Kellogg TMP

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Kellogg TMP

• Recruiting Experience and Advice

July 7, 2000
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Agenda

• Introduction
• TMP and the Recruiting Process today
• The Recruiting Process checklist
• Perform an honest self-inventory
• Get to know the different firms
• Develop a targeted resume
• Prepare (prepare, prepare) for your interviews
• Resume Review
• Final Thoughts
• Questions and Answers

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Consulting interviews are you ready?
Get ready for a wild roller coaster ride!
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This fall will be an exasperating juggling act
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TMP and the Recruiting Process today

• The good
• More firms are starting to recognize the TMP
  program as fertile recruiting ground
• Kellogg is supportive of TMP participation in the
  placement process
• You tend to have more work experience than your
  full-time counterparts
• You have demonstrated the ability to successfully
  manage a demanding schedule
• The New Economy has made talented people harder
  to recruit, so most firms are looking more
  closely at non-traditional hires
• The bad
• You do not have the advantage of a summer
  internship
• You do not have as ready access to information as
  full-time students
• You will not have as much free time to engage in
  recruiting as full-time students
• You do not have the same network as the full-time
  students
• The ugly
• Many recruiters still go on campus looking for
  full-time students. Some are not even aware of
  the TMP program

Be positive. TMP Recruiting is getting better
all the time
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The Recruiting Process checklist

• Perform an honest self-inventory When I grow
  up, I want to be
• What characteristics are you looking for in a
  job?
• What characteristics do you want to avoid in a
  job?
• What special requirements do you have?
• Geographic location
• Travel versus non-travel
• Office environment versus industrial setting
• How does my family factor into the equation?
• Do your desires fit with your abilities?
• What are your strengths?
• What are your weaknesses?
• How will all of the above change in 5 years? 10
  years?

Be honest with yourself, consulting may not be
right for you
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The Recruiting Process checklist

• Get to know the different firms
• Identify resources and collect information
• Company literature
• Web pages
• Wet Feet Press
• Harvard Business School guide to Management
  Consultants
• The Directory of Consultants and Consulting
  Organizations
• Periodical searches
• Your peers/fellow students
• Do not forget about the consultants! Remember
  Kellogg Alumni help Kellogg students
• Create your own list of key requirements
• Measure all the firms against your key
  requirements
• Rank and segment the firms that most interest you
• Develop a plan to talk to every firm on your
  shortlist. You will need this for your bid
  strategy
• Remember, work is a four letter word do not get
  caught up in the hype!

Make an educated decision about your next employer
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The Recruiting Process checklist

• Develop a targeted resume
• Use an action, results format (i.e., do not
  tell me what you are responsible for, tell me the
  success youhave had)
• I did this, leading to that
• Make sure that the results stated are important
  to your targeted firms
• Quantify your achievements where possible, but do
  not ignore nonquantifiable results
• Speak in the vernacular of your targeted audience
• Use consulting buzzwords where appropriate
• Sanitize your resume of phrases that an outsider
  will not understand
• Does your resume pass the Mom test?
• Do the obvious
• Show promotions
• Italicize key words
• Make sure dates are consistent
• Spell check!
• Use high quality, white paper
• Tell me something about yourself
• Differentiate yourself but be professional

Do you know how many resumes we see? Spend the
time to give yours a chance
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The Recruiting Process checklist

• Prepare (prepare, prepare) for your interview
• The General Interview
• Anticipate all questions
• Work up responses to anticipated questions (be as
  honest as you can!)
• Draw upon your past experiences to create stories
  and show depth
• Rehearse not sounding rehearsed! (We know you
  practice, but do not overdo it)
• Preparation does not mean leaving your
  personality at home
• Show me your human side
• Remember, the interview goes two ways
• Have at least three intelligent questions
  prepared
• Do not be afraid to ask the difficult questions
• Take a good, hard look at the people you are
  interviewing with and their surroundings

Be yourself. If you cannot get an offer as
yourself, you do not want the job!
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The Recruiting Process checklist

• Prepare (prepare, prepare) for your interview
• The Case Interview
• Practice makes perfect
• Consider the types of cases and what preparation
  might help you
• Profit and loss The Mind of the Strategist,
  Chapter One, by Kenichi Ohmae
• Strategy and Industry analysis Porters Five
  Forces model
• Organizational Design
• Operational Efficiency
• I am sure you can think of others
• Given the above comment, do not try to force fit
  every case into some pre-established structure!
• If it helps, develop a standard introduction
• Understand the end state where you want to be
  when you have finished the case
• Next, start at a fairly high level and think
  through what you need to do to get to your
  desired end state
• Explain the methodology you will use to solve the
  case
• Understand and organize what information you have
  been given up front and what else you will need
• Start asking questions

Humble pie does not taste good, but do not take
the rejection personally
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The Recruiting Process checklist

• Prepare (prepare, prepare) for your interview
• The Case Interview (continued)
• During the interview
• Listen, Listen, Listen. Most information is given
  to you for a reason
• Think transparently (this is not, however, a
  license to babble)
• If the interviewer does not understand where you
  are going, he/she cannot help you
• Ask questions. Help the interviewer help you
• Drive to a conclusion and state it (within your
  time limit)
• Double back if necessary to make sure you have
  not missed something, or left something undone

Humble pie does not taste good, but do not take
the rejection personally
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A.T. Kearney Resume Review

• E-mail Resumes to Jeff Chang
• jeff.chang_at_atkearney.com
• Deadline to Submit Resumes for Review
• July 21, 2000
• Contact Number
• [phone]

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Final Thoughts

• Time is short, get started now
• Develop a game plan for
• Learning about firms/obtaining interviews
• Succeeding in case interviews
• Dealing with the worst
• Develop your support network to deal with the
  stress of it all
• Family and friends
• Non-Kellogg career mentors
• Be yourself and have fun
• Never say never!

Best of luck. Oh, by the way, did I mention that
A.T. Kearney is the consulting firm of the 21st
century?
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Appendix 1 Common Mistakes
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Common mistakes during the consulting interview
process

• Self-Inventory
• Not being honest about what you want for your
  future and which career path is right for you
• Failing to realize that the Kellogg degree opens
  many doors there is more to life than
  consulting
• The firms
• Getting caught up in the name/image of a given
  firm and ignoring their personality and/or
  practice specialty
• Falling for the recruiting sales pitch and not
  asking enough questions
• Ignoring/snubbing the Big 5
• Resume
• Chronologically listing daily responsibilities
  and not emphasizing accomplishments or leadership
  abilities
• Ignoring the CMC format (e.g., more than one
  page, grammatically correct sentences)
• Interview/closed list
• Being too pushy about getting on closed lists
• Taking the interview process too lightly
• Failing to practice a full repertoire of cases
• Taking rejection personally

Most importantly, be courteous to your fellow
students. The alumni bridge is a bad one to burn!