New MBA Consultants are Underworked

The Wall Street Journal reports newly hired MBA consultants are widely underworked with many reporting they are spending their time napping, working out, binge watching their favorite shows, and sending out resumes. This is quite newsworthy as consultants generally work very long hours. Those long hours tend to be well compensated with starting annual pay nearing $200,000.

We previously reported that McKinsey and Bain were paying their new hires to delay their start dates due to slowing work and more time “on the beach” (as it’s commonly referred to in consulting as well as public accounting) is not a completely unforeseen circumstance. This could result in lower consulting hires for the Class of 2024 though we firmly believe any lingering effects should be gone by the time the Class of 2025 is securing full-time employment.

This may sound like a dream for many. So why are some of these consultants sending out resumes? After all, what’s wrong with making $175,000 to $192,000 for doing nothing? As the WSJ article mentions, many of these consultants are correct to worry that this idle time may impact their career trajectories. The lack of billable hours can plausibly affect their evaluations and hinder their abilities to use the consulting position as a launchpad to other opportunities such as private equity and entrepreneurial opportunities.