Audrey Aw: From HR to consulting

What was your professional experience before the MBA?

I was in a variety of HR specialist and business partnering roles over 10 years. Immediately before the MBA, I was the Lead HR Consultant for Shell Singapore and led a team of internal consultants to design and deliver strategic people projects that supported the business agenda across all our Downstream and Integrated Gas businesses which were represented in Singapore.

Did you switch any of the following after your MBA, and if so, what factors enabled you to do that?

Yes, role and sector.

How has the MBA influenced your career journey in general?

I was keen to broaden my horizons. Consulting grants me exposure to a myriad of industries within a condensed period. At the same time, I wanted to challenge myself beyond the people strategy arena and stretch myself further in the space of business/commercial acumen and strategic thinking and analysis, and again Consulting is one of the best places to sharpen these skill sets.

What did you do to achieve that switch?

A lot of case interview preparation for sure! Thankfully, it paid off in the end because the Bain Southeast Asia office is also very “case-centric” in its recruitment processes and there are no fit interviews at all; hence you only have one chance, so to speak, to get it right. It was also helpful to connect with actual ex/current Bain managers who could share at a high level what they’re looking for in the interview process. That said, I had also been preparing my personal stories for fit interviews with other applications and was ready to draw on snippets of those that were relevant in more casual conversations, which still helped reinforce positive impressions.

What advice would you have for other seeking a consulting career?

Have conversations with as many and as broad a variety of people who used to be or are currently in your target firms as possible. In the best-case scenario, it gets you a strong referral and even if not, it’s beneficial for building an accurate mental picture as to what the industry, firm and specific office are truly like. On that note, it helps to know which business sectors the firm you’re applying to has a stronger presence in or is trying to build up, as you probably will stand a higher chance of being shortlisted if your industry experience aligns to those sectors as well. Keep an open mind about the range of firms you would be willing to explore. Lastly, interview preparation (particularly case interviews) is a marathon, rather than a sprint, so it’s better to start early and pace yourself rather than stressing out at the last minute.