I am a Management Consultant with 7 years of experience. I have 2 offers, one from a 20 employee firm in the IT Strategy space for a Managerial position and other is from KPMG as a Sr. Consultant. The boutique firm is offering around $130k (basing it on my abilities and qualifications) and KPMG is at $90k (basing it on my current salary). So, the question is do I take the more money option or do I go with the Big 4?? Thanks.

Well duhhhhh! 50% more pay... Duhhhh.... Let me think about it...

Is the brand associated with KMPG worth $40k? Is the brand going to pay your mortgage, for your kids, for your nights out in the local dive? Follow the money!

For 40k less you'd need a very good reason not to take the smaller company. Also worth considering is that recruiters/companies often base any potential salary/grade of a new role on that of your last role.Unless the smaller company is ran by a murderer or has a warranted reputation for fraudulent behaviour (or similar) then you would be absolutely mad not to take it. I'm surprised you even have to ask.

Bushy, Frio, Jack Black + 10000000000000000000000000000000000000%

Thanks for the spirited response guys, I appreciate it. That's what I was thinking. I have heard from a few that if the gig at the boutique firm does not work out, it's harder to make a switch to another reputed firm, and that along with the brand association with KPMG, is an intangible benefit probably worth sacrificing a little bit in the short term.Thoughts? Suggestions?

There are other considerations - is it really 90k vs 130k? Does PWC have better benefits, healthcare, pension etc that when you add everything up the 40k gap is actually closer? If the 90k and 130k represent total package then think about how many promotions you'll need in PWC to make up that 40k gap. We don't know enough about the offers, job motivators you have to make the decision for you, but for me it boils down to one thing - do you value the difference in working for PWC vs the boutique at more than 40k (if you're comparing packages). Those of us who are in long trousers would go for the 40k every single time.

#Frio: Thanks for the well thought out advice. My inclination is going for the money. The benefits package, besides annual pay, is pretty much the same (health coverage, 401k, etc.etc.). Depending on how you look at it, the benefits of going with a Big 4, which is probably not happening at the boutique anytime soon considering their profile, are potential high profile client work/ corporate connections, worldwide travel opportunities, easier transition to another firm, if needed down the line.I will keep you guys posted. This has been very helpful, thanks.

No, go for the brand, not the money! Who cares about money when you can have a BRAND!

Dont just have a brand [i]be[/i] the brand!! Brand is everything - and more!!Not.Follow the money.

Be the Brand, and remember you're not a one trick pony, you're not a 2 trick pony, you are a whole field of ponies!

Brand Power commercials on TV.

This this does raise the wider question of when is it right to choose smaller over bigger (although not in this instance, clearly KPMG is the poor choice based on the facts provided).I had a phone call last from a recruiter who said is small start up client were very keen on consultants where I am currently based (Acn). I asked him and his answer was basically that Acn generally employ better people than most (MBB obviously held in higher regard, big 4 on par), so to that end having a 'brand' on the CV does help as the industry can still be very focussed on this.I'm not sure what the answer is (if there is one at all). From a personal point of view, I will keep going until I think something better is available externally, keep it simple.

I am in a similar situation, #Jack Black. I am contacted by recruiters from smaller, much local consultancies (also, they are not doing any niche work, they are doing the same stuff as the big dogs, except for 1/2 the price. I bring it up because if a consultancy operates in a high demand niche space, there's always a chance that one of the big ones might look at them from an acquisition perspective). Anyway, typically the compensation is much better than any Big 4 would offer, that’s the good part. But, since these are smaller firms, their registry of potential clients is very small and mostly limited to small to mid-sized companies only.Being at a large Consultancy, the brand name shine is wading off on me though, especially if you get staffed at a legacy client that has a staff augmentation model. I have started to feel just like a warm body that my company can pawn out to the customers and then they decide, in their infinite wisdom, what to do with us. In other words, you are not there to help the client utilizing your expertise, but just to take client commands and do what is asked. That is not why I got into consulting.

[quote]Be the Brand, and remember you're not a one trick pony, you're not a 2 trick pony, you are a whole field of ponies! [/quote]Be the brand until you aren't just top dog, you're the dog on top of top dog, separated from top dog by a thick layer of top dogs who just aren't as top as you are.