General
What sort of culture are you seeking to develop?
How does the firm’s size affect the look and feel around the office?
What is OC&C’s training program like?
How much time will Partners and Senior Consultants spend mentoring me?
Can you have a life outside of OC&C?
For Associates
What does a typical case entail for an Associate?
What is expected of Associates in terms of hours and travel?
What opportunities besides case work are available to Associates?
What do Associates do after their OC&C experience?
For Consultants
What does a typical case entail for a Consultant?
What is expected of Consultants in terms of hours and travel?
What opportunities besides case work are available to Consultants?
What do Consultants do after their OC&C experience?
General
What sort of culture are you seeking to develop?
One of our core values is collaboration. We take that to heart. Our project work involves a lot of team discussions, throwing ideas around and seeing what kinds of answers we can divine from the available data. Everyone’s contribution to the discussion is taken seriously – there isn’t any pressure to agree with your manager just because they’re your manager. We offer our clients an outside perspective on their business, so one of our most valuable assets is the capability to generate ideas and insights that come from a different point of view.
How does the firm’s size affect the look and feel around the office?
We’re a tight firm, and that’s reflected in much of what we do around here. In all three offices, associates and consultants are typically mixed together in an open layout, which means that there’s a lot of informal knowledge sharing and mentoring. Small groups will typically head out to get lunch together, and everyone congregates in the lunch room at midday. We get along well, and that’s important – not only do we see a lot of each other, but with the rapid pace that projects begin and end, it’s likely that we’ll each have an opportunity to work with everyone in the office at some point.
What is OC&C’s training program like?
Most new hires start during the summer, so you will promptly benefit from OC&C’s International Training Week (ITW) – a one week global offsite training program hosted each September. The entire global firm congregates at one location for a series of professional development seminars tailored to the various experience levels within the firm (and there is a bit of social activity as well).
Beyond ITW, the U.S. team has also developed a three-pronged formal training program that focuses on technical skills, research skills, and business skills. On the technical side, we have weekly training sessions with take-away assignments, all geared towards developing our Associates into top-notch analysts. (It’s a point of pride that our Excel skills can’t be matched.) Our research skills sessions focus on the methods by which we gather information, such as through surveys, interviews, and desk research. And finally, our business skills program teaches new Associates fundamentals of finance and accounting, as well as how to think and act like a consultant – which questions to ask, which resources to use, and how to communicate effectively to the client.
How much time will Partners and Senior Consultants spend mentoring me?
Consulting firms are typically shaped like pyramids, with an army of Associates supporting a handful of Senior Partners, and layers of management in between. OC&C is shaped more like a pillar. We typically have a one-to-one relationship between Consultants and Associates, which means just one layer between an Associate and a Partner. This structure leads to significantly more exposure to highly experienced mentors than there would otherwise be, which translates into an intensive learning experience.
The majority of an Associate’s work time is spent with Consultants, who serve as managers and mentors. From day one, Associates can also expect frequent interactions with Partners, often one-on-one. As they progress to Senior Associates, they may even be staffed directly below a Partner, with no Consultant in between. In all of these interactions, Consultants and Partners are actively involved every day in helping an Associate learn and grow.
This senior level accessibility is also extremely advantageous when Associate Consultants apply to business school. Partners are far more prepared to write effective recommendations, having first-hand experience with the particular strengths and character of the applicant.
Can you have a life outside of OC&C?
Absolutely. The firm is pretty flexible when it comes to scheduling other important activities in your life outside of the office. Some of the athletes and musicians among us have evenings during the week when we have to leave a little bit early, and the rest of the team adapts to it. Similarly, the firm works hard to ensure its employees have time to spend with the family and is flexible about work hours. Strategy consulting is a demanding profession which requires a high level of commitment, but we have found that a rich and engaging life outside of work is just as important. At OC&C, that sense of balance is a core value that we hold dear.
For Associates…
What does a typical project entail for an Associate Consultant?
Associate Consultants are masters of detail. They’re responsible for the most granular aspect of our work, turning the raw data, in whatever form it might take, into something useful for the Consultants and Partners. On an acquisition due diligence project, this might entail designing a web survey, administering it, and analyzing the results. When scoping the market for a particular product, the Associate might spearhead the research, scouring the web for relevant articles, product reviews, or studies. If we’re working on sales strategy, the Associate might be the point person for analyzing the client’s database of customers. We take great pride in our Associates’ ability to do things with data that the client never expected.
That being said, Associate Consultants are not simply relegated to the analysis behind the scenes. They work side by side with Consultants to translate our findings into words, graphs, and diagrams. As they gain more experience, Associate Consulstants are quickly given the opportunity to interact directly with clients, coordinating data requests, communicating findings, and presenting final work projects. At a larger firm, you might only get a small piece of the story, but here, Associate Consultants get to see the whole picture.
What is expected of Associate Consultants in terms of hours and travel?
Associate Consultants are expected to work hard – most of us wouldn’t be here if that weren’t the case. It’s important to note, though, that we work hard when it makes a difference, like when a project is in full swing and there are a million things to get done. When there’s down time – and there invariably is in a project-based job like this – then the pace is more relaxed . OC&C isn’t about face time. If you’re not busy, you’re not expected to be here to put on a show. When you are really busy, you might be here until later at night, and maybe pull a few hours over the weekend, but it rarely gets to over 60 hours a week. It’s an interval run, not a marathon.
OC&C’s policy on travel is different than what you’ll find at most consulting firms. We typically keep Associates and Consultants in the office rather than camping out at the client site, which both improves our quality of life and keeps costs down for the client. Many of our clients are local, too. When projects do involve travel, it’s usually for one or two days at a time, focusing on gathering data or on presenting final results. Most of us prefer to sleep at home rather than live in hotels and airports; it makes it a lot easier to create a life outside of work.
What opportunities besides project work are available to Associate Consultants?
One advantage to being a part of a growing firm is that it rewards entrepreneurship. Our Associate Consultants get involved in many other activities in the office, not because we’re asked to, but because we see an opportunity and we jump on it. In the past few years, Associate Consultants have been involved in designing our training program, planning offsite events (official and otherwise), revamping our website, picking art for the office, going on recruiting trips to schools, trying out new analytical software… the list goes on. If you’re motivated to do it, go for it.
What do Associates do after their OC&C experience?
After 2-4 years, most Associates apply to business school or seek a different job experience. Our Partners and Consultants play a vital role in that transition, whether by taking an active interest in how best to position yourself for business school, or helping you network with clients or other contacts to find an interesting job opportunity. It’s a tremendous help to have a Partner who knows you personally and is interested in helping you succeed – 100% of our Associates who have applied to business school have been accepted at a top-tier school.
For Consultants…
What does a typical project entail for a Consultant?
Consultants on a project must strike the delicate balance between administering and overseeing the complex details of associates’ work streams and maintaining the big picture view of project goals to ensure that clients’ priorities are being adequately addressed. The consultant maintains ultimate responsibility for the creation of quality work product, driving the team forward from data gathering to analysis to insight to presentation. In addition, consultants are often responsible for day-to-day client interactions, communicating progress, escalating key challenges, and managing expectations.
What is expected of Consultants in terms of hours and travel?
Consultants are expected to work as hard as necessary to ensure that OC&C is delivering the highest quality work product. Typical work weeks generally require roughly 50 hours. That said, hours can vary considerably depending on the nature of the project work and the effectiveness of the consultant.
As for travel, OC&C does not have a model that requires travel to client sites. The majority of our engagements are strategic in nature, which generally require less time on-site than consulting work that is operationally focused. So on many projects, travel is limited to key meetings – kickoff, interim updates, and final report outs. That said, some projects occasionally require more intensive on-site time, but OC&C makes an effort to limit the number of such projects that any one individual is staffed on.
What opportunities besides project work are available to Consultants?
Consultants are expected to serve a myriad of leadership roles beyond just project work. They quickly have to assume lead roles in training, recruiting, and social activities to reinforce the backbone of the firm. As Consultants develop and become more comfortable with the capabilities of the firm, they will also become increasingly involved in business development, conducting background research, developing work plans, and presenting proposals to prospective clients.
Can you have a life outside of OC&C?
In short, yes. The main priority is always to ensure that OC&C exceeds our clients’ expectations, which can occasionally require long hours. That said, there are two reasons why OC&C consultants are more effective at maintaining a life outside of work. First, our travel model enables much more time to be spent in your home city than is the norm in most consulting firms. Second, our culture emphasizes results more than face time. Consultants have the flexibility to work around commitments outside of work. As consultants refine their skills, they become more effective at getting more done in less time, leaving more availability to sustain interests – hobbies, family, or community service – outside of the office. OC&C is committed to cultivating a sustainable lifestyle and building a team of consultants that are well-rounded.
What is the typical career path for Consultants?
Successful Consultants are encouraged to proceed along the normal promotion path that eventually leads to partnership. Given the sustainable lifestyle that we support, this option is appealing to most of our consultants. However, several years of consulting experience at OC&C can also open many doors beyond the realm of strategy consulting. OC&C alumni have moved on to internal strategy and general management roles in industry, as well as positions within private equity. If consultants express a desire to move onto other pursuits beyond consulting, the firm is always supportive in helping those individuals identify opportunities and makes that career transition.