I’m a Partner at Capco and I've been with the firm for six and a half years. I did originally write this review including my name, but Glassdoor refused to publish it with my name included.
Prior to Capco, I had never stayed anywhere for longer than two years and 10 months. I am often asked why that is. Let me try to answer.
First, I have been fortunate enough to work for and with some tremendous people. When I say ‘tremendous’ I mean people who are talented, people I can learn from, people I trust, people I respect, people I can have a beer with and people I often see more as friends than colleagues. I honestly believe we employ some of the most talented people in the financial services industry, and I am constantly surprised and impressed with what our teams achieve for our clients.
Second, we operate a true meritocracy, at least as much as is ever possible when people are measuring people doing something as subjective as management consulting. Since I joined Capco as a Managing Principal in 2011 the only thing that has ever limited my progress has been my own work ethic and ability. I’ve been fortunate enough to work with some great people and teams who have supported me in my career development and in 2012 I achieved my first objective of joining the Partner team at Capco. We continue to do performance management and promotions every 6 months. We don’t have a time-in-grade mentality, but we do look for sustainable performance at the next level. From what I have seen in over 20 years around the city, we offer some of the best career progression opportunities you will find anywhere, together with all the support and guidance you will need to make the most of those.
Third, from the leadership team downwards, we put a lot of emphasis on integrity. For me, this is my most important value and it manifests itself in many ways in how we work. On the people side, we work very hard to find roles which our people want to do. If people are doing things they’re excited about, they will be happier and they will do better work. Very simple. It is not always perfect, though, but we spend more time on this than any firm I’ve ever worked for. On the client side, we emphasise doing the right thing for the client at all times. “More consultants” is not always the answer to every client problem and it is hugely important to me that I work for a firm where I know I can say that, when it is the right answer for the client. You might be surprised by just how much trust you can build when you set-aside your self-interest and focus on the client. Within the management team we work as a team, and ask our leaders at all levels to make decisions based on what is best for the client, the people and Capco, but not for them as individuals.
Fourth, of course, is the quality of our clients and our work. Over the past six years our brand has grown in-line with our client reputation, and we are now working with most of the tier 1 banks across the market in the UK. During this period we have built a strong reputation for everything from strategy & operating model through to reg & change delivery, technology transformation and all things Digital. In the last few years the size, importance and criticality of the programmes with which our clients have trusted us has increased markedly.
Across our clients, we are continuing to win work from our much larger competitors – you know who they are – and we are proving to our clients that we really are, and should be, the ‘firm of choice’ for consultancy in the FS market.
Crucially, this enables us to offer our people the most interesting and challenging work available in FS consulting today, and that is surely what the best people are looking for in an employer.
Last, but not least, is ‘the culture’. Culture is always hard to define, but it is important. In fact, our clients often remark on how our culture – our people, and how they behave and approach their work – differentiates us from other firms.
Of course, a big part of our culture is the meritocracy and integrity I’ve mentioned above. But, it is more than that. It is also: the ‘different’, more relaxed atmosphere in our Shoreditch office; the number of social clubs and events we support and run; the non-hierarchical approach (no Partner offices at Capco, well, just one) to our teams; the level of support we offer each other; the level of team-working across client accounts; the ability to make an impact and have your ideas heard; the way our people ‘drop the badge at the door’ and make themselves part of the client team; and, the way we can throw a party, which we do at least twice a year in the Summer and around Xmas.
So, those are some of the main reasons I am still here after more than 6 years. I still can’t think of a better place to do management consulting.
