Hello all, I am a graduate that has been offered an entry level position in EY's new advisory business. I was wondering what would happen in the extreme scenario that EY can not maintain sustainability and achieve and retain clients - what if they close the division? How bad will this look on my CV? What options will I have?Thanks for the help!

I have worked in market research for 5 years but would now like to move into consultancy. Is there anyone out there who's made a similar move? Would anyone be able to tell me the best way of going about it? Thanks, Mark

We are more likely to see the earth freeze over during your lifetime, what are you worrying about?! You're not talking about a band of no-hopers wondering whether they have what it takes to sell some consulting business from a start-up operation in a garden shed. This is a global organisation dedicating significant resource and investment into re-establishing market share. If you're losing sleep over this then forget about consulting - the pressures of satisfying client deadlines will be sure to bring on an early heart attack!

I think the questions you pose in the title and in the main body of your message are different ones.What if EY goes bust? Well, Arthur Andersen collapsed and before the event many people doubted it could happen. EY has its fair share of lawsuits hanging over it today, but closure due to massive brand damage seems more likely than closure due to running out of money (i.e. going bust) per se. If it happens, the sheer force of numbers of people changing employers will mean your CV wouldn't stand out. Again, look at what the thousands of people at Andersen did - they've now blended into the ranks of other firms.What if just the advisory business line is a flop and EY retreat from consulting? Although EY will have done their research before making a move to set up the business, there is always an element of chance in these things. No matter how much money they throw at it, if they cannot attract good consultants, scandal strikes, or the whole market declines, they could retreat quickly. Also, if the rumours are accurate that they expect to make a profit independently within 2-3 years, there is a fair chance they will be disappointed and as a result decide to pull back. Wholesale closure of the Advisory services line is unlikely under any of these scenarios is unlikely, if only for PR purposes. More likely is that the service offering will be curtailed, it will lose independence and be brought under the control of audit & assurance, or will be allowed to shrink into a niche.

I'm currently in the process of making that move myself. 2 & 1/2 yrs ago I joined a research team within a Management Consultancy, which enabled me to gain exposure to consulting projects and build up experience. Over the last 18 months or so I've pushed for (and got!) opportunities to work on consulting assignments and I'm currently working on a major change programme as a workstream facilitator.My suggestion would be to look at Management Consultancies that have a Customer Strategy team (or something similar) - you've probably picked up a lot of knowledge and relevant experience from your research days to join that team and 'get a foot in the door'. You should then be able to shift across to other teams within that consultancy if you want to. In particular if you've got a quant background then your analytic skills are most likely transferrable and should be warmly received - Good luck!

Shouldn't be a problem. The market is very buoyant at the moment

Thanks for your replies Alexandra and John! Alexandra, did you apply via a recruitment agency that specialises in consultancy positions or did you go to the consultancy directly?

I actually found the position through an agency that specialised in research positions, though I couldn't say how often consultancies use that kind of agency.I have also seen some consultancies advertising directly for their customer areas on this site over the last few months (E & Y springs to mind though having just looked I can't see any specific posts - sorry!). So I guess I'd have a chat with a couple of agencies - a research one and one specialising in consulting posts, then depending on the outcome of those conversations perhaps try a couple of consultancies on spec. It'll be worth tailoring your CV to be more 'consultant focused' too.

That's great, thanks Alexandra.