FluffyBanana
FluffyBanana

High growth startup or Consulting?

Im currently working at McKinsey and want to understand if working at a startup in a strategy.growth role is better. What are the factors i should be thinking about before making the switch?

20mo ago
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MagicalHamster
MagicalHamster

Depends a little on whether you’re pre or post MBA (in case MBA is something you’re looking to hit in the next few years)

Factors to look at:

  • Whether you want to build or remain a consultant; at it’s core it’s what you enjoy more and can sustainably do for longer
  • Stability - Finding a good startup is super tough. Most probably, the startup you end up going to will not make it. Being open to a couple of different switches is important.
  • General Lifestyle - Much better at a startup, unless you find a super toxic founder. Do some due diligence there.
  • Pay - Most likely you will not make as much cash, and your ESOPS taking off is not very high probability. But if cash is not too different, it might be worth it to take the bet

Just some loose thoughts

SnoozyWalrus
SnoozyWalrus
Uber20mo
  1. do you even want to continue in consulting? The longer you wait, the lesser opportunities you get. Comp becomes higher and skill set doesn’t justify. IMO, getting tech/PM/pnL experience is invaluable to growing your career. Best time to exit consulting is 2-4 years in after 5 years after becoming partner
SnoozyWalrus
SnoozyWalrus
Uber20mo

Was at an MBB firm before moving to tech. Obviously it depends, but my pov -

  1. compensation - til last year, startups would beat mbb on cash component with esops as kicker. Situation has changed this year, where most people get salary match
  2. runway - should be atleast 24 months
  3. role - very few startups working on growth initiatives right now. And more of core and cost reduction. So the strategy role priorities will also reflect this. Needless to say, the latter is not interesting
  4. founder/firm culture fit - very important to have a capable and reasonable EQ founder. In bad times, they will ditch you very easily. Best done via employee discussions to assess
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