Class Of ’17: Meet Bain & Co’s Newest MBA Hires

Margaret Munford

Bain Atlanta

Hometown: Jackson, Mississippi

MBA program, concentration: Duke University, Corporate Finance & Strategy

Undergraduate school, major: Bowdoin College, History

Focus of current case: Delivering a transformation strategy for a global retailer

Why did you choose to work at Bain?

The people and the professional opportunities as a generalist. I wanted a post-MBA experience that put me working on a variety of industries and topics, which Bain’s generalist model makes possible. I also wanted to make sure I’d be working with the kind of smart, helpful people that would support me across a multitude of opportunities without a specialist focus. The Bainies I met through recruiting and the diversity groups (notably Women at Bain and Bain GLBAssociation) were the kind of people I could absolutely see myself enjoy working with and learning from – and they certainly are!

What lesson from business school best prepared you for your career at Bain?

Teamwork makes the dream work. Duke has a heavy weighting on team-based curriculum and the ability to work with a variety of people has been incredibly helpful to the sort of tight-knit teamwork and office culture at Bain.

What’s the most valuable thing you’ve learned so far at Bain?

It’s always for the client results. You can make a beautiful model, but if the client isn’t going to reference it later for use, then it’s not the right model. Always think from the client perspective, respectfully challenge their thinking and assumptions to push the envelope, but ultimately you should build everything with what the client needs and will use.

What advice would you give to someone who wants to work for Bain?

Figure out why consulting is what you want to do and mean it. You can be a problem solver in any post-MBA job, but what is it specifically about consulting that excites you?

What do you want your career to look like in 10 years?

I want to be in a position where I lead teams to solve tough problems while maintaining a healthy life outside of work. Family and travel will always be important to me so it’s important that I take those non-career priorities into consideration when thinking about how my career enables that part of my life. I absolutely think that is possible at Bain, but there is just no telling what sort of other opportunities that fit that mold might crop up for me between now and then.

My greatest personal or professional accomplishment is…successfully leading a full-day session with two senior clients on how to re-structure their organization and processes for a post-merger integration. It was my third week on the job and the clients both served the same role at the two legacy organizations so focusing on the future-state while there are plenty of unanswered questions was a challenge, but ultimately an incredibly rewarding experience. Those two clients went on to be great partners and advocates for us inside the organization.

A fun fact about me people would be surprised to know is…I have been to 49 of the 50 US states, and I’ve driven my car (that I still own) in 47 of the lower 48. The only missing state is Oklahoma, so I keep trying to get the Atlanta partners to sell a case to a company inside the Sooner state.