Vault’s Verdict

Alvarez & Marsal’s growing APAC presence stands out for many of the same reasons the firm shines in other geographies. Insiders love its entrepreneurial culture, which they describe as competitive yet supportive, and the flexibility it provides for employees to build their own schedules and career paths. Another positive is the firm’s compensation plan—if you’re a high performer. While the base salary is a bit lower than other firms, the bonus offers substantial upside for consultants who maintain a high number of billable hours.

That said, A&M is not for everyone. The firm’s culture is high-pressure and high-performance, which can lead to long hours and limited barriers between consultants’ personal and professional lives. This is only exacerbated by the firm’s growth in the APAC market—scaling the business is still the top priority for leadership, say insiders.

Looking ahead, A&M employees expect the firm to continue experiencing rapid growth in the APAC region. Altogether, this makes A&M a great choice if you’re looking for somewhere to build a consulting career your own way.

Employee Reviews:

Firm Culture

“A&M presents itself as a very meritocratic culture. The firm is made up of highly professional, driven, knowledgeable, analytical people with a range of subject matter experts across functions and industries. It’s also a self-starter culture.”

“The best aspect is the culture. There is a lot of young energy, there are reasonable targets, and everyone is very understanding.”

“Everyone is super motivated to see the firm succeed. You are hard-pressed to find people who are being carried by the team, so it feels as though everyone is contributing equally.”

“It’s a high-pressure and performance-oriented culture.”

Quality of Life

“The firm provides the flexibility to work from home if your project doesn’t have to be on-site, and managing directors are supportive of this. However, the workload can be above 50 or 60 hours a week, especially if you’re working on two projects simultaneously.”

“It’s easy to take time off and fit work around family life, not the other way around.”

“The firm is flexible, with few rules and stipulations. Everyone is free to plan and manage their won schedules if they’re meeting their business objectives.”

“There are phases of intense work followed by times with much less work.”

Career Development

“Being a new firm in the region and still relatively small, A&M provides a lot of opportunity to progress quickly as a high performer. The firm is still rolling out formal training at my location, so I’ve yet to experience it, but informal learning is frequent and promoted by the firm.”

“The firm has small teams that provide you with exposure to senior team members and direct mentoring opportunities. The smaller teams also provide opportunities to be involved in workstreams outside of your direct responsibilities.”

“The firm has a very open promotion system, so you’re not held back by traditional time-in-grade policies. However, advancing quickly can require close attention to the political implications of project selection and senior leadership alignment.”

“Despite growing at a breakneck pace, A&M has still maintained its people-centric approach and is a very employee-friendly firm. However, it has minimal international exposure and smaller projects compared to other firms.”

Compensation

“Your bonus is guaranteed your first year. From there, your annual bonus is based on your project utilization and cash collection, so the more we work on profitable projects and receive full payment from clients, the more we get as a personal reward.”

“Compensation is tied to performance and very attractive relative to the competition when it comes to incentive pay, which is how A&M differentiates itself when it comes to compensation. For those who are not seen as strong performers, it can come off as a tad harsh.”

“The compensation is merit based. It is based on collections, which gives you the opportunity to make more than at competing firms. However, you also have a low base salary, so you need to maintain good collections and performance ratings to achieve meaningful total compensation.”

“The firm has a highly performance-driven compensation structure. While that’s great in good years, it may consider enacting methods to manage volatility in lean years.”

Community Engagement/DEI

“We are new to DEI but are learning fast from others and implementing inclusive policies. It is good to see the change not just driven top-down, but bottom-up as well.”

“The firm is putting substantial effort into DEI, including adding it to our official values.”

“More people from diverse backgrounds in leadership positions would help streamline our efforts to achieve A&M’s DEI goals.”

“The firm has been actively pursuing diversity in hiring and participating in social events.”

Business Outlook

“Our outlook is very rosy because it is countercyclical. We are very well positioned to benefit from expansions and recessions in the economy.”

“At the global level, the firm is impressive and has solid foundations. In the region, we are lagging behind our competitors and don’t have the junior talent to deliver work.”

“The firm is cash conscious with our restructuring legacy, so we have the powder to grow the business while everyone else is dry. I’m confident that the firm will grow quickly in the Asia Pacific in the next couple years.”

“We are poised to exploit white spaces in the market. Our disruptive view of consulting is gaining traction in new markets where the A&M brand is relatively unknown.”

Hiring Process

“The hiring process has five steps. First is a resume screening. Second is a video or recorded interview. Third comes two to three rounds of case interviews. Fourth is a final interview with a managing director. Fifth comes the offer.”

“The interview process involves several rounds of director and managing director interviews, so relevant leaders can figure out whether candidates’ skillsets match their project needs. The ideal candidate depends on what functional knowledge we need at the moment.”

“The interview process is long, about six weeks. We’re looking for someone with relevant experience, and the company prefers to hire people with specific industry backgrounds, such as healthcare, automative, or precision manufacturing.”

“The ideal candidate has good analytical skills, communication skills, and problem-solving abilities. They should also be comfortable using Microsoft Office.”

Interview Questions

“We use case questions based on real-life business problems. You’re evaluated on your problem-solving approach and ability to bring fresh thinking to the table rather than pre-prepared answers.”

“Analyze the market opportunity for a premium eyewear retailer in the powered sunglasses segment.”

“We use a profitability case on why a gym located on the outskirts of a city isn’t turning a profit.”

“Describe the problems faced by an underperforming company and analyze the cause.”