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Ilija

Capabilities and Insights ExpertZagreb

I chose to work at McKinsey because it offers an incomparable professional development journey and enables me to be a global citizen.

Empowered to lead

I grew up in Bosnia-Herzegovina, but I moved to Croatia to complete my undergraduate degree in economics, and later moved to Belgium for my master’s degree in finance. I’m proud that I was the first member of my family to attend university and complete post-graduate studies.

McKinsey offered me my first full-time job—a position in the Client Capabilities Network, based in Zagreb. I chose to work at McKinsey as the firm offers an incomparable professional development journey and enables me to be a global citizen. And ever since I joined, I’ve benefitted greatly from internal training programs and support from my mentors. McKinsey has empowered me to become a leader. For instance, I was fully supported in taking on consulting responsibilities and co-leading client development. Today, I find it particularly rewarding when colleagues I’ve mentored achieve professional milestones.

Meaningful, creative, original

In my work as a capabilities and insights specialist, I help clients directly through research and coleading workshops—particularly in the financial sector—and indirectly by supporting client-service teams and mentoring junior consultants.

My work is meaningful, creative, and original. What inspires me is the ability to make recommendations that shape the way industries function. It’s also hugely rewarding to contribute to public-sector projects. For instance, I prepared keynote presentations to help a European government build resilience during the economic crisis. I’ve also brought my love of problem solving to bear on developing pragmatic, impact-focused solutions in the financial sector.

Healthy work-life balance

It is inspiring to see how adaptable and flexible our firm is. I expected to work hard and learn fast—which I certainly have. But I’ve been struck by how caring my colleagues are. During my time at McKinsey, I’ve started a family—I’m married, with two children. I can reserve early evenings for family time, work from home when I need to, and adjust my travel schedule to suit my personal responsibilities.

If you’re looking for an organization that pushes you to achieve your goals, but also genuinely cares about helping you have a healthy work-life balance, you can do no better than McKinsey.