*Disclaimer: The following is a summary and/or review based on the authors understanding of the book, and maybe a bit too biased towards consulting given the author’s background.
One of the most popular reads amongst the consult enthusiasts at B-school, the McKinsey Way is one of the two book set, including the McKinsey Mind. The author Ethan Rasiel, a McK-alumni, shares first-hand experiences of the McKinsey way of doing things and how alumni carries this effective culture after leaving consulting.
First of all, for those who dislike consultants, we understand your perspective. But this book will change your opinion, for better or worse, as you will grasp the perspective of a consultant. And for fellow consultants, whether MBB, BIg4, or Boutique, we have a lot common and this book will help you realise the underlying reasons certain approaches and culture is inherent to the profession.
Although the book explains the MECE (Mutually Exclusive Collectively Exhaustive) hypothesis approach to problem solving, it is merely an introduction and the end-to-end problem solving approach adopted by consultants is narrated by the McKinsey Mind; however, both books are self-sufficient.
In addition, the book also describes the McKinsey way of making presentations. This is perhaps the single most important take-away from the book – only one message per slide! Yet, B-school students and analysts get lost in the fancy aesthetic PPT elements ( #PLSFIX #PPTJUICE) and lose sight of the necessary structure and substance integral to consulting presentations.
As the book moves on to the approach of team work and working with managers, the author narrates the experiences of other McK Alumni who adopted and adapted these approaches to their firms in various industries after they left consulting. Prima facia, it may be a bit too arrogant to conclude that McK way is the better way to get things done. However, the compelling narrative of first hand experiences changes your opinion as you read through.
For instance, the structured way to assembling team, conduct brainstorming, and interviews, are not only applicable to consulting but also project and program managers, strategy managers, product managers, and others in various industries. The methods help you better navigate across hierarchies and generate stakeholder buy-in.
After the managerial aspects, the author concludes with elaborating the soft challenges such as the work-life balance, travel schedules, finding a mentor, onboarding a team, and managing self. These are universal, and project managers face them as much as consultants. And if you think that there is a solution for these, then the answer is yes and no! Certain techniques will help you manage them better; however, its just learning to live life better amidst the chaos.
And the most important thing! By the time you finish this book, you might already be visiting the careers page of McKinsey & Company website as the intriguing narrative leaves you wanting for more. The insider perspectives of consulting career along with the lucrative exits by Alumni will make consulting seem like an amazing career option.
Your methods can evolve to become more effective and efficient, disregard to your profession, role, or industry!
Header Image Photo by Erin Doering on Unsplash
Savvy Munshi 