My STEP Signature Project was an internship with Boston Consulting Group (BCG) out of their Detroit office as a Summer Associate. Throughout the course of the summer, I worked on a team of 6 BCG employees ranging from myself as an intern all the way up to the Managing Director & Partner assigned to the case. Our client was an international food distributor that hired BCG as part of an organizational transformation initiative with the goal of improving operations and increasing their liquidity as debt payments were fast approaching.
Going into the project, I was set that I would love the company and be ready to work there after graduation. I soon realized that the consulting world is much different than what you hear about during coffee chats or reading online. The work itself was genuinely interesting and challenging, providing ample opportunity to work on both quantitative and qualitative skills. I certainly improved upon a variety of abilities while conducting analyses in Excel, working on PowerPoints, or collaborating with both my team and the client team.
I soon realized that there are many aspects of consulting that I had not considered. Travelling to the client site in Arkansas was one such experience that gave me a gut punch to what I value in the work that I would like to do. Travelling weekly on Monday/Thursday for 7+ hours/day (unfortunately, there are no direct flights from Detroit to Arkansas) was something that I was unprepared for and had not considered how this might impact me. I have found that I prefer to be located in a central area, travelling when necessary and ideally being located in a place close to friends and family. This project had immense benefits for me as a student and a professional, but my biggest takeaway is that I need to be close to those that I care about in order to work and operate at my best level.
I came to this conclusion as a result of a few different experiences including the travel model of BCG, being located in Detroit, and paying attention to how my experience differed as a function of who I was around.
To begin, there is certainly value in travelling to your client as a consultant. The in-person experience and ability to tackle problems and speak to people in real time cannot be understated. I simply realized that for me personally,
I would rather either be on a hybrid/virtual/travel when necessary model compared to the 4 days/week on site experience that I had. Travelling Monday morning and Thursday evening was quite draining, and I often found that it was hard to be productive while in airports, planes, and Ubers. It was also difficult to keep up with my personal goals and habits such as working out, eating healthy, and being outside when travelling. These activities are particularly important to me and were difficult to alter while living in hotels with minimal equipment, nutrition, and time available. Ultimately, while I understand that some client travel is necessary, this made me realize that I would prefer to do so as little as possible.
Secondly, living in Detroit was an important signal that I work and live best when surrounded by people that I love. While I was fortunate to have a couple of friends in the area, they were also quite busy and were limited on time. This allowed me to reflect as I sat alone in my downtown studio apartment that the people that I surround myself with are of the utmost importance. For this reason, I realized that I hope to live in an area that I am able to maintain and grow those relationships with my friends and family, such as Columbus, Chicago, or a few others. I know that there may come a day when I will live in a new city far from home, but I hope to be a part of a stable family and further into my career when this day comes.
Finally, I was lucky enough to travel to Chicago a couple of times over the summer to be with people that I care about. This reinforced the importance of being around friends and family as I found that my work and mental state were elevated after having spent time and relaxing with my friends. Having noticed this change after only being away for a month, I realized that it would be very difficult for me to maintain for an extended period of time.
Overall, I am very grateful for my experience with BCG and all that I learned and was fortunate enough to experience through my 10 weeks there. My experience as written above may not sound like it was entirely enjoyable, but I am extremely grateful that I was able to have the internship and better position myself to be in a company that better aligns with my goals and values before graduating.
From this experience, I am better able to utilize my time in school to find a company that will provide me with the opportunities that I am looking for. This is significant because I believe that it is much easier to pivot to something else before I am out of school and am accumulating responsibilities and in a routine with a particular job. Without the opportunity to actually gain some experience and try the job before graduating, I may have become stuck in a role that I was not excited about being in and just went with the flow because it is much easier to do that than interview for something else while also working. This was also a significant experience as it taught me that it is okay to change your mind about important life decisions. While it may not be easy, it is certainly worth the risk to look for something else that will get you excited to go to work each day!
