There has been lots of discussion about EY's new consulting division. Since then, has anyone seen / heard how they are performing? Any thoughts on thier practice and if it really is gaining market share?thanks

Well I know their interviewing process isn't up to much, which doesn't augur well for the rest of the organisation. I interviewed with them almost two weeks ago, when they seemed very keen and said they'd be in contact within a day. Not a dicky bird since - not even returning phone calls.I'd love if they called me now, so I could tell them to Foxtrot Oscar

Nonewithstanding the encompassing and highly astute reply above, does anyone have any information into EY's growing market share, positioning, credebility etc?thanks in advance

My response to the above question, in reverse order, is as follows:- Credebility -> My view of their credibility is quite high. Any big (E&Y specific) question marks over this, that cannot be discounted by the fact that as a global firm they have been subject to the rigours of the global economy, seem to have been answered. There are always things that you might not be aware of, whether you are inside or outside a firm, but if there are big questions to be asked then I have not seen them recently. - Positioning -> Must be considered better than it was a few years ago. The term usually refers to a client's view of a firm. This is clearly a good point to consider, but not being a client makes the question difficult to answer. They are well 'positioned' as a big employer, and as an employer of graduates and trainee accountants. As a large employer they are top ten according to the Sunday Times! - Growing market share -> It would be nice to see these figures. But how would you structure the data? Against all Big firms? Against all business advisers? Against the business advisory divisions of all big firms? What would that actually tell us? If a firm makes a bigger investment than a competitor then you would expect their market share to increase after a year so, all other things being equal. I suppose if it has decreased then there would be a real problem! I have no recent experience of their HR team to comment on.Anyone able to offer a more factual response to these questions from inside or outside of Ernst & Young?

It's still very early days. By all reports they've struggled to recruit the right people, but that could be teething troubles. They aren't looking to breakeven for the first few years, but a lot hangs on whether they can develop business beyond the existing audit relationships. That's not happened so far, probably just because the right people aren't in place rather than for lack of marketing power. So, in answer to your first question, they're not gaining market share yet.Positioning-wise, they are explicitly aiming for somewhere between the IT/IS implementation big boys and the middle-market pure consultancy firms (e.g. PA). Trying to nibble round the edges of the full service firms whilst they build capacity and reputation. The choice to call it "advisory" rather than "consulting" services was intentional, to try and make a distinction in clients' minds.The EY brand has weight and a solid reputation. They're not going to win any prizes for fresh thinking, but neither do they seem to have any delusions of competing with the strategy and niche firms that do that kind of work.My thoughts are based on a presentation from about two weeks ago, but I got the impression that the plan is changing all the time.

Their interview process takes weeks. Luckilly I was warned at the first interview and so have expected it. I ended up pressurizing them for an answer. Not ideal, but I think the advisory service sounds like it has good prospects. Will update you when i get there.

That wasn't my experience. I went from first interview to offer-in-hand in under three weeks, which isn't bad for a three-interview process. The hold-ups were more around my availability than theirs.Another friend was approached for a role at EY - headhunted on Monday, first interview on Thursday, invited back for an assessment day the following Friday -- and promised a decision at the end of that day.I've read quite a lot of criticism about the interview process on here, but it doesn't match my experience. Your mileage may vary.

Would either Karen or Interviewee mind commenting on what the comp offers were like compared to the ACN/IBM/CGs of this world?

The offer I eventually received was £5k below what I would have expected from the marketplace, so I've decided to stay where I am. Their poor HR and payment levels might go some way to explaining why they are struggling to attract people

this comment doesn't really help us. How do we know what you consider the market rate is? We dont even know your rank (how many years experience - fresh grad, 1-2 yrs etc). Could you not be a little more specific?

I can't comment vis-a-vis ACN/IBM/CG, as I didn't apply anywhere else. E&Y did make me a competitive offer compared to current market rates and my previous salary, and the offer was in line with my expectations. For the record, I am an experienced hire.My offer was for a position equivalent to the 'Principal / Associate Partner' level in the Top Consultant salary survey:http://www.top-consultant.com/salary_report_2006.pdfThe offer was in the upper quartile of the salaries ranges outlined in the report. At a senior level, however, I would suggest that the salary is dictated more by candidate quality and competitive pressures than strict paybands. I do know that my offer was inside their normal paybands for the level, however.

Karen/Interviewee, thanks for your responses, which I find helpful.

I was offer 20% less than other smaller firms have offered me. Do they have THAT many candidates wanting to work there?

I currently work for Bain and im halfway the process with EY. There are so many people that want to go there - rumors are that they are suspending hire until Jan because of this. They are really in the position to pick and chose now - must be a good sign

That's complete codswallop !! EY BAS have completely missed their recruitment targets, and are really struggling

Having used this forum, to research and prepare for my recent set of interviews with Ernst & Young's BAS Recruitment, I thought that it was only fair that if I left the following information to assist others:Salaries - they're paying just above the market rate, which compares quite favorably with my experiences of Accenture and KPMG and, very definitely more than than IBM Consulting!Recruitment targets - When I asked, I was told that they ARE actively hiring across all practices in BAS. However, as the more senior levels for this phase of their build have been filled, they are focusing on the manager levels and below. Apparently, in at least one practice, they have exceeded their stretch recruitment target.The recruitment process - very quick, start to finish in about three weeks and they were incredibly flexible on scheduling the interview times / dates. Overall, it was a thorough, challenging and positive experience - the people I met were great - really really friendly, extremely enthusiastic and very open. Their building in More London Place is really cool!!! Extremely modern and has a great vibe!!!BAS market position - definitely not a systems implementer nor outsourcer. They view themselves as the clients' friend, offering client side advisory and aim offer every client a full range of advisory services from financial recovery to shared services to change management.Unfortunately, on this occasion, I wasn't successful but walked away really wishing I had been.

I must agree with Mike...I'm about half-way through the recruitment process with E&Y for an Executive level opportunity in the Business Transformation practice - the final interview is this week (fingers crossed) and so far, I've found them to be really professional and very responsive!From submitting my cv to first interview was two weeks and it will be four weeks to this Friday ~ not bad! Accenture took over three weeks to reply to my application and a further four weeks to get an initial telephone interview set up...Also, when I challenged the interviewer during the interview about the negative comments that were being expressed on this forum, she was quite open and said that from her perspective, she believes that it's largely unfounded and very harsh!However, she did admit that they haven't always got it right but, they are in a start up situation, are working hard to get it right for every applicant and that the number of applications has been over-whelming!Finally, I also heard that everyone in E&Y, is getting an extra 4 free days holidays this year - tax free - happy days!