| A note about McKinsey and consulting: Lots of discussions on "evil Goldman Sachs" or "the useless profession of finance" that I have seen also include the business of management consulting (McKinsey, Bain, BCG, etc) as the similar career tracks. It is true that lots of elite students at US colleges are interested in Banking and Consulting when they graduate. They are interested because both careers are prestigious and lead to more things. But the comparison is very limited. There is a passage at the end of his op-ed when he talks about his first days in the values driven organization learning the ropes of what the work is, how to be productive at it, and how to take the client perspective always. I worked for McKinsey from 2003-2006 and I had that same first-day experience and it was more or less my experience throughout. I talk to folks now and they still think/act this way -- values are super important, the client comes first, being smart is all about helping the client better and therefore the firm prospering in the long run. People bragged about "we turned down the work" ALL THE TIME because it isn't a good use of "the client's money/time/focus". There have indeed been scandals where individuals (even the ex-head of the firm!) have done unethical things at McKinsey. These are more famous because McKinsey is so super duper integrity focused and they are embarrassing, but they happen on a backdrop of client service. And indeed many many public spirited, "business isn't really what I'm about" people come work at McKinsey and leave and go on to do other things. The big thing about consulting firms like McK which is really great and different from banking -- apart from the values which may be good for their business -- is that they are places for GENERALISTS. You get there and work on a wide range of problems, with a wide range of analytics/collaborative/communication skills. This is what is great about consulting and why people go on from there to do great things. In the "old" world of Goldman Sachs this might have been true too -- when they were investment bankers advising clients on what to do. You and client win in this scenario. But much of the firm's money these days is made from TRADING, where there is a loser on the other side -- apparently the client. |