Guide to a future in consulting

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Why Prepare Your Story?

Good interviews are more than luck; they are the result of practice and preparation. Your competition has already practiced their elevator pitch, why they want to work in consulting, and why they should be hired instead of you. Have you prepared your story?

The Experience Matrix

Fill out Table 1 with situations where you showed one of the qualities in the left column. Each situation should include the situation, the action you took, and the result. Once you have Table 1 filled out, you can draw on the examples when writing “Accomplishment Statements”.

	Work	School	Personal
Teamwork
Leadership
Analytics
Creativity/Creative Problem Solving
Communication
Adversity
Ambiguity
Conflict Resolution
Flexibility
Influence
Initiation/Follow-through
Problem Solving
Strategic Thinking
Convincing People
Failure
Weakness

Table 1: Source UNC Consulting Club

The Consulting Resume

While networking is a good way to get information about a company, the resume and cover letter is the key factor for getting an interview in the first round of the hiring process. It is important to create a version of your resume that is targeted to the consulting firms you are approaching. The consulting resume will focus on general characteristics such as quantitative experience, leadership, drive, and ability to influence.

Writing your resume

Write your resume in an active tone that tells your story and highlights the attributes that consulting firms are looking for. Don’t forget that each bullet point should be honest and supportable with a story or explanation. Before you begin you should review the table that summarizes what consulting firms are looking for, the guide to writing accomplishment statements, and the resume template.

Generally, the specifics of your job will be less important than the personal characteristics you demonstrated.

What Consulting Firms Are Looking For

Characteristic	Indicator	Warning Signs	Opportunities
Intelligence	GMAT > 700* GPA > 3.7 Honors/awards Prestigious university	GMAT and/or GPA is not on resume Unknown university	List any honors, scholarships, publications or fellowships
Experience	3 to 5 years preferred Prestigious company Clear work progression Leadership/management experience Growing responsibility Quantitative work Merit based promotions	<3 years work experience No clear progression in role/responsibilities Little leadership	Assure your work descriptions highlight these factors when they exist
Problem Solving	Specific examples of overcoming challenges in previous jobs Team leadership Strong personal achievements	Little evidence of experience requiring solving problems Resume focused on responsibilities Routine jobs No professional growth in jobs or responsibilities	Highlight examples from consulting teams and internships Led major school event
Analytical / Quantitative Skills	Quantitative/analytical undergraduate major Finance Stats classes Quantitative work experience	Non-quantitative major No quantitative work elsewhere	Highlight quantitative work experience or logical / process oriented work experience
Personal Impact	Unique accomplishments Specific leadership examples Creative or innovative solutions Started business nonprofit or club Led major business school event	Work experience focused on execution No evidence of initiative or being proactive	Focus resume on accomplishment Show that you have taken on major or difficult tasks Highlight hobbies that turn into businesses Highlight non-profit work
Leadership	Leadership in B-School Elected officer in club/school organization Manage teams or projects Clear evidence of leading change Captain of sports team Military rank	Gives the appearance of ‘just taking classes’ Little evidence of leadership Member in too many clubs	List your 1-2 most active clubs; look for 1st year leadership roles Very active in a few clubs, rather than member in many
Fit/Personality	Experience working on teams Client facing roles Team-oriented hobbies, such as sports Extraordinary achievements (triathlon, marathon, etc.)	Lived/worked all in one place Individual contributor roles with no team interaction	Use these criterion when choosing which activities to highlight Selectively highlight internship activities Highlight team projects

* Required for most strategy firms

Finally, make sure you know what the company is looking for. Most companies will put job requirements into a job description, but don’t stop there. A search of their website may give you a better idea of what they want. For example, a quick search of McKinsey’s website revealed the following:

Sample Requirements from McKinsey’s Website

We hire exceptional people with outstanding capabilities and great potential in four areas. Each area is critical to success in our day-to-day work.

Problem solving

McKinsey consultants help leaders solve their toughest and most urgent problems. You must have superior intellectual abilities as well as a practical sense of what works in complex organizations.

Achieving

Our consultants strive to deliver distinctive and lasting client impact. This requires tremendous energy, determination, and judgment, particularly when working with multiple stakeholders under tight deadlines.

Personal impact

McKinsey consultants work closely with a wide range of people in their daily jobs. This calls for strong communication skills—particularly when addressing conflicting points of view. You have to be adept at building trusting relationships with clients to enlist their participation and support.

Leadership

Leading people and fostering productive teamwork are critical to success here. You need excellent leadership skills to bring people together to drive positive change within organizations.

Our consultants are accomplished and well rounded, with diverse backgrounds and experiences. They’re also fun to work with. Our clients and colleagues value this unique mix of talent, skill, and character.

Writing Accomplishment Statements

Accomplishment statements or "success stories" are written proof of the results, achievements and successes from your past work experience. They are the heart of your resume marketing campaign and demonstrate what is UNIQUE about you as well as provide proof of the VALUE you can bring to a prospective employer.

Accomplishments can be drawn from your professional work experience or from experiences in other areas, such as:

Volunteer activities
Community involvement
Military experience
Education (undergraduate or graduate)
Personal or home life

Ask Yourself These Questions to Help You Write Your Accomplishments Statements?

"Have I ever…………………………?

Invented something or improved something?
Achieved more with fewer resources or money?
Saved my company money?
Reduced costs?
Improved the productivity or operation?
Saved time?
Increased sales?
Did something newsworthy or noteworthy?
Designed a new process, program or product?
Developed and implemented a new procedure or program?
Completed something on time or ahead of schedule?
Completed something ahead of budget?
Identified new markets?
Demonstrated outstanding leadership skills?

What is the Difference between Duties/Responsibilities and Accomplishments?
Duties and responsibilities typically refer to items that were listed on your job description-what you were supposed to do. Accomplishments or success stories give specific examples of what YOU actually did and the IMPACT your efforts had on your previous employer.
Examples:

Duties and Responsibilities From Job Description	Accomplishment Statements on Your Resume
Responsible for sales in Northeast region.	Managed a team of three account executives and two inside sales representatives. Produced $6M in new revenue in less than 12 months.
Responsible for the startup of a manufacturing facility.	Led the planning, design and construction of a multi-purpose manufacturing facility in Japan. Improved product quality and delivery time for local customers.

How to Write Accomplishment Statements
There are three steps to writing an accomplishment statement. The first is to identify the Problem, Action and Results (PAR) for each one of your work experiences.

P= Problem, challenge or opportunity that existed
A=Action you took to solve the problem
R=Result or Outcome of your efforts

Example:
Problem

Company was experiencing many customer complaints (20+) on a monthly basis. They complained that the software was hard to install and that the installation instructions were difficult to understand.

Action

Collaborated with R&D to develop a more user-friendly installation package.

Established a "hot line" to handle these complaints.

Purchased and implemented software to track customer complaints and resolution.

Result

Decrease in customer complaints from 20 to less than five complaints per month.

Resulting Accomplishment Statement on Resume:
Decreased customer complaints by 75% monthly by initiating the design of a new user-friendly installation package, including new customer hotline and software application.
Example:
Problem

Summer camp facilities owned by non-profit Community Outreach were no longer adequate. They were too small and there was not enough outdoor equipment.

Action

Organized a community event that raised money to build new camp facilities. Managed a team of 30 volunteers for a local fundraising event.

Result

Raised over $65,000 in one weekend which allowed Community Outreach to build two new camp facilities.

Resulting Accomplishment Statement on Resume:
Raised $65,000 for community outreach in one weekend with team of 30 volunteers allowing local nonprofit to design and build two new inner-city camp facilities.
Hard Accomplishment Statements
Using numbers, percentages and facts to convey accomplishments and results

Grew loan portfolio from $75 million to $225 million and managed $50 million in deposit accounts; portfolio generated over $3 million in revenue.
Assisted clients with achieving portfolio growth rate of 25-30%, a higher return than market trends.
Reduced days sales outstanding (DSO) by 10% through attentive relationship management, frequent credit review and proactive collection initiatives.
Revamped invoicing system to reduce processing time from three weeks to five days.
As Sales Manager, produced $6.5 million in revenue in 2003 with aggressive client development.
As Regional Sales Manager, developed aggressive marketing campaigns and channel marketing programs, increasing revenue from $5 million to $25 million over a four-year time period.
Initiated revolutionary lead tracking system that resulted in a 25% increase in new sales leads being transferred to direct sales team. New leads resulted in $2 million in incremental revenue over two years.
Managed all merchandising decisions across four product categories and 13 stores. Restructured product lines, renegotiated vendor agreements and spearheaded new sales programs, resulting in a 45% increase in new product sales over a three-year period.
As Manager of MIS for XYZ, selected and installed a new purchasing, receivables and payables solution. Purchase order time was reduced from four weeks to one, while staff productivity increased by 35% and company saved over $90,000 in annual overpayments.
As part of management team, successfully completed Customer Relationship Management project one month ahead of schedule and $250,000 under budget.
Developed and implemented strategic manufacturing plan including the realignment and consolidation of six plants worldwide. New plan resulted in a 40% reduction in headcount and a 25% increase in inventories.
Managed data center for hosted small business applications. Reduced hosting costs by 35% while maintaining superior service levels.
Led a team of three IT analysts in the analysis of firm’s software maintenance costs. Made recommendations to senior management team, that ultimately led to a yearly cost savings of $55,000.

Soft Accomplishment Statements
Using words to convey accomplishments and results that cannot be quantified

Played a pivotal role in firms landing ABC account in pharmaceutical industry. Convinced ABC to leave competitor and improved perceptions with ABC account.
Developed and implemented innovative marketing communication plans which significantly increased firm’s coverage and reputation in national, business and trade publications.
Took the lead in developing a “New Product Introduction” kit to assist account executives with assimilating information on new products. The kit’s comprehensive nature significantly reduced follow-up calls to product and marketing teams and increased sales team’s ability to introduce new products more effectively.
Performed primary and secondary research on firm’s worldwide competitors and created internal knowledge management system to disseminate information rapidly. Up to date competitive positioning caused positive changes in product strategy and resulted in releases of products more suited to customer requirements.
Recognized for ability to understand, assess and meet client credit needs for working capital, acquisition and investment purposes leading to an increase in profitable relationships.
Improved cash reporting system and internal control procedures through development of interactive customer database.
As Large Account Executive, exceeded revenue goals by maintaining volume, increasing business and renegotiating contracts with multinational accounts.
Implemented new employee training program that dramatically increased productivity and morale in key business unit.
Led a cross functional team to evaluate decreasing customer complaints. Identified sources of dissatisfaction and recommended new workflow process that greatly enhanced employee morale and customer retention.
Designed and implemented competitive compensation programs that improved employee productivity and morale.

Resume Format
Before submitting your resume you should check the consulting company’s website to see if they have specific requirements. Some companies such as McKinsey will eliminate candidates for not following their formatting suggesting. One method of constructing your resume is to using the following format.
Directory: 2012
2012 -> The Case Against the nypd’s Quota-Driven ‘Broken Windows’ Policing What Is It?
2012 -> Annual InStructional unit plan
2012 -> University of Hawai‘i Maui College dental assisting program review october 21, 2013
2012 -> Committee on the rights of the child the rights of all children in the context of international migration
2012 -> Background on the Haitian Earthquake
2012 -> The Collected Wisdom of Science Olympiad Coaches
2012 -> Federal Communications Commission fcc 12-81 Before the Federal Communications Commission
2012 -> Aa and na members Dying from Tobacco
2012 -> [Baby Crying] 01: 04 [Ching

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