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Vision, inspiration, and leadership are three particularly important traits of great consultants, according to Jeff Chookaszian, ’96, principal at McKinsey & Company. “We need somebody with a clear vision of what’s going to happen who can execute a clear plan to get there,” said Chookaszian, keynote speaker at the fifth annual Consulting Fair August 18 at Gleacher Center. The event was hosted by the Chicago Consulting Club, which is run by students in the Evening MBA and Weekend MBA Programs.
“Secondly, consulting firms are looking for people who can motivate their peers and colleagues, get excited about a cause, and get others energized,” he said. “One last quality is leadership. McKinsey looks for people who can lead in the absence of authority. We don’t need people who can lead because they have a title or a role. As a consultant, the only thing you have is your ability to influence people and get them to want to follow you. We call it follower-ship. Are people excited about wanting to follow you and wanting to follow your leadership?”
Adam Hutchinson, ’00, consultant for Accenture, said his firm attended the fair to develop relations with future candidates who might eventually join Accenture as senior consultants. “We’re looking to maintain and increase our presence at the GSB for the next recruiting season,” Hutchinson said. “We’re taking names to start a dialogue, finding people who have a particular interest, and creating mechanisms to start that (recruiting) process.”
Accenture looks for a variety of traits that cannot be easily categorized, he said. “It’s not something you can give specific bullet points to,” Hutchinson said. “It’s a question of someone who not only is smart, but is articulate and has a certain ability to carry on a conversation. At a school like the GSB, you’re not concerned this person is not going to be able to do the analysis. That’s a given. It’s a certain sense of interpersonal, listening ability.”
Booz Allen Hamilton sent representatives to the fair to meet and get to know students, said Lauren Fernandes, ’01, senior associate at the firm. “It’s a great opportunity for us to talk to them in a more casual setting than the interview and try to understand why they want to do consulting,” Fernandes said. “In an environment like this, we definitely look to see that they’re personable and dynamic and have good presence. We also use this as an opportunity to talk about Booz Allen. I think it helps students to understand each company more and their culture.”
Apurv Anand, ’05, consultant for IBM Strategy and Change, said his firm was searching for the right match. “We’re looking for people like us, people who can fit into the IBM culture,” Anand said. “One of the key things we look for is an inquisitive mind—somebody who is curious and is trying to figure out how to develop clients.”
—Phil Rockrohr