Hello,When employees travel abroad for projects, do they generally travel business class? I know this is awfully shallow, but I really adore travelling and would see such an outcome as tantamount to a job perk. I'm thinking of entering management consultancy when I finish my Phd. Also, if this is the case, do junior analysts get business class treatment or just the top guys? Also, do all the major companies offer this, and can anyone share their own travel insights with me for the big companies? Thanks everyone,Daisy

Few companıes offer thıs any more, except for very long jounreys, and quıte rıght tooId rather see the extra money ın my pocket

At the junior levels we travel business on longer flights (so not to France or Germany) and first on rail journeys over (I think) 2 hours - so most places in the UK. It makes no difference to what's in my pocket as we charge it to the client.

Hi DaisyI certainly don't find this to be a shallow question at all: its the one I always want to hear the answer to. Havn't yet worked out how to ask it in an interview situation, so getting info on the grapvine can be useful. Esp when travelling a lot, with the enevitable hold-ups, when you arrive late at the airport it can make the difference between being escorted through to the waiting flight (business) and missing the flight (in economy). This is priceless, esp late on a friday eveing on a hoemward flight.My info on management con co's will now be five years out of date: it was for me a significant reason for joining the company I ended up with when I moved from PwC. Slightly different, I know, but never the less important. They have a deal with an airline, so we get significant discounts on the bus class tickets on the few routes we use a lot. I know I'm not the only person who cites that as a major reason they work here...T.

Who'd have thunk it.What an irrelevant topic to raise in an application. Have you asked how comfortable the desk chairs are.Rule of thumb: long haul = premium seatshort haul = cattle class

>What an irrelevant topic to raise in an application. >Have you asked how comfortable the desk chairs are. As a matter of fact, yes. Before I take any job I ask to have a look around the offices -- and a copy of the expense policy. Face it, you're going to spend a considerable part of your working time on planes / trains / hotels. It's not unreasonable to ask whether yours is a BA Club World and Sheraton Hotels sort of company, or whether it's more of a RyanAir and Travelodge kind of affair. I've worked at both, and I'd never go back to a company with a "economise at whatever cost" travel policy.Yes, I miss my days at a Big 6 consulting house in the mid-nineties when I flew everywhere in business (short-haul) or first (long-haul), but those days are sadly behind us. An economy/Europe and business/long-haul policy seems a fair compromise, and I personally wouldn't work for a company who had a more restrictive policy than that.

The company I work for makes us WALK to client site. We sent out a team that for a transformation project in Paris in mid march and they should be getting to the client site any day now. Its not always this bad, if you are senior manager and above you get the right to borrow a bicycle when its sunny, and a corporate rik-sha when its raining.

Well, I have heard that McKinsey Consultants travel Business Class, no matter the destination. Is this false?

Wow, what a lovely bunch you guys are! Thanks for posting. Any other personal insights to travel policies at ACN, CapGem, PWC, Deloitte, etc, most welcome. And thanks for the empathy, Tricia!

Companies I've worked for:Accenture flies all UK consulting analysts to Chicago cattle class, and thereafter its luck of the draw - very often long haul in economy.Deloitte - Europe / UK - economy, rest of world - Business. Hope that helps.

Capgemini:If flights less than 6 hrs long economy if not business. However flexible tickets in UK at least are Business only (not that it makes a difference other than points and lounge access).

While working at Accenture we used to charter Jon Bon-Jovi's plane (the one with Bon Jovi written down the side) and used John Travolta to fly it. This was policy even for trips that did not require plane travel - it was ridiculouse. Managers got to use the De Lorean time machine for their travel - honestly, they got all the perks.

As a frequent flyer and a much travelled consultant I don't agree that such a question concerning the air travel and hotel grades to be provided, in the event that travel is required by a prospective employer, is an irrelevant question. I believe it is an extremely relevant question. If your potential employer expects you to travel regularly backwards and forwards the grade of travel and hotel accommodation is very important in maintaining your physical and mental condition in order for you to work at the peak of your capability. To know that you are going to get proper meals in flight so that you are fed when you depart and arrive is extremely important, which is one of the reasons that you learn now to avoid BA! I have done a great deal of travelling both within the UK and internationally. I have worked on engagements where I have had to catch the first available international flight out on a Sunday evening or Monday morning, leaving early enough to get to Heathrow in time to catch that, and then had to catch a late flight back on a Friday evening, every week! If I had been expected to have only tourist flights and low-grade hotel accommodation I could not have done this, certainly not working at my peak performance anyway. So it is a very relevant question.

It's a relevent question as it's not only likely to have an impact on your quality of life during the working week, but is also a pretty good indicator of how the employer treats it's consultants in general. It may also reflect on the type of engagement your likely to be involvede in as on a real consulting assignment you'd hope that the difference between travelling cheap and travelling well is an insignificance against your daily rate and the benefit you can deliver to the client. The right answer to my mind is that you should travel as the client does, it builds barriers and is embarrasing when you have to pass a client walking to the back on the plane, or when you leave your client in duty free and go to sit in the lounge. When all is said and done, policies are set to be ignored.

Thanks to those who support the relevance of the question I asked. But Doug, who do you work for? I'm assuming you do indeed get business class travel and nice hotel accm?Thanks,Daisy

Hi Daisy, I am not prepared to state here the company I currently work for. I can inform you that I currently work for a smaller niche management consultancy dealing mainly with the global financial sector. I have always received with this company and previous MC employers at least Business Class national and international air travel and 5 * hotel accommodation or above with all living and incidental expenses paid. (That is whilst working as a senior consultant. At lower levels of course things may be different, particularly now.) This is of course the norm in any case for employees of our client companies in this sector, so there is no reason that our position should any worse than theirs. In fact of course our position in reality is better, since we get all of our expenses paid, almost without question or dispute, provided that one does not take obvious or outrageous liberties.

My current client, bless 'em, is a global investment bank. Their long haul policy is business class for staff & contractors and premium economy for consultants...

This is a response to a year old post, I am working for a Niche managemnt consultancy and recently the policy has changed from Business Class to Premium Economy for long haul flights (more than 4 hours).I would like to know what policy you have for air travel?

This is a response to a year old post, I am working for a Niche managemnt consultancy and recently the policy has changed from Business Class to Premium Economy for long haul flights (more than 4 hours).I would like to know what policy you have for air travel?

I just flew super long haul (sydney) in club world, the new one. It was a very nice experience - and the difference with first is very little. however, it was with delays a 26 hour flight, and had i been in economy, it would have taken me 5 days (not 2), to recover. Now i am only 24, but i will NOT fly long haul in economy. why? cause i make the company a lot of money. do they listen? yes. if not, ill leave. AND TO HEHCK WITH ALL OF THEM CHEAP KPMG FOOLS HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

economy in BA su@@s

How bloddy shallow -wanting to throw away a phd to fly business class- Well I am happily flying economy, pursuing a phd at Harvard ( sigh- life's little pleasure- Though I ask daddy to buy me first class on intercontinental routes- is that bad???)

Investment bankers and private equity analysts travel in private planes - Gulf Stream or Bombardier.

not an irrelevant question in my view. While many companies will try to tell you that they are not "flash" and want to "do things differently" or "it is against our ethos to waste many on expensive travel arrangements, which can be invested into other areas", if the policy is anything less than the standard (roughly 5/6 hours plus business class), this tells you that the company is either tight fisted or not very profitable. Either way, you should be concerned. Also, as others point out, you may spend a lot of time travelling and it is important that you do so in reasonable comfort. The first couple of times you travel, it is all a bit exciting. After a while you become more demanding. Also, for longer term career development and/market intelligence etc, it is great to fly business class as you have more chance of sitting next to an influential person...