Strategy&, Part of the PwC Network
Visit Website: www.strategyand.pwc.com/
Related companies : Strategy&, Part of the PwC Network, Asia-Pacific , Strategy&, Part of the PwC Network, Europe
Overview
Introduction
Strategy& is the consulting business of professional services firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, aka PwC, one of largest professional services networks in the world and one of the Big Four accounting firms. Combining strategy consulting expertise with the capabilities of the PwC network, Strategy& helps clients solve issues—from devising a corporate strategy to building capabilities by transforming functions and business units—from strategy through execution.
Company Stats
Employer Type
Size
Major Departments/Practice Areas
Growth strategy...
Major Office Locations
New York, NY (HQ)...
Employment Contact
Career Site
Firsthand Findings
Strategy& emerged from the merger with PwC stronger than ever. The depth of industry knowledge and expert strategy/implementation design were always parts of the firm’s value proposition—and that's now reinforced by the virtually limitless resources of the PwC network.
The sheer volume of training initiatives and access to knowledge across every practice area is a unique differentiating factor for clients—and prospective employees—to consider. Leveraging PwC’s resources enables the firm to package end-to-end services together across a variety of domains and bring world-class expertise to the table.
Respondents to our survey cite their firm’s emphasis on upskilling as a particular highlight. You’ll grow q...
About the Company
Strategy& is the global strategy consulting business of the professional services firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, aka PwC, one of largest professional services network in the world and one of the Big Four accounting firms.
Working with the world's leading public and private businesses, government ministries, and institutions, Strategy& provides a broad spectrum of services including: growth strategy, portfolio strategy, mergers and acquisitions, organization design, marketing strategy, sales and channel management, operations strategy, and digital and information technology strategy.
In terms of industry expertise, the firm has expert talent and resources across multiple areas including: aerospace and defense, automotive, chemicals, consumer products, energy and util...
Employee Reviews
- “We are a down to earth group of intelligent, high performing team members who are friends at work and outside of work.”
- “Colleagues I value as friends, unique learning experiences specific to energy, learning core consulting skills to high standards.”
- “Bespoke or tailored recommendations that take our client's capabilities into account. Also, we are better able to work with our clients and deliver something they can and will execute instead of a deck that sits on a desk.”
- “Strategy& has provided me ample opportunities to work with C-Suite clients right out of the MBA program. The wonderful firm culture provides a high level of support where needed, and selecting this firm has been the best choice of my career thus far.”
- “Strategy& invests in me and fosters my love of infinite learning; I learn something new every day whether that's from my peers, partners or clients.”
- “Unique opportunity to understand the full breadth of consulting, from strategy through execution. While you sit at the tip of the spear, you often get to drive practical strategies that your clients can effectively implement.”
- “Hours and travel requirements are not out of ordinary for a strategy consulting firm. Culturally, both Strategy& and PwC encourage taking time off to recharge, so I am happy about this aspect.”
- “The firm really encourages being open about your needs, flexibility and goals. This has really helped me work on different aspects on consulting, change location as per my family needs and to continue to reinvent myself. The firm can really focus on reducing some of the administrative tasks and making the life of a 'traveling consultant' much more efficient and productive.”
- “Hours and client demands can, of course, be tough, but the firm places a high emphasis on balance and flexibility, which makes it easier to take time for personal things and family engagement.”
- “Quality of life issues are consistent with the consulting industry: long hours and frequent travel inevitably detract from personal relationships. However, it is easy to take time off when needed.”
- “New hires get 15 working days’ vacation time each year for the first two years. After that, it increases to 22. There are however a number of firm recognized holidays, two "floating holidays" per year (you take these when you want), and firm-wide shutdowns (the week of July 4 and the week between Christmas and New Year). You can take your time off whenever you want.”
- “Management encourages use of vacation time, and makes an emphasis to never interrupt my paid time off. I receive support from colleagues when I decide to take vacation time, and if I run out I'm even allowed to go in the negative (and recover the time as I accumulate more months of experience).”
- “Salary progression and bonus potential are strong and are market competitive. Vesting period is a downside, as employer match for 401(k) is only fully vested after 5 years—which is a significant amount of time to stay in a consulting career.”
- “Strategy& has introduced cohort-driven compensation packages, rather than individually negotiated packages. I feel this is a significant step in the right direction to drive pay equality, transparency and expectation management.”
- “Compensation for Strategy& is on par with other competing firms, so I have no complaints.”
- “Firm is committed to maintaining parity with peers, focused on long-term partner income and investment in the firm.”
- “I love the various incentives programs in place, especially Real-time Recognition in which colleagues can reward each other for exemplary work—always a great bonus! Our fitness rewards are also great, both in terms of providing monetary bonuses and demonstrating firm investment in wellness for its employees.”
- “Health insurance is very poor; performance bonuses are slightly above market.”
- “Our firm is very focused on individual growth and the culture reflects that; we consistently look to grow people at all stages of their career and rank quality of life as a critical component of team satisfaction. We have an exceptionally high retention rate due to these considerations and our culture in general.”
- “Staff receive significant C-level exposure early in their careers. Staff work on a diverse set of business problems, even as they build depth in a particular competency for most of their staffing opportunities. Staff can network and pursue interests for whom to work with on specific areas of interest, which complements the formal staffing process. I have been encouraged to contribute to intellectual capital from an early stage in my career…”
- “Strong formalized coaching/mentoring processes and very active mentors and champions. Recent introduction of mid-year promotion cycle gives opportunity for those that get missed in the annual cycle—though this process can still be improved to allow for more promotions at mid-year (vs. capping at a limited amount/exception only).”
- “We have an extensive online training program for functional and industry upskilling, and we are very focused on training our staff on new technologies to better equip them with the tools to do more advanced work with less of a time burden. Our promotion process utilizes a well-balanced PwC Professional framework, which considers aspects of development from analytics to relationships to presentation skills and leadership. Our assessment process is very rigorous, with clear expectations for all levels.”
- “One of the best aspects of career development at Strategy& is the strong culture of merit-based evaluations and promotions. In addition, digital upskilling is a major point of emphasis for all staff from Associate through Partner.”
- “The firm is focused on the career development of its junior staff and it is clear that they want to invest heavily in our professional development.”
- “Our advisory business is growing at a very fast pace. We continue to broaden our scope and integrate services together (e.g., tax, advisory, technology), which is a competitive advantage vs. pure play firms. We are constantly trying to disrupt ourselves, in terms of finding new ways to work and integrate technology, so we stay ahead of the curve.”
- “Our differentiator is our aggressive perspective on the direction of the industry, and how we can help our clients push in that direction.”
- “The firm is staying relevant by investing in developing digital skills among consultants… This has become a priority and a factor considered for performance reviews.”
- “Unprecedented investment in digital upskilling, technology, data/analytics to lead consulting industry change and disruption from the front.”
- “We are aggressively investing time and money into the next generation of consulting tools and processes, including digital upskilling efforts. We are looking at it opportunistically as we have the resources to ensure that we stay at the cutting edge of how our industry is changing and how we can shape that change.”
- “The market is very strong and our clients look to us to help them manage uncertainty and get the big things right. Our ability to go to market with PwC gives us a broad range of capabilities that make us hard to beat.”
Getting Hired Here
0- “For campus hiring, it’s typically a two-round interview process with behavioral and case questions in each round of interviews (typically two per round). Experienced hiring varies a lot. There's a lot of freedom given to interviewers in the type of case they give an interviewee. The ideal candidate would be someone who is quick on their feet, able to ask well thought-out questions, is a critical thinker, and brings a positive attitude.”
- “The interview process does a good job discerning the candidate's ability to think quickly, break a problem down into its core components and problem solve. Combined with behavioral questions, informal discussion (including opportunities before the interview) and Q&A provide a good amount of data to determine candidate fit. The ideal candidate has demonstrated leadership experience and career progression (where appropriate). The candidate is confident but humble, has strong analytical capabilities and wants to earn something rather than be given something.”
- “The interview process is effective—we try to make decision on the same day of final interviews. The ideal candidate is a structured (but creative) thinker with strong analytical capability—a person who can articulate their ideas clearly and confidently.”
- “We are looking for candidates who are inquisitive, self-aware, able to adapt to changing conditions and has a solid analytical mind. We value those who have worked in or led diverse teams and are able to function effectively in a team environment.”
- “The ideal candidate is motivated, very smart, accomplished, thoroughly understands business, collaborative and has the desire to win and outperform other MBB competitors.”
- “This past year, my group accepted [a very small percentage] of applicants…Although a strong resume is important to get your foot in the door, strong interviewing skills and a passion for the work that we do is very important in getting an offer. Culture is a priority at my workplace, and we strive to have driven employees who enjoy the work that they are doing, and who are kind, helpful, and humble. Even a single bad apple can ruin a workplace, so my firm is very vigilant to have none.”
- “Actual case studies on market growth, competitive threats/risks of disruption, how to evaluate if entering a market is a good decision.”
- “…The case portion will test them on how they address unstructured problems. A typical case would be to setup a situation around a company's challenges and ask a broad question to see how they will apply structure and logic to it. [For example]: the client has been doing well in the market, growing rapidly, but has recently been encountering challenges in meeting demand. They are looking for a strategy to maximize profitability within the constraints of their existing assets. What should they do?”
- “Both of my cases were big picture and did not involve any calculations. One was focused on technology and the other on manufacturing.”
- “Case question and a behavioral portion for all interviews (first round and final round). Cases vary by individual and seniority level.”
- “Case interviews focused on market sizing, strategy, enabling capabilities, and change management. In addition, focus on fit with firm culture.”
- “Highly technically complex client has asked us to help them pick a market segment to enter. How would you approach it?”
Perks & Benefits
