Insider

Guide
Bain &
Company 2008 EDITION
 Bain & Company

WetFeet, Inc.

The Folger Building

101 Howard Street
Suite 300
San Francisco, CA 94105

Phone: (415) 284-7900 or 1-800-926-4JOB

Fax: (415) 284-7910
Website: www.wetfeet.com

Bain & company

2008 Edition
ISBN: 978-1-58207-803-8

Photocopying Is Prohibited

Copyright 2008 WetFeet, Inc. All rights reserved. This publication is protected by the copyright
laws of the United States of America. No copying in any form is permitted. It may not be reproduced,
distributed, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, in
part or in whole, without the express written permission of WetFeet, Inc.
The publisher, author, and any other party involved in creation, production, delivery, or sale of
this WetFeet Insider Guide make no warranty, express or implied, about the accuracy or reliability
of the information found herein. To the degree you use this guide or other materials referenced
herein, you do so at your own risk. The materials contained herein are general in nature and may
not apply to particular factual or legal circumstances. Under no circumstances shall the publisher,
author, or any other party involved in creation, production or delivery of this guide be liable to
you or any other person for damages of any kind arising from access to, or use of, its content.

All illustrations by mckibillo

 Bain & Company

CHAPTER 1 2
1 Bain & Company
at a Glance
5 The Firm

6 Overview

7 The Bottom Line

8 Competitive
Strategy

8 Industry Position

10 A Quick History
Lesson

Bain &
11 Organization of
the Firm

Company
14 Recent Client List

15 Typical Projects

conte
16 Whats Hot
2008 EDITION
3456
19 On the Job 25 The Workplace 43 Getting Hired 51 For Your
Reference
20 Associate 26 Lifestyle and Hours 44 The Recruiting
Consultant Process 52 Recommended
27 Culture Reading
22 Consultant 45 On-the-Record
29 Workplace Diversity Recruiter Interview 53 For Further Study

30 Civic Involvement 54 Key Numbers

47 The Interviewers and People
31 Compensation Checklist
and Vacation
47 Interviewing Tips
32 Perks
48 Grilling Your
33 Travel Interviewer

34 Career Path

37 Training

38 The Inside Scoop

nts
 Bain &
Company

1
at aGlance
 At a glance
Bain & Company

Bain &
Company at
a Glance
The Firm

Headquarters
131 Dartmouth Street
Boston, MA 02116
Phone: 617-572-2000
Fax: 617-572-2427
www.bain.com
On the Job

Primary Competitors Its very important to be yourself, have fun, and relax.
The Boston Consulting Group, McKinsey & While this is obviously easier said than done, were
Company, Booz Allen Hamilton looking for people who can enjoy the [recruiting and
interviewing] process.
Key Differentiating Factors
Strong, enthusiastic culture Were looking for the new breed of business leaders,
The Work place

the candidates committed to creating business value.

In two U.S. offices (Boston and New York),
consultants and associate consultants (ACs) are
staffed on two projects at once.
Equal number of consultants and associates
Heavy emphasis on data analysis and a results-
driven outcome
Getting Hired
What we tell recruits is that its pretty powerful to
learn how to make companies more valuable. Theyll
get experience because theyll face a new problem
with each client, develop a skill set to answer tough
questions, and learn to act decisively.
In the Interview

Bain uses case interviews to evaluate your

Results are measured by clients success. (Clients analytical skills and see whether you enjoy
typically outperform the stock market by 4:1.) thinking in such a format.

Training of new recruits is done by top managers
and partners, not outsourced to non-Bain
personnel.
In the Recruiters Words
Theres no silver bullet. We look for people who
REFERENCE
Insiders say that although interviews are very
structured in general, the interviewers are usually
friendly and interviews often take the form of a
conversation about business issues.
Interviewers want to see passion. What are you

are clearly smart and driven and are going to be well passionate about and why?
FOR YOUR

aligned with our operating values.

 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
 At a glance
What Insiders Say The Career Ladder
When people here start on a project, they dont use Undergraduates enter as associate consultants.
the words Bain or I. They say we, meaning Bain and
the client. MBAs enter as consultants.

If you do good work, you will absolutely be given The schedule of promotions is somewhat flexible

The Firm
tasks that max you out intellectually. When the case but generally based on entering classes. Merit, of
allows it and youve demonstrated that you can take it, course, is an important part of the equation.
youll get maxed out.

Its not as though you have to be a rocket scientist

or a math major, but you do have to have a comfort
with data and numbers, because its a big part of
what we do.

On the Job
Fun is an operating principle at Bainwe enjoy what
we do and we laugh a lot.

The Work place

Personnel Highlights, 2005 to 2006, Worldwide
Bain tallies its total number of employees at 3,700 in 2007* 2,700 consultants and 1,000 non-consultants*

Estimated number of new undergrad hires 400500

Estimated number of new MBA hires 400500

Estimated number of new summer hires 150250

Estimated number of industry hires 75100

Getting Hired
Source: WetFeet estimates (Bain does not release this information). *This 2007 information from www.bain.com

Deutsche Banks League Table Rankings

Hire Starting Salary Signing Bonus

Undergrad $65,00075,000 $5,000

MBA $110,000115,000 $10,00020,000

REFERENCE
FOR YOUR

Summer intern $2,700/week n/a

Source: WetFeet estimates (Bain does not release this information).

WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 

The Firm

2
Overview....................................... 6
The Bottom Line............................7
Competitive Strategy.................... 8
Industry Position.......................... 8
A Quick History Lesson.............. 10
Organization of the Firm.............11
Recent Client List....................... 14
Typical Projects........................... 15
Whats Hot................................. 16
 At a glance
Bain & Company
INSIDER SCOOP
Bain puts a priority on maintaining a work-life
balance. Theres no face time, so you can leave
when you get the work done. But the market is
so good that theres a lot of workthere arent a
lot of people sitting on the beach.
The Firm
Overview
Although smaller than McKinsey & Company
and younger than many of its competitors, blue-
chip strategy house Bain & Company is comfortably
On the Job
settled within the top tier of the consulting crme de
la crme. Typical projects at Bain include many of the
top-level issues that strategy firms tend to be called in
to address: strategic analysis and corporate redirection,
operations streamlining (re-engineering), growth
strategy, and acquisition and strategic partnership
The Work place
studies. The firm takes a data-driven approach to help
engineer turnarounds at some of the worlds largest
companiesan emphasis on results permeates the
companys way of doing business.
Bain has been a steadfast subscriber to the
notion of maintaining long-term relationships with
clientsafter all, it came up with the idea in the first
place, back when other firms were practicing a go in,
check it out, write up a report, get out of there kind
Getting Hired
of consulting. Bain has been working with many of
its key clients in various capacities for years, and it
was one of the first strategy consulting firms to accept
equity instead of fees from clients. Traditional billing
is still more common at Bain, but the firm will not
take on a project unless it thinks the client can see a
significant return over the consulting fees.
Bains strength is said to rest on the type of
people it hires (less academic but more well
rounded, and able to form strong relationships
REFERENCE
with clients) and on the firms insistence on using
FOR YOUR
data and analysis to get results.
Recently, Bain has been increasing its focus on
implementation casessticking around to help
 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
a company put its suggestions into practicein
addition to the high-level strategy and diagnostic
cases that are still its bread and butter. We try not
to stop at the strategic diagnosis, says one insider,
who says its now typical to have a high-level strategy
piece roll into something more implementation-
oriented. This focus also helps give employees a
sense of a longer trajectory: It gives us a chance to
actually spend some time with the clients outside of
the formal updates where youre just talking about
strategy. Instead, you can actually work side by side
and develop something tangible.
Implementation cases also give Bain another chance
to put skin in the game. With an up-and-down
economy, longer-term relationships, and payment
based on equity and success, collecting fees on both
sides of the process makes sense.
INSIDER SCOOP
We used to do all the hard work on the strategy
and someone else would come in and help the
client implement it. From a financial perspec-
tive, it makes more sense for us to do the full
projectand the clients are demanding it.
Bainies (a term used affectionately by Bainies
themselves) are notorious for being data-driven:
They are more likely to create a powerful, hard-
hitting analysis based on cold hard facts than to
develop theoretical new frameworks and author
academic papers. Insiders distinguish Bain from
the competition by emphasizing its results-oriented
approach to consulting. The value Bain provides
isnt in a spreadsheet, but in using the data-driven
approach to come up with answers that are based on a
solid foundation. And Bain takes a team approach to
cementing ideas: Its 30 percent whiteboarding and
70 percent research and analysis. So everyone has a
hand in the final outcome.
Bainies speak positively about their firms young,
social, energetic culture, and seem to enjoy getting
together with their colleagues outside of work. The
word fun comes up in every conversation with them.
 At a glance
If you want to keep your social life separate from INSIDER SCOOP
your work life, Bain may not be the place for you, I feel like Im going to spend a lot of time with
especially if youre an associate consultant. The firm [my coworkers] any way you cut it. Im traveling
actively cultivates its strong culture, and loyal employees with them, Im working with them, so Ive got to
get red-carpet treatment. When youre new, says one be able to connect and have a beer with them, or
Bainie, you feel like you should go to all the events, theres a fit issue.

and before you know it, all your friends are Bain people.
You have to make an active effort to socialize outside of
Bain. Bainies enjoy a slew of informal lunches, dinners,
and drinks; they participate in Bain athletic events, book
clubs, and talent shows, not to mention all-expenses-
paid museum outings, fancy dinners, ski trips, Hawaiian
getaways, soccer tournaments, and the infamous Bain
Band. Most of the Bainies who participate in these
The Firm
Bainies also enjoy the status associated with a top-
tier, name-brand consultancy. Bain is a name that
people admire, says one associate consultant. When
people hear that you work here, you get instant respect
and recognition. It has opened a lot of doors for me.
Its pretty amazing. And the company understands
that one of the major reasons people work at Bain is to

On the Job
activities are in their 20speople who are young and gain experience for future opportunities.
who dont have families at home.

INSIDER SCOOP
Were not going to do work if we feel we cant The Bottom
get results, and were willing to put our money
Line

The Work place

where our mouth is.

A solid reputation, a top-notch client pool,

THE WORLD OVER and an enthusiastic culture make Bain one of the
most respected strategy consulting houses in the
Insiders at Bain confirm that I want to world. Bains approach includes focusing on data
appreciate the firms end up in nonprofit, that supports a concrete proposal, implementing that
international and she says. I got to learn
externship opportunities. about philanthropy in
proposal, and coming up with measurable results
The company is foundations, school youll develop great spreadsheet skills here. Insiders

Getting Hired
committed to making district reform, and say the firm cultivates a social workplace environment
sure youre happy within traditional nonprofits. and talk overwhelmingly about how much they enjoy
your surroundings, Im going to business
says one. Ive already school in the fall, and the people they work with. As one of the Big Three
worked in four different Ill probably come strategy consulting firms, Bain is a terrific place to start
offices, and Bains back to Bain. But at or continue your consulting career.
supported me all the whatever point I leave
way. I dont know where Bain it will definitely
else I could do that. be for the nonprofit INSIDER SCOOP
Another insider talks sector; spending time A lot of people who leave Bain get to do some
enthusiastically about at Bridgespan really really cool stuff, like start businesses and go into
a six-month externship helped me figure that
private equity. We have an excellent acceptance
REFERENCE

at the Bridgespan out. It would have taken

rate into business schools, and a very strong
FOR YOUR

Group, a nonprofit me a lot longer to learn

consultancy set up by all that on my own. alumni network. Consulting is always something
Bain. It helped me you can use to go somewhere else.

WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 

 At a glance
Bain & Company
Competitive
Strategy
When asked what makes Bain different from
The Firm
other firms, all the insiders we interviewed offered
the same response: results. Everybody today talks
about results, but weve been doing it right from the
beginning, says one. You wont find people here
who are all jazzed up to write articles for business
magazines. You will find people who are jazzed up
because the client has increased its revenues by $500
million because of recommendations we made. A
On the Job
manager says, Im not interested in my teams just
doing fancy reports. I want to make sure were working
with the clients on whats really important to them
what keeps them up at nightand that were really
helping them solve the problem.
Bain proposals are supposed to go beyond simply
The Work place
making an idea seem workable in theory; theyre
expected to be supported by data and driven by logic,
and to bring about actual results that can be measured
in terms of improved profitability. This is what Bain
calls its outside-in method, which is fact-based and
objective. I came from an academic background, says
one insider. The rigor with which you do analysis and
the interest in your answer are the same [at Bain as they
are in academia], but while youd get points in school for
Getting Hired
saying, This is a question we cant answer because of X,
Y, and Z, thats totally inappropriate here.
Bain is not afraid to innovate, and is thought of
as much more entrepreneurial than the other firms,
one insider says. Bain was the first consulting firm
to start a venture capital firm (Bain Capital). It was
also the first major firm to accept equity instead of
cash fees, the first to share equity with the consulting
staff, and the first to open an incubator (Bainlab).
Orit Gadiesh, Bains chairperson since 1993, is the
REFERENCE
first woman to have headed a major management
FOR YOUR
consulting firm. In 1999 Bain became the first major
consulting firm to start a practice focused only on
nonprofits (the Bridgespan Group) and the first to
 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
> TIP
Potential Bainies should get
comfortable with the companys
results-oriented approach before
their interviews.
partner with a major venture capital firm to form
a joint venture (eVolution Venture Partners). That
same year, the firm launched BainNet, a technology
consulting alliance that includes companies such as
i2 Technologies, Oracle, and Fort Point Partners. In
2003, Bain unrolled a new brand based on the concept
of helping companies become more valuableand
changing its logo colors from blue to red, which
symbolizes passion, says a recruiterin a further
effort to distinguish itself from its competitors. The
companys most recent initiative is GEN (Global
Expert Network), which offers Bains case teams IT
expertise via a subcontracting model.
Industry
Position
Though smaller and younger than McKinsey,
Bain is recognized as one of the worlds leading
strategy consulting firms. It has been growing faster
than many of its competitors over the past few years.
Bain considers itself among the top three firms, along
with McKinsey and Boston Consulting Group (BCG),
with whom it often competes for work. It has set itself
apart by emphasizing private equity (PE), which now
accounts for an estimated 40 percent of its business.
Although the private-equity group is not a separate
division of Bain, some partners specialize in it, and
lower-level staff members may do six-month rotations
through PE as part of their professional development.

According to a Consultants News 2005 ranking of
50 of the Worlds Largest Management Consulting
Practices (published in June 2006), Bain came at
number 15, a respectable increase over its 2004 place
at number 29. With a growth rate thats holding
steady after a 2004 decline (13.6 percent in 2005 and
13 percent in 2004; down from 17 percent in 2003)
and a rising market share of 1.2 percent (up from 0.5
percent), Bains revenues have steadily and significantly
increased, from $761 million in fiscal year 2002, to
$890.8 million in 2003, to $945 million in 2004, and
then to $1,074 million in 2005.
IBM gave up its first-place ranking to Deloitte,
and three other consulting firms made the top ten on
the 2005 Consultants News listMcKinsey (ranked
3rd), Accenture (7th), and Booz Allen Hamilton
(8th). Boston Consulting Group, one of Bains closest
competitors, made almost as impressive a rise, up to
11th place from 21st in 2004.
In Consulting Magazines 2006 list of the top 25
management consultants in the U.S., Ashish Singh,
Bains managing partner in India, made the cut, along
with higher-ups at several other companies, including
McKinsey, Booz Allen Hamilton, BCG, and Deloitte.
And in Consulting Magazines 2006 list of the best
firms to work for, Bain comes in at number onea
status it has held since 2003.
Where MBAs Want to Work
When Universum Communications ranks the 100 most
desirable MBA employers every year, Bain consistently
makes a strong showing. In its 2007 survey of more
than 5,400 respondents, Bain ranked fourth, retaining
its 2006 ranking and trailing McKinsey (which dropped
to number two behind Google, ending its 12-year
reign) but placing ahead of most of the consulting firms
on the list. The next strategy consulting firm on the list
was Boston Consulting Group, in fifth place, followed
by Booz Allen Hamilton at number 16 and Deloitte
at number 18. Youve got to drop down to number 36
to find the next consulting firmAccenturethen to
number 57 for A.T. Kearney, and all the way to 86 for
Mercer Management Consulting.
At a glance
Business Is Booming
With the economy improving, says one recruiter,
Bains clients have more needs, which in turn means
that Bains hiring numbers are up. The firm is growing,
and is hiring more consultants and undergrads.
But according to the February 2006 issue of Consultants
The Firm
News, the upsurge in recruiting and a decrease in the
number of MBAs are causing competition for graduating
MBAs by top consulting firms to be fierce. As a result, a
trickle-down effect is expected to affect competition at
the undergraduate level. Firms large and small are actively
recruiting on campus, and some, including Boston
Consulting Group and Booz Allen Hamilton, report
record-breaking (or close to it) numbers of recruits.
On the Job
Employers Rock
What keeps consultants happy in their jobsand
gives them longevity in this demanding businessis
their employers, according to the 2006 issue of
Consulting Magazine, which for the past six years
The Work place
has done a survey of the ten best consulting firms
to work for. Employees rate their companies in six
equally weighted categories: career development,
compensation and benefits, culture, leadership, on the
job, and work/life. The 2006 top ten include Bain,
McKinsey & Company, Point B, Boston Consulting
Group, Monitor Group, Kurt Salmon Associates,
PRTM, Mercer Management Consulting/Mercer
Oliver Wyman, Diamond Technology & Management
Getting Hired
Consultants, and Huron Consulting Group.
Bainies gave their employer excellent marks in all
six categories in 2006. Ninety-eight percent of them
(according to the 2005 data) rated employee morale as
very high; they say the company encourages creativity,
and that theyre satisfied with the family support,
vacation, and health benefits, as well as with their base
salaries. They believe the firm matches people and
projects appropriately, and they praise their managers
for acting more like mentors than bosses. Eighty-five
REFERENCE
percent say their work is stimulating and 15 percent
FOR YOUR
rated it as somewhat stimulating in 2005; in 2006, 65
percent believed the firm always meets clients needs,
with the remainder saying it does so very frequently.
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 
 At a glance
Bain & Company

A Quick Consulting Firms that Ranked in

History
the Top 50 in 2007

Lesson Rank Firm

The Firm

2 McKinsey & Co.

Bain was founded in 1973 by former Boston 4 Bain & Co.
Consulting Group VP Bill Bain and several others.
The firm quickly gained a presence in the consulting 5 Boston Consulting Group

world by virtue of its results-driven analysis, rapid 16 Booz Allen Hamilton

growth, and young, enthusiastic culture. (Stories still
18 Deloitte
abound of sharing home-baked banana bread over
slide rules and acetates in the original Bain office in
On the Job

36 Accenture
downtown Boston.) In the early years, the firm took
the unusual step of forging long-term relationships Source: Universum Communications, 2007

with clients by agreeing not to work with the clients

competitors in exchange for reciprocal fidelity. By
the early 80s Bain was already firmly established forgiven debt to the firm, as well as all outstanding
as a major draw during the recruiting season at Bain stock. Around that time, Gadiesh (whose profile
The Work place

top undergraduate and business schools. In 1984,
Bain partners Mitt Romney (the former governor
of Massachusetts), T. Coleman Andrews, and Eric
Kriss founded the highly successful private equity
investment firm Bain Capital, a separate entity that has
invested in more than 200 companies and which now
manages roughly $40 billion.
In the late 80s and early 90s, the firm hit its
Dark Ages. From 1988 to 1990, a drop in business
Getting Hired
within the company had been growing) became Bains
chairman of the board, a position that involves a lot of
client work as well as executive duties. Bain rang up a
string of double-digit annual growth rates from 1993
until 2000. Although revenues were flat or slightly
down for a few years afternot surprising in light of
the then-busting economyinsiders say things seem
to be looking up again. Bain continues to rank in the
top tier of strategy consulting firms.

volume caused serious cash-flow problems, which

were compounded by internal problems. The original INSIDER SCOOP
management team got out of the business, the new In measuring our success, we look at our
management team took on debt to purchase the firm, revenue, and weve continued to grow by more
and revenues, which normally increased by 15 to 20 than 15 percent annually over the past 10 or 15
percent annually, went south. Bain responded by laying years.
off a lot of people. The firms prospects looked bleak.
With the situation truly desperate, Orit Gadiesh,
Mitt Romney, and others came in and orchestrated
a turnaround, putting the firm on stable ground.
REFERENCE

Specifically, Romney helped work out a deal to

FOR YOUR

allow Bain management to buy out the firm from

its founding partners. The partners, including Bill
Bain, returned about $100 million worth of cash and

10 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE

Organization
of the Firm
View from the Top
Bain is run as a classic management consulting firm,
with partners at the top of the ladder and associate
consultants at the bottom. The firm, which has
a network of 37 offices in 24 countries across six
continents, reports its revenues and profits to its
management committee. One thing that sets Bain
apart is its loose affiliation with the highly successful
leveraged buyout, venture capital, and turnaround
firm Bain Capital, which was started by former Bain
employees. Higher-ups get to invest some of their
earnings with Bain Capital.
While it takes only two and a half to three years to
be promoted from consultant to manager, it typically
takes three to seven years for managers to become
partners, depending on performance.
In the past, partners had become specialists almost
by default. By the time you become partner, youve
developed likes and dislikes, and you focus on a
particular area, one insider says. As you get more
senior, you become an expert on something.
View from the Middle
Unlike some of its competitors, Bain doesnt
require its consulting staff to specialize in particular
practice areas. Bain serves a broadly diversified set
of clientsFortune 500 firms, small to medium-size
companies, private equity clients, and startupsand
this mix provides consultants with broad exposure to
and experience with a variety of client types. Were
told that the company starts ACs out as generalists
because it believes thats the best way to develop
business leaders, but consultants and managers
become more specialized later on. We believe that
the best way to learn about business is through
pattern recognition, and the best way to develop that
is across industries, one manager says. Whether
youre working in grocery or industrial products,
At a glance
youll start to develop a sense of strategic options.
The fundamentals are the same.
Bain doesnt organize work into industry groups,
says an associate consultant. Ive worked with a
wide range of clients: wireless providers, an insurance
company, even a paper box manufacturer. One insider
The Firm
says that a project for a private equity company has
required her to become an expert on 16 different
industries in less than a year.
So Bain has now made the process more official.
Were still very much a generalist firm, but we do have
areas of focus, a recruiter says. Later in your career,
probably after five or six years, you start to associate
yourself with a certain industry or [practice]M&A
On the Job
as opposed to strategy or reorganization. This is new
to us. Were somewhat formalizing the process. Our
clients are demanding a certain level of expertise,
and we have it. Its all about making sure we can
communicate that effectively with our clients.
One of the practical implications of increasing
The Work place
the companys organization by industry is that it is
improving its practice of knowledge capture, says an
insider. Each practice area has knowledge brokers who
document what were learning about an industryfor
example, aerospaceat any time.
Its a necessary progression if Bain is to continue
to build relationships with its clients. We know that
expertise does matter, and we want to have long-
standing relationships with our clients, a manager says.
Getting Hired
Being devoted to their industry is one way to do that.
Incoming consultants and associate consultants
will almost certainly be required to work on a variety
of client projects in various industries. It runs the
gamut, says one insider of the variety of projects he
works on. That said, several insiders say that if theres
a case available in their favorite sector (e.g., retail or
technology), they can usually get staffed on it. Another
says that people typically choose a project because
of who is working on it, not because of the area of
REFERENCE
practice, adding that how much choice youll have
FOR YOUR
depends on the business environment and the size of
the office. For example, in Boston there might be
20 people up for staffing in four different cases, and
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 11
 At a glance
Bain & Company

they ask if people have a preference for one case or
another. We usually try to honor those preferences. In
Stockholm, typically four people are up for staffing and
theres one case, so you can figure out how that would
go down. Our hope is to give people the opportunity
to pick cases whenever possible. At approximately the
The Firm
on too many similar projects too early in your career,
so you can expect a lot of variety. The majority of
Bains consulting work falls into one of the following
capabilities:
Change management

two-year point, consultants that stay on will begin to Corporate strategy

manage teams, according to the Bain website.
In Boston and New York you might be asked to Cost management
work on two cases at a time. In general, on cases like
reengineering and cost-cutting, youll work on one case; Supply chain management
on strategy cases, youll work on two, says a recruiter,
who adds that it ultimately depends on the client. Customer strategy and marketing
Were all about doing what it takes to help the client.
On the Job

In some locations, youll be more likely to get Growth strategy

projects in certain areas than in others (for example,
more technology clients in San Francisco or more Information technology
industrial manufacturing projects in Chicago). Bains
current industry and functional specialties include the Mergers and acquisitions
following practice areas:
The Work place

Air transportation and services Organization

Consumer products Performance improvement

Financial services

Health care

Industrial goods and services

Getting Hired

Media

Private equity

Retail

Technology

Telecommunications
REFERENCE
FOR YOUR

As a top-notch strategy consulting firm, Bain serves

clients in a variety of capacities. Your mentor and your
offices staffing officer will make sure you dont take

12 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE

View from the Bottom
Bottom-rung Bainies include senior associate
consultants (third-year associate consultants, often
called SACs) and ACs. Unlike many consulting
companies, Bain employs about as many ACs as it
does consultants (who generally have MBAs but may
be promoted straight through from SAC). Bain
tends to hire a lot more associates than other firms do
because our approach relies more on data analysis,
one consultant says. That makes the associate position
more important. The approach tends to skew toward
fact-based analysis, and we tend to hire people who
like to get down and dirty with the data but who
ultimately always have an eye to how its going to be
used practically. Other insiders agree that associates
at Bain are truly integral to their case teams. A lot of
people dont realize that youre in a very good position
to find the answer yourself and link the data to the big
solution. Thats the fun part to me: doing the analysis
and coming up with an answer to my hypothesis, one
AC says.
A Bain project team usually includes four to
eight people from different levels, including partner,
manager, consultant, and associate consultant. Within
the team, youll typically work with people who are
one or two positions above youassociate consultants
work with consultants and managers, for example.
The other members of your project team will give you
advice and check on your progress. Senior associate
consultants and consultants typically have their
own work streams to crack the case, in that they can
assign certain portions of the work to certain people
or teams. According to one AC, You work with a
consultant to develop the answer to the puzzle, and
then the consultant works with the manager to fit it
into the larger scheme of things. A manager says, I
will provide direction: Heres the question were going
to answer; heres an approach I would suggest; here are
some of the things I want out of it. Theyll go figure
out how to do it and well check in as needed. Were
about giving people space; its part of the culture.
At a glance
Travel
Although Bainies still travel a lot less than do their
counterparts at other strategy consultancies, several
insiders agree that as Bains business model evolves and
the company takes on more implementation cases,
travel is increasing. A few years ago, when the company
The Firm
focused more on strategy than on implementation
work, travel was less of an issue for some.
That may be some Bainies personal experience,
but statistics dont support a notable increase overall.
According to the January/February 2006 issue of
Consulting Magazine, 18.3 percent of Bainies rack up
air miles three to four days a week, while 81.7 percent
are away from home only two days a week or less.
On the Job
At Bains competitors, however, its another story: 65
percent of McKinseys employees and 39 percent of
BCGs ranks can expect to travel three to four days a
week. An unlucky (or lucky, if you hate staying home)
20 percent of McKinseyites travel five or more days
per week.
The Work place
INSIDER SCOOP
The problem with implementation is that you
have to be there to make things happen and you
have to work very closely with clients.
In past years, says one insider, travel has stayed
pretty flat due to an increase in low-travel private
equity cases and an improvement in the companys
Getting Hired
ability to handle implementation cases with a mix of
on- and offsite services. And Bain still does plenty of
pure strategy cases. On those, the thinking goes, the
staff should be located in the place where the work
can best be done, whether thats the home office or the
client site.
INSIDER SCOOP
By double-staffing, you get more exposure to
different people, different cases, and different
REFERENCE
industries. It teaches you skills about balancing
FOR YOUR
your lifestyle.
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 13
 At a glance
Bain & Company

Case Models models. Its really Boston and New York that do [the
In most offices a one-case model predominates, two-case model]. There may be opportunity depending
depending on the type of client work in that office. At on the office youre in and on the case needs.
some U.S. offices (Boston and New York) you might
find yourself working on two client projects at the
same time. Insiders say that working two cases at once
Recent
The Firm

gives them exposure to more industries and business

issues in a shorter period, as well as the chance to be
coached by more people (with different strengths and
styles) within the firm. As one AC says, I like the two-
Client List
case model a lot. Right now my objective is learning, Consulting firms are notoriously tight-lipped
and I want to be exposed to as many intellectual about the names of their clients, and Bain has a
problems as possible in a short time. reputation for being even more close-mouthed than its
At the associate consultant level, double staffing peers. By doing a little detective work, however, weve
On the Job

has another reward: Neither project can monopolize uncovered the following (incomplete) list of
your time. Think about college, a manager says. Bain clients:
Professors dont assign you work as though you had Baxter International
only one class, and here you dont work on each case
as if it were your only one. Another insider says: Im Burger King
a big fan of it. When you have two cases, you have to
The Work place

take a lot of responsibility for communicating with Charles Schwab & Co.
managers and making sure what you have is doable.
Working on two cases is especially attractive for Chick-fil-A
junior employees: Nobody owns you. If youre
not at your desk when a manager walks by, their Continental Airlines
assumption is not that youre slacking off, because
you have another case, a manager says. No one has De Beers
the expectation that they can call you on a moments
notice. It means managers have to be better planners, Dell
Getting Hired

and I think thats good for everyone. The downsides

are pretty obvioussometimes you have final Del Monte Foods
presentations on the same day, and that makes for a
really long week. Fiat
But a big advantage of the two-case model is that it
gives Bainies the option to work part-time. However, Ford Motor Company
an insider in the Chicago office says that the two-case
model is becoming increasingly rare. Government of South Korea
Yet the two-case model isnt as common as some
of the literature seems to suggest. Most of our offices Inditex Group
REFERENCE

do 100 percent staffing now, says an insider, who

FOR YOUR

says that even the Boston office, where most of the Microsoft
part-time staffing occurs, is using more of the one-case
model now. Almost all offices are 100 percent staffing Motorola

14 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE

Nike
Texas Instruments
Texas Pacific Group
Toronto Symphony Orchestra
UCLA Johnson Cancer Center
Typical
Projects
Equity Studies
Bain conducted research for a private equity firm,
evaluating various companies in which the firm had
considered investing. Bain first needed to become an
expert in a number of industry segments and then
analyze each companys prospects within its industry.
Ultimately Bain provided a recommendation to the
equity firm regarding which companies looked to be
promising investments.
Financial Services
A bank hired Bain to help it retain retail customers,
improve its image, and increase the business it got
from customers that used more than one bank.
Bain assessed the banks customer relationships and
designed and implemented a customer loyalty program
that offered a system of rewards. More than 700,000
people signed up, and the bank beat all its local
competitors to market.
Retail Consumer Profitability
A retail food and beverage company wanted to
find ways to maximize customer profitability. Bain
studied the clients consumer base, overseeing an
extensive survey of 2,500 of the companys customers.
After synthesizing these interviews and analyzing
At a glance
the consumer data, Bain separated the clients
customer base into seven different segments and
evaluated the profitability of each. Finally, Bain made
recommendations to the client about how it should
target business from its top three consumer segments.
The Firm
Product Strategy
A manufacturing company hired Bain to help it
develop a new product. Bain spent a few months doing
a diagnostic study of product trends in the industry,
focusing on market development, interviewing
customers, profiling competitors, and studying the
historical performance of the client company. Bain
worked with the clients engineers and product
On the Job
development team to choose an ideal product design
based on customer preferences and attributes, and the
client successfully launched the new product.
Strategy and Operations
Bain worked with a door manufacturer to help it
The Work place
improve its market position. After studying the
industry and identifying the firms position in it, Bain
recommended that it divest itself of several weaker
divisions. Next, Bains team carried out a study of
projected future trends in the industry and targeted
several of the firms products for cost reductions. To do
this, Bainies put on hard hats and wandered around
the factory interviewing engineers, designers, and line
workers to determine whether less expensive materials
Getting Hired
and processes could be used without affecting product
quality. Finally, Bain conducted a freight analysis to
minimize shipping costs.
REFERENCE
FOR YOUR
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 15
 At a glance
Bain & Company

Whats Hot Recruitment Goes High-Tech

On the Move and Spiffing Up
In 2004, Bain moved its Boston headquarters from
Copley Place, where it had been for 20 years, to
The Firm
Recruitment efforts for the New Delhi office
included a first-ever podcast at the Indian Institute
of Management. In it, Bain partners offered a
description of the company and its plans in India. It
was successful enough that future podcasts are planned

swanky new digs on Dartmouth Street. The new office for recruitment at universities in other countries.
is very open, very bright, and its structured in a way In the spring of 2007 Bain also made news when it
that allows you to run into people more often. That conducted virtual interviews at Second Life, the
move heralded a wave of renovation and relocation computer-generated, 3D world in which people
of Bain offices worldwide: We rolled out our new interact through alter egos known as avatars.
brand in 2003, says an insider, so its consistent with
thatmaking our space consistent with our brand.
Offices in Europe are getting face-lifts, too. The
On the Job

London office, near Covent Garden in the heart of the

city, is currently undergoing renovation; it reportedly
offers discounted in-house massages and has a beautician
and hairdresser on the premises. The Paris office moved
to new digs on Avenue Montaigne, near the Champs-
Elyses, and the Amsterdam office was also renovated.
The Work place

New Offices in Asia

Bain gained a foothold in China in 1993 with its
Beijing office, and in 2004 it opened a second one
in Shanghai. Summer 2006 saw the opening of yet
another Bain office, this time in India. For the last
decade weve been advising [in India] out of the
Singapore office, but [we now opened] a New Delhi
office, says a recruiter.
Getting Hired

The Ultimate Question Community Involvement

Fred Reichhelds book, The Ultimate Question:
Driving Good Profits and True Growth, published in
March 2006, takes the idea of customer satisfaction
to the extreme. According to the author, a Bain
partner and the founder of the companys loyalty
practice, keeping customers happy is more important
to a business than anything except profitsgood
profits, that is, not short-term profits that result
REFERENCE
Bain and its staff have long emphasized the
importance of community involvement and volunteer
work, and this emphasis seems to be strengthening.
Weve been active about trying to centralize and
disseminate information about different community
service activities in the office, says a recruiter in
the Boston office. Boston insiders rave about the
companys longstanding and ever-growing involvement

from business practices that dont serve the client. with City Year, a full-time leadership and community
FOR YOUR

The ultimate measure of customer satisfactionand service program for 17- to 24-year-olds. Bain is a
the ultimate question of the titleis: Would you founding corporate sponsor of the Boston branch of
recommend this business to a friend? the organization.

16 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
 At a glance
Bain is also committed to providing pro bono
work for nonprofits. The Atlanta office, for example,
has worked with Boys and Girls Clubs of America,
and Bain L.A. worked on a project with United Way
of Greater Los Angeles. And Bain has begun a new
initiative to get more consulting staff involved in

The Firm
nonprofit activities. Employees are encouraged to
seek funding for various volunteer efforts that the
firm will sponsor.

INSIDER SCOOP
Theres a recognized forum for consultants to
organize events that involve the whole company.

On the Job
Bain is also closely affiliated with the Bridgespan
Group, a nonprofit firm that provides strategy
consulting to nonprofits, charging only enough
to cover its expenses. Bain consultants can take
six-month externships at Bridgespan. Says one, Its
meant to take the most sophisticated thinking that

The Work place

has helped us make results and apply that thinking
to nonprofit arenas.

Getting Hired
REFERENCE
FOR YOUR

WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 17

On the Job

3
Associate Consultant................... 20
Consultant.................................. 22
 At a glance
Bain & Company
Associate
Consultant
Undergrads come on board as associate
The Firm
consultants (ACs). You will begin working with a huge
variety of industries. At the AC and consultant level,
youre definitely a generalist, says one insider. Youll
be given a variety of research projects early on, such as
basic analysis, market reports, and literature reviews.
But Bains use of interactive staffing means that you
will have some choice in assignments, whether its
the type of industry or a preference for more or less
On the Job
travel. Were told that Bain staffing managers try to
assign cases to consultants that mesh with their own
professional interests and career path.
There are other staffing options as well; for example,
if you enjoy working with a particular manager,
you can request to be assigned to his or her cases.
The Work place
Realistically, though, everyone has to handle some
cases that theyd prefer not to do. Every case has to be
staffed, so somebodys going to have to do a case that
[they] dont find as attractive, says another insider.
As an AC youll be the first line of support for
the project team, but as you demonstrate ability and
initiative youll have opportunities to take
on increased responsibility.
Id say the job is split into three large buckets:
Getting Hired
research, analytics, and hands-on, client-focused
contact, says an insider. On the research side,
theres some grunt-type work, more in the first year
than in the second. Theres also a lot of moderately
heavy analytics, in terms of modelingmore market
niche modeling than financial modeling. The third
bucket, Id sayand this is one where Bain will give
more opportunity than other jobs out of collegeis
on the client side. Theres quite a bit of opportunity
to meet one-on-one with clients and develop
REFERENCE
meaningful relationships.
FOR YOUR
Bainies also speak highly of the company philosophy
of pushing the large tasks down all the way to the
bottom until someone cant do them, and then they
20 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
percolate back up. It means that there are important
tasks accomplished at the lower level as opposed to
having all the interesting work pulled off at the top.
One insider says he was impressed with the amount
of responsibility given to him in his first weeks as a
consultant. I dont know if its typical, but Id only
been there four weeks when I was presenting results
to the [clients] ceo. I appreciated the fact that Bain
put that much trust in me. They give you as much
responsibility as you can handle and want to take.
He adds that his role has evolved quickly; in less
than a year, he has moved beyond owning one piece
of the work stream. In my current work I have two
associates working for me. This role is more of a mix of
supervising them and doing some of the detail work.
Im setting their direction, keeping them focused on
the right areas, and helping them be successful. From
my perspective its a lot of fun.
Another Bainie emphasizes the flat, rather than
hierarchical, structure of the team. Theres a specific
role for everyone on the team. Even the most junior
person on the team has a responsibility for some
critical piece of the analysis. Its having the results of
that analysis that gives you your say-so in the meeting.
Everyone is expected to contribute; everyone has work
thats important to the case. What the AC can tell you
about their specific work stream is as important as
what the partner can tell you about whats happened
over the past five years. In meetings, the junior people
speak more than the senior people, and would be
expected to. Theyre expected to drive the answer.
New recruits may be doing important work, but
know-it-alls dont sit well at Bain, and are advised to
> TIP
When youre assigned to a case, get
up to speed quickly. Once you prove
you can handle specific questions,
youll be given leeway to decide how
to address broader concerns.
 At a glance
lighten up. Bainies prefer that you dont take yourself 8:15 a.m. Arrive at office (15-minute drive from
too seriouslytheyre a self-critical firm, and Bainies try home). Grab oatmeal before heading
to find entertaining ways to make fun of themselves. to desk.

Typical Responsibilities 8:30 a.m. Check email and voicemail. Respond to

Insiders say that typical assignments include: any urgent issues.

The Firm
Performing financial analysis
8:45 a.m. Continue work on market-demand model.
Interviewing clients and customers
12:00 p.m. Finish updates to model. Head to food
Researching competitors court for lunch with three other ACs.

Working with client staff to identify and 1:00 p.m. Head back to the office. Meet with
generate data manager about model.

On the Job
Analyzing data and presenting findings to the 2:00 p.m. Conduct interviews with experts in
project team the industry.

Traveling to field sites and observing client 3:30 p.m. Swing by a friends desk to discuss
operations evening plans.

The Work place

Conducting secondary source research
We build a lot of modelsfor market forecast,
cost savings, optimization, says an insider. Although
responsibilities vary by case, gathering information
is always part of the picture. Interview work involves
talking to experts and customers to gain expertise
and to bring back third-party perspectives that may
4:00 p.m. Attend recruiting meeting to discuss
upcoming events at alma mater.
5:00 p.m. Back at my desk. Put customer insights
into slides.
7:00 p.m. Finish work for the day and send out
customer insight slides. Respond to any

be useful to the clients. And survey work, which may
happen less often, is to gauge a wider but less expert
audience on a specific idea.
A Day in the Life of an Associate
Consultant
6:15 a.m. Alarm goes off.
6:30 a.m. Roll out of bed after snoozing for
15 minutes.
Getting Hired
remaining emails. Get ready to head out.
7:30 p.m. Arrive at bar downstairs for a few drinks
and dinner with friends and colleagues.
9:30 p.m. Head home.
11:00 p.m. Go to bed after watching this weeks Greys
Anatomy or American Idol
REFERENCE

INSIDER SCOOP
FOR YOUR

6:45 a.m. Head out for a quick run to kick If youre the owner of an idea or a valuable con-
the day off! tributor to meetings, people will want you there,
even if youre a first-year AC.

WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 21

 At a glance
Bain & Company
Consultant
Freshly minted MBAs and experienced industry
hires, as well as most PhD and advanced-degree
candidates with relevant business and analytical
The Firm
experience, join Bain as consultants. Theres
certainly a steep learning curve, says a consultant.
Were working on hard, complex problems. The
excellence demanded by the work depends on peoples
backgrounds. More so than ACs, consultants are
responsible for making sure the team is working
effectively and communicating findings to the client.
On the Job
Typical Responsibilities
Typical tasks for a new consultant include:
Planning a strategy for collecting customer
intelligence and competitor intelligence
Conducting phone interviews of client employees
The Work place
and competitors
Building management consensus around
recommended actions
Overseeing ACs analytical work
Leading case-team meetings (brainstorming
sessions)
Getting Hired
Presenting findings from research and analysis to
clients
Designing slides containing research findings and
strategic recommendations
Leading client task-force meetings
REFERENCE
FOR YOUR
22 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
A Day in the Life of a Consultant
6:15 a.m. Alarm goes off. Hit snooze at least once
and then head to the shower. Grab a quick
breakfast with my wife while we discuss
plans for the weekend.
7:15 a.m. Start my 30-minute drive into the city
(living in the burbs). Mentally review my
schedule for the day and brainstorm some
new growth options for the client. Leave
voicemail responding to my ACs request
for advice on determining the clients pro
jected market share.
8:00 a.m. Arrive at work. Office is still fairly quiet.
Grab some coffee and review the deck well
be presenting to the client this afternoon.
Decide that Id like to get one more
perspective on price trends in the industry
before an 11:00 meeting with the manager.
9:00 a.m. The AC working for me arrives. We head
down to the cafe for coffee and discuss
our approach for the base case revenue
projection. Am feeling good that we have
most of the data required to complete a
consumer penetration model, and AC has
great ideas on where to get the rest.
10:00 a.m. Call an industry executive to discuss
recent pricing trends. Great discussion but
no big surprises.
11:00 a.m. Team meeting with the manager to make
final preparations for the client meeting.
We review the game plan and make a few
refinements to the deck to improve the
clarity of our findings. Ill be presenting
a short section focused on market trends
and competitive dynamics.

12:00 p.m. Lunch with a partner I worked with on a
previous case. She has been a great mentor
for me and I use the opportunity to get
advice on my professional development
goals for the next few months.
1:30 p.m. Return phone call to a future summer
associate who wanted to discuss some of
the upcoming summers activities. We
became friends through the recruiting
process and Im looking forward to him
being here in a few weeks.
2:00 p.m. Team leaves for presentation at client
headquarters.
3:00 p.m. Greet the client CEO and five other
executives. The partner starts the
presentation with a summary of our
findings. CEO has a few questions about
the current market growth outlook, so I
jump in with some additional color on the
topic. We have a healthy debate on a few
key issues and wrap up with next steps.
5:00 p.m. Arrive back at the office. Catch up on
emails and plan next steps.
6:00 p.m. Meet with my AC for an update. She is
making great progress on the penetration
modeling. Talk about key actions coming
out of the client meeting and discuss game
plan for tomorrow.
7:00 p.m. Head home. Use the driving time to call
my sister in college and see how studying
is going for final exams.
8:30 p.m. Dinner with my wife. Its a nice night,
so I grill some burgers, and we continue
discussing our plans for a weekend
getaway.
At a glance
INSIDER SCOOP
Ive had a lot of high-level exposure to busi-
ness problems from day one. Its a great feeling,
sitting in on a meeting with senior VPs of Fortune
500 companies and having them look at your
work. You start to understand where your piece
The Firm
of work fits into the overall picture.
Once you hit the managerial level, the amount of
supervisory work you do increases. One manager says
she is responsible for structuring the workmaking
sure people are being stretched from a professional
development perspective, really starting to craft some
of their own answers and story lines, following up on
On the Job
the next step themselves. She adds that Bain hires
not just smart people, but people who enjoy thinking
through problems and taking ownership of their
projects. I do my best to see that people are getting a
good balance of ownership and direction, she says.
Still, managers do a hefty portion of hands-
The Work place
on work, too, everything from working with
the clients structure of the initial problem to
supporting the partner in their selling efforts,
says an insider. The manager also staffs the team
and starts thinking about the clients problem and
formulating a preliminary answer. I work directly
with the clientusually with the ceo, unless its a
very large corporation and were doing a divisional
strategy; then I might work with their coo and
Getting Hired
their divisional presidentto make sure that we
understand the question and that we are going to
come up with an answer thats going to be useful
and actual and implementable. The manager would
spend a lot of time doing internal interviews of the
companys executives, and would probably bring
along some team members as well. If a client
has just a couple of key customers, Id want to be
involved in that. If there are a ton of interviews,
like 2,000 or 5,000, we might outsource them to a
REFERENCE
research company.
FOR YOUR
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 23
The
Workplace

4
Lifestyle and Hours..................... 26
Culture........................................ 27
Workplace Diversity.................... 29
Civic Involvement....................... 30
Compensation and Vacation........ 31
Perks........................................... 32
Travel.......................................... 33
Career Path................................. 34
Training...................................... 37
The Inside Scoop......................... 38
 At a glance
Bain & Company
Lifestyle
and Hours
Life at any top-tier consulting firm is fast-paced
The Firm
and demanding, and Bain is no exception. Bainies
pride themselves on delivering value and results to
their clients, and that means spending long hours at
their desks or in conference rooms, or perfecting their
PowerPoint skills. The learning curve can be steep.
Case teams deal with difficult and stimulating issues,
often under strict deadlines, and each member of the
Bain case team is expected to contribute significantly.
On the Job
If youre right out of college, it can be hard to get
used to, says one AC. In school, it was my choice
to pull an all-nighter or skip a class. Its not like I can
skip an 8 a.m. case-team meeting. The mood can be
tense and stressful, especially on the evening before a
client presentation (or preez). If that sounds like a
The Work place
great adrenaline rush to you, with frequent-flier miles
and free meals to boot, then a career in consulting
might be right up your alley. But if youre allergic to
pressure, you wont be happy here or at any of the top
consulting firms. Look long and hard before you leap.
That said, Bainies appreciate their firms no face
time policy: Once your work is done, youre free to
leave. This doesnt mean you can consistently ditch
work early, but it does mean that Bain wants the hours
Getting Hired
in which you toil to be useful in getting results. You
absolutely dont come in if you dont have to, one
insider says. But the thing is, it goes to each side of
the spectrum. Insiders also say that work hours are
fairly flexible. There are people on my team who are
much happier working from 10:30 in the morning
to slightly later in the evening. You have to show
up to appointments and get your work done, but
everything else depends on your own time-management
philosophy, one case-team leader says. Bainies also travel
REFERENCE
much less than their McKinsey and BCG counterparts.
FOR YOUR
I travel three to four days a month, tops, says one AC.
Bain wants you to be sitting with the people you work
with, not on a plane or in a hotel room.
26 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
Like all client-service professionals, Bain
consultants say there is no typical workweek. Crunch
weeks can burn a consultant to a crisp with 65 to 70
hours of intense heat. Weekends arent always off-limits
either. I really try not to work on weekends, says one
insider. But I might have to put in a couple hours
every other Sunday. Another, at the managerial level,
says a 50-hour workweek is typical. Often Ill spend
an hour on Sunday preparing for Monday. ACs work
closer to 60 hours. The Los Angeles office has a target
average of 55 hours per week for ACs, consultants, and
managers. Of course, thats an average, so there are
plenty of spikes and some lulls, says an insider there.
INSIDER SCOOP
For a full-time person, a crunch week might be
70 hours.
At the other extreme, during a slow week you
might find a Bain consultant getting a haircut, hitting
the gym, or doing some shopping in the middle of the
day. The firm keeps track of the average number of
hours worked at each of its offices. Bainies claim that
management doesnt want anyone getting too burned
out. Theyll call you and be like, Hey, your long-term
average is pretty high. Whats going on? an insider in
the San Francisco office says. Bainies add that the firm
will even hold small workshops on managing your
work/life balance. They keep tabs on you to make
sure no one gets out of control, says one.
> TIP
If youre allergic to pressure, you
wont be happy at Bain or at any
other top consulting firms. Look long
and hard before you leap.

Culture
If youre a Bainie, expect cultural indoctrination
from day one. We proactively try to create a Bain
culture, says a senior AC whos worked as an AC
orientation coordinator. We spend a lot of time
learning and thinking about bringing people in and
making them feel included. Another insider says,
Making sure that [the culture] worksmaking sure
that its pleasant and that it makes what are generally
tremendously long hours actually funis one of your
primary concerns as you become a manager. Bain
takes pride in maintaining company cohesiveness,
dedicating considerable time and resources to
creating a strong sense of camaraderie and team spirit,
especially among associates. The strong culture comes
in part from the fact that these people work together
all the time. Unlike some firms that put their teams
together from various offices, Bain handles most cases
within a particular office. Youll work with your VP
and run into the same group of people quite a bit,
says a recruiter.
Insiders rave about their smart, energetic colleagues
and the close-knit, supportive atmosphere of the firm.
This [place] is just the best people-collector Ive ever
found, says one. Another says that a cohesive culture
is not the same thing as a homogenous one: Bain has
one of the most open cultures in the client-services
sector. You dont have to fit into a preset mold to do a
good job.
Although the Bain lifestyle and social environment
vary among the firms 37 offices, insiders say that most
Bainies, especially ACs, like mixing business with
pleasure. I think its a very open and social culture,
says one AC. Working here is really integrated with
my social life. Its not just going in and doing a job,
and I like that a lot. Some bring their outside interests
into the company awareness; for example, the L.A.
office counts several dancers (hip-hop and Indian) and
actors among its staff, and fellow Bainies support them
by attending their performances.
At a glance
A consultant says, I think for people out of B-
school, [the social environment is] a little different,
adding that consultants have circles of friends from
business school and previous jobs, so their situation
differs from that of ACs who often move across the
country and dont know many people (and have little
The Firm
chance to get to know people) outside of work. The
office culture is weighted toward the young side, even
factoring in older ages for Bain lifers. Were told that
consultants typically are in their late 20s, managers are
in their early 30s, and partners are in their mid-30s to
mid-40s.
Having fun is a huge part of working at Bain. Its a
very laid-back place to work. Its very informal and not
On the Job
very hierarchical, says an AC.
INSIDER SCOOP
People work intensely here, but when theyre
not working they have a lot of fun.
The Work place
A manager says, Fun is a big part of it. It sounds
like a clichit certainly would to anyone whos not
familiar with the firmbut in many ways its become
institutional. Bain offices sponsor a variety of optional
social events, including upscale dinners, museum
outings, ski trips, golf tournaments, book clubs, and
a bimonthly pints night. Every year, theres a Bain
World Cup, in which the companys offices (mostly
the younger set) compete with each other in soccer.
Getting Hired
However, insiders say that most socializing is less
structured. Many offices have informal basketball,
soccer, tennis, and squash teams, and people often
head to the gym together or have a drink after work.
Many Bainies are enthusiastic about the Bain Band,
a large ensemble of musically inclined Bainies who
perform at off-site retreats, changing the lyrics of
popular tunes to create Bain-centric songs. Some
Bainies also report finding the time to get together and
perform volunteer work on a regular basis.
REFERENCE
But new recruits shouldnt conclude that Bains
FOR YOUR
fun-loving atmosphere means that Bainies arent
working hard. The people here are all dedicated
and strong-willed, one AC says. Everyones
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 27
 At a glance
Bain & Company

always thinking, and you have to be on your toes.

You might be in a meeting and trying to explain R-E-S-P-E-C-T
things and theyll jump right in and start asking
questions because theyre already one step ahead of When asked what havent been solved.
you. Another insider says, ACs here are especially differentiates Bain Its more about
from other strategy experience than
intellectual. I mean, theyre people who got 3.9s at consulting firms, one intelligence, he adds.
The Firm

Harvard and Stanford. Like their counterparts at manager says, Were What we bring to the
other consulting firms, Bain employees are intelligent unlikely to show up on table isnt just that were
people who get a thrill out of thinking through the clients site with smart; its that weve
the sense that were done it beforeweve
problems. According to this insider, their thorough smarter so we can merged two companies
intellectualism doesnt stop at work either: People radically improve some together, for example
here are of the type that if they get interested in a easy mistakes theyre so we have some idea
project, theyll do it well. If someones going to switch making. We respect the what works in terms of
fact that the client has process, we have a way
long-distance providers, theyll research the hell out
On the Job

very difficult business to think about doing

of it first, almost like they did a case on it. issues and its not analysis. Our intent is to
Despite a formidable workload, Bainies seem because of a lack of collaborate.
happy to take on more responsibility. There are intelligence that they
things called Extra 10 Percent at Bainthings
you help with, like recruiting, training, community
impact, and social things, says an insider. One
The Work place

of the things I worked on this year was a recycling Location, Location, Location
initiativeour office has free bottled water and sodas,
and for a really long time we didnt have recycling. So Some Bainies say However, others feel
we now have it! Another AC and another consultant office cultures vary that offices are more
by location, and that alike than different.
were working on that too, so sometimes wed have new recruits should My impression is that
recycling meetings in the course of a day. choose carefully. Boston and New York
Bain works hard to create its high-energy, ambitious Regional industries and are quite similar, a
culture. The firm doesnt recruit a lot of superstar workplace dynamics Boston insider says.
are extraordinarily Based on people Ive
senior-level staff, but prefers to hire mostly at the different among met from other North
Getting Hired

entry levels, and then promote from within and train different cities, one AC American offices,
its employees intensively. As one insider says, this says. In bigger offices, I think that North
results in a drive to improve and take on many tasks. theres more socializing. American offices
In Boston, if youre have a pretty similar
Everyone spends a lot of time thinking about how working on a big project culturevery informal,
to do things better, she says. This has a downside, and youre going to be very collegial. The
though: Sometimes the culture of evaluation goes there late, youll all environment tends to
order dinner together be pretty social. The
further than people would like. You will absolutely
or go out for a beer at general feel of the
never, ever get a review at Bain thats less than 30 the end of the night. offices is the same.
percent constructive criticism. I think thats pretty Theres some of that Internationally, you get
healthy, but it can also be frustrating. Another insider here in San Francisco, more variation.
REFERENCE

too, but we tend to see

talks about the firms emphasis on results and how it
FOR YOUR

it as work hard while

affects hiring: We prioritize the ability to interact with youre at work, and
people; we prioritize getting clients to change. When leave work at work.
you prioritize results, you get people who are more well

28 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE

> TIP
Bain doesnt recruit a lot of
superstar senior-level staff; it hires
mostly at the entry level, then
promotes from within and trains its
employees intensively.
rounded, more dynamic. Its definitely a different feel.
Bainies say they spend a lot more time at their
desks than traveling, making the company a more
office-based firm than some of its more client-based
competitors. In contrast to their seldom-seen hoteling
counterparts at other firms, Bain employees are each
assigned a specific desk located in areas called bays
where they are joined by other colleagues as a means
of encouraging the development of a strong internal
culture. Several Bain insiders say that many of the firms
employees share a strong entrepreneurial drive, which
makes them like-minded in their client work (thinking
like owners) and on the outside as well.
Workplace
Diversity
Ethnic and racial diversity are not among the
consulting industrys strong points, though as a
firm, Bain is on par with most of its competitors.
I think its just a challenge across the business in
general. I know were making an effort to recruit more
minorities and I think we have had some success. It
just varies and some years are better than others, says
one insider. Another adds, We look like corporate
America. Theres a lot of energy being spent right now
to try to make that better, but I think were running
into the same problems that everyone does.
Bainies are very open about the fact that the
company could do better in this area, but I couldnt
At a glance
exaggerate how hard people are working on this, one
says. In a 2006 Universum and The Black Collegian
survey of more than 12,800 minority students at 115
universities, Bain was ranked 22nd among the top
100 diversity employers (above Boston Consulting
Group at 24 but still behind fellow consulting firms
The Firm
McKinsey at number 4 and Deloitte at number 20).
Diversity is one of Bains top five worldwide
initiatives; the firm employs a full-time director of
diversity recruiting and a diversity coordinator. Says
one insider: We try to get to campuses early and do
workshops to get to people who wouldnt necessarily
think about applying otherwise. We talk to presidents
of clubs and captains of sports teams. From that, weve
On the Job
gotten some really strong applicants who never would
have thought of doing consulting before. Its an active
focus and were pushing at it in a couple of different
ways. Insiders say Bain sponsors several groups
Blacks at Bain, for onethat focus on recruiting and
retaining people of color and recruit at historically
The Work place
black colleges. Bain sponsors diversity-interviewing
workshops and panel discussions during recruiting
season, and participates in a number of school-specific
and nationwide minority career conferences. The firm
makes a special effort to encourage minority applicants
to accept its offers. It supports connectedness among
minorities within the firm through informal local
events, and holds an annual nationwide conference
focused on professional development and skill building.
Getting Hired
Bain also offers health insurance to both same-
sex and opposite-sex domestic partners, and several
offices have a BGLAD at Bain group, which promotes
bisexual, gay, and lesbian diversity awareness. The
group coordinates Bains ongoing sponsorship of
Reaching Out, an annual conference of bisexual, gay,
and lesbian business students.
Opportunities for Women
Bain chairman Orit Gadiesh is a woman (who served
REFERENCE
in the Israeli army and once dyed her hair purple),
FOR YOUR
which is a big deal for a top-tier strategy consulting
firm. Bain is the only global consulting firm with a
woman at the helm. It wouldnt be unusual to hear
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 29
 At a glance
Bain & Company

the argument in some quartersnot at Bainthat

top management has to be male because of the crusty
clients with whom consultants work. But Gadiesh Bains increased attentiveness
enjoys the full confidence and support of the
organization. At the Global Womens Summit, the
to women may be paying off:
firm hosts female panels and discussion groups on In a Fortune survey of the
The Firm

issues such as getting an MBA and balancing 100 top MBA employers for
work and family.
2006 rated by female business-
INSIDER SCOOP school students, Bain ranked
All my supervisors [at Bain] have been women.
Theres no difference at all in terms of the way
number 4.
projects are allocated to women and to men.
On the Job

Still, Bain suffers from the same problems that
affect the entire industry: a low proportion of female
applicants and high attrition of subpartner women.
Insiders say that the ratio of men to women is fairly
even at the AC, consultant, and manager levels, but
that partners are primarily male. An insider in Chicago
promotion because youre accumulating experience at
a slower rate, but judging by the number of women
managers and partners who have been part-time, I
wouldnt say that it hurts you or that the firm looks
down on it in any way.

Civic
The Work place

estimates that the staff is 30 to 40 percent female;

one from New York makes a similar estimate. Right
out of undergrad, its 50/50, says an insider. Out of
business school, its not, and I think thats in large part
because business school is not [50/50], so it would be a
Involvement
mistake to try to hire 50/50 out of business school. Over the years, Bain has taken on a number of
Bain is working on its retention of women at pro bono projects for nonprofit organizations such as
all levels. For years, the head of Bains largest office, the Los Angeles AIDS Foundation, Shedd Aquarium,
Boston, was a woman, and in the Korea office a Literacy Volunteers of America, Boys and Girls Clubs
Getting Hired

woman has recently been promoted to partner. Efforts
to retain women include increasing communication
(internal workshops on womens issues, monthly
womens lunches and cocktails) and family-friendly
policies (part-time consulting, 12 weeks of maternity
leave with full pay, longer unpaid leaves of absence).
A number of female managers are taking advantage
of the opportunity to be staffed 50 percent (working
on one case, 35 to 40 hours a week, at 60 percent pay)
and remain eligible for promotion. Its amazing what
REFERENCE
of America, and United Way. Bain has a major focus
on pro bono workits basically our responsibility to
find some, whether on our own or as a case team, says
one insider. Pro bono work covers diverse activities,
including direct community service, client consulting,
and advisory work for museums, foundations, and
other nonprofits. Were always working on at least
one pro bono case, says another insider.
The Boston office has an ongoing relationship
with inner-city Charlestown High School, working to

you can do here that you cant do at other firms, says improve students quality of life through mentoring
FOR YOUR

an insider. To see that you can raise a family, work and tutoring programs and strategy work with the
part-time, and still be on the partner track is a huge schools headmaster. Its a case assignment for associate
benefit. Another says, It may lengthen the time to consultants; every six months a new AC is assigned to

30 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE

the project. One insider did an analysis of the schools
high-school exit exam: I looked at the exams, at how
the questions had changed over time and what the
trends were, and how the students performedareas
where they were relatively strong and where they
were relatively weak. I tried to figure out what tricks
the test-makers use to trap some students and how
teachers could teach students to avoid them. She
organized a book drive as a one-off project, soliciting
her officemates to donate or provide funds for more
than 2,000 volumes to stock classroom libraries.
ACs in cities such as Boston and Chicago also
team up to consult with nonprofits, working at
higher-level roles than they would at Bain, through a
program called Inspire. Founded in 1998 by Bain and
Monitor Associate Consultants, Inspire is a national
volunteer organization providing management
consulting advice to nonprofit organizations with a
youth-oriented, education focus. In 2005 more than
40 volunteer Bainies participated, and the program
has been so successful that instead of having to drum
up clients, it now has a waiting list. In addition to
expanding its offices in Boston, offices have opened
in New York, Chicago, and San Francisco. Each year
the San Francisco office takes off a day to participate
in Community Impact Day, which starts with an
officewide meeting, after which three or four groups
are formed to work at various charities in the area.
Bainies have worked with several other nonprofits,
including the San Francisco Opera, City Year, and a
startup in East Palo Alto, California, that provides
business support to low-income entrepreneurs. In the
past, several offices have taken advantage of changes
at Bainthe opening of the New York office, the
move in Boston, the rebrandingto recommit to
community and civic involvement.
Bains community-service efforts dont necessarily
start at the top, though; many projects evolve from the
interests of its employees. All Bain offices get involved
in tons of grassroots projects, says a Boston insider.
At a glance
INSIDER SCOOP
We tend to hire people who are involved in a lot
of things on campus, and they dont give that
up when they come here. Peoples pet projects
become office projects.
The Firm
Compensation
and Vacation
Bain considers its compensation ranges
proprietary information.
On the Job
According to a recent Kennedy Information report,
Compensation & Benefits in Consulting 2006:
Benchmarks, Trends, and Forecasts of the Profession,
salaries in strategy and operations management firms
are rising, as one would expect in the wake of increased
demand from clients.
The Work place
In 2005 to 2006, we estimate that new full-time
MBAs at Bain earned approximately $110,000
to $115,000, plus a signing bonus of $10,000 to
$20,000. ACs naturally make less. Our estimate is
$65,000 to $75,000 for base salary plus a $5,000
signing bonus. On top of that theres an annual
performance bonus (about $25,000 for MBAs).
Others say top performers can receive much more.
Industrywide, though, you shouldnt expect salaries to
Getting Hired
skyrocket in the near future. According to an article
in the March 2006 issue of Consultants News, Gap
Widens Between Actual and Expected MBA Comp,
the rise in competition among MBAs hasnt led to as
much of an increase in base salaries and bonuses as
some prospective hires had expectedthey were up
only 2 percent from the previous year.
Bain consultants start with three weeks of vacation
per year; after two years with the firm, they receive
four weeks. In addition, employees have a great deal of
REFERENCE
flexibility in scheduling personal daysprovided they
FOR YOUR
dont abuse the privilegeand when there is downtime
between assignments or when crunch time is over, there
is, Bainies say, room to take time off without penalty.
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 31
 At a glance
Bain & Company
Perks
Like many of its competitors, Bain offers
candidates a tasty benefits package, complete with
medical, dental, and a 401(k). You also get to call
The Firm
yourself a Bainie, which has to feel good. But Bain
knows its the little things that count, and as one
insider says, They spare very little expense when it
comes to recruiting and retaining employees. Perks
vary with the office but typically include all of the
free soda you can drink, Starbucks coffee, and the
infamous Bain oatmeal for those who missed breakfast
at home. Consultants are also provided with a full set
On the Job
of toolssuch as laptop computers, cell phones, and
BlackBerrys. Were told that each employee now gets
a tech budget, money to spend on cell phone, home
Internet, and BlackBerry service, according to one
insider. In addition to that, you get a generous budget
for dinners, taxis, or parking money if you drive to
The Work place
work, says an insider. If youre working on a tough
case, you can have all your food paid for through an
entire week. Bainies also enjoy a case-team budget,
determined by the number of people on the case. The
team can use the fund however they want, says one
AC. People go out for nice dinners, skiing, deep-sea
fishing, a cruisethe idea is that you use the money
with your team.
At many Bain offices its okay to write on the walls,
Getting Hired
which are covered in whiteboards for scribbling down
notes and ideas. There are other extras as well. The
L.A. office has a playroom with Foosball tables. The
San Francisco office owns a ski house in Tahoe that
consulting staff use on a first-come, first-served basis.
In some offices Bainies can also bring their significant
others to regional meetings, free of charge. Last years
West Coast regional meeting, held in the summer, was
at Colorados Copper Mountain Resort. The summer
meeting is so much funI love it! says an insider.
REFERENCE
They report out on the business to the entire West
FOR YOUR
Coast, but then they also have the Bain Band, which is
very impressive. We make fun of ourselves relentlessly,
so they play hours and hours of songs that theyve
32 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
changed the lyrics to, to make them about Bain.
Other activities include Friday parties, company
picnics, catered happy hours, private tours of museum
collections, ski trips, manager beers, and more. Every
fall, the firm flies its best soccer teams to compete in
the Bain World Cup, which was in Milan in 2005 and
Brussels in 2006.
Bain ACs get lots of help with the business
school application process. Some offices provide
panel discussions with admissions officers from top
schools in the area and brown-bag lunches with
colleagues who are recent alumni (not to mention all
the free laser printing and photocopying you could
want). Applicants can take advantage of company-
offered Princeton Review-type classes and written
recommendations; those who have completed
their first year of business school are given summer
internships.
When consultants wish to change offices, Bain
makes every effort to accommodate them, since it
realizes that people are more productive when they
feel good about where theyre working and the job
theyre doing. Office transplants and their families
get accommodations and generous allowances while
looking for a new place to live. One Bainie who
made a cross-country move says, It was purely
for personal reasonsmy fianc was here. One of
the great things about a company having so many
offices is being able to make a move for whatever
the reason might be.
Another favorite Bain perk is the firms transfer
program. Third-year ACs and consultants who
perform well may transfer to another Bain office
(with free housing) for six months. Around 35
percent of ACs take advantage of the opportunity.
The company is committed to making sure youre
happy within your surroundings, says one insider.
People in my class have transferred to Australia,
South Africa, London, and Madrid. Another
option for senior ACs and consultants is the firms
six-month externship program, in which Bain
consultants take a sanctioned leave of absence from
the firm and are officially employed by a client

> TIP
Bain sponsors business school
tuition and expenses for associate
consultants who do well at the
company and make a commitment
to return to the firm for two years
after receiving their MBAs.
company (complete with new salary). Bainies may
take time off to learn Chinese, travel the world, get
a startup company on its feet, or anything else that
might elevate the quality of their consulting or their
lives. Insiders believe this kind of flexibility shows
Bains interest in an individuals full potential
(a Bain buzz-phrase), enhancing morale and
commitment to the firm. Its a win-win, as they love
to say.
And if youre ready to leave Bain, insiders say the
firm gives its dearly departing a generous transition
package with lots of help for the ensuing job search,
including access to Bain alumni out in the real world.
The company maintains a job board, has ongoing
relationships with industry recruiters, and offers career
counseling to those who seek change. Bain figures that
if you leave happy, youll know where to turn when
your next company needs help.
Travel
Bain has an unwritten policy against unnecessary
travel. Our insiders say that most Bain consultants
average one or two travel days per week. One says
theres a lot of variability depending on whether youre
on a local case or a strategy casewhich tend to have
fewer touch points with a clientvs an operations
or implementation case. Another says: It doesnt
bother me, and there have been occasions when Ive
really liked it. I traveled regularly from Stockholm to
Bologna, and thats not a hardship. Ive also had to
go to Akron, and that is. More than at other firms,
At a glance
consultants here are discouraged from spending face
time at the client site.
Insiders say, however, that this seems to be
changing as the firm picks up more implementation
cases. What Im realizing is that in todays world,
given how global it isthe customers are global, the
The Firm
supplies are globalyoure going to have to travel,
one says. Teleconference, videoconference, thats
bullshit. At the end of the day, when you want to form
relationships, you have to see people face to face.
Another adds: Our travel has increased dramatically
since I started. I think the business model is changing
there. But I think theyre closer now to a model that
works and makes people happy.
On the Job
How much you travel also depends on the kind of
work you do. I dont think its changed a lot, says
another insider. Were doing a lot of private equity
work, and thats very low-travel. I think were getting
better at serving clients both offsite and onsite. Several
insiders insist that one to three days of travel is still the
The Work place
norm at Bain.
INSIDER SCOOP
Its not like we do the Monday-through-Thurs-
day travel routine and then youre back in the
office on Fridaysthats rare. That was a big
selling point for me on why Im here vs other
consulting firms.
Getting Hired
Were told that Bain is very good about honoring
peoples preferences about travel, whether they want
to attain gold status in every frequent-flier program
or stay close to home. In fact, a staffing officer
speaks to everyone about their staffing wants and
needsgenerally in terms of travel requirements and
industry focusto find something workable for each
individual. Ive been traveling three days a week for
the past three months, says one AC. But I chose the
casethe client site is in my hometown, and its been
REFERENCE
great seeing my family. Another insider, who tells
FOR YOUR
us hes averaged one trip per month, including trips
for training and recruiting purposes, says, I enjoy
travel, so I dont mind when I have to do it. People on
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 33
 At a glance
Bain & Company
travel cases usually request it. Your travel preference is
totally taken into account. Still, Bain employees must
sometimes travel to suit the clients needs.
Career Path
The Firm
. youll meet every six months or so.
Insiders say there are two kinds of Bainies: those
who are lifers and those who arent. Many lifers come
to Bain after undergrad or business school, put their
noses to the grindstone, and make partner after a few
years of blood, sweat, and tears. These are the few, the
proud, the driven. Then theres everyone else: those
On the Job
who spend two or three years at Bain learning great
organizational, managerial, and analytical skills, and
then take all that transferable knowledge to a smaller,
more entrepreneurial venture or to a line position in
a real company. Warning: Working at Bain can be
habit-forming. Says a converted lifer, I came here
The Work place
expecting to move on in two or three years, but I love
it so much I intend to stay much longer. Another
agrees: Its a little bit like a golden handcuff, actually.
The Bain welcome wagon provides all new recruits
with tons of mentors, says a manager. Formally,
theyll have a colleague, a mentor, and a consensus
reviewer, [whos] responsible for gathering feedback
and input on cases and putting it into a comprehensive
review. But people tend to find many, many more
Getting Hired
relationships. Theyll quickly develop a council of
REFERENCE
FOR YOUR
34 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
[mentors] at all levels. Your colleague, who typically
has an additional year or two of experience, looks out
for you and helps you acclimate to Bain, says another
insider, while your [mentor, usually a manager or
VP,] is responsible for your career development. [He
or she] reviews your progress and acts as a professional
resource. Youll also have a class adviser, with whom
The professional development at Bain is pretty
unique, says another insider. Theres a lot of informal
coaching and mentoring. People go out of their way
to help each other in ways I wouldnt necessarily have
expected. I remember one night in my first year I
was working late on a model, and a senior associate
consultant took a good few hours out of her day to
help me figure out some next steps. That really stuck
with me, and now Im eager to help first-year ACs out
when I can.
Reviews are conducted every six months,
and insiders say they are extremely helpful in
providing useful feedback. Theyre extraordinarily
comprehensive and constructiveIve gotten the most
profound feedback in life at Bain, says one insider.
Everyone puts a tremendous amount of time into
reviews. They spend a lot of time trying to understand
what other people think, trying to understand the root
causes of performance and behavior. Another points
out that they are given tangible examples of what they
could have done better, along with clear expectations
for the next six months. The firm is careful to manage
your experiences. For example, says an insider, If you
didnt get a lot of client contact during a given time
period, they will make sure that you do during the
next period. And true to the firms results-oriented
philosophy, your career is evaluated on specifics. You
are evaluated based on how your work directly impacts
a project, says another insider.
At Bain, evaluation is a two-way street. Insiders
mention the firms commitment to the giving and
receiving of feedback without fear or favor. One way
people get to say their piece is through a case-team survey,
conducted every six months or on request. Questions
cover communication, teamwork, and performance, and

everyone can see how he or she compares to his or her
peers. Insiders say this keeps communication open and
ensures accountability at all levels.
INSIDER SCOOP
Theres really a culture of internal coaching and
At a glance
not progressing. According to one manager, its not
just about climbing the ladder: ACs dont obsess
over promotion. Its pass or fail, and 95 percent of
ACs pass. Theres also no formal policy on getting an
MBA. One recently promoted VP never got one.
However, the same manager admits that about 90

mentoring from other ACs and the more senior
levels, like managers.
Bain has instituted mechanisms for exiting the firm
painlessly, to accommodate nonlifer consultants as
well as others who would like to move on. The Bain
alumni network is broad and well positioned to help,
and the Bain stamp on a resume is regarded highly
The Firm
percent of consultants do have MBAs. In terms of
career progression, Bain has a very formal performance
planning process to ensure that everyone gets regular
feedback on the skills they need to work on.
Opportunities for MBAs
MBAs join as consultants. Bain recruits for consultant
positions from the top ten business schools, often

by potential employers. One insider says, Bain sees
you as still being part of the company after you leave.
The partner/manager group says its fine if you decide
consultings not for you, but they dont want to have
any unaffiliated turnover. They make every effort to
place you in an affiliated company. Such companies
On the Job
filling jobs in its global offices from their rosters of
international students. Typically, if all goes well, MBAs
become case-team leaders (an informal promotion
offered in some offices but not all; expect more
work but no raise) after two years and managers

The Work place

include Bain clients, the Bridgespan Group, and Bain
Capital portfolio companies.

Opportunities for Partner Potential

Undergraduates
Newly minted grads from undergraduate programs Bain tends to hire comfortable managing
people it believes a project, but feel that
enter Bain as associate consultants. They typically stay
have the right stuff managing a client is not
for two or three years before returning to business to become partners really their thing, says
school or moving on to other types of graduate in the firm. However, one insider.

Getting Hired
schools or other industries. Many ACs are promoted unlike a prominent If it becomes clear
competitor with a strict that an individual is not
to senior associate after one and a half to two years; it up-or-out policy, Bain likely to rise above a
takes two and a half to three years to move from AC is flexible. Associate certain level, he or she
to consultant. And many take on cool international consultants are not will certainly be made
assignments in their last year or so before B-school. expected to leave aware, but that doesnt
automatically after mean its time to start
Associates may be offered reimbursement for business- two years, and many packingtheres not
school tuition, provided they make a two-year stay for a third year. usually any immediacy.
commitment to Bain when they graduate. Likewise, promotion Nonetheless, Bain
As with many consultancies, advancement is based schedules are not recruiters say they dont
engraved in stone, and let people stagnate,
on your time commitment and performance at the
REFERENCE

some people who are instead working with

firm. If youre doing a good job, youll get promoted,
FOR YOUR

offered promotions them to explore careers

but no one gets tenure [unless he or she has] shown refuse them, at least that may suit them
some performance, says one AC. No one ever really temporarily. Some better.
people may feel entirely
gets fired, but its really clear to people when youre

WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 35

 At a glance
Bain & Company
the following year. After three to seven more years,
managers can expect to be promoted to partner. This
progression is a year or two faster than the track at
some other firms, and Bainies say that the flatter
organization is a good thing. Consultants who leave
Bain typically do so after the two-year mark, or
The Firm
sometimes after three years if they feel theyve missed a
promotion cycle.
Opportunities for Summer
Interns
Bain hires a cadre of students between their first and
second years of business school to work as summer
associates. These temporary employees can expect to
On the Job
get a good taste of the consulting lifestyle and work;
to start off many have training in Cape Cod. Most
important, though, they have a chance to check out
what its like to work at Bain. Undergrads between
their junior and senior years can come in as associate
consultant interns.
The Work place
Opportunities for Midcareer
Candidates and Non-MBAs
To keep up with its rapid growth over the last few
years, Bain has hired people from industry to fill
some of its midlevel needstypically managers and
VPs. Since 2002 it has hired partners from outside
its ranks, a departure from previous practice. Bain
doesnt require midcareer hires to have worked in the
Getting Hired
consulting industry, but most do have an MBA. Non-
MBA hires sometimes come from strong law schools
or PhD programs and, depending on work experience,
may enter Bain as either senior ACs or consultants.
> TIP
Interning at Bain is a great way
to land a staff job there. Up to
80 percent of the firms summer
interns receive offers of full-time
REFERENCE
employment from the company,
FOR YOUR
according to recruiters.
36 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
Demonstrable business and analytical work experience
is necessary for non-MBA hires. A practicing lawyer in
his pre-Bain life says, They dont single industry hires
out. Youre given the same respect as an MBA.
Its not just growth that has sent Bain to industry
for a larger percentage of its recruits; its the demand
for expertise. In certain industries clients really want
some experiencein health care, for example, or
IT, says one Bainie. We tap into the industry pool
for more numbers and sometimes their expertise
really does help out. You cant use your generalists to
approach 100 percent [of the companies].
International Opportunities
Bain expanded its international operations rapidly
following the establishment of its first and largest
office abroad, in London, in 1979. Its 29 offices
abroad greatly outnumber the eight in the U.S., and
Bains presence on the international scene continues to
grow. Although some international offices are small,
employing 75 to 100 professionals each, those in
London, Singapore, and Madrid rival the largest U.S.
offices (Boston and New York) in size. And although
the overseas revenue is normally on a par with that of
North America, in 2005 it inched ahead.
If you want to work in Europe, you could do
worse than Bain: In 2007 the Great Place to Work
Institute ranked Bains Paris office the best workplace
in France, while the Financial Times named Bain
London and Brussels among the top ten workplaces
in the European Union. (See the complete list in the
May 2, 2007 issue of Financial Times.) In 2006 Bain
ranked 19th on Great Place to Works list of the 50
best German workplaces. After one to three years with
the firm, an AC or consultant based in the U.S. has a
pretty good chance of working on an overseas project
or being assigned to a foreign office. According to one
recruiter, the philosophy at Bain is that plants grow
best when they are replanted. Once youve joined Bain,
the transfer process is easy.

Thirty-five percent of associate
consultants take advantage of
Bains six-month transfer op-
portunity to work in London,
Singapore, Sydney, and other
major cities.
Training
. says, Its pretty intense on both frontsworking and
Bain takes pride in its training programs. Our
training programs are global, small, team-basednot
sitting in a classroomand we dont outsource any of
our training, says a recruiter.
AC orientation lasts about three weekstwo-and-
a-half weeks on general business concepts and financial
math, and a few days working on a research module
for a particular industry. Then, after working for a
few weeks, all members of a class (people at the same
level, recruited at the same time, regardless of location)
attend a rigorous ten-day training course on Cape Cod
taught by the best of the best senior consultants.
New hires from all over the world get in-depth
management consulting training and work on a
different case each night for homework. The emphasis,
says one Bainie, is on how to crack a case. The new
associates are placed in teams composed of people
from different Bain offices. In my group, I had people
from Hong Kong, Atlanta, London, Boston, and
Australia, one AC says. Youre all a part of Bain. Im
still in touch with some of them.
For most ACs, the training is not only helpful, but
fun. They try to bring people together from all over
the worldthats a common theme, an insider says.
Then you break into five- or six-person teams, with a
trainer whos not from your office. You learn concepts
and analysis tools, and then you have to apply them to
At a glance
a client situation. You work really late each night, and
then everyone goes out and parties until 3 a.m.
At the MBA level, the training programs are
intense but dont last as long, and the emphasis is
on leadership. New consultants and managers get
one week of training in their home offices, and
The Firm
then a second week of global training in places such
as Vietnam, Scotland, Canada, Paris, Barcelona,
Cancun, and San Francisco. The training programs
are incredibleyou get to meet people from all over
the world, one consultant says. I just got back from
a week of consultant training in Prague, so Im still
on a little high.
The training period is also an opportunity to
On the Job
establish networks and relationships. One insider
socializing, too. You pack a lot in. Another says, It
was two of the most intense weeks of my life. Im still
benefiting from the network I developed there.
Although training is said to be very comprehensive,
The Work place
theres no expectation that you know everything after
completing it, one insider says. Bain offers workshops
on a regular basis in everything from marketing, to
valuing companies, to spreadsheet skills. Insiders also
say the staffing officer (SO)the person responsible
for assigning consultants and ACs to caseshas an
important, mentorlike function. The SO works with
ACs to ensure theyre getting a variety of experiences
from the projects they work on. Bainies are also
Getting Hired
encouraged to devise and suggest their own training
ideas. One insider says, You just have to justify why
you want it, and you can get it done. Several insiders
note that the most effective and important training is
that which occurs after the formal training program,
when youre on the job. You learn the most from the
person sitting next to you, or the manager working on
your case one says.
Bain also has an online interactive training
program called Bain Virtual University, which all of
REFERENCE
its employees can access from their desktops. It has all
FOR YOUR
the information from a training course (more than 130
interactive training modules) and access to important
videos, linked spreadsheets, and contact information for
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 37
 At a glance
Bain & Company
Bainies with a particular expertise or project experience.
The program features parallel navigation pages, each
customized for people at a different level in the firm,
and linked to sections of interest to those people. If
you cant remember how to carry out a certain type
of analysis, or never really learned it in the first place,
The Firm
search the Virtual University. Its a refresher course and
a supplemental training piece, says one Bainie. The
firm also maintains GXC (Global Experience Center),
which one insider describes as a reference desk for
consultants. Bainies can use the desktop-accessible
network to figure out new strategies, do industry
research, and learn about the firms work on past cases.
On the Job
The Inside
Scoop
What Employees Really Like
The Work place
Up with People
Every insider we talk to at Bain says his or her favorite
thing about working at Bain is the people. The
biggest thing, unquestionably, is the people, says
one Bainie. Any job, to me, is a social experience
every day. What youre doing at work is interacting
with people. I really click with the types of people
who work at Bain and with the attitudes that people
Getting Hired
REFERENCE
FOR YOUR
38 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
here have. And its not just that Bainies are fun to
be around; theyre also very reliable. As one manager
says, I look at my clients, for example, and look at my
counterparts there, and I compare the people I have
reporting to me to the people they have reporting to
them, and theres a huge difference. I know that if I
tell my team I need something done, its going to get
done, or theyre going to give it their best shot. That
isnt always true at a lot of other companies.
The reason one insider is at Bainand has stayed
for seven yearsis very simple and very hokeyits
the people I work with, she says. Im not here
because I have a great interest in business or because I
think I can change the world. [Bain is] the best people
collector Ive ever encountered. And I get to spend my
day solving interesting problems.
INSIDER SCOOP
Its all about the diversity of experience. You
get to see all sorts of stuff. We have people who,
after two years here, have gone into all advertis-
ing, marketing, finance, equity While youre
here, you do a lot of different things.
Are You Experienced?
One of everyones favorite things about Bain is the
plethora of opportunities that open up when you
leave the place. Part of that is due to the intense,
comprehensive training all Bainies receive and the
subsequent on-the-job experience, which one recruiter
says is as much as you can handle. As one insider
says, Its a culture that encourages learning. Ive
learned a ton. You acquire this general-manager toolkit
that allows you to go off and do other things if you
want to. Part of getting experienced at Bain is the
opportunity to travel, and insiders especially love Bains
transfer policy, which allows consultants and senior
ACs the opportunity to spend six months to a year at a
different Bain office, with housing and expenses paid.
One insider says, You can go to any office you want as
long as they need you there. And they want you to be
proficient in the language. We hear that the majority
of ACs take advantage of the transfer opportunities.

What Face Time?
Bainies tell us they appreciate the firms unwritten
policy against face time, both in the office and on the
client site. If youre on the beach, you dont need to
come in, says one AC, referring to the consulting
term for not working on a project. I was talking to
a friend at McKinsey the other day, and she told me
she was just sitting around the office, doing nothing,
because she wasnt staffed on a case. I asked her,
Then why dont you just go home? And she said,
Well, I have to be here. At Bain, we dont work that
way. A consultant confirms this: If youre getting
your work done and doing your job, nobodys
checking up on you. Its a climate of trust.
Its All About Results
Bains really committed to giving something positive
to its clients, says one insider. Bainies say their firms
results-oriented approach means coming up with
concrete, feasible answers for their customers. I
feel like the people here are very impact-oriented
everything centers around how we can help the client,
a consultant says. We might come up with the best
solution, but then we have to ask if its realistic for the
client. If the answers no, then we need to come up
with another option.
INSIDER SCOOP
ACs have to become integral players on the
team. Its not like some other firms, where the
bulk of the rank and file is business school guys
with a small pool of analysts who get farmed-
out work, and the B-school guy tells the analyst,
I want you to run these numbers.
My Work Matters
Bainies are passionate about their work. Asked to
name one of his favorite things about Bain, one
insider says its the quality of the work we get to
do. Sometimes its easy to lose sight of, but I think
were privileged to be able to work on this quality
of problems. Theyre very important issues for the
companies that we work with. Another says, I dont
At a glance
see how theres a better job for someone coming out
of school in terms of the questions you get to deal
with and the size of the problem thats yours. Were
told that Bains policy is to push as much of the good
work as possible down to the AC level. A manager
says: I started out as an AC and I really appreciated it.
The Firm
It gave me a lot more exposure and opportunity and
responsibility than a lot of my contemporaries at other
companies would have gotten.
Watch Out!
Rah Rah Bain
While many insiders appreciate Bains emphasis on
fun and camaraderie, some struggle to keep their life
On the Job
and work separate. The culture is very much focused
on everyone becoming fast friends, says one Bainie.
New recruits need to think about whether they want
their social life to revolve around the company. I
think that some people really struggle with the fact
that Bain integrates really closely with the rest of your
The Work place
life, says another AC. A lot of people feel pressure to
attend all these events, but I feel that you can be just
as successful without going to them. Achieving the
right balance is something all Bainies have to figure
out for themselves. Its not a nine-to-five job, another
one says. You really have to be good at managing
your work life and your personal life, and if youre not
careful, you can kind of fall out of balance with that.
You cant sit back and let things happen.
Getting Hired
Steep Curve Ahead
Bain prides itself on having a one-firm culture,
and there is a distinctly Bain way of doing thingsa
Bain way of research, a Bain way of creating slides,
a Bain way of approaching a problem. In order to
understand the Bain way, staff members must face
the learning curve: Theres certainly a steep learning
curve in consulting. Were working on hard, complex
problems, says an insider. In offices that use the two-
REFERENCE
case model, the curve might be even steeper. Says one
FOR YOUR
insider: Theres a definite learning curve to balancing
two cases. It probably took me a year to really get
used to it.
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 39
 At a glance
Bain & Company

Sharpen Those Spreadsheets
Bains approach to consulting relies heavily on data-
intensive models and analytical research. Theres no
con game here: New recruits might think Bainies
simply whiteboard strategies and then sell those to
clients, but they would be wrong.
The Firm
develop a social life outside of work. Since schedules
can be unpredictable, for some Bainies its difficult to
commit to activities outside the office.
INSIDER SCOOP
This job is too tough not to love. It expects a lot

from you, and some level of emotional engage-

INSIDER SCOOP ment as well. If you didnt love it, it would be
We create a lot of primary research, and were tremendously unpleasant.
quite rigorousmore rigorous than our clients
would demandin terms of methodologies.

Learning how to apply Bains results-oriented ethos

can be tricky. Bains data-driven approach doesnt
On the Job

always mesh with the approach the client takes. Its

really surprising to see how these multibillion dollar
companies operatea lot of top managers make
decisions based on gut instinct, not data, says one
AC. A big part of our job is satisfying the client, so
the data cant be the end-all answer; we have to find
The Work place

the answer somewhere between Bains data analysis and

the clients gut feeling.
So if you see yourself using more shoot-from-the-
hip tactics, you might prefer another firm. Likewise,
if you prefer the consultant-as-coach role to the
consultant-as-business-wizard role, youll probably
get more of that type of work at one of the hard-core
reengineering or operations firms.
Getting Hired

Work = Life
Although there are more time-intensive careers
(investment banking, anyone?), the consulting lifestyle
is arduous. Working 11 hours a day is a long time,
says one insider. It sounds low, especially compared
to banking jobs, but its harder than you think. Youre
working 8 a.m. to 7 or 8 p.m., every single day. Its
tough. Another insider says, Typically, clients are
engaging you for things that are extremely important
and often extremely urgent. Its short deadlines, big
REFERENCE

stakes, so that brings a lot of pressure and the pressure

FOR YOUR

does increase over time. Personal lives sometimes get

put on hold, which may be especially burdensome for
consultants with young children or those who want to

40 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
 FOR YOUR
At a glance The Firm On the Job The Work place Getting Hired REFERENCE

41
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE
Getting Hired

5
The Recruiting Process................ 44
On-the-Record Recruiter .
Interview..................................... 45
The Interviewers Checklist......... 47
Interviewing Tips........................ 47
Grilling Your Interviewer............ 48
 At a glance
Bain & Company
The
Recruiting
Process
The Firm
Applicants to Bain must apply online at www.
bain.com. If youre an undergrad or grad student
at one of the U.S. schools where Bain recruits
California, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York,
and Texas are common hiring locationscheck the
firms site for information on Bains recruiting process
at your campus, and how to apply for an interview
On the Job
when Bain recruiters come to town. If your school is
not among those listed on the Bain site, you can still
apply by completing the online application.
Although the interview process does vary by office,
generally Bain runs prospective employees through the
standard consulting gauntlet. Heres what you can expect:
First round: Two case interviews, usually
The Wor place
conducted by one or two managers or VPs.
Second round: Held on or off campus (perhaps
at the office where the candidate wants to work), this
round is longer than the first. It also includes two
case interviews, along with an experience/behavioral/
resume interview.
Third round: In some cases (most often for offices
outside the U.S.), candidates may be asked to sit
Getting Hired
through a third round of interviews.
Bains recruiting process is rumored to be more
demanding and time-consuming than at other firms;
one recruiter, however, claims there is no difference.
Still, its best to bone up on those all-important
cases, and remember that your sensitivity to group
dynamics is being evaluated along with your comfort
with numbers and razor-sharp analytical skills.
We look for a mix, says one recruiter. You have
to have the analytic [ability] so you can crack the
REFERENCE
case and communication skills so that we can work
FOR YOUR
collaboratively with our clients. We also look for
people who are passionate and down-to-earth. So
we emphasize both of those, but the first hurdle is
44 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
whether they can do the analytical part. On the client
or team side, we look for people who are articulate,
driven, natural leaders, team players, and have a strong
interest in Bain.
One associate consultant (AC) offers this good
advice for those interviewing with Bain: People should
ask about the paths and backgrounds of the people
theyre interviewing with. In some cases this may help,
especially if you want to work with people who are
involved in different things. I would try to get a feel
for what people do outside of work. A job is 50 percent
about a job and 50 percent about your life. (Of course,
that breakdown will differ for every applicant.)
Undergraduates
Bain goes fishing for a large number of ACs at the top
undergraduate schools around the country, especially
those located near a domestic office. The best way to
get an offer is to go through the standard on-campus
interview. Go to Bains website, www.bain.com, and
click on Join Bain. From there youll be able to find
important recruiting information thats specific to your
school. Contact your career center or the closest Bain
office to find out if and when Bain will be coming. If
Bain doesnt recruit at your school, or if you decide to
sign up too late in the game, theres still a chance you
could be hired off-season due to a sudden need for
people. Each summer Bain also hires students who are
between their junior and senior years at college for an
associate-consultant internship.
MBAs and Other Grad Students
Each year Bain hires a new class of consultants from
top grad schools around the country. This includes
a smaller number of PhD and advanced-degree
candidates who have demonstrable analytical work
experience. The precise number of new hires varies
depending on need and available candidates, but
its usually in the hundreds. Although Bain extends
offers to many of its former employees and summer
associates, quite a few slots remain for unfamiliar faces.
To increase your chances, some insiders recommend
getting a post-MBA job at Bain by going through the

summer recruiting process. Even if you dont get an
immediate offer (though theres a great chance that
you will), youll be known when you apply for a job
the following year. First-year MBAs from top business
schools face stiff competition and a tough interview
process before being chosen for the ten-week summer
associate program.
Midcareer Candidates
Bain has been making an increasing number of
midcareer (industry-specific) hires. Most of this
hiring is need-based. Youll likely have better luck
with your application if the firm has recently booked
a couple of projects in your industry, so keep your
ear to the ground and act fast if you hear that Bain
is hot on a project.
Demonstrable analytical work experience is
necessary. As with entry-level candidates, the firm
is looking primarily to see whether you have the
intellectual horsepower to handle consulting work and
whether you fit with the organization. Bain prefers that
industry candidates send their resumes to the office at
which they want to work, not to the nearest office.
At a glance
On-the-Record
Recruiter
Interview
The Firm
We designed the on-the-record recruiter interview
to get you inside the recruiters head to reveal the
questions you need answered to ace your interviews.
What do you look for in candidates
resumes?
Were looking for work experience that demonstrates
On the Job
problem-solving skills and a bias for driving results.
Its important to quantify what you did in a particular
role to show a focus on results. Experience with well-
known companies is much less important than what
the candidate has accomplished. For example, we
interview a large number of candidates who have been
The Work place
in the startup world. We look for team experience and
academic achievement as other indicators of problem-
solving skills. Were also looking for demonstrable
leadership experience, whether at work or through
extracurricular activities.
What are immediate turnoffs on a resume?
There are very few immediate turnoffs. However,
I do prefer crisp, clear descriptions of prior work
Getting Hired
experiencesome resumes could be much more
to the point.
Which interviewing methods does your
firm use?
We use a combination of case interviews (one based
on actual Bain projects and a mini-case based on the
interviewees experience) and experience interviews.
Weve found that the case interviews are a good test for
whether someone will enjoy and do well in the Bain
REFERENCE
environmentits an opportunity to engage in a real
FOR YOUR
business situation. If a candidate truly enjoys this type
of discussion, he or she is much more likely to thrive
in our environment.
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 45
 At a glance
Bain & Company

How do you decide which candidates
advance in the interviewing process?
Its always a difficult decision, because we speak with so
many very qualified candidates. However, were looking
for the new breed of business leaders, the candidates
committed to creating business value. We make the
The Firm
Whats the most effective way for a candi-
date to follow up after an interview?
We try very hard to get back to candidates quickly
(in a few days), so there is seldom time or need for
follow-up.

decision based on our read of the candidates desire and
ability to contribute to client value addition and our
team culture. The case discussions are a critical input
to thiswere looking for someone who can logically
structure a business problem, develop a hypothesis,
and articulate how he or she would find an answer for
the client. In addition to getting to an answer, some
assessment of how practical that answer is, or how
On the Job
What are the qualities necessary for suc-
cess at your firm?
Problem-solving skills, a nose for value, commitment
to driving that value, creativity and skill in overcoming
roadblocks to value creation, and a desire to build a
fun, successful Bain team and business. A tall order,
but over the years weve hired outstanding people who
are driving Bains tremendous success and growth in

difficult it will be to implement, is important, because the consulting market.

it shows a practical business sense that drives value
creation and sustained business successes.
Whats the biggest mistake a candidate can
make in an interview?
Again, there are very few outright mistakes. Its very
important to be yourself, have fun, and relax. While
The Wor place

this is obviously easier said than done, were looking for

people who can enjoy the process. The other common
mistakes are the blind application of a framework
to the case without thinking through what the key
issues are in this situation, and spending too much
time asking questions and developing hypotheses
versus driving to recommendations for the client.
Although its expected that the candidate will present
Getting Hired

a few hypotheses early in the interview, the candidates

approach should help to develop the required facts
quickly to disqualify hypotheses along the way. In the
end, you must get to a solution thats implementable.

Whats the best way to break into the inter-

view cycle if youre not on campus?
Were always interested in great candidates and would
encourage those not on campus to apply online at
www.bain.com.
REFERENCE
FOR YOUR

46 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE

The Interviewing
Interviewers Tips
Checklist
Insiders say that a candidates analytical prowess is
the most important factor in the hiring decision. The
case interview is the critical tool for testing analytics,
and interviewers use it to evaluate communication
skills, action orientation, and a focus on results.
The interviewer seeks evidence of achievement and
leadership in past work and academic experience. On
an interview assessment sheet, each candidate is ranked
on a five-point scale for qualities such as confidence,
ability to prioritize key business issues, and potential
client impact. Bainies especially like to see evidence of
the candidates ability to be a team player. Recruiters
look for the following traits during the interview:
[ CHECKLIST]
The interviewers checklist
o Passion and drive.
o Excellent grades (you wont be the only 4.0
the interviewer has ever seen, guaranteed!)
o High level of motivation.
o Outstanding interpersonal skills.
o Strong sense of self (dont allow yourself to
be bullied).
o Keen business intuition.
o High energy level.
o Entrepreneurial spirit.
o Team player.
o Professional demeanor.
o Maturity.
o Creative perspective.
o Diverse experiences.
o Down-to-earth attitude.
At a glance
1. As with interviews in any industry, do your
The Firm
homework. Know what Bain does, how its
different from the competition, and why you
want to work there. Do your due diligencedo
your research on Bain. Bain prides itself on
having a unique culture and a unique approach
to consulting. Its good coming into interviews to
have a sense of what makes Bain unique, says an
insider. Too often, you receive a stock answer of
On the Job
why somebody wants to do consulting. Its always
much better in the interview to have somebody
who has a sense of what Bains value proposition is
and what differentiates us from competitors.
2. Dont get fooled by the somewhat informal nature
The Work place
of the interview. It may seem like a conversation
with a friend, but remember, Bain is looking
for pragmatic self-starters who are focused on
results. In terms of structure, the Bain interview
is very open, says an insider. Its definitely more
of a discussion, although the challenge is to be
discussion-based and personable while driving to
the answer and keeping a structured approach.
Working with numbers and recommendations
Getting Hired
based on impact is always good. Always drive to
the answer, summarize what you have, and come
up with a solution.
3. Be enthusiastic and energetic in the interview.
Insiders say that a passion for anything (academic
or nonacademic) is good; recruiters want to see
that you have strong interests and that you can
share your enthusiasm. Highlight anything
that makes you unique, says one AC. Theres a
REFERENCE
strong company culture here, and its important
FOR YOUR
to emphasize your social skills. You need to show
that youve done more than studied and made
good grades. Folks who just sit there and act as
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 47
 At a glance
Bain & Company

if they should be hired because of their stellar

credentials are almost sure to get dinged. Related Grilling Your
to enthusiasm are strong interpersonal skills.
Team players are essential in consulting, and you
can be sure your interviewers are giving you the
Interviewer
Cleveland Airport test: What would it be like to This is your chance to turn the tables and find out
The Firm

spend a six-hour flight delay with this person at
the Cleveland Airport? If you can keep a good
sense of humor while keeping in mind that you
should be structured and analytical, youve got a
good chance of making it, an insider says.
4. During the resume portion of the interview,
remember to listen carefully to questions before
On the Job
what you want to know. We strongly encourage you
to spend time preparing questions of your own. In the
meantime, the samples below should get you started.
The Rare questions are meant to be boring and
innocuous, while the Well-Done ones will help you
put the fire to your interviewers feet.
Rare

answering them fully yet succinctly. The last thing
an interviewer wants is a candidate with a well-
rehearsed spiel that fails to take into account the
fact that theres another person in the room.
5. Bain will look at your previous work with an eye
to how it illustrates the skills its looking for. Be
The Wor place
What are the differences between the San
Francisco and Boston offices [or X and Y offices]?
How much interaction is there among people at
different seniority levels at Bain?
How are projects staffed?

prepared for behavioral questions, such as Tell

me about a time when you were a leader of a
group and you didnt agree with its solution
what did you do?
6. Dont get psyched out about the case
interviewsits not rocket science, says
one insider. Theres not some assumed level
Getting Hired
What are the advantages and disadvantages of
working on two cases at once?
Tell me about the project that was your biggest
success.
Tell me about a project that, in hindsight, could
have gone better if done differently.

of knowledge. You just have to pick apart

problems, ask questions, and take cues from your
interviewer. Hard-core practice is the secret to
mastering case problems, which are at the heart
of a Bain interview. The interviewer wants to
hear your answers and see how you handle the
pressure. Youll be a lot calmer if youre familiar
with how case interviews are structuredmore
so if youve practiced a couple yourself. All of the
top firmsincluding Bainhost case-cracking
REFERENCE
What do you like most about working at Bain?
What is this offices client mix?
Medium
What percentage of your business comes from
your largest clients?
How do you make sure that your work is results-

workshops during recruiting season. focused?

FOR YOUR

For additional preparation, check WetFeets Ace Your Case series of Insider
Guides. Visit www.wetfeet.com for more information. What is managements strategic vision for the
organization?

48 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
 At a glance
What are the advantages and disadvantages of not
spending more time at the clients location?

How does Bain make sure that its

recommendations get implemented?

The Firm
What is Bain doing to increase its workforce
diversity?

The challenge is to be discus-

sion-based and personable

On the Job
while driving to the answer
and keeping a structured
approach.

The Work place

Well-Done
What would happen if some of your largest
clients left at the same time?

How does Bain sell itself to prospective clients

when so many of its staff members are generalists?

What grade would you give Bains management

Getting Hired
team?

How tolerant is Bain of different styles and

personalities?

Does Bains emphasis on long-term relationships

jeopardize the firms objectivity?
REFERENCE
FOR YOUR

WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 49

 For Your
Reference

6
Recommended Reading.............. 52
For Further Study....................... 53
Key Numbers and People............ 54
.
 At a glance
Bain & Company
Recommended
Reading
Best of Bain
The Firm
Best of Bain publications by Bain consultants
are available online at Bains websiteincluding
recent publications relevant to the current economic
situation. Bone up on these if you really want to
impress in your interviews and find out what Bainies
are thinking about.
Source: www.bain.com/bainweb/Publications/best_of_bain.asp
On the Job
Unstoppable
Bain partner and global strategy expert Chris Zook,
author of Profit from the Core (2001) and Beyond the
Core: Expand Your Market Without Abandoning Your
Roots (2004) has a third book out titled Unstoppable:
Finding Hidden Assets to Renew the Core and Fuel
Profitable Growth (2007). Building on the ideas from
The Wor place
his previous books (he has begun referring to the three
as the core trilogy,) Zook discusses how managers
can redefine their core business by looking within their
organizations to find unutilized assets for new growth.
Source: Business Week, June 18, 2007
Business Model
While former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney,
Getting Hired
ex-head of Bain, is opposed to civil unions and gay
marriages, his old company is offering domestic-
partner benefits and forbidding discrimination based
on sexual orientation. It may be a charged issue,
but companies are finding that extending benefits
to gay workers and taking an active stance against
discrimination are actually good for business.
Source: Steve Bailey, Boston Globe, February 18, 2004
Skin in the Game
REFERENCE
What does a consulting firm do when its clients cant
FOR YOUR
afford to pay its fees up front? Increasingly, consulting
companies are putting skin in the game, or taking
at least part of their fees in the form of equity (a
52 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
practice Bain pioneered), success fees, or their client
companys future savings. It seems to work well on
both sides: The client companys risk is lessened, and
the consulting firm often ends up with more money
than it could have gotten the old way.
Source: Daniel Lyons, Forbes, February 16, 2004
The Incredible Shrinking Consultant
This article details the challenges strategy firms faced
in the spring of 2003, exploring how blue-chip
corporations cut back on consultants or built their
own internal consulting capacity and what this means
for Bain, BCG, and McKinsey.
Source: Melanie Warner, Fortune, May 26, 2003
Gap Widens Between Actual and Expected
MBA Comp
This article discusses how the rise in competition
among MBAs hasnt led to the increase in base salaries
and bonuses that some prospective hires expected
theyre up only 2 percent from the previous year.
Research indicates that new MBAs choose their jobs
for reasons other than money, though, and most can
expect multiple offers.
Source: Consultants News, March 2006
Aligning the Stars: How to Succeed When
Professionals Drive Results
Jay W. Lorsch and Thomas J. Tierney (Harvard
Business School Press, 2002).
Providing insights into the success of Bain itself,
Aligning the Stars discusses the crucial need to
retain star employees in a professional services firm.
Recognizing that people are the competitive advantage
in such a firm, the authors regard employees as more
crucial to success than the employers themselves. The
authors discuss how an organization should align
itself to hang on to star talent. And, of course, there
is a pyramid diagram: This one outlines the interplay
between strategy, people systems, structure and
governance, culture, and leadership.

The Top 25 Consultants 2006
Consulting Magazines annual ranking of the top 25
consultants includes one from Bain: Ashish Singh,
Bains managing partner in India. Two other Bain
partners, Chris Zook and Matt Gottfredson, made
the list in 2005.
Source: Consulting Magazine, www.consultingmag.com/Top_25_
Consultants_2006.htm
The 10 Best Consulting Firms to Work For,
2006
Heres proof that Bain lives up to its PR claims that its
a great place to work: Bainies say that morale is high,
the work is stimulating, and the companys people-
friendly policies are top-notch.
Source: Consulting Magazine, http://www.consultingmag.com/categories/
Rankings/Best-Firms-to-Work-For/Data-Center/
Raising Bain
Though this 2001 article speculates about the future
of Bain without Orit Gadiesh at the helm (a future
that hasnt yet arrived), it offers a good look at Bains
history and the role this dynamic woman has played
within the company.
Source: Consulting Magazine, www.consultingmag.com/CM_
Archives%20PDF/CM_Archive2001/February01/Feb01_CovStory.pdf
At a glance
For Further
Study
First, check out www.bain.com.
The Firm
After you find out which industries are served
by the office to which you want to apply, hit the
library and scour industry journals for the latest
trends in those industries. Itll help if you know
your stuff before the interview.
A general resource for information about the
On the Job
consulting industry is Consultants News, published
by Kennedy Information. For more information
about this and other Kennedy publications,
visit consultingcentral.com or the Kennedy
Information website: www.kennedyinfo.com.
The Work place
Visit www.wetfeet.com for more information
about a number of consulting firms, their jobs,
and recruiting. And for help with your case
interviews, check out the Ace Your Case series of
Insider Guides, available from the site.
To hear Bain describe itself in its own words, read
the Bain Recruiter Q&A at www.wetfeet.com. In
the interview, a Bain recruiter answers a series of
Getting Hired
questions tailored specifically to the issues that job
seekers care about most.
Reading Fortune, Forbes, BusinessWeek, the Wall
Street Journal, and the New York Times is a great
way to stay up to date on the latest events and
issues that management consultants address, and
will arm you with plenty of information for your
interviews.
REFERENCE
FOR YOUR
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 53
 At a glance
Bain & Company

Key Numbers
and People
2005 Revenue
The Firm

2005 revenue worldwide ($M): $1,130

1-year growth rate (%): 13
Sources: WetFeet research, Consultants News, Hoovers

Key People
Orit Gadiesh, chairman
Steve Ellis, worldwide managing director (as of
March 1, 2005)
On the Job

Recruiting Contact
Deanne Sisco
Recruiting Department
Bain & Company
131 Dartmouth Street
Boston, MA 02116
The Wor place

Phone: 617-572-2236
Fax: 617-572-2427

Major Offices
Bain & Company has a network of 36 offices in 24
countries across six continents. For a complete listing
of offices, go to www.bain.com and click on Offices.
Getting Hired
REFERENCE
FOR YOUR

54 W E T F E E T I N SIDER GUIDE
 At a glance
WETFEET INSIDER GUIDES series
Ace Your Case - Consulting Interviews Consulting Careers
Ace Your Case I: Consulting Interviews, 3rd ed. 25 Top Consulting Firms
Ace Your Case II: Mastering the Case Interview Careers in Management Consulting
Ace Your Case III: Market-Sizing Questions Careers in Specialized Consulting: Information Technology

The Firm
Ace Your Case IV: Business Strategy Questions Consulting for PhDs, Lawyers, and Doctors
Ace Your Case V: Business Operations Questions
Consulting Companies
Interviewing Accenture
Ace Your Interview! Bain & Company
Beat the Street I: Investment Banking Interviews Booz Allen Hamilton
Beat the Street II: I-Banking Interview Practice Guide Boston Consulting Group
The Wharton MBA Case Interview Study Guide: Volume I Deloitte Consulting
The Wharton MBA Case Interview Study Guide: Volume II McKinsey & Company

On the Job
Resumes & Cover Letters Career Management
Killer Consulting Resumes Be Your Own Boss
Killer Cover Letters & Resumes Changing Course, Changing Careers
Killer Investment Banking Resumes Finding the Right Career Path
Negotiating Your Salary and Perks
Job Hunting Networking Works!
Getting Your Ideal Internship

The Work place

The International MBA Students Guide to the U.S. Job Search Industries and Careers: General
Job Hunting A to Z: Landing the Job You Want Industries and Careers for Engineers
Job Hunting in New York City Industries and Careers for MBAs
Job Hunting in San Francisco Industries and Careers for Undergraduates
Million-Dollar Careers
Financial Services Careers
25 Top Financial Services Firms Industries and Careers: Specific
Careers in Accounting Careers in Advertising and Public Relations
Careers in Asset Management and Retail Brokerage Careers in Pharmaceuticals
Careers in Investment Banking Careers in Brand Management
Careers in Venture Capital Careers in Consumer Products

Getting Hired
Careers in Entertainment and Sports
Financial Services Companies Careers in Health Care
Deutsche Bank Careers in Human Resources
Goldman Sachs Group Careers in Information Technology
JPMorgan Chase & Co. Careers in Marketing
Merrill Lynch & Co. Careers in Nonprofits and Government Agencies
Morgan Stanley Careers in Real Estate
UBS AG Careers in Retail
Careers in Sales
Careers in Supply Chain Management
REFERENCE
FOR YOUR

WETFEET INSIDER GUIDE 55