I’m about six months out from leaving my firm, and I’ve been mapping out what corporate strategy interviews are actually going to look like. Everyone talks about ‘translating your toolkit’ and ‘storytelling,’ but what I’m realizing is that the way you frame your consulting experience in a resume and interview is weirdly hard to get right.
Like, I can obviously talk about the projects I’ve owned, the frameworks I’ve built, the impact I’ve driven. But here’s what keeps nagging me: how do I explain why I’m leaving without making it sound like I’m running away, and how do I position my consulting background as an asset rather than a liability?
I’ve heard from people in the community that strategy teams sometimes see consultants as either too much of a know-it-all or not grounded enough in the actual business. So I guess what I’m trying to figure out is—what’s the actual narrative that lands? What are the specific stories you’d tell that don’t feel canned? And when you’re prepping for behavioral questions, how do you pick the ones that actually show strategic thinking rather than just ‘I managed a difficult client’?
Curious what worked for people who actually made this jump.
The key is authenticity about your transition motivation. Rather than framing it as ‘consulting wasn’t right,’ focus on what draws you specifically to corporate strategy—ownership, impact in one domain, building something long-term. When selecting stories, choose projects where you influenced strategy beyond the recommendation, ideally where you saw downstream execution. For behavioral questions, lead with curiosity over expertise. A strong narrative acknowledges what consulting taught you well while being honest about knowledge gaps you’re eager to fill in a corporate context. This humility, paired with tangible examples of strategic initiative, signals self-awareness that hiring managers respect.
honestly the secret nobody wants to admit? they just want to hear you’re not gonna be insufferable about ‘best practices.’ say something like ‘i learned a ton but realized i actually wanted to see something through to completion instead of handing off a deck’ and suddenly you’re golden. most strategy people are tired of consultants lecturing them about their own business, so just sound like you get it and you’re ready to roll up your sleeves. that’s basically it.
this is so helpful to think about! i’m only a couple years in but starting to prep my story too. the authenticity angle makes so much sense—thanks for laying it out so clearly!
When I interviewed for my current role, I actually brought up a project where we’d done the strategy work, handed it off, and then I stayed in touch to see what happened. Turns out the client implementation was messy—not because our thinking was wrong, but because we didn’t understand the politics and constraints they were actually dealing with. I led with that story because it showed I’d learned something beyond my own firm’s process. The hiring manager loved it because it wasn’t ‘I’m so smart,’ it was ‘I want to understand the real constraints.’ That felt like it made the difference.
You’ve got this! Your consulting experience is such a strength—just frame it as the foundation you’re building on, not the destination. Companies love that energy!
Research suggests hiring managers assess consultant-to-industry transitions against three dimensions: domain knowledge gaps, organizational acclimation speed, and cultural fit. Your narrative should address the first two directly—acknowledge what you don’t know about the industry and outline how you’ll close that gap. Supporting this with 2-3 specific stories where you displayed curiosity, adapted to new constraints, or drove implementation (not just analysis) gives interviewers concrete evidence. Data shows firms value consultants who demonstrate intellectual flexibility over pure analytical horsepower in these transitions.