Accenture Management Consulting Senior Manager Interview Questions & Reviews

Interviewed Aug 2011 in Chicago, IL (took a day)

I have worked at Accenture before but been gone for many years. I was referred by a current employee to a senior executive who was willing to discuss opportunities to come back. There was no specific opportunity in mind when we first met but we had a good interview and brainstormed a number of ideas in conjunction with discussing my background. The interview was very positive with some clear next steps identified but it took nearly a month for the next step to happen - a cursory screening interview with HR.

HR took another month to arrange a second interview within the hiring group and unfortunately, it was not the group that had been discussed in my first interview. It was however a group that my first interviewer was affiliated with so that was a positive as it indicated I had made a strong impression on my first interviewer. Still, the elapsed time of two months was a red flag.

The second interview was a case interview with someone at the same level that I was applying for (senior manager) and I think it went very well. I "cracked the case" within a few minutes and more importantly, I think I did a good job demonstrating my thought process. We discussed other topics for the balance of the interview including what the challenges might be in coming back to consulting.

Two weeks later I was informed by HR that the second (case) interview went well but the first interviewer had decided not to proceed with my candidacy because of a lack of industry depth. This might be legitimate but it's unclear why this became an issue so late into the process. HR has indicated they will look for a better fit for me within the company. It's unclear if this is the brush off or a legitimate desire to find a place for me with Accenture.

At this point, I'm more lukewarm on Accenture as a company simply because of the lack of transparency and decisiveness evidenced by the process. The people I met were top drawer, so I don't want to judge them too harshly based on one experience. I know there are external factors such as the economy and the impending year end for the company (end of this month) as well as the real possibility that there might be another opportunities for me with Accenture. Until some time has passed, I probably won't be able to finalize my opinion of the process as a whole.