1 – Bain & Company
"Joining this firm means striving to surpass your own expectations," says Vivek Gambhir, a 34-year-old project manager. "You learn how to run companies, how to invest in them, and how to make a difference. Whatever your goals, you will discover limitless opportunity here."
A New York–based vice president at the same firm adds, "It's the best place in the world — not just the consulting world — to learn general manager skills and find out what it takes to make change really happen in companies."
"The people are absolutely amazing," gushes another. And so the tribe has spoken. And if what the tribal members tell us is true, Bain & Company is one vibrant isle you don't want to get thrown off of.
The 30-year-old firm, with its 2,800 professionals worldwide, is today widely known for its cohesive — some say cultish — culture. If the firm has any faults, super-loyal Bainies don't appear ready to reveal them.
Tribal members simply love everything Bain. As a result, they are at the top of each of our six equally weighted categories used to determine which employers topped our 10 Best Firms to Work For: Career Development, Compensation & Benefits, Culture, Leadership, On the Job, and Work/Life.
Not surprisingly, those firms that join Bain on our list of Best Firms share much in common. While each of their cultures breeds consultants who never stray far from time-tested client-centric banter, their efforts to develop and reward talent have set them apart from the rest of the consulting world. Each of the firms has continued to nurture their people with exceptional training programs and strong mentoring cultures. They reward hard work, by being flexible with comp time or by doling out bonuses. Their leaders are experienced communicators, who routinely share the good news as well as the bad, and help establish an atmosphere of trust. And accountability begins on the front lines, where a consultant's decision-making is often led by their firm's ethical codes and values.
Sidebar:
Daniella Ballou-Aares spends about half her working hours on an issue close to her heart — getting AIDS treatment programs to people in developing countries. She gets to do this through Bain & Company's externship program — one of a number of ways consultants here broaden their professional development. Bain consultants say that they have a grab bag of experiences to choose from here, triggered by the firm's generalist model. Most who work here do not specialize in one particular industry, and may be assigned to work with all types of clients. About a third of the firm's client mix are Fortune 500 companies, while an equal percentage are private equity clients. The rest are small- to medium-size clients. Consultants in the U.S. generally work on two cases at the same time, which generally last about six months.
It's an up-or-out culture at this privately held firm founded in 1973, and standards are high. "The learning curve here is steep and remains steep for many years, enabling you to grow and learn for a long time," says a director who joined Bain 13 years ago.
All associate consultants attend a two-week intensive training course, and major training for all is conducted every 12 to 18 months on a firmwide basis. Everyone is responsible for choosing a mentor. Later, they can spend six months in Bain's Private Equity Group, which focuses on leveraged buyout cases, or do an externship at the Bridgespan Group, Bain's nonprofit firm that advises the nonprofit sector. If neither of those options sounds appealing, they may do an externship at a client site or a company of their choosing.
And the Boston-based firm makes it easy to transfer among its 29 offices in 19 countries — not only to provide professional development opportunities for the staff but also because management sees it as a way to facilitate knowledge-sharing across offices.
Bainies say that the firm does what it can to keep work from overwhelming their lives. They travel to the client only when necessary — 65 percent of Bain consultants in our survey travel only one or two days per week. And, to avoid burnout, they may take advantage of part-time options and opportunities to take sabbaticals or leaves of absence, or transfer into an internal corporate role.
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