Management consultants are independent specialists, usually called in to help organisations improve their effectiveness by investigating their current structure and work practices, searching out any weaknesses and suggesting or implementing appropriate remedies.

This normally involves scrutinising areas such as staffing, marketing strategies, growth potential and the strength of any competition. They might also be called upon to advise on and often oversee the implementation of new methods of working made possible by technological developments, bearing in mind the implications this could have on both existing staffing levels and traditional work patterns.

Entry level

There are no formal educational requirements for entry into the management consultancy profession, although almost all new entrants are graduates. Your first degree could be in almost any subject, although you might find that a degree in management or a combination of a modern language with management/business, financial or engineering studies could provide a good introduction. This would normally be followed by postgraduate management training.

Making the grade

There is no single route into management consultancy. Many practitioners come into the work after successful management experience in industry or commerce and, quite often, with a postgraduate qualification such as the MBA (Master of Business Administration). However, some very large management consultancies do recruit recent graduates and give them intensive in-house training. You can become a member of the Institute of Management Consultancy, the professional body which regulates standards of qualifications and competence.

Personal qualities

You would need excellent communication skills, both spoken and written, as you would be dealing with a wide variety of people, at all levels of seniority, and would have to write clear, cogent reports on your findings and recommendations. Some of these would not necessarily be very popular, and you would need tact, resilience and understanding to deal with this. You would almost certainly be working as a member of a team, but should also have considerable independence of mind and the confidence to make decisions based on your own judgment. You should enjoy problem solving and analysing situations and you should have plenty of stamina, both physical and emotional, as you might be working long hours in order to meet deadlines and you would be making far-reaching decisions. You should be able to work comfortably with a variety of IT systems.