McKinsey India

Why McKinsey?

For someone like me who was yet to have a first job, this seemed like the ideal start—almost a finishing school. I was keen on consulting because of the breadth and flexibility it offered. I could start as a generalist and work on various kinds of problems in different sectors and functions. I had a terrific 2-month stint as a summer associate working for a large energy client. The technical aspects appealed to the engineer in me, and at the same time I was able to consider the business implications of the issues. When I received an offer to come back to the firm as a junior associate, I didn’t hesitate.

Most unexpected thing about McKinsey

What struck me most was the extent of freedom I had right from the beginning. I had an independent work stream and a set of senior clients that I interacted with directly. Yet I always had the support I needed. Working alongside chief experience officers on key organisational issues and being the face of McKinsey to them is a great feeling.

One big attraction

Ever since joining McKinsey, I have had global exposure and an opportunity to work in different countries. As a senior associate, I applied for a short-term transfer to the London office, where I spent a year before coming back to Delhi. We also work with multicultural teams when servicing a client, which enables us to become truly global citizens. I travelled extensively across Europe during the last year—for client engagements in Germany and the Netherlands as well as for training in Switzerland and the Czech Republic. And in between those, I took holidays in France and Greece. These opportunities have helped my development immensely—professionally and personally.

Best thing about the work

What keeps me excited after 4 years at McKinsey is the quality of the people I work with every day—in and out of the firm. I’m constantly amazed at the capabilities of the people in my teams. The clients we work with are industry leaders and exceptional in themselves. I feel inspired by all this talent to set myself increasingly higher goals.

Value-based decisions

What makes McKinsey special is the primacy of values. The idea sounded a bit schmaltzy at first, but having lived them every day, I’ve come to see this as one of the exceptional qualities of the firm. For example, one of our core values is to put client interests before our own. I’ve seen partners turning down work when we were not in the best position to help clients on a certain topic. We have an obligation to dissent if we think that something may be contrary to McKinsey’s values or the best interests of our clients. And there is no hierarchy here when it comes to problem solving; in terms of ideas, it doesn’t matter if these come from a partner or a junior associate. This is absolutely core and supports excellence.

Education