Vault’s Verdict

Clarkston Consulting calls its employees stewards, not consultants, reflecting the firm’s commitment to building long-term relationships with key clients in targeted industries. This also extends to the firm’s broader philosophy about work. Insiders complement the firm’s management for constantly assessing the workforce’s needs to keep everyone happy and engaged. Examples include rolling out the choice of how much you want to travel, flexible work schedules, and extensive remote work. 

One aspect of Clarkston that insiders particularly enjoy is the firm’s distinct approach to professional developments. The firm’s stewards are free to build their own careers, providing internal or external training around each person’s specific interests. Each team member is assigned a partner advisor, who helps guide their career development and advocates them when up for promotion. 

Insiders also appreciate the firm’s deliberate approach to growth, with its focus on IT strategy, transformation, and operations in stable industries rendering it relatively recession-proof. Even in complicated market conditions, they trust leadership to effectively guide the firm while maintaining transparency. If this firm sounds like a fit for you, go ahead and apply, but be ready to make sure you can show not just that you’ll be able to do the job, but how you can fit the culture. 

Employee Reviews

Firm Culture

• “Clarkston is very open to you deciding your career story here. You decide your interests and must advocate what types of projects and initiatives you want to be staffed on and Clarkston tries to truly make your interests heard.”
• “From early on in your career, you can have exposure to and influence on senior executives making business decisions. We build credibility quickly and focus on trusted advisor relationships, which give access and learning unparalleled to alternative career paths.”
• “The stewards of the firm share a commitment to our core values. Our folks are simply easy to work with and motivated to succeed.”
• “Interesting fulfilling projects surrounded by great coworkers at a firm led with morals and strategic focus.”

Quality of Life

• “As with most consulting firms, the work is demanding, the expectations are high, and more often than not, you won't just be working your average 40-hour workweek. However, with that being said, Clarkston does a great job of fostering an inclusive, understanding, and attentive work environment. Management is constantly assessing stewards’ needs to help ensure they are happy and engaged in what they are doing, whether it’s the targeted rollout of travel, flexible work schedules, availability of remote work, etc.”
• “My current travel requirements is approximately two weeks per every two to three months. It is project dependent, so some are fully remote and others are four days of travel a week.”
• “Consulting is a hard job due to client commitments, travel, and high expectations. Clarkston does a really good job of navigating that, helping establish limits where needed and supporting you when you need the time off or not to travel a particular week.”
• “It is super easy to take off time here. Everyone is super understanding and checks on you if you’re sick or take bereavement leave, which I did last year.”

Career Development

• “We have an amazing professional development program. We have many resources and training opportunities. If an internal training is not available for a particular interest, the PD group will work with you to find external training. Our promotion process is clear and fair, with tangible guidelines and key indicators. While Clarkston performs and completes like a large firm, we have benefits of a smaller firm with personalized career opportunities and mobility options.”
• “I think the Partner Advisor structure has been extremely valuable for promotion. I had someone high up in the company able to guide me and advocate when I was ready to go up for promotion. I also think the communities provide many opportunities for leadership and strengthening your skills outside of project work.”
• “I came into Clarkston having a background in hard sciences and was able to transform my career into a completely different field, learning trade promotion management, computer programming, and project management skills. My promotion opportunities and expectations were very clear along the way, and I was really able to forge my own path. The partners at this firm are extremely knowledgeable and willing to teach given the opportunity.”
• “Generous support from partner advisors, mentors, training programs, and the knowledge development department.”

Compensation

• “Our compensation package is well rounded. While we are paid fair and competitive salaries, we are also offered a great profit sharing and bonus.”
• “Strong annual bonus program. Referral bonuses. Client growth bonuses.”
• “Excellent health benefits, including medical, dental, and vision. Great 401(k) program and profit-sharing contributions.”
• “We have a health internal program, which then offers stewards the ability to reach a discount on insurance. The group is very supportive and without judgement. We are encouraged and rewarded for healthy lifestyles.”

Inclusion

• “We established a governing body for our diversity efforts almost 20 years ago and continue to leverage that group to provide continuous improvement feedback from our employee resource groups.”
• “We have lots of communities and networks that promote inclusivity. I think these networks do a great job of creating a safe space for stewards that are part of those groups.”
• “Our firm has a focus on supporting women, LGBTQ, neurodiversity, and all ethnicities. It is a highly protected program coming straight from leadership.”
• “We have a strong inclusion initiative and a 10-year plan for achieving our goals. It is frequently mentioned and encouraged.”

Business Outlook

• “I think Clarkston is uniquely placed due to their specialization in digital and IT strategy, transformation, and operations. As companies seek to innovate their technical capabilities, Clarkston has a proven differentiation in technical understanding and processing.”
• “Clear growth strategy focused on core industries and services that are recession-proof, emphasis on agile implementations and white glove service, and a focus on relationship building.”
• “I think the market is very complicated currently and there are a lot of unknowns ahead, but we have a very strong and growing portfolio and are making efforts to grow internally with training directed at the most relevant technologies.”
• “Clear communication/updates at bi-annual company meetings and during meetings with partner advisors.”

Hiring Process

• “The interview process is several rounds, starting with a resume review, then video interviews, and then in person interviews. An ideal candidate combines technical skills with consulting and business knowledge.”
• “They are seeking someone who works well on a team, takes initiative, is a good communicator, and can learn new things quickly. Our interview process is a few rounds with different stewards of the firm and a case-like interview.”
• “Ideal candidates match the role we are hiring for. We also look for those who embody our values around brilliant client service and dedication to building up others. I look for enthusiastic people who are willing to dig in and try something new, even if they are uncertain about the outcome.”
• “The interview process is intense and thorough. The process is well established, and candidates are given feedback within one week.”

Interview Questions

• "Why consulting, and why Clarkston? Describe a time when you worked in an unstructured environment. Describe a time when you worked against a tight timeline with a team.”
• “Depends on level, but many questions are scenario based: You're staffed on a new project in a space you don't know. How do you approach that scenario? A client is setting high expectations for quality and fast timelines, which may not be reasonable to meet. How do you discuss that and reset expectations? What happens if the reset doesn't occur? You're leading a team, and someone is not pulling their weight in terms of amount of work or quality. What do you do?”
• “What trends do you see upcoming? We do a case study with a focus of brilliant client service.”
• “Tell me about a time you navigated conflict in a team setting.”

Uppers

• “The people and culture, firm integrity which starts with leadership, fairness in pay and DEI, and the clear roadmap to carve out your own career path.”
• “Clarkston has an outstanding culture and stewards. That starts at the top and is clearly shown by all firm leadership.”
• “The people here are down to earth, committed and keep perspective.”
• “Smart people, interesting projects, and a challenging/receptive work environment where I feel I have stake and say in my career development.”

Downers

• “Everyone working remotely is a blessing and a challenge. I appreciate the commitment to working from home and minimizing travel for most, but not all.”
• “Working in consulting can produce a higher stress environment by its nature. While the firm does its best to balance work life, each client is different and work can vary.”
• “Not as much client travel and office experience, but this is across the board.”
• “Siloed information. We could do better about letting people know about up and coming opportunities or trainings, but this is just difficult in a virtual environment for any firm.”