Vault’s Verdict

A consistently top-ranked leader in IT and tech consulting, Accenture has an astoundingly high rate of returning clients among the majority of Fortune 500 and Fortune 100 companies. The breadth and depth of expertise Accenture is able to provide—all in-house—is a distinct value proposition, both for clients seeking end-to-end services, and consultants in search of highly diverse experiences. The firm leads the industry in commitment to excellence in innovation across digital transformations, artificial intelligence/machine learning, security, and the intersection of these disciplines with strategy.

According to insiders, Accenture is an amazing place to work if you like varied, fast-paced, and collaborative work. It is a firm with seemingly unlimited opportunities to learn and grow; you can work on virtually any type of skill or project that speaks to your passions. This can be a challenge, though, as the sheer scope of Accenture’s offerings makes it very easy to get lost.

While remaining open to the variety of experiences available to you, you must also stay focused on a specific trajectory for your career. Balancing the two is not always easy, but if you articulate your goals to management and actively pursue the projects that align with those goals, you are sure to find your niche. As one survey respondent put it, Accenture is a “wild ride”—exciting and challenging, with amazing people and meaningful work that make the breakneck pace and high-intensity engagements a rewarding experience.

Firm Culture

• “Get ready for a wild ride where you'll be working with some of the smartest, most collaborative, and most ambitious people in the world.  You'll need to market yourself internally and network with as many people as possible to build your own web of contacts…but it will be worth it. We take our corporate reputation seriously in bringing the best to our clients.”
• “My firm is phenomenal for personal and career growth. You will work hard, but learn more than you can imagine. I thought I knew a lot when I arrived, but found that there is so much more to learn, challenge yourself, and grow—when you have the culture and support systems that strive to make you and your teams the best.”
• “This firm takes diversity very seriously and fully embraces it and its benefits. We believe everyone has a unique point of view and is suited to the task…factors that impact promotion, pay, and career opportunities at other firms are not a factor at Accenture. We are a global firm that consists of people of all [backgrounds] that work together to help clients achieve their objectives as a single global network.”
• “If you are hungry to learn and willing to put in extra effort when you have the opportunity to set yourself apart, then Accenture will reward you well and fight to give you good opportunities. They will also fight for you to not leave.”
• “The firm focuses on innovation and growth, yet stays true to its identity. There are so many practices within the firm that as an individual willing to learn and experience new lines of work, you'll always find the right opportunity. The only caveat is that you have to be persistent and take the initiative.”
• “It is a huge company, but I don't feel like a number. You get the actual sense that they care about you as a person, your family, your work, etc.”

Quality of Life

• “Accenture does a great job of encouraging a ‘Truly Human’ approach to work: there is a lot of emphasis on taking time off and flexible work arrangements. Accenture has attempted to reduce travel requirements, but clients are often unwilling to have a remote resource on a project.”
• “Accenture does many large scale transformations, which can require weekend work.  However, with the influx of technologies, many of the weekend hours can be done flexibly at home. The requirement to be away many weekends and weekdays is going down. The firm is working hard to implement flex travel and reduce the carbon footprint. ‘Every other week’ travel is gaining more momentum.”
• “Accenture's ‘Truly Human’ program works hard to challenge the norms of success in the consulting industry. It is providing an opportunity to have the conversation about travel, working hours, physical health, and ongoing success in the firm, in a safe environment.”
• “Demanding client work (and relationship building) performed at client sites, by definition, pulls us away from home and our personal priorities. It’s an ongoing challenge for all of us.  But I’ve found that Accenture Strategy is very good at respecting and supporting personal priorities and boundaries if one makes the effort to communicate them well at the right time.”
• “The best and worst depends on teams. Travel requirements are reasonable and can be discussed with team lead if the regular Monday-Thursday weekly [schedule] will not work. Open communication is key to having a quality team with open respect. All of us are open about this matter, but it is hard to inspire a good balance.”
• “For those who have been at the company for a long time, vacation time is generous (5+ weeks). Taking vacation time is approved on a project-by-project basis, and reasonable requests are mostly approved.”

Career Development

• “Extremely robust internal training, mentoring, and personal advancement opportunities. Very high degree of development assessment, monitoring, and coaching. Industry leading self-guided and professional-led initiatives and skill-building opportunities.”
• “Accenture has an excellent training program—more robust than I've seen at other places—and has a strong commitment to diversity and helping its employees advance their careers.  They recently revamped their performance review process, going from a ranking approach to an individualized career development approach, which has really helped employees understand what they need to focus on in order to advance.”
• “Accenture has created an internal structure that supports resources that will be successful in the long run in consulting. If you are a self-starter, independent, a doer, and have a strong work ethic and an ability to build a large network, you will find support to progress your career.”
• “The best aspects include the investment in training and focus on promoting diverse candidates—we absolutely excel in these areas. The worst part is trying to manage a fair promotion process against such a large workforce, which is inherently challenging, and inevitably someone deserving does not get their promotion when they are ready.”
• “My firm has a wide array of development opportunities, but as it is a very large firm, I think it is solely up to the individual to seize these opportunities and drive their careers forward. I think this is both one of the best and worst aspects of the firm, as it allows each person to forge their own paths, but sometimes, lack of guidance can allow individuals to become overwhelmed or pigeon-holed into a certain industry/sector. Lack of forums for upward feedback also sometimes hinders a fair promotion process.”
• “Best: 15 months generalist program when hired through B-School. Lots of work in multiple industries across functions. Fantastic training program, access to top management. Real, implementable solutions using extensive management consulting, business process outsourcing, marketing, digital, and analytics teams all within Accenture. Worst: politics within the firm are a hindrance. It’s a large firm—it’s easy to get lost in all that is happening.”
• "Best: From an innovation and scalability perspective, there is no better firm. As the business world continues moving towards the digital age, Accenture has positioned itself in a spot where any organization considering a digital transformation will need Accenture's guidance. Worst: It varies from project to project, but in my experience, it seems some project leadership members are in over their heads in terms of managing PEOPLE —this can lead to low project morale at times."

Compensation

• “I believe our compensation is standard across industry. I have been very happy with salary, bonuses, insurance, and additional perks. My only remark would be that we have many extra perks available, but they are not always communicated thoroughly. I feel that I sometimes only find out about certain incentives by word-of-mouth, as opposed to proper communication channels.”
• “Our firm consistently reviews our compensation package to ensure the plan has something to offer for everyone. We recently completed an assessment to share feedback on other potential package options that we would value as employees. Best options: Employee Stock Purchase Program, 401(k) matching, vacation /LOA/ maternity leave policy, flexible work options. Relative to other big consulting firms, I hear we may not be as competitive from a compensation perspective (not validated), but personally, I value our people, culture, and overall work experience, which is why I choose to stay with Accenture.”
• “Salary increases are largely dependent on your practice area; people who get evaluated with the same high distinction can end up with $10,000 differences in salary increases. But, with a good relationship, Accenture wants to keep you around and will provide retention bonuses and on the spot salary increases. Maternity/paternity leave is very generous. 401(k) match is great! ESOP is great too.”
• “The ESOP is amazing: we get to buy stock at a 15% discount. 401(k) is also phenomenal: 100% match up to 6%. And the parental leave policy was recently extended. There are also really great opportunities for company discounts, especially in retail. Health insurance coverage is really solid, and if covered by Accenture, you're given some money to go towards a fitness tracker. But there really aren't that many great opportunities for reduced gym memberships (some have to come directly out of your paycheck). Additionally, there's not a great education reimbursement system in place within consulting.”
• “The best part is definitely the strong base salary and the per diem we get regardless of us spending it when on travel. The worst is the bonus: since I am only a few years into the firm, I don't expect to get much more than a few thousand dollars.”
• “Salary goes up by approximately five percent per year for non-promotion years, and 10-20% during promotion years. Bonuses are low, seldom going above 10%, but hot skills bonuses can boost the take home above that level. The best benefit is the leave of absence policy that allows you to take time out (unpaid) for any reason and come back with a guaranteed job. This is great for pursuing an advanced degree, raising a family, or taking some time off. The health care plan is excellent. 401(k) plan/ESOP, profit sharing, maternity leave policy, corporate discounts etc. are all very good.”

Outlook

• “Accenture is a global leader in technology and consulting. The strong technology underpinning, especially in new tech, positions the firm to serve a much broader range of emergent client needs than pure tone consulting or strategy firms. The range of capabilities in AI, Analytics, and Digital is unparalleled...”
• “Our leadership has always done a good job of navigating Accenture ‘into the New’, ahead of the market, and positioning us for the next wave of demand/growth in the professional services industry. The ascension of our stock valuation speaks to analysts’ confidence in our leadership and performance.”
• “I am extremely confident that Accenture will continue to get better and better. We are on the cutting edge of new technology and trends, and we are always striving to push our clients towards new technologies as well. As stuffy, old fashioned strategy firms become less and less popular and unattractive to corporations for their high costs and few results, our firm will take on more and more projects because our results are clear and high-impact.”
• “For our size, I am amazed on a daily basis by how innovative we really are. While there are the routine types of projects, we invest heavily in innovative sciences, technologies, and methodologies to drive growth and keep us on every client’s list of the first firm to call when technologies are changing. We already know what to do.”
• “We are built to pivot faster. The firm has done a phenomenal job of re-branding into a digital and strategy player. We do an excellent job identifying acquisition candidates, executing the deals effectively, and integrating the new asset into our offerings.”
• “Accenture is at the cutting edge of digital consulting. It inspires confidence in my job security and excites me that I get to be a part of a firm that is undoubtedly #1 in the world at this.”

Hiring Process 

• “We source most of our people through campus recruiting from a select list of top-tier schools. We are very transparent with our candidates and spend a lot of time on campus before interviews, helping them prepare. We are looking for people that are well-rounded and also smart. We need to be able to know they can deal with ambiguity, they have the analytical skills required, and they are personable and could interact well with a diverse range of clients and Accenture team members…”
• “The interview process can appear rigorous and difficult to maneuver, but it is because we want to invest in the best. We look for individuals that are self-sufficient hard workers that do well in client environments and will do whatever it takes to successfully progress on a project.”
• “Our interview and callback process is pretty straight forward and expressed to each candidate throughout the process. Our ideal candidate should show an ability to think quickly, deal with ambiguity, and lead others.”
• “[The process is] mostly driven through campus interviews for analysts or senior consultants (MBA hires). Standard tit and behavioral [interviews], same/next-day callbacks. Experienced hires follow a similar interview, longer callback process. [We look for] strategic thinking, client readiness, visual design for storytelling, analytical thinking, and problem solving with data fluency for strategists.”
• “I believe the ideal candidate has unique, diverse experiences and are natural leaders. The ideal candidate is a confident problem-solver, even when they are unfamiliar with the situation, and they express an ability to be a team player and listen well. We invite a group of people to do first-round behavioral interviews, and then a second smaller group from that pool to do final case interviews and closing interviews. Offers are extended from there. This is only for the campus recruitment process.”
• “I think the candidate we are seeking is someone who really understands how technology impacts businesses and has resiliency and ability to deal with ambiguity. Everything is changing all the time, it seems—so somebody who understands this and can problem solve in today's environment is ideal.”

Interview Tips & Questions

• “Tell me about a time you used technology to solve a problem. What specifically did you do?”
• “[We use] digital transformation case studies, looking to understand if candidate is able to take on a human/consumer-centric approach, with business cases and recommendations.”
• “It really depends on the role being hired.  Analytical roles have more case studies, while design roles are much more about understanding their creativity. [Interviews] help to understand how well they work in diverse teams, and good/bad experiences they have had previously and what they have learned from them.”
• “These vary significantly, as each interviewer has their own case. A sample case question is ‘Your client is a large telecommunications company looking to make an acquisition in the media and entertainment space. Should you go forward, and why?’”
• “Walk me through the project lifecycle and key objectives in each phase. Tell me about a time you worked with a difficult client. How did you overcome it?”
• “The interviews are quite challenging and delve into the candidates' behavioral aspects quite a bit, in addition to their intellectual, and analytical abilities—not to mention their values, ethics, integrity, and views on diversity.”