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mprashanth311092
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Difference between Operations Consulting & Strategy Consulting 23 Mar 2017, 20:04
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Hi all,

I am a MBA aspirant looking to switch careers from a manufacturing sector to Consulting. I am looking into career options which are closely related to my current job but more involved in problem-solving.

Can someone enlighten me the difference between Operations Consulting & Strategy Consulting ? I understand that it deals with operational aspects of a certain firm and how to improve productivity etc. But what are the key differences between them and differences in the skill set required.

Also are operations consultants in demand compared to traditional strategy consultants? If yes, are there any metrics on the annual number of operation consultants hired by Management consultancy firms?

Last but not the least, what are the business schools which send Operations consultants? Are schools specialised in Operations Management (Like Sloan, Tepper etc.) good for Operations consultancy or the traditional M7 are still better for Operations consultancy?

Thanks a lot in advance!!
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Difference between Operations Consulting & Strategy Consulting 23 Mar 2017, 21:48
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mprashanth311092
Hi all,

I am a MBA aspirant looking to switch careers from a manufacturing sector to Consulting. I am looking into career options which are closely related to my current job but more involved in problem-solving.

Can someone enlighten me the difference between Operations Consulting & Strategy Consulting ? I understand that it deals with operational aspects of a certain firm and how to improve productivity etc. But what are the key differences between them and differences in the skill set required.

Also are operations consultants in demand compared to traditional strategy consultants? If yes, are there any metrics on the annual number of operation consultants hired by Management consultancy firms?

Last but not the least, what are the business schools which send Operations consultants? Are schools specialised in Operations Management (Like Sloan, Tepper etc.) good for Operations consultancy or the traditional M7 are still better for Operations consultancy?

Thanks a lot in advance!!
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Here is a reply from Victor Cheng, an ex-McKinsey-er. Hope this helps you clear the question about the difference between Operations and Strategy Consulting.

Quote:
Strategy is harder to get into and more prestigious. The skills for strategy consulting is a super set of those needed for operations. Strategy consultants do work on operations as I do, but not vice versa. Operation consultants, particularly the senior ones, tend to have more functional or industry knowledge. Strategy consultants have more general problem solving skills.

The main client contact for an operational consulting firm is typically the Vice President of a department like HR, Technology or Finance. The main client contact for a strategy consultant is almost always the CEO, President of a company or division of the company, and occasionally the board of directors.

In terms of the skills overlap, both need great interpersonal skills and strong communication skills. The importance of both can not be underestimated. It seems like these skills would be useful in any job, but they are especially critical in consulting, and the level of skills demonstrated by consultants in both of these areas is often extremely high.
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Difference between Operations Consulting & Strategy Consulting 24 Mar 2017, 07:48
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Can one become operations consultant right after graduation? how does consultants career process go up?
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nishagg893
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Difference between Operations Consulting & Strategy Consulting 23 Feb 2018, 04:24
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Strategy consulting is a subset of management consulting.

Management consulting pertains to answering questions raised by someone who manages either the whole or a part of the business. The questions can range from 'I have been facing problems in delivering my product by the due date. How can I manage my operations better?' to 'We have lost a huge chunk of market share in the last quarter. How do we fix it?' Now, there are various types of questions which an organization needs help with and each question is resolved by a specific consulting group.

How do I better manage operations in my organization - Operations Consulting
What role should IT play in my business and day-to-day operations - IT consulting
How can I optimize my HR functions such as benefits and talent management - HR consulting

Most of the above questions are raised by mid-management team members who strive to meet the year end targets set by the CXOs.

Strategy consultants usually are brought in to answer questions which are raised by CXOs and Board members.
The question that they try to answer range from 'What is the reason for drop in this years profits ?' to 'Does it make sense to acquire our nearest competitor ?'.

Thus, the different categories of consultants try to answer different set of questions and strategy consultants usually end up answering the ones which the CXOs and board members need help with.