BCG - Careers - MBAs - Meet BCGers

Five years later I'm a principal who coaches the summer interns. It's true what they say—at BCG no one stops growing.

Jaime
Principal, Madrid

A Personal Story

It seems like just yesterday I started as a summer consultant fresh from my MBA at Harvard. I still remember my first meeting with my principal. I had never been so proud of my work and no one had ever used so much red ink correcting it! But with my team's support and my principal's coaching I developed an analytical rigor and a capacity to structure and synthesize which was so great that I surprised myself.

After ten weeks, I received an offer from BCG on a very special day for me since I had also learned that morning that I was going to be a father. Five years later I'm a principal who coaches the summer interns. It's true what they say—at BCG no one stops growing.

Background

Jaime has a degree in telecommunications engineering from the Polytechnic University of Madrid and an MBA from HBS. He is a principal at the BCG Madrid office.

I really value the comprehensive skill set that I have developed while at BCG – but it’s the people that make it an exceptional place to work.

Julia
Principal, Melbourne

A Personal Story

While I was completing my MBA and considering my career path, I met with many BCGers – from partners through to consultants. What they all seemed to have in common was a strong interest in the people side of the business – both internal to BCG, and the clients we work closely with on a daily basis. This emphasis on working with and developing people to get the best outcome for the client is what makes BCG important for me – the connection I form with my team members and clients during a case; regular local and regional training with peers; and broader firm-wide events where we share with and learn from each other. BCG has allowed me to develop my problem-solving skills in an open and inviting way with my many case teams, as well as the thrill of seeing my 'models' come to life. I really value the whiteboard sessions with my team and clients at the beginning of a case, trying to solve the problem by coming at it from many viewpoints. But it’s the emphasis on people that makes it an exceptional place to work.

Background

Julia completed her MBA at Melbourne Business School, with an international exchange to Anderson School of Management, UCLA, and holds a Bachelor of Commerce, graduating Cum Laude from Laurentian University in Canada. She joined BCG in 2005.

Being responsible for your own development as a professional is a serious matter, but as long as you continue to take on challenges, you will be supported.

Makio
Principal, Tokyo

A Personal Story

After working for BCG for five years, I spent two years at Harvard Business School. Case studies of BCG projects were part of the curriculum. Students learn two things from these.

The first is, of course, that BCG strategies are implementable and are winners. Further, BCG insists on developing unique strategies that offer a wealth of insight. The second is that BCG supports each of its consultants so that they can develop unique strategies. At the same time, each consultant is responsible for his or her own development as a professional. The work of developing and implementing unique strategies with the client is very worthwhile. It’s tough, but it’s fun. That’s because you grow each day. Being responsible for your own development as a professional is a serious matter, but as long as you continue to take on challenges, you will be supported.

I have been, and am even now, supported by many of my colleagues. I invite anyone who wants to develop as a professional and contribute to a client in a unique way to consider BCG.

Background

Makio holds a BA in commerce from Hitotsubashi University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. Makio joined BCG’s Tokyo office in April 1996.

BCG provides intellectual stimulation, personal growth, and the satisfaction of helping clients achieve their goals.

Mallika
Consultant, Singapore

A Personal Story

It is sometimes difficult to distinguish between the top consulting firms during the madness of business school recruiting, but early on, BCG made a strong impression on me as the company where I would be happiest. The people I met were smart, humble, funny, and human. From the moment I joined, it has been the people that continue to surprise me at work every day. From the youngest associates to the most experienced partners, each BCGer brings a wealth of capabilities and multifarious skill sets to the working teams. There is a spirit of genuine collaboration. Each day brings new learning and opportunities, and I find this immensely satisfying.

The MBA has definitely contributed to my output in the workplace. Coming from an engineering background, I found that the MBA provided the multi-disciplinary platform I needed to envision the threads of how operations, finance, marketing, strategy, and ethics converge to better understand the big picture of how businesses function. At BCG I enjoy the practical dimension of working in a diverse team, one that is composed of people with different backgrounds, nationalities, and preferences.

Since joining BCG, I can say that this has been by far the most professionally challenging yet gratifying place I have ever worked.

Background

Mallika joined the BCG office in Singapore in 2008. Before BCG, Mallika worked as a project manager for a boutique consulting company in the Caribbean, consulting with major public sector clients. She received her MBA with distinction from INSEAD and also holds an MA in Southeast Asian studies from the National University of Singapore and a bachelor’s in computer engineering from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.

I came to BCG to broaden my horizons. I've worked on five projects in five industries.

Mark
Project Leader, Houston

A Personal Story

Early in the recruiting process at Harvard Business School, I decided BCG was the best firm for me, a place where I would be surrounded by more diverse individuals and would enjoy greater intellectual freedom than at any of the other top consulting firms. My experience over the last two years has far exceeded my expectations. BCG consultants come from incredibly diverse backgrounds and each brings a unique perspective to the table. Consulting is only one facet of our lives and my coworkers have deep interests in fields as varied as naval history, college football, and symphony orchestras, to name only a few. We share a common thread of intellectual curiosity that drives us to seek the best practical solutions for our clients. In this environment, where ideas trump tenure, I have truly been able to grow further.

Background

Mark joined BCG in 2006 and has worked in the financial services and the travel and leisure industries. Before BCG, he worked at AT&T and AIM Investments. Mark holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from The University of Texas at Austin.

BCG has allowed me to define the career path that works for me, including opportunities to take on non-client-facing roles.

Nor Azah
Principal, Kuala Lumpur

A Personal Story

After three years as a solicitor, I wanted something different—a career that offered continuous learning with room for independence and creativity. After an MBA, I joined BCG. This was definitely the right career move for me. I have worked with clients on a variety of business issues, in industries ranging from financial services to pharmaceuticals, and oil and gas. I have also defined a career path that works for me, which includes taking on non-client-facing roles when I need to be more available at home for my young children.

Background

Azah has an honors degree in law from the International Islamic University, Malaysia, and an MBA from Imperial College, University of London. She now works primarily with both private and public sector clients in Malaysia.

Development is everything in both professional and personal life.

Simone
Consultant, Rome

A Personal Story

After achieving an MBA, my first target was to get a job which would allow me to practice what I had learned in the MBA class. Consultancy with BCG was the perfect choice since it allowed me to use my management skills at the top, dealing with challenging clients to help them grow. One client case I faced shows this practical application—our goal was to show the client that accounting principles and short-term targets sometimes lead to distortion of the business in the long run. BCG allowed me to practice strategic, analytical, and accounting skills with the best.
To win with BCG means to grow together with your colleagues and clients, developing professional enrichment.

Background

Simone holds a telecommunications engineering degree, summa cum laude, from Rome University La Sapienza and an MBA from SDA Bocconi Business School in Milan. He was a summer consultant with BCG and spent a semester abroad at the Wharton Business School.

At BCG neither a person’s position nor title matters, it is the quality and viability of ideas and their impact to clients that counts.

Gulnara
Consultant, Moscow

A Personal Story

Before pursuing my MBA, and during the program, I realized that the ideal job for me would have to offer me three things—a constant challenge, a variety of industries to keep me stimulated, and the opportunity to make a positive impact and see the results of my work on a large scale.
From the beginning BCG delivered all of these and more. As soon as I started I discovered that supporting the fast-paced work were a team of colleagues ready to help each other improve on areas where development was needed, whilst letting individual’s existing strengths grow. At BCG
neither a person’s position nor title mattered, but instead the quality and viability of ideas and their impact to clients were what counted.

From the start of a project you are given immediate responsibility to work collaboratively with the client and make high-level impact on their business. It was perfect for me, and each day continues to bring new challenges, new opportunities, and new excitement.

Background

Gulnara joined BCG’s Moscow office in August 2008. Prior to that she worked for major international companies focusing on brand-management, market research, and strategy development. Gulnara holds an MBA degree from Chicago Graduate School of Business and Bachelor degree in International Economics from Kazakh National University.

It's the people that really make the difference at BCG. The people and the clients. Oh, and the projects too!

Elliot
Principal, London

A Personal Story

Before earning my MBA at London Business School, I spent several years as a lobbyist working with a wide range of companies. I definitely wasn’t ready to narrow my focus to just one or two industries after I graduated. In 3 years, I’ve worked in 6 different industries: Media, Health, Energy, Financial Services, Mining, Retail, Consumer Goods, with teams from across Europe and discovered BCG is a place where I can build a career that’s both entrepreneurial and fulfilling.

When sitting with any BCG team around the world, you can be certain that you’ll be with smart people who are committed to making an impact with their clients and that – despite the diversity of the individuals – they do all share a common set of values. But it goes beyond just calibre of the people. The clients we work with are second-to-none and the work we do with them is on deep strategic issues that have major impact.

Background

Elliot joined BCG in 2005 from London Business School, where he received his MBA with distinction. He also holds a BA in literature from Clare College, Cambridge. Before BCG, Elliot worked as a public affairs consultant in a Westminster lobbying firm. For the past six years, he has served as director of a London-based charity.

Developing our people is at the core of our long term success.

Krister
Principal, Oslo

A Personal Story

To me, BCG is all about having major impact and creating value in an inspiring and dynamic environment. Given BCG’s expertise, practice areas, and global reach, we’re brought in by large organizations to assist on the issues that top the agenda of senior management. To succeed with this, we need to bring the best people to the table. From day one at BCG, there is a strong focus and commitment to formal training to prepare you for the rapidly increasing responsibilities you'll get at BCG. However, our tailored approach to solving our clients' challenges makes it impossible to learn everything you need from training, and our firm's high partner-to-consultant ratio creates a critical and real opportunity for continuous on-the-job training and coaching. Our senior consultants’ willingness to spend time on developing our people is really the core of our training curriculum—and at the heart of BCG's long term success.

Background

Krister holds an MS in business and administration from the Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration, a major in finance from HEC, France, and an MBA from INSEAD.

After earning my MBA, I continue to learn at BCG.

Emre
Consultant, Chicago

A Personal Story

I had worked as a consultant before business school, so I thought what BCG could teach me would be somewhat limited. Little did I know.

My first project was an industrial goods case that required me to travel internationally and work side-by-side with the client’s country managers to refine their strategies. BCG’s culture encouraged me to go beyond prescribed solutions and push for breakthrough thinking, continuously asking, “What would I do if this were my business?”

Since then, I have worked on strategy projects in the financial services and consumer goods areas, exploring territory beyond the health care industry, my focus in the past. Regardless of which path I take, I know that BCG will be my best preparation for a career in busine

Background

Emre joined BCG in 2007. Before BCG, he worked at Medtronic and ZS Associates, a sales and marketing consulting firm focused on health care. Emre holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management, an MSc in electrical engineering from The University of Michigan, and a BSc in electrical engineering from Bogazici University, Istanbul.

Whatever course I decide to take in the future, I'm confident what I learn here, combined with BCG's excellent brand, will help me along the way.

Nigel
Consultant, Sydney

A Personal Story

During the first stage of my career, I commercialised flat panel display technology in a startup, then helped early stage businesses with strategy and fund raising for a few years, so I had a very entrepreneurial focus. When I joined BCG after business school I had a clear goal in mind: I wanted to work with larger organisations, as there was a whole side of business – having customers and revenue! – that I had little experience of first hand. BCG has allowed me to do this, while giving me the opportunity to branch out into new industries at the same time. Since starting I've worked alongside the management in two large businesses in mining and telecos. Whatever course I decide to take in the future, I'm confident what I learn here, combined with BCG's excellent brand, will help me along the way.

Background

Nigel holds a first class MA degree and a DPhil in Chemistry from the University of Oxford, and an MBA from INSEAD in Singapore and France. Nigel moved from the UK to join BCG's Sydney office in 2008.

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