The four presidents of the main global consultancies in Spain, better known as big four, have developed their professional career in the company of which they are now the top managers. Juanjo Cano (KPMG), Federico Linares (EY), Gonzalo Sánchez (PwC) and Héctor Flórez (Deloitte) began their respective careers in the firms they run today and are an example of what may become the fate of the thousands of recent graduates who each year start working in one of these companies.
Faced with this image of success and recognition, two milestones have overshadowed the reputation of this sector in the last year.
On the one hand, the negotiation of a new collective agreement for the consultancy activity revealed the low entry salaries (of barely 14,000 gross euros per year, equivalent to the SMI) that many companies pay, while their profits do not stop growing, since these entities are in almost all sectors of the economy and participate in global digitization. And, on the other, the investigation opened by the Labor Inspectorate on whether the big four correctly apply the regulations on working time.
How much do the recent graduates hired each year by the big four? Is it true that your working hours exceed the 40 hours per week established in Spanish law? to questions of Five daysthe big four agree for the first time to anonymously reveal some keys to the career plans they offer their professionals and which would largely explain why the four firms receive tens of thousands of CVs year after year.
“It is not true that we are just a springboard to get a job at one of our clients. A recent graduate has the possibility of developing a professional career up to become a member of a big four and, therefore, owner of the business, after demonstrating the abilities and attributes that are demanded in the different positions that must be exercised. The average time to become a partner is 12 years”, they explain in one of these firms.
With a discourse based on the culture of effort and merit, the big four they represent the gateway to the labor market for thousands of twenty-somethings, up to 8,500 per fiscal cycle, who join them each year with the desire to build a long-term career. Promotions are the main letter of firms to promote overtime among their employees, although most recognize that this happens exceptionally.
For new employees, these promises of quick promotions and meteoric rises are the main fuel for wanting to stay with one of these firms. The testimonials reflect two realities: on the one hand, those who value the maximum commitment in exchange for a career, and, on the other, those who have resigned from these companies due to a host of dissatisfactions.
In the first scenario is ME, a technology specialist who has been working for one of these companies for a year. With a smile, this employee, who like all the interviewees avoids giving his full name, highlights the possibilities that open up for “those who break the mould” and “achieve their goals”. “You know that you are the one who sets the ceiling and how much you can grow,” he describes.
On the other side is FS, who has been working for two years in financial auditing at another of these consultancies. He has no intention of changing jobs any time soon, but he believes that “promises don’t always come true” and that “makes for a wicked game.” “Ambition is the only thing that keeps you in the firms. Neither money nor colleagues are worth it, it is always a game of resistance for a future that always seems further away, ”she affirms.
annual promotions
All four promote hundreds of professionals each year and admit they are anticipating hires to reduce the workload. In one of them, for the fiscal year of 2023, 24 professionals have been promoted to the category of partner, 48 to director and 160 to manager. In total, almost 800 professionals have seen their working conditions improve thanks to their change of professional category.
“We are a reference employer with 2,000 registrations each year. We offer these professionals an individualized career plan where equal opportunities are promotedincluding the possibility of climbing positions until being able to participate in the capital of the company (partner or partner)”, assures a spokesperson for another of the big four.
This is the same view held by N.B., who spends her days between tax returns for corporate America, keeping an eye on the next steps in her career. “At the moment, I am at the lowest level, but they promise me that I will jump very fast for my high performance”, he highlights.
In terms of remuneration, the four defend paying “significantly” above the minimum interprofessional wage (SMI). “A fair value is paid, which rewards meritocracy and effort,” they explain in another of these firms. In addition, all of them emphasize that salaries “are reviewed every year and their improvement depends on the result of the year and growth prospects.”
This, however, is not always true. A. P., a 24-year-old who works in the systems area, acknowledges that few achieve the highest score despite the fact that in theory, the process is simple: two stars mean that the employee only complies with what is expected, while four distinctions imply excellent performance. “I have been lucky because I started earning 24,500 euros and after a year they offered me 29,500 thanks to my boss’s evaluation. But I know that not all my colleagues have been this lucky, ”she details.
When asked, other interviewees affirm that all activities and movements are recorded, which they recognize as an element of constant pressure that It is not always reflected in the salary.
Beyond economic compensation, all four offer training plans to accompany the growth of their employees, with tutors, mentors and coaches who monitor their work and collect their aspirations.
N.B. says that he talks monthly with his counselor to “shape” his career plan. This role is exercised by another employee with more experience in the same firm, who counts as part of his performance objectives to have greater responsibilities, in this case over juniors. “A career plan is offered ad hoc for each of the professionals, where their strengths are enhanced in order to contribute to the development of new capacities. Each phase of this plan is associated with technical training so that no one is left behind”, the firms agree.
Many of the new consultants and auditors dream of making their way into the international market with the certifications offered by these companies. In fact, in some cases this is the main motivation that keeps them in their job, as in the case of F. S., who fantasizes about studying a master’s degree in the United States.
In parallel, and in order to retain the best talent, in recent years consultancies have intensified the application of measures that promote the reconciliation of work and personal lifesuch as teleworking, flexible hours or the increase in the vacation period.
The interviewees highlight the availability of psychologists or physiotherapy services as some of the advantages that are available to them. But in some cases this is not enough to overcome the workloads. This is the case of M.A.S.R., who was in one of these consultancies in the early 2000s and left because he couldn’t bear the workload.
opposing visions
The defensive attitude of some employees in the face of the investigation open to the big four by the Labor Inspectorate at the end of last year is quickly seen when asked: “I don’t get involved in politics, I just don’t understand the ministry thing”, argues M. E. For this collaborator, the cycles of each project require a lot of flexibility, so each day is different. This 20-something is used to times when he must work more than 14 hours, although he emphasizes that it is not all year.
Other interviewees are quick to point out that overtime “is paid” and that the ministry’s complaints seem like an exaggeration. But there are also dissenting voices that believe that the labor model established by the big four is based on the fact that few people reach the highest ranks, while in the lower part, the objectives of each project are achieved at the cost of a large turnover. It is what MASR calls a “pyramid work system”. In parallel, A. S. recalls an anecdote that even today, three years after resigning from one of the big four, raises doubts: “In the interview I asked what would happen if I got sick. They laughed for several minutes and told me it was a joke. It was never clear to me if it really was.” In the end, she fulfilled his goal; Today he works for one of the companies that he had as a client during his time at the consultancy.
The Inspection focuses on the time record
The trigger. The negotiation to renew the agreement of the consulting sector concluded at the beginning of this year after nine months of meetings, ruptures, protests and even the first strike call in memory. From the first proposals of the Association of Consulting Companies (AEC), chaired by former Socialist Economy Minister Elena Salgado, it was possible to withdraw what the unions described as “perpetuating the possibility of making 12-hour days.” The union complaint caused a great media commotion, in which even the second vice president of the Government, Yolanda Díaz, participated.
Background. From then on, the negotiations were closely followed by the Labor Inspectorate, which was able to collect a large amount of documentation on what was the reality of one of the sectors that has emerged from the Covid crisis the most, such as consultancy. to companies.
Investigation. Last November, those responsible for the Labor Inspectorate appeared at the offices of the four large consultancies to request documentation that would allow them to verify how these companies control the working hours, as they have been obliged to do since they It was approved in Spanish legislation in 2019.
Results. Sources familiar with these processes explain that it is very difficult to foresee when the investigation will end and if it will culminate in a disciplinary file or not. “The procedure is very guaranteeing and companies usually request extensions of the term to send everything that is requested, there have been cases that have lasted years,” they comment.
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