The M7 (magnificent 7) business schools provide fertile ground for consultancies to recruit new MBAs. The seven schools include: Columbia Business School (CBS), Harvard Business School (HBS), MIT Sloan School of Management (MIT Sloan), Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management (Northwestern Kellogg), Stanford University Graduate School of Business (Stanford GSB), University of Chicago Booth School of Business (Chicago Booth), and The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania (Wharton). Many firms focus their recruiting efforts solely on these schools, but Boston Consulting Group (BCG) is broadening its reach to a total of 37 elite schools.
Beyond the big-brand M7 schools, BCG has looked to the top EU programs to bolster its list, including INSEAD and London Business School. Its UnLock program is set to further introduce inbound MBAs “to the people, insight, and experiences that will enrich their skills, knowledge, and relationships . . . As a participant in BCG UnLock, you can expect personal, candid dialogue with BCG consultants and leaders, as well as your pre-MBA peers. You’ll also get a behind-the-scenes look at our transformational work and digital capabilities, and dive deep into the opportunity, support systems, and tools we offer to help our people be their best.”
The expanded UnLock program benefits both students and their prospective employers. It offers students a preview of a career as a consultant, gives them a head start on landing a summer internship, and ultimately sets them up for a full-time job offer, while it provides employers an early look at new talent. Incoming MBA students interested in BCG’s program will receive an invitation to play a series of Pymetrics games, which offer insight into the player’s cognitive and emotional attributes and serves as a gauge of their potential for success working at BCG.
Consulting companies have been facing increasingly stiff competition to attract and retain top talent, as the jobs market continues its pandemic-driven shakeup. Many consulting firms have improved their compensation and benefits structures to offer more attractive opportunities for prospective employees, as well as building and growing programs to recruit incoming MBA candidates. Given the finite number of MBA candidates in a given year, firms are looking to expand their reach and include business schools they have not considered in the past.
As businesses continue to face a deficit of qualified talent, firms that provide an early path to employment are likely to face fewer challenges in keeping rosters full, providing new opportunities to ambitious MBAs willing to take advantage of their offerings.
