The Exposure Myth
Let's talk about one of the biggest clichés that is also one of the biggest myths about consulting. A lot of people, when asked why they want to go into consulting, will say some variation of: "I want to work on different projects because I want to be exposed to various different functions or industries before I decide what to settle down on." As a dedicated Jill-of-all-trades generalist, I know I definitely said that myself! After 6 years in consulting, I’m sad to conclude that the extent of exposure that you get in consulting is a bit of a crapshoot.
“Business Need” First and Foremost
So much about the possible extent of your exposure really depends on the type of firm you're employed at. If you're working for MBB and you start as a generalist, you are typically able to potentially get onto different types of projects in different functions. The best kind of exposure is probably with strategy projects because you have to learn a little bit about the industry and then you're solving a different function-specific problem. Industries are often referred to as “verticals” (e.g. tech, finance, CPG, energy, oil and gas, healthcare) and functions “horizontals” (e.g. HR, accounting, supply chain, data analytics, M&A valuation, procurement). You can find yourself working on projects at new intersections all the time if you’re lucky!
Obviously, that's ideal. But often what happens is that everyone above you wants what's sometimes called a "safe pair of hands." The partner(s) who sold the project and the manager(s) who are running the project want to know that you're capable and that you can “hit the ground running.” So the more experience you have in a certain area, the safer you are deemed to keep working in that area. Very quickly, after let's say just two projects, you will start getting marked for specific things based on what you've already experienced.
If you've already been on an HR-related project, then you might find yourself again on an HR-related project. Or if you've already been on a project in the consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry, you may find yourself on another one of those. Each one could be slightly different. It may not be the same thing at all, but in the broad sense, categorization-wise, you're still sort of in the same place. (An exception to this could be if you weren’t considered to be a strong performer on a past project. In that case you’d be shuffled into a new area in staffing conversations!)
I have an undergrad classmate who worked in HR after graduating, then went to business school and joined an MBB firm. They were explicit in that they had an interest in financial services and wanted to work with clients in that industry. Well, they got staffed first on an HR-related project, and then they got staffed on another HR-related project. A year later, guess what? They'd always been staffed on HR-related projects—even though they had been very explicit about their interest and developmental area, which was financial services. Staffing is always first based on business need. Business need—read: business need—equals what is best for the company. That comes first. And if it's not aligned with your interest? So be it.
My Experience at LEK
When I was working at LEK, I was first staffed on a life sciences project. This was interesting as I knew nothing about life sciences, and though I found it fascinating, I still wanted to experience other things. Luckily for me, I got staffed on a different industry for the next project—in the vertical that LEK calls industrials. This was completely different, and as it turned out…I did not love it at all.
My third project was still in industrials, but it was once again very different. My first project was in meat packaging. My second project was in HVAC sales and services. These are very different landscapes because the label "industrials" is very broad. Had I stayed at the firm, I know that I would have likely gotten more industrials projects (I already got two in a row!) and would not have encountered meat packaging nor HVAC again.
“Experience” is a fairly loose term in consulting. I’ve found that mere exposure is often sufficient for others to deem you to have “experience.” Yet when I hear “experience,” I always think of in-depth understanding built through years, not weeks, of constant contact. (Is this perhaps the same way that confidence is often conflated as competence? That we’re willing to take one as the signal of the other without questioning the strength of connection?) Either way, exposure/experience in one area begets more of the same, because that repetition is considered “safe.” It’s precisely this thinking on the part of staffing and project managers that result in earlier (and “naturally-occurring”) specialization than you may think — pay attention to how many people tell you that they “fell into” or “just naturally progressed” into their area of expertise. They likely got a lot of varying projects, but there was a theme that connected their projects; it could be either the broader industry or functional area the project is set in (life sciences vs industrials; HR vs IT) or the type of project itself (due diligences vs “strategy” projects). Lo and behold, after two years, they’re an expert in certain area because they’ve been exposed to it so often, and it just makes sense to continue to specialize down that track (provided that’s the structure of the firm).
The Same Goes for “Industry-focused” or “Function-focused” Firms
Even if you work for a firm that is already specialized in an area (e.g. healthcare, digital transformation, human capital), you’ll find the same dynamics play out over time. As an outsider, you might be tempted to think such a focus is already too narrow. This brings to mind an exchange I had with a friend studying medicine when I was just starting off in consulting: I was musing to her that I was torn about “specializing” in life sciences, because I didn’t want to be pigeon-holed in anything (lifelong dedicated generalist am I). She laughed and said it was bewildering to hear me say “life sciences” and “specialize” in the same breath because, from her perspective, “life sciences” is so broad and vague she couldn’t even conceptualize what it was that I did at work.
Within any industry there are still multiple functions, and of course, certain functions span all industries. Usually if a firm is focused on a vertical, their services will span at least a couple of functions. Likewise, a firm that proclaims its niche in a particular function usually has clients across various industries.
This means even in “specialized” consulting firms you will have the opportunity to be exposed to be different things. You could get to know how all the functions within an industry work, or get to know how a specific function looks different in different industries. But over time, you should expect the same “specialization” dynamic to happen to your own career based on what types of projects you’ve worked on before. It shouldn’t be surprising to you if you find yourself continuously being staffed on projects at the same few intersections of industry and function.
The “specialization” you naturally cultivate could even be around a specific skillset. For example, you happen to get staffed on a project that requires facilitating a workshop. Next thing you know, you're on another project that facilitates a similar type of workshop because — why else? You’ve done it before! (It should be easy for you!) By the third time, you’re the workshop expert; everyone is asking you for workshop facilitation tips and there’s a good chance you’ll be pulled onto workshop number four.
The amount of exposure that you get over a year or two in consulting is almost never as ideal and as diverse as you’d imagine it to be when you’re a student, before you start the job.
Does This Matter?
The question is: does it matter to you?
Realistically, I think this has different implications based on where you are in your career. I do still think it makes sense to go into consulting out of undergrad if you really don't have a sense of what you want to do and what industry you want to be in. You're generally smart, you're kind of interested in business, and you just want exposure before you sort of pick a direction — because you want a better introduction and a better understanding of how the world works. I think that's completely valid, and consulting is a good way for you to look under the hood and get a sense of all the different white-collar corporate jobs there are, and maybe start to understand the specific nuances and differences. Because you're just learning. And since you don’t have a strong interest in any particular industry and function, any exposure is good exposure — you’re committing to a “surprise me” adventure because you don’t have a strong preference which direction you head in.
It's a little trickier if you're coming out of an MBA or other graduate school programs and you're already further into your career. When that’s the case, you probably are looking to establish expertise quickly. You have less time for experimenting and potentially pivoting (again) if you want to climb a corporate ladder and get to a level of compensation and work-life balance — on a defined timeline. If you’re moving beyond the hustle years (first decade after undergrad), you need to build competency fast so you have stability. You might count on consulting to accelerate your experimentation and exposure, but a job in consulting won't necessarily do that. You have to be ready to accept that you might naturally flow into a path and have to stick with it, even if you don’t like that path, because it may become what you're good at. Be honest with yourself about your vision of a fulfilling and happy life, and evaluate if this is something you could accept.
What Happens When You Exit?
Here’s what I think the exposure consideration should be focused on: how do you hope your time in consulting will serve you when you exit the industry?
Of course it’d be super cool to get broad exposure and develop a better understanding of how the world works in a range of areas. It’s a great way to start your career and buy yourself time to discover what kinds of jobs are out there as you decide what you’d want to do next and/or commit to. Even die-hard generalists have to “specialize” a little bit and develop some special skills eventually. It’s understandable that, if you’re hoping that consulting will bring your future self directional clarity, you may not yet have a strong concrete vision of what you want to do after consulting. Nevertheless, I think it’s never too early to start thinking about this. What might your options be after this consulting role? After working in this role for one or two years, what are the skills and experiences that you can claim? What are you going to be putting on your résumé? What are you going to be talking about in your interview stories? What are the roles that you would be considered a natural fit for?
These are questions worth keeping in mind throughout your time in any job, but definitely both before and during your time in consulting. Sure, you’re just concerned with getting one single job now to get started, but because most people don’t stay in consulting, you should assume you’ll likely to be looking for a new role in two years, just in case.
Ironically, if you do end up with a broad exposure through your time in consulting, it may not give you a very clean story to present to prospective employers once you finally decide on a direction for your consulting exit. Many early- to mid-career roles are focused on execution rather than strategy. Your breadth may be interesting, but you might find yourself competing for roles in which hiring mangers prefer more in-depth, hands-on experience. In contrast to someone who has been in that specific industry and function, someone who has been in the exact role at another company, or someone who has been growing up to this role, the generalist candidate coming out of consulting has much less focused understanding of the ins and outs of what to do on the job. Yes, lots of jobs value consulting experience (though usually you’ll also notice that the desired qualifications listed on job descriptions will specify they prefer ex-consultants from the big brand name prestigious firms of MBB; McKinsey, Bain and Boston Consulting Group). But no amount of exposure and understanding through consulting equates to industry experience. I think that's something that is often overlooked, and it could be detrimental to anyone who already has a target role they want after a stint in consulting.
Side note: Starbucks infamously hired an ex-McKinsey consultant as their CEO, who oversaw a $30 billion market value drop over their 17-month tenure. He was replaced by an “operator” who had spent his career in the restaurant industry, and the company recovered $20 billion of market value in 90 days. Not the best testimonial for hiring a consultant without hands-on experience!
Most people, at the point of trying to get into consulting, are simply interested in being generalists. Most people exiting consulting have to go into somewhat more specialized roles. There are generalist roles in industry, for sure. However, those strategy and operations or business operations roles are still looking for specific types of exposure (preferably to their specific industry and/or function, at times even their specific intersection). They might be interested in: Have you done inventory management? Have you done specifically digital marketing initiatives? Are you familiar with financial transactions? While they may be open to taking a chance on a sharp, generally smart consultant, chances are they’d always prefer someone who already understands the industry’s competitive dynamics and has good grasp on their specific slice of the economy.