Greenwich Strategy Reviews

Pros

Greenwich Strategy has been around for over 25 years under the same leadership. Clients have almost all been working with the firm for years, and they stick with the company due to the quality of results that they see. I was on many readouts with clients where they would say that we consistently delivered the highest quality work that they saw from any of their advisors. All the work at this point is private equity due diligence. This can be a pro and a con, but in short, it means that projects are generally quicker (2-5wks, depending) and you'll end up getting a ton of exposure to different questions. Industries I looked at in my time ranged from electrical infrastructure to foodservice distribution and everything in between. The best part about working this way is that you're always learning. The work involves a lot of quantitative analysis (good to come in with a bit of a background, but also definitely learnable), but equally important is the qualitative side. This involves a lot of speaking with experts in the industries you are researching and can be some of the most rewarding parts of the job. You'd be surprised how much of the 'answer' can come from one good conversation with someone who really knows. All in all, this is a great place to learn. Everyone here is developing in some way or another, and Chris and Beth are very good about making sure that you have the opportunity to develop. Since leaving, I have been working at a top-tier consulting firm (with a generous referral from Chris!), and colleagues routinely commented at first at how well-prepared I was compared to many in my cohort who had either come from other consulting firms or business school. If you are looking for a place to build a potent skillset in a short amount of time, you could do far worse.

Cons

Hours can be very long--not unusual for consulting or PE work, but it can definitely feel like a grind on some projects. With that said, there is a good and very close-knit culture within the office, so you're always surrounded with good people at night (and for all intents and purposes, you're never working on the weekend). The work can also be very demanding at times. There is a good understanding that people come in with different skills, and a lot of time is invested in making sure that you have the resources to grow, but make no mistakes that expectations are high. There can and will be some very stressful situations, and mistakes end up costing the entire team. I never saw us deliver an answer we didn't have confidence in, but at times that could come with some pretty tense nights. At least everyone is in it together! Also I've seen other people mention this, but doesn't hurt to add--you're going to be in Providence. We list the jobs as Boston area, but if you don't live in Providence, you're not going to get any sleep. Providence isn't a con in and of itself (it's a great city, and I wish I were still there), but you should come in knowing that.

Pros

Very intelligent people working on very important topics, for very smart, successful clients. Firm leadership chooses to keep small size in order to make sure we only work on high impact projects. We can afford to be selective. Little to no travel—that’s another advantage of staying small. Intimate, caring culture. Family like. It’s not unusual for someone to bring their dog to work. (Firm policy requests employees don’t talk publicly about size, but over the years we’ve had to count the dog form time to time to get the headcount to double digits.) No face time. If we’re not working on a project/if there’s not a good reason to be in the office, we’re not, and the president is the first one to say we should take days off between projects. Truly flat organization. The most junior analyst can and does have as much impact as most senior team member. Everyone goes to every client meeting (it’s not like the partner shows the team’s work to the client). Analysts get into great B Schools, because they can write about serious responsibilities. If you’re analytically minded, good at excel modeling and research, and a team player, this is an uncommonly good consulting firm to work at. An all-around awesome consulting firm.

Cons

Can be intense—especially if multiple high intensity/high profile projects happen at once. But that’s consulting. Small size not right for everyone. Not possible to get lost in the shuffle/keep a low profile if you’re not up to the task. The recruiting process tries to sort out whether the fit is right, but it’s no perfect. That said, to my knowledge no one has ever been fired; that would be hugely counter-cultural.

Pros

The work itself: Intellectually stimulating and challenging. Private equity projects are typically ~3 weeks long—in that short amount of time we are tasked with developing opinions on key strategic issues about the company and its industry (for example, market size, growth, competitive landscape, potential risks/threats, etc.). Projects for operating companies also focus on strategy – customers, competitors, pricing, etc. For me, the work is a terrific combination of quantitative and qualitative learning. The culture/environment: I would describe the culture as relaxed and familial (particularly if you compare it with a typical corporate environment)—it’s decidedly “un-corporate”. It is a culture of honesty and respect. Expectations are high—both our client's as well as our own of ourselves. When employees are transitioning out for whatever reason (usually it’s to go to business school), I’ve seen tremendous support, including letters of introduction/recommendation and/or “outplacement time”, where people are paid for full time work but given 1-2 days a week for extended periods to find their next opportunity. Furthermore the firm president, Chris Fay, draws generously from his extended network to advocate for the candidacy of Greenwich Strategy employees who want to move to a new position or industry.

Cons

Providence: I personally love Rhode Island, but Providence isn’t Boston or New York, so it can be a stumbling block. Long hours: When it’s busy, the hours are long, and it can be stressful. Our client’s deadlines are often tight and work quality expectations are high.

Pros

Smart people - This is true of most consulting companies, but I found a particularly intelligent, insightful, and curious group of minds at Greenwich Strategy Great projects - I had the chance to work on a diverse number of industries - transportation, telecommunications, and financial services. Each project had it's own "spin" but the goal was the same - provide valuable, unique advice to help the client grow. Casual work environment - Fairly laid back atmosphere but not unprofessional. Work product counted more than face time. New Skills - I had come from a "Big Six" consulting background and didn't realize how much I had to learn about consulting until I came to Greenwich Strategy. It was a great chance to learn new methodologies and ways of thinking about problems that I had not had exposure to before

Cons

Data collection (for lack of a better term). Part of every consulting gig is to grind through data collection and analysis to figure out the problem and ultimately the answer. Greenwich Strategy is no different. Because it's a small firm, without a vast pool of analysts to do this work, everyone has to pitch in. I've been both the analyst and the senior and by pitching in on the data collection and analysis, I think you learn more about the problem and are able to craft a better solution when you participate in this work. Small Office - In a smaller company, you can't avoid people you don't like. That means that you really have to know going in if these are people you can work with.

Pros

Greenwich Strategy occupies a niche; we perform high-quality analysis for a very select number of leading Private Equity, Hedge Fund, and Corporate clients. The value we provide is an actionable, cogent, and insightful—our philosophy is that if the client does not like the work they do not pay (and over 17 years, this has yet to happen). At Greenwich, we are focused on the work and not any pretense of what consulting should look like. Which is to say that many of the attributes which make Greenwich a great place to work are uncommon in the realm of consulting: we work out of loft space in Providence, we do not travel, we do not have a dress code, and occasionally there are as many dogs in the office as there are employees—all of this is enabled because our only priority is the work product. The work is extremely interesting and varied, we don’t engage in multi-year projects that grow stale. Our studies last from 4-6 weeks, we labor to understand the moving pieces, deliver our insights to the client, and move on to the next engagement. The work is dynamic and it is thought provoking (dinner-party conversations often start with a perspective I developed during a client assignment). I have not imagined a post-Greenwich Strategy future yet, but my work experience has prepared me for a number of avenues and the strength of my resume (bolstered by my time with Greenwich) ensure all of those avenues are open to me.

Cons

The work is challenging and at times that means high stress and long hours, but any impactful job will demand the same. Partner-level involvement and significant collaboration severely limit time on espn.go.com.

Pros

Being at Greenwich Strategy taught me so much, and that was not even the best part. Everyone who works there is brilliant and works very hard, yet they still know how to make the job fun. Being a small consulting firm you get to know everyone really well and they are exactly the type of people that you want to surround yourself with: smart, kind, determined, and balanced individuals. I was able to sit in on the meetings and absorb everything that I could and I only scratched the surface. The job itself is very interesting and never failed to astound me as to how a company could not only be formed, but profitable as well off of something that you would not even think about. It is very exciting and rewarding and I would recommend this company to anyone that I think is up to the task.

Cons

When you are on project the hours can get very long. Unlike some other jobs, there is no room for an intense social life during the week. However, my opinion is that nothing really important happens on the weekdays anyways. If you work hard during the week you get to relax and have fun over the weekends, which is more than some other companies can say.

Pros

Group of extremely bright individuals working on interesting topics for high profile clients. The firm is small so everyone has a direct impact on every project. Employees are extremely accountable and get their work done in a timely manner. The culture is very warm, but competitive. Family like. Some people even bring their dog to work from time to time. Very self motivated individuals who are always committed to excellence. There is limited travel time which is a plus. When employees do travel, everyone on the project is asked to come along. As a junior analyst/ consultant in the firm, it is extremely valuable to have constant contact with senior level individuals who have many years of experience in consulting. The skills acquired while working here allow for analysts/ consultants to go on to great business schools and other great opportunities. If you are analytically minded, enjoy working in a team environment, and have excel modeling experience then this may be a great fit for you. This is an exceptional consulting firm.

Cons

When working on multiple high profile projects things can get a bit intense. There is no way to keep a low profile here because of the size of the firm so this may not be for everyone. There can be long hours, but employees are given time off between projects providing a healthy work-life balance.

Pros

Short projects (3-4 weeks for PE/hedge fund projects and 5-6 for corporate strategy work) so you are constantly learning about new businesses and industries. These learning experiences gave me great material for my business school applications. You work with a smart people at Greenwich Strategy (both coworkers and clients). All external and internal conversations are stimulating and thought provoking. You will learn a ton! And it will help you significantly with business school applications (Ross Class of 2017).

Cons

The work/life balance can be demanding during the week. Coming from a cushy 9 to 5, there was some culture shock when I was staying late wrapping up my first project. Some of Greenwich's clients are demanding so you must work with tight deadlines that force long hours.

Pros

The experience at Greenwich Strategy sets someone up well for doing almost anything post B-School (Consulting, PE, Buy side, IB). The projects were super impactful (beyond just interesting); and often were key for clients in making 9 figure decisions. While recruiting during BSchool, these experiences were incredibly important in helping me stand out with great stories that were super relevant. A lot of our clients on the hedge fund side were renowned, and being able to talk about being a part of the decision process went a long way. Being on calls/presentations with multi-billion $ HF/PE heads while they discuss their thoughts and investment decision process. (A lot of senior guys highly valued Chris' opinions) I gained a deep understanding of what to consider when deciding the quality of a business from an owners perspective. Chris is by far the best out there at doing calls (conversations with industry execs that aids in developing insights on companies and industries). Doing calls is essential part to any good primary research process, and it is an essential and scarce skill in the HF & Consulting space. Working with Chris and doing calls alongside him has enabled me to develop an incredibly valuable primary research skill set that is super transferrable. I also actually really enjoyed doing calls. A strong sense of teamwork. We all worked together closely and would eat lunch together every day. Very supportive environment. Happy to talk about my experiences. You can find me on linkedin. Greenwich Strategy alum, Columbia Business School 2015

Cons

A lot of the transactional P/E type work has tight deadlines and results in a stressful environment. The hours tended to be cyclical, and were dictated by the deal flow. My guess would be 60-65 hour work week at the high end, but was balanced by no weekends (didn't even check email), light summers (including a number of Fridays off), and 2 or 3 weeks off over Christmas. The high expectations in terms of work quality (the price of working with top tier clients) meant for a steep learning curve. The job requires a pretty diverse skill set. Most people, including myself, don't possess the compete skill-set on day one, so there can be some challenges in coming up to speed. At a small firm, every one is a key man, creates stress to deliver at times.

Pros

-- Flat organization: Analysts work directly with the senior team (including the CEO) on a daily basis, and gain exposure to all parts of the consulting process. -- Constant learning: Wide variety of interesting projects enables analysts to learn about a many different industries. Great for the intellectually curious. -- Professional development: Chris is committed to helping analysts get into top business schools. -- Rapid path to responsibility: Analysts who demonstrate ability to think and work independently are given the runway to really own pieces of the project and be creative with the approach.

Cons

During busy periods hours can be long.