McKinsey is a Pie-Eating Contest and the Prize is More Pie

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This is one of my favorite phrases about life at McKinsey.  In this post I'll explain why "working at McKinsey is a pie-eating contest and the prize is more pie"...

5 Traits of Client-Ready Decks (PowerPoint Presentations)

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Just as there are "client-ready" consultants, there are client-ready PowerPoint presentations.  In this post, I'll briefly cover what it means for a McKinsey deck to be client ready and 5 traits that client-ready decks share...

6 Traits of Client-Ready McKinsey Consultants

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You might hear management consultants refer to a a person as "Client Ready" or not.  In this post, I'll briefly cover what that means and share 6 traits that client-ready consultants exhibit.  You can also check out the related post on what it means to have a client-ready deck (PowerPoint presentation)...

Stockpiling "Dry Powder" For Your McKinsey Boss

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McKinsey consultants already work a ton of hours, but if they left it up to their clients and Partners, they'd work even more.  One way teams and individual consultants can keep their workloads reasonable is by stockpiling "dry powder".  In this post, I'll discuss what that means and how it can help you manage the workload you're assigned by the McKinsey consultant in your life...

McKinsey and APD (Advanced Professional Degree) Candidates

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Many management consulting firms hire non-MBAs.  However, few, if any, hire them to the extent that McKinsey does.  This post will cover a few of the basics of APD recruiting at McKinsey...

Get Feedback From Your 1st Round McKinsey Interview - Why It's Important

To get hired by McKinsey, you typically have to pass two rounds of interviews.  McKinsey's feedback-driven culture doesn't just apply to the job, it applies to interviews as well.  It's also possible that former McKinsey consultants will apply this approach when interviewing candidates for non-consulting jobs.  In this post we'll cover why it's important to get feedback from your 1st round interview...

Releasing Your Agenda - What It Means and Why It's Important

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It's likely that, at some point, you'll be asked by your McKinsey boss to "release your agenda".  In this post I'll explain what that means, and why it can be helpful.

80/20 Thinking, 110% Execution - Why McKinsey Decks Are Often Warm

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One of my favorite McKinsey client quotes is "I like McKinsey decks - they're always nice and warm".  The reason McKinsey decks are often warm to the touch is because they're fresh off the printer.  It's common for McKinsey teams to be making edits and adding content until the very last minute, then scrambling to print documents and race to client meetings.  You also might see this behavior if you work with or for a former McKinsey consultant.  Here's why this happens...

McKinsey Interviews - 3 Tips For Selecting Your Location Preferences

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Prior to joining McKinsey, you will have 3 major decisions to make - 1) whether or not to apply for a job at the Firm, 2) to which location you'd like to apply, and 3) whether or not to accept your offer.  This post will focus on your location preference decision.

Cover Letters for non-Consulting jobs - 4 common mistakes

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As I mentioned in a previous post about consulting resume screens, cover letters are not critical when applying for a job at McKinsey.  However, in my pre- and post-McKinsey experience, I've found that non-consulting hiring managers rely heavily on cover letters to differentiate between candidates with similarly impressive resumes.  In this post I'll discuss the most common cover letter mistakes I've seen from candidates for non-Consulting jobs...