy. Hope you found my review useful.
L.E.K.
Why did you just say LEK lol
Chief
Accenture!
Is this one of those games where you select the word that doesn't fit in with the rest?
Chief
Because Accenture is 90% tech strategy, the others are more aligned to transactions and operations.
Chief
LEK and Kearney have taken a big hit recently - culture and hours are really bad. I’d go EYP or Accenture strategy.
lol at pre EDS, especially as referenced as 10 years ago as that was over 25 years ago
Chief
Great culture here. Large diversity of projects and plenty of topline despite ops heritage.
Chief
Was bad , better now. Still not perfect
Kearney's hours are the worst among the firms listed.
My friends at EYP and LEK would beg to differ
Broad range of strategy projects with the end goal trying to exit into industry, with long hours not a big deterrent? I’d probably lean Kearney slightly over LEK/EYP
Accenture hands down. Get to partake in ESPP. Accenture stocks never go down. Only up. See for yourself
Pro
Can someone describe ops strategy? Is that like process mapping and improvement /recommendations?
Also a big one, does ops/procurement/manufacturing have the capacity/assets/ability to deliver on the sales goals over the next few years? If not, how do they bridge the gap?
Actually really enjoyed my time at LEK. Stayed 3 years and left to tech. Feel free to DM if any questions
Having a convo with OP, would be hard to disguise myself as not HR during that convo
Avoid LEK at all costs!
LEK definitely is the best choice for phase 0 / growth assessment and Kearney is best choice for op strategy. Came from big 4, LEK is waaaaaay better.
Chief
Op why didn’t you look at OW? It seems like that would fit well into your T2 list
Have an offer from ACN, EYP and LEK and ACN Pay by far the least competitive!
Dude, don't commit a career harakiri by jumping over to ACN.