I recently started at Deloitte their Technology Integration Consulting Line. During interviews I expressed my interest in Strategy but was told “it doesn’t really matter which area you start your career in”. Being extremely naïve (this was my first proper job interview!) I took the offer but now realise changing to strategy down the line might be quite hard?I see a few options:1- Complete CIMA next year (which should have strategy transition)2- Ask to move internally at the end of my 2-year analyst training3- Ask to move in a year – at next review4- Stay in TI for 4-5 years, get promoted to Consultant/Senior Consultant, do an MBA and apply to Strategy Houses5- Bite the bullet and accept Technology is a pretty good place to be in today’s market.I got through to the final Mckinsey round a few weeks before starting here but 1 out of the three interviewer's thought I needed "greater experience of working in teams". What do people think about making the switch?

In terms of the work you actually do, it genuinely doesn't matter too much until you get to the manager/SC grades which line you are in. You'll be doing mixed projects anyway.However since S&O split into S and O it has been seen as more important going forward to get yourself into the right stream. I know that something like 80% of S&O opted to go into Strategy and 20% into Operations, but in terms of the actual numbers accepted into each group the ratio was reversed. There are also a lot of people applying to switch streams from TI so competition is high.If I were you I would complete CIMA quickly and establish a reputation as an excellent Analyst. You can ask to move in a year's time, at your next review - it certainly won't hurt. Given that so much of what the strategy analysts do is identical to what the TI analysts do on a day-to-day basis, you also need to stick it out in TI to demonstrate your capabilities. If you do well in your first year or couple of years there, you will have a lot of transferrable experience if you still want to go into Strategy.

Thank you for your detailed reply, great to hear something positive after 10's of people saying you can't make the change. Talking to people in S (and O) they do seem to do very similar work. The people they put in Strategy this year don't seem to be the 'brightest' - rather those with the least technical background. Seems like luck was the easiest way to get in with S&O split.Deloitte are not letting me take CIMA this year due to the TI stream i'm in - but have said I can do it next year. So will hopefully complete that before being promoted to Consultant. I'll probably ask to transfer the year after that (so about 3 years in). Ideally i'd do 2/3 years there and then an MBA.

Jamie, What is Deloitte's stance on sponsored MBAs? I may join the strategy division at entry level and was wondering whether they plan offer sponsored MBAs. I know they haven't in the past but are in the process of re-evaluating this and 'may offer them in the future'. How true is this statement?Thanks

I think 'may offer them in the future' means that they currently don't offer MBA sponsorship currently, but that in future they may relax taht policy or offer more professional development loans, fee reimbursements for new MBA graduates, study sabbaticals, etc.Sorry this isn't much clarification. What this possible change of policy is based on is that in the current climate and tight market for experienced consultants, study sponsorship is making a return as a way of retaining good people. However, MBA sponsorship is very expensive for a firm (plus people still leave after the MBA) so DC are only likely to offer it as a last resort. They'll consider the other options (post-MBA reimbursement, loans, etc.) by preference.

Part of our "Learning and Development officer's" role is to spread word RE CIMA, MBA's ect.. In reality Deloitte doesn't seem to offer MBA sponsorship. I havn't been here long but have asked around RE this and no one's heard of a single MBA sponsorship.With so many people, even if they did offer it, you'd probably have to be in the Top 1% of the year to secure it.Who in consulting DOES offer MBA sponsorship?

All the top strat houses, not just MBBB sponsor MBAs - similar to the investment banks. Secondly, Deloitte in the USA has a payback scheme for those that go to top b schools; they will pay your tuition (just your tuition) if you stay with the firm for 2 years post mba.

Yeah, MBA sponsorship is a much bigger thing in the US so the firms that operate as one unit on both sides of the Atlantic are more likely to have common policies. Since Deloitte is separate companies and huge in its own right in both UK and US, the policies can be quite different.I suppose they see that the total cost of CIMA for a lot of people is approx equal to that of MBAs for a few, and adds more value.

RE CIMA + MBA value - I agree, if most people can do CIMA for the cost of a few doing an MBA... It might "add more value".So if I'd just started at Deloitte in Technology (UK) and want MBA sponsorship I guess I need to try and transfer to another. Would the best time be post-first promotion (3 years in, showing job commitment) - or should I apply to big Stat houses as soon as possible? Since I've been in strategy I guess I'd have to enter at the 'bottom' of any strategy house?

Can anyone comment? am very interested to hear replys regarding this final post?

I'm also in Deloitte. No idea how you will find transferring. I also want to get into strategy.All career moves are theoretically possible in deloitte. But the problem is that the business pressure is to resell people on that work which they have experience. Hence even trying to move industries within service line can prove problematic cos it dont look so good in bid books.Also I find it difficult to trust management, I agree with what is said elsewhere in this thread. They talk a good game but they are ultimately (and understandably) concerned with their own issues, not yours.To be honest I am weighing up options. I wish now that I had put a round of applications in to the strat places now back in August. I had interview scheuled last year with McK and Bain which I was stupid enough not to go to due to Deloitte offer. I now have to wait a year and contemplate the high risk strategy of taking a gap year and reapplying and possibly ending up unemployed.Having said that even starting as an entry level analyst for some other firms i will earn more than a base for first year consultant with MEAt the moment the only thing keeping me at work is the rental lease on my house, and the signing-on loan