Meet McKinsey & Company’s MBA Class Of 2024

Mentorship matters at McKinsey—the relationships you build can help you develop.

THE TRUE BENEFITS OF A CONSULTANT

When looking at other challenges buffeting consulting, Olanrewaju frames it this way: “History doesn’t always directly repeat, but it does rhyme.” That nugget applies specially to technology implementations – but not in the traditional sense that people might expect. Olanrewaju points to iPhone banking apps, which took nearly a decade to become integral parts of the consumer experience. Olanrewaju calls the process rewiring: steering customers to a new technology that requires a new way of interacting. Guiding this change in marketplace behavior – as much as integrating new technology across an enterprise – is a challenge where McKinsey excels.

“The first shift you’re going to see is, it’s not only a technology shift, it’s actually a lot about the business model and operating model shift that comes alongside that, and doing so in a way that keeps the business moving,” Olanrewaju elaborates. “And I think we’re distinctly qualified to do that, because we understand the technology just as deeply as we understand the context in which it will operate. And I think that’s one of the advantages we have relative to other institutions is we actually know how people are going to use the technology. And we know the issues that they are going to encounter when using it.”

While the world changes around McKinsey, the firm continues to focus on its fundamentals as it nears its 100-year anniversary in 2026. Beyond its understanding of consumer behavior, McKinsey has staked its reputation on helping enterprises organize, manage, and transform themselves at scale, says Olanrewaju. In his experience, the benefits of hiring management consultants haven’t changed much. For time-pressed c-suite leaders, he says, McKinsey can make the case for where and why to move – and (most importantly) how.

“There is a vast number of things that leadership teams need to worry about,” Olanrewaju continues. “And some of those things they experience once every couple of years. Well, our consultants might be doing that multiple times a year…[They can] very quickly help clients understand the nuances for their situation that they need to worry about. It gets them much, much quicker to the things that matter…That extra leadership and problem-solving capacity is what we bring at those critical levels to our clients.”

LEARNING FASTER THAN EVER

It isn’t just watching clients succeed that has led Olanrewaju to devote nearly half of his life to McKinsey. One benefit of McKinsey, he says, is that his professional growth has never flatlined. “I don’t think there are many institutions where I can, hand-on-heart, say, ‘23 years in, I’m learning faster than I’ve ever done.’”

Another McKinsey perk is impact – with mentorship deeply resonating with Olanrewaju. As he becomes more senior in the firm, he says, he takes great pride in the people who’ve apprenticed under him. He has seen them at their starting points and witnessed their growth, together sharing the lessons and successes that enabled them to become the leaders they are today.

“I can point to people who I remember having difficult times in an engagement, struggling with a particular thing, and now they’re out there doing that thing to distinction in brilliant roles, being fulfilled…That is highly satisfying.”

Growth happens through real collaboration—learning from colleagues who bring different strengths.

THE RISE OF MULTIDISCIPLINARY TEAMS

Looking back over a quarter century, Olanrewaju can pinpoint certain traits that make MBAs highly successful at McKinsey…and beyond. One is understanding the context of the problem: truly understanding the rippling implications of a solution set against an enterprise’s resources and political climate. Context requires listening – the same quality needed to accept feedback – another skill that separates the highest-performing McKinseyites.

“The ability to take on feedback, to be willing to, draw on the resources of others, I think is game-changing,” Olanrewaju tells P&Q. “First of all, we are an environment that gives a lot of feedback in a very structured, consistent, and regular way. You can do yourself lots of favors by being open to that feedback. Those who grow the most are those who are willing to take on that feedback.”

Another emerging – and indispensable – skill is the ability to manage multidisciplinary teams. At times in the past, Olanrewaju admits, problems might have been tackled by MBA teams, with a focus on financial modeling. Now, he says, teams may be onboarding designers who look at problems from a more experiential vantage point. At the same time, they may need to include a developer at the start to sketch out feasibility, resources, and timelines. This new working model, says Olanrewaju, requires an entirely new skill set from MBAs.

“The mix of capabilities that you need to deliver impact for a client means that you need to actually understand, at a basic level, the way that the developer needs to work and what they need to do their job, [along with] the amount of time a designer needs to do their research and how that then fits in. And you kind of have to speak each other’s language, right? And that, I think, is the new skill of teamwork. It’s not a team of the same people. It’s a team of very, very different skills, some of which you can’t actually do. You [might not] be able to debug the code, for example. But you’re still responsible for it. Those multidisciplinary teams are the next wave of learning.”

ADVICE TO FUTURE MCKINSEYITES…FROM THE CLASS OF 2024

That’s great advice for MBAs working for McKinsey. What about those candidates looking to join the firm? Last year’s MBA hires offer several pieces of advice, particularly during the interview stage. Aala’a Alsheddi urges candidates to research interviewers, to find commonalities that can make conversations more “collegial.” Looking back, Cassandra Esinaulo would remind herself to speak with conviction and trust her insights. By the same token, Ben Spencer Jones would operate as if he was already a contributor to a multidisciplinary team.

“McKinsey is an incredibly flat organization—business analysts, associates and senior partners will often work together closely to solve problems. So I would tell myself to approach interviews as if I was in one of these situations, having a peer-to-peer conversation. When you take that approach, you’re more likely to feel confident and be able to contribute meaningfully to the conversation.”

For Chase Byington, the best advice is to follow the example of what McKinsey MBAs do every day. “Take a step back and don’t get overwhelmed. Walk in with hypotheses but stay open. Just talk through the problems with the interviewer in a collaborative way. It’s not about being right or wrong; it’s about alignment and next steps. That’s exactly what we do every day at the firm.”

Click on the links below for in-depth  profiles of McKinsey MBA hires.

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