I am a Senior Consultant (C3) at Accenture and, like many people, feeling fed up with disappointing payrises, decelerated promotion and general lack of any 'feel good factor'. I've been invited to interview with PA, Cap, and a number of niche business consultancies. I haven't actually met with any of them as yet, but was interested in the experience of anyone who has jumped ship to any of these, and how you feel they compare to Accenture in terms of pay, culture, progression and morale. Particularly with the bigger guys, is it same stuff with a different label? And for anyone who has made the move to boutique firm, what are the comparative pros and cons?

I moved from Accenture 2 years ago (when I was a C2) to one of the Big Four consultancy practices and am about to move again having found it more of the same. While there are some key differences (on the plus side - friendlier, more staff focused, less hierarchical, more diverse / on the down side - poorer knowledge management, lower pay and rewards, fewer quality people) the 'feeling' in terms of working for a big company and feeling like a small cog in a ever increasing wheel is very much the same... I am off to a smaller consultancy where hopefully it will be different and while I have learned alot where I am now (particularly as I joined as a manager) I would probably recommend going straight for a smaller one. Hope that helps.....