Career Profiles

Consultancy

The past decade has seen a rapid growth in demand for consulting services, reflecting a long-term shift towards outsourcing and more flexible employment practices in the private and public sectors. Consulting firms and individual consultants can provide wide-ranging advice to client organisations. The services offered by consulting firms can be as diverse as agribusiness, health care administration, information technology, e-commerce, engineering, human resource management, financial management and investment.

The work

Within consulting firms, most of the opportunities for graduates are in business consulting services, including strategic business planning, corporate financial services, human resource management services and increasingly, information management and e-commerce strategy development.

Joining a major consulting firm offers graduates the chance to work alongside more experienced consultants and undertake the preliminary research and analysis of business structures, processes and systems that are part of the consulting brief. As part of their induction, graduates usually gain broad-based experience by being exposed to a range of companies and industry sectors. Following this general introduction, they are likely to undertake more specialised assignments according to their interests, skills and qualifications.

Outlook

Employment opportunities within the consulting industry are expected to remain stable, with most major employers recruiting graduates each year. Opportunities for graduates are still most likely to be found in the large management consulting firms, all of whom have well-established graduate recruitment programs. Additionally, there are numerous other consulting firms that recruit graduates, from international organisations to small, locally based operations.

What you need

Many consulting firms recruit graduates from all academic disciplines, believing that the generic range of research, teamwork and analysis skills developed through university study and a wider education provide a good basis for the development of consulting skills.

People with specialist knowledge and experience are also recruited from the broader work force, making consulting an area for career progression. The recruiting process usually emphasises a proven academic and/or employment track record, excellent business analysis skills and the ability to confidently deal with clients.

At the entry level, acceptance into a formal graduate recruitment program provides the main avenue of entry into the field. A degree – typically in Commerce, Law, Information Technology, Economics, or Accounting – is a basic requirement for entry into a graduate program at a major consulting firm. In most cases, consulting firms will only consider graduates with consistently high academic results.

Money matters

The financial rewards in the consulting sector can be very good, however, the industry is highly competitive and work demands can be heavy. Remuneration varies depending on the particular field of consultancy, among other factors. For management or tax consulting however, new graduates typically earn $32,000-$44,000, while experienced professionals in these fields typically earn anywhere $60,000-$180,000 (Hays Salary Survey, 2007). See www.gradsonline.com.au for current salary information.

Significant stats

• The profession has grown by over 14.5 per cent in the past five years.
• Almost 37 per cent of all employees are female.

Source: except where indicated, figures from Australian Jobs 2007, Department of Education. Employment and Workplace Relations.

http://www.gradlink.edu.au/content/view/full/2838