Most candidates sort McKinsey, BCG, Bain, L.E.K., Oliver Wyman, Kearney, Deloitte Strategy, EY-Parthenon, and Accenture Strategy onto one prestige ladder. That is the wrong model. The three tiers are three different jobs: different project clocks, different team sizes, different depth of specialization, different travel patterns, and different exit shapes. The interviews quietly test for those jobs. Read this so you can choose the Monday-to-Thursday you want, then prep the assessment stack that firm actually runs.
CoachNed is independent of every firm named here. What follows is what the firms publish, what MBA employment reports disclose, and what I score when I sit on the interviewer side of a case.
The three jobs, not three brands
At a functional level:
- MBB (McKinsey, BCG, Bain) sells broad problem-solving. Staffing is generalist. A first-year associate may move from a pharma pricing study to an industrial PE diligence because the firm needs a brain on a team, not because you "own" an industry yet.
- Strategy boutiques (L.E.K., Oliver Wyman, Kearney, and peers) sell depth in a domain. L.E.K. describes itself as an independent strategy consultancy with 27 offices, 2,300+ employees, and 2,000+ cases a year. Oliver Wyman, a Marsh business, lists 70+ offices and 7,000+ professionals. Kearney notes a presence in more than 40 countries. Clients hire them when the industry knowledge has to be cold on day one.
- Tier-2 generalists (Deloitte Strategy & Operations / Monitor Deloitte, EY-Parthenon, Accenture Strategy & Consulting, and similar) sell strategy that connects to implementation at scale. Accenture's own Strategy postings describe work at the intersection of business and technology: corporate strategy, operating-model redesign, cost transformation, and value realization that often continues into delivery.
Pay across consulting at top schools still clusters tightly. Harvard Business School's Class of 2025 consulting placements show a median base of $190,000, median signing bonus of $30,000 (91% receiving), and median variable bonus of $40,000. That figure mixes MBB, boutiques, and large generalists. Use it as a ceiling check, not as a tier map. The job differences below matter more than a few thousand dollars of year-one cash.
Project length and team size
Firms rarely publish engagement durations in careers copy. What they do publish about how they work, plus what shows up in real staffing, maps cleanly:
| Dimension | MBB | Strategy boutique | Tier-2 generalist |
|---|---|---|---|
| Typical engagement clock | Weeks to a few months on a focused study | Short-to-medium strategy or diligence sprints; L.E.K. stresses shorter cases and early ownership | Often multi-month to multi-year transformation programs |
| Core team size | Small case teams (a few consultants plus a manager) | Small, deep teams; partners stay close to the analysis | Larger pods that include specialists, tech, and change people |
| Deliverable shape | Recommendation deck and decision support | Domain-specific recommendation (pricing, commercial diligence, ops design) | Operating model, roadmap, and often implementation support |
| Client seat | C-suite and strategy owners | C-suite plus functional and deal sponsors | C-suite plus program sponsors and workstream owners |
L.E.K. is unusually explicit about the pace: careers copy emphasizes shorter cases, early management responsibility, and rapid skill acquisition. That is a different clock from a 12-month ERP-linked operating-model redesign at a Big Four or Accenture engagement.
Specialization and travel
Specialization is the variable candidates underweight.
At MBB you build a generalist toolkit first. Industry preference can grow later; early staffing follows firm need. At a boutique, sector expertise is the product. Oliver Wyman's public positioning is built around deep industry insight and specialized expertise. At tier 2, you often sit inside an industry or capability practice from day one, but the work stretches further into process, systems, and change.
Travel follows the work model. L.E.K. states that the nature of its cases allows consultants to work primarily from their offices. Kearney's senior business analyst description still assumes work at client sites across industries and locations. Accenture Strategy postings routinely list flexibility to travel as needed. MBB travel folklore (Monday-to-Thursday on site) is real for many teams and quieter for others; treat it as a team-level variable, not a firm-level constant. Ask the specific office and practice, not Glassdoor averages.
Exits: width vs depth vs operating roles
Exit options are not a ranking. They are a shape.
- MBB optimizes for width: corporate strategy, PE diligence support, growth equity, and general management roles that value a generalist problem-solving brand.
- Boutiques optimize for depth: pricing and commercial roles after Simon-Kucher or L.E.K. work; financial-services strategy after Oliver Wyman; operations and procurement leadership after Kearney-heavy experience; distressed and turnaround paths after restructuring shops.
- Tier-2 generalists optimize for operating and transformation exits: corporate strategy inside large enterprises, product and ops leadership, and program roles where you have already lived a multi-year change program.
Choose backward from year four or five. If you want a buyout PE associate seat, MBB still sits on more target lists. If you want to become the pricing person a SaaS board trusts, a boutique that lives in that work is the straighter line. If you want to run a Fortune 100 transformation PMO, tier-2 volume is a feature, not a consolation.
How the interviews diverge
The case is the shared gate. The assessment stack around it is not.
| Firm / tier | What the firm publishes | What the interviewer is listening for |
|---|---|---|
| McKinsey | Personal Experience Interview + problem-solving (case); often Solve before live rounds | Interviewer-led pace; PEI depth; clean structure under directed questions |
| BCG | US Associates: CCA (~30–35 min, 48-hour window); select candidates get an online case (~35 min); then skill / case / team interviews | Candidate-driven structure; quantitative comfort; collaborative problem-solving |
| Bain | Digital assessment 30–40 min (Sova or TestGorilla); then case rounds | Structured thinking, analytical speed, and how you drive a realistic client problem |
| Strategy boutiques | Case + fit, often with domain-flavored prompts; process varies by office | Same case craft, plus evidence you can learn (or already know) the industry |
| Deloitte and peers | Case or scenario interviews with a five-step approach Deloitte publishes; mix of behavioral, technical, and case rounds | Practical judgment, assumptions stated aloud, recommendations with next steps |
McKinsey says Solve needs no preparation and must be taken alone without AI tools. Bain says the same about independence and AI, and notes calculators are allowed on the digital assessment only, not in later interviews. BCG's US Associate page is explicit that the CCA arrives within 30–90 minutes of applying and that not every candidate sees the online case. Read your invitation. Office variation is normal; folklore that "every office runs Casey" is not.
Ned's rule. Interview for the job you want Monday. If the firm sells depth, bring one industry example you can explain cold. If the firm sells generalist problem-solving, show you can structure anything. If the firm sells strategy-plus-implementation, close every case with owners, timeline, and what breaks in week six.
Worked example: same client, three staffing models
Invented client: Northline Pack, a $1.2B corrugated packaging company. Private equity sponsor wants a view on whether to expand into reusable plastic crates for grocery retail. Decision needed in eight weeks for an investment committee.
MBB staffing (illustrative). One engagement manager, two associates, one analyst. Weeks 1–2: structure the market and build a simple bottoms-up demand model. Weeks 3–5: customer interviews and cost benchmarks. Weeks 6–8: recommendation deck for the IC. Industry knowledge is built during the study; the transferable skill is the problem-solving process.
Reproduce the math the team would use on day two. Grocery retailers in the addressable region buy ~40 million crate-trips per year. At $2.10 revenue per trip and 18% contribution margin, annual contribution is:
40,000,000 × $2.10 × 0.18 = $15,120,000
If Northline can capture 8% share in five years, contribution is about $1.21M before fixed costs. That single calculation tells you whether the opportunity is IC-relevant or a distraction. Every tier runs some version of this math. The staffing and the deliverable after it diverge.
Boutique staffing (illustrative, L.E.K.-style diligence). Smaller team, partner close to the numbers, heavier primary research in packaging and grocery. More scrapes of competitor pricing, more expert calls in week one. Travel lighter if the analysis lives in the office; intensity higher on the quant. The exit story from this project is "I know packaging M&A diligence," not "I can structure any problem."
Tier-2 staffing (illustrative). Strategy workstream plus a larger transformation overlay: operating-model implications, plant conversion costing, change plan for sales, and a technology workstream if crate tracking needs systems. Clock stretches past the IC decision into a six-to-twelve-month build if the deal proceeds. The interview will reward you for naming those implementation risks unprompted.
Same client question. Three different weeks. Prep for the one you are applying to.
Practice for the stack you will actually face
If you are applying across tiers, do not prep three "prestige" stories. Prep one strong case habit, then add the firm-specific screen:
- Run a full case for structure, math, and synthesis.
- Add McKinsey-style PEI depth or Deloitte-style next-steps close depending on the invite.
- Touch the digital screen only when that firm uses it: McKinsey Solve practice, BCG Casey-style, BCG CCA numericals, Bain Sova-style.
A concrete assignment for today: take the Northline Pack prompt above, build a MECE structure in four minutes, then run the crate-trip math without a calculator. Score yourself on whether you stated assumptions and closed with a clear IC recommendation. Then do one timed rep on CoachNed's free start case (three typed turns, instant scores) or the ~18-minute voice interview. Everything is open for seven days, no card; then $120 for a recruiting season or $49 a month.
Frequently asked questions
Is boutique consulting the same job as MBB with a smaller brand?
No. Boutiques usually sell deeper industry or functional expertise on a shorter or more specialized engagement clock. MBB sells generalist problem-solving across a wider set of problems. The resume line looks similar; the Monday work does not.
Do tier-2 firms still use case interviews?
Yes. Deloitte publishes case and scenario interview guidance with an explicit five-step approach. Exact mix of behavioral, technical, and case rounds varies by business area and country. Your recruiter's email beats any guide.
Which tier has less travel?
It depends on the practice, not the tier label. L.E.K. says much of its work is office-based. Many MBB and Kearney teams still spend weeks on client sites. Ask the specific office and practice you are joining.
Should I apply to all three tiers at once?
Apply to the jobs whose Monday matches your year-four goal, then expand for optionality. A multi-tier calendar means multiple assessment formats. Budget prep time for each screen you will actually sit, not for every logo on a ranking list.
How much do consulting MBAs actually earn?
A concrete assignment for today: take the Northline Pack prompt above, build a MECE structure in four minutes, then run the crate-trip math without a calculator. Score yourself on whether you stated assumptions and closed with a clear IC recommendation. Then do one timed rep on CoachNed's free start case (three typed turns, instant scores) or the ~18-minute voice interview.
HBS Class of 2025 consulting placements report a [median base of $190,000 with strong signing and variable bonus take-up](https://www.hbs.edu/recruiting/employment-data/industry/Pages/details.aspx?ind=Consulting&view=career). That is an aggregate across firms that hire HBS, not an MBB-only number. Firm offers still vary by level, office, and year.?
Choose backward from year four or five. If you want a buyout PE associate seat, MBB still sits on more target lists. If you want to become the pricing person a SaaS board trusts, a boutique that lives in that work is the straighter line.
Sources
- Interviewing at McKinsey — PEI and problem-solving interview design. Checked 2026-09-24.
- Solve, McKinsey's assessment game — gamified assessment rules and integrity expectations. Checked 2026-09-24.
- BCG United States Associate job opportunities — CCA timing, 48-hour window, online case (~35 min). Checked 2026-09-24.
- Bain digital assessment — Sova / TestGorilla, 30–40 minutes, calculator and AI rules. Checked 2026-09-24.
- About L.E.K. Consulting — 27 offices, 2,300+ employees, 2,000+ cases annually. Checked 2026-09-24.
- Life at L.E.K. — primarily office-based case work. Checked 2026-09-24.
- Roles at L.E.K. — shorter cases and early ownership. Checked 2026-09-24.
- Careers at Oliver Wyman — 70+ offices, 7,000+ professionals, Marsh business. Checked 2026-09-24.
- About Kearney — presence in more than 40 countries. Checked 2026-09-24.
- Kearney general consulting roles — client-site work in analyst descriptions. Checked 2026-09-24.
- Deloitte case and scenario interview tips — five-step case approach. Checked 2026-09-24.
- HBS employment data: Consulting industry, Class of 2025 — median base, signing, and variable bonus. Checked 2026-09-24.