The following is a Q&A with Andrea Hampton, Campus Recruiting Leader, Deloitte Consulting LLP
Consulting: What trends were you seeing on campus this year? (How is competition for talent changing—number of competitors, size of recruiting class, etc?)
Hampton: At Deloitte, we've noticed a significant shift in student expectations—from acquiring analytical skills to flexing their leadership muscles. As a leading consultancy, it's more important than ever to be aware of the individual aspirations and expectations of MBA students. This generation of MBAs is significantly different than five years ago, even three years ago, and we expect to see MBAs perspectives and values shift further as the economy returns to stability.
The one consistent trend is MBA students are more interested in organizations that offer them significant leadership development opportunities. Most MBAs look at consulting as a way to expand their skill-set, accelerate their experience and prepare them for executive positions outside consulting. While they are open to a longer term run in consulting, most MBAs are initially looking at consulting for a two-year run.
Consulting: What, if anything, was new on campus this year? Did you try anything different than you've tried in the past? Did you see any other firms trying out of the box ways to attract attention/recruits?
Hampton: MBA recruiting is increasingly a first year game; we are committed to building deep, personalized relationships with our candidates and start the relationship building process as soon as they step onto campus. In some cases, through our focus on pre-matriculation programs, we've begun the relationship building process earlier.
This summer we are expanding our Deloitte Consulting Immersion Program (DCIP) that we piloted last summer, which enables our early identification of MBA talent and enables them to build their leadership skills. DCIP includes two potential tracks—participation in a four-week internship or a three-day leadership development summit—both of which allow the MBAs to gain real-world consulting experience before beginning their MBA program.
MBA students want to know what type of formal training and on-the-job experiences they will gain and how that will develop them in to leaders, and they really want to understand what type of work they will be doing. MBA students are very interested in sustainability right now so we get a lot of questions about what opportunities they would have to either work on sustainability-related projects or to focus on internal sustainability initiatives within the firm.
Consulting: We saw a couple of firms offer bigger than average compensation packages. How important is compensation for this year's recruits? What else are they looking for?
Hampton: MBA students desire organizations that take a personal interest in their long term professional goals much more than initial compensation package differences. There is variability in the type of experience desired, industry preferences, large companies vs. start-up situations, not-for-profit and/or global experiences, but the consistent expectation is the ability to learn to lead and create enduring value for organizations with whom they work. Deloitte has developed programs at the senior consultant level (the typical entry point for MBAs) that enable our new hires to quickly get a broad set of experiences as well as focus on their areas of interest.
Consulting: What were the most common questions from recruits you heard on campus this year? How does that compare to past years?
Hampton: MBA students want to know what type of formal training and on-the-job experiences they will gain and how that will develop them in to leaders and really want to understand what type of work they will be doing. MBA students are very interested in sustainability right now so we get a lot of questions about what opportunities they would have to either work on sustainability-related projects or to focus on internal sustainability initiatives within the firm.
Consulting: How does your firm's recruiting goals for this year compare to prior years? What can you share about your initial goals for next year? (For example, how does this year's summer internship class compare to prior years?)
Hampton: Deloitte's focus is on being the post-business school destination of choice for individuals with demonstrated leadership skills who are looking to take their career to the next level. This focus is reflected in our recruiting efforts, but more importantly in the integrated set of experiences, mentoring, and professional development opportunities we offer to MBAs (e.g., our investment in Deloitte University and pre-matriculation consulting experiences).
The feedback and reaction that we have gotten from students, faculty, and placement offices is phenomenal. We've enjoyed tremendous success in the marketplace; we expect to continue our trend of being a top consulting recruiter at leading MBA programs. Our commitment is to be the destination where we are known as the consulting firm where leaders thrive!
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