So after a ling stint in consulting I think I may explore industry. I am trying to shortlist some decent companies, starting with:- Apple- Microsoft- GoogleAny others I should look at?I have been doing management consulting (mostly generic) for about 9 years - not sure what I'd bring to the table, but hopefully some decent business skills!

Is it safe to assume from the three companies you've listed that your industry/functional specialism is technology?You could start with a list (Times, Fortune, BusinessWeek, FastCompany, etc.) of most admired, fastest growing, best employer, etc. (you decide what's important to you). Filter by industry categorisation to get to the tech companies, take out clients who are not decent according to your personal experience working with them, add in any clients who aren't on the list but who are "decent" in your experience, and take it from there.

...are you sure you've spent "a long stint in consulting?" You're embarking an a major career change and your desk research so far seems to have been limited to "who's got a cool phone/i-pod/browser?".Does a long stint in consulting really mean .NET debugging at Accenture?However, in the spirit of offering a helping hand, have you considered...Nokia - great culture and proven abillity to changeBT - slight problem with Global Services revenues, but this could be their year.Crazy Frog - hot, I say HOT, HOT ring tone.Atari - heard they've got some news games outHow can you do 9 years management consulting and not know what you'd bring to an employer? I think they answer is not much....

@Proper AnalystThe man asked for help. Stop being a w@nker.

What's your criteria for selecting these 3? A way forward would be to do some research and identify what companies are experiencing issues you could assist with, and also look at companies which have a track record of hiring ex consultants - Tesco (the online business) and Diageo (strategy spike) for example.

go for companies like johnson and johnson or unilever- they are trusted, dont take unwarranted risks, are well run and do good to society.

Most companies in industry do not have "generic" employees but have specific roles with specific job descriptions. You need to decide what roles you could do and at what level of seniority.Choose the roles first then the companies. I do wonder on what basis you have picked these three as "decent".

Ricky,This question is a common one - hopefully there are enough HH's and ex-consultants to cobble together a good thread for others with the same issue....?I have made this move in both directions, at junior and senior level- it is not as easy as one might think....Lets make this discussion practical.1) What do you currently do?2) What did you do before?3) What would define progress to you?4) Why do you want to leave consulting?5) What do you still like about consulting?6) What salary are you chasing?Share a little info and we will be able to advise on how to narrow and direct your search - otherwise its all a bit too ethereal.