BCG - The Boston Consulting Group

Terrilyn Consultant Chicago

Henning Consultant Munich

Dana Associate Washington, D.C.

When I graduated from the University of Virginia with a degree in business, I wasn't really sure what I wanted to do. But I knew what I wanted to get out of my first professional work experience: insights into a range of business issues, the opportunity to explore different industries, and a chance to try a lot of different things.

I decided on consulting, and BCG in particular, because I was attracted to the incredible level of responsibility and authority BCG gives its associates, the high caliber of its clients, and the genuine friendliness of the people.

I'm one of about 12 new associates starting in the Boston office. The high point of our off-site weeklong training is the mock project. We break into teams and spend a couple of days actually working on a project and learning how to structure it: coming up with a hypothesis, setting up the story, researching the data, proving the points, and ultimately presenting our observations and recommendations to the client. It's a week of intense training, and I am getting along quite well with the other associates.

I've started working with several other associates on a series of client proposals. Most of them are for technology and communications companies, so I'm researching subjects like video conferencing, connector equipment, and wireless telephone technologies.

Although I'm eager to get started on a real project, this is a great opportunity to learn about the industry without a lot of pressure. Just getting familiar with concepts and terms (and there are a lot of them in technology and communications) is a great help. I'm also developing a better understanding of how BCG adds value.

My jitters have begun to disappear. I have had several opportunities to contribute to the proposals because of my knowledge and understanding of the industries, and I realize that I have a lot to offer. The partner I've been working with has been a huge influence. We work really well together, and he has consistently shown confidence in me.

I've been struggling with the math on some financial work I've been doing—really pulling out my hair. When I tell the partner, he is totally sympathetic—he comes into my office and spends a couple of hours conducting an informal calculus refresher course.

That's par for the course. I get just about as much learning, support, and feedback as I ask for. People are incredibly generous with their time.

Meanwhile, there's as much formal training as I have the time to take advantage of. Every Monday, most of the associates assemble in a large meeting room for training sessions on presentation, writing, and communication skills. I consider myself pretty adept as a communicator, but I'm learning a lot of useful techniques, like how to get people I'm interviewing to be more forthcoming. I'm looking forward to trying out these new skills on a project.

I've been assigned to my next project, and it looks like a really exciting one. A new telecom "backbone" player in Europe recently acquired the rights to an asset. Our mission is to help the client decide how to maximize the value of this asset. Does the company keep the rights? Does it vertically integrate? Does it sell off the rights or license them?

We had our first big project-team meeting, which was part debriefing, part strategy session. My role will be to research and benchmark a competitor that made a similar decision, learning from its successes and mistakes to help guide the thinking of the project team.

I'm not an expert by any stretch of the imagination, but the learn-as-I-go approach has worked so far. A consultant and one other associate are doing the same thing for different companies, so we're helping each other out, bouncing ideas off each other and comparing notes.

The partner on the project and I flew to New York to meet with the client team (including the CEO), who were in from Europe for the day. On the flight down, he asked me if I would be willing to do part of the presentation we prepared.

It was my first presentation to a client, but because I knew I had the team's intellectual support I was not nervous. In fact, it was pretty thrilling to be standing up at the whiteboard and explaining our findings to the CEO of the company. I think I made a good impression because a few days later, the CEO called me directly to get some information.

I amazed friends and colleagues with my recently acquired knowledge of telecommunications. This was new to me just a few weeks ago, and now I can talk knowledgeably about the pros and cons of DSL versus broadband cable.

BCG believes in not only appraising your performance on each individual project but also looking across projects every six months or so. I've been here eight months but who's counting? Overall, the review went really well.

I reminded the associate coordinator that my office preference is Washington, D.C., and without missing a beat he picked up the phone and called the D.C. office. He didn't make any promises, but it was nice to know he took my request so seriously. (I did get my transfer to D.C. a few months later.)

My next project has come along sooner than I was expecting, but I am very excited to get started because it will be so different from the last one. The client is a pharmaceutical company, and we're doing activity-based analysis of its support processes so that we can help identify ways of improving its efficiency and effectiveness.

One of the great things about the associate role at BCG is that I'm doing the same type of work as the two M.B.A. consultants on my team. I'm responsible for managing a whole module—in particular, looking for potential cost savings in the marketing and sales department.

This won't be an easy project. We'll have to make hard recommendations that probably won't win us any popularity contests with the client's employees. My teammates recognize that I may need a little more direction or support. If I feel I need some, I just have to ask for it.

I've accomplished a lot and learned a lot this year—from how to work with clients, especially in tough situations, to being able to crystallize a story using the most salient points, to understanding the dynamics of different industries. But the highlight has definitely been my peer group, particularly my Boston classmates. They've been amazing friends, colleagues, and supporters.