This semester, two of my fellow Opinion columnists have written pieces concerning the presence of consulting on Grounds and its effects on the University’s community. More specifically, Jesse Berman focused on how the overrepresentation of consulting firms at job and internship fairs can result in apathy towards the events amongst students uninterested in the field. Meanwhile, Will Evans sought to illuminate the dishonorable aspects of entering the financial services sector in an attempt gain a higher status, encouraging students to look to other, “nobler” next steps in life. While both pieces were well thought out and contained understandable concerns, I take issue with the narrow scope of consulting they rely on and the stigma they place on those choosing careers in search of wealth.
Evans points out that the University’s competitive atmosphere lends itself to the financial services sector, creating a culture in which success is often equated with securing a position in a top firm, eventually leading to wealth and status — a point on which I would definitely agree. However, he then goes on to characterize working for a for-profit company as a “shallow pursuit in life.” In doing so, he provides a narrow scope of consulting firms, which often serve non-profit companies as well, while also failing to at least recognize the ways in which money incentivizes businesses to serve us.
While it may seem immoral to make money through helping companies profit, it is important to consider the scope of what those companies will be using that money for, which could include purposes most people would categorize as noble, such as research and development for new treatments for illnesses. For example, Bain and Company’s work with PillCo, an international pharmaceutical company, enabled its research and development department to reach its goal of bringing an average of 2.5 blockbuster New Chemical Entities (drugs that FDA have approved and found to contain to active moiety) to market each year. Another sector in which Bain’s work has helped produce positive impact in aiding companies such as Lavazza reduce energy consumption.
Evans notes Swarthmore Psychology Prof. Barry Schwartz’s findings that most people do not work simply to make money, but to improve the lives of others. When one considers this finding, as well as the fact that many jobs in the financial services sector directly or indirectly improve others’ lives, it becomes clear pursuing a job within consulting does not necessarily mean selling one’s soul.
Additionally, this characterization of those pursuing careers resulting in wealth illustrates a stigma that our society too often places on those motivated by and in search of it. While money should by no means be the only reason for which someone seeks out a career, it is also unfair to label as greedy someone who may choose a particular path partly due to a desire to utilize the wealth it would provide. As cliché as it may sound, money is a tool. Pursuing it, both on the part of individuals and companies, means pursuing the means necessary to provide for those around you, carry out a mission or prove one’s worth to society (although different people may see varying amounts of wealth as necessary to fulfill their desires). Keeping in mind this view of money, it becomes harder to consider working for a for-profit company, or a consulting firm aiming to help one, an endeavor that could result in one’s sacrificing “even the slightest degree of dignity.”
Furthermore, Evans notes corporations enticing students with the “idea that top University graduates become analysts, analysts become associates and associates become vice presidents.” However, this depicted chain seems to be one that could only be attained by working your way up, and I have a hard time understanding what is so bad about attaining status and wealth if it is the result of hard work and talent, as well as putting in that work due to that desire to attain it. While Evans most likely did not mean to demean hard work or talent, I do not think his contention that the initial motivation to join consulting is in certain ways a corrupted one holds due to the broad nature of consulting, the various ways in which people view money and the fact that it is human nature to desire wealth. Due to the many motivations driving people into fields such as consulting, it seems unfair to say that for most people, the end result of wealth and status may not be what they hope.
One problem is that Evans seems to set pursuing the financial services sector and the liberal arts in opposition. Wanting “more” in terms of status and wealth is human nature, so I also doubt that students would not seek a way into “the high life” if consulting firms did not have such a large presence on Grounds. It only makes sense that students would simply seek out that status in other pursuits, although it may seem less obvious if it were not in competition toward one area to which our community attributes value, but many different areas instead. Consulting hardly creates a desire for status, (other than a “cool factor” that its competitiveness may lend it while still a student) but rather channels pre-existing desires to one area.
While pursuing a field simply out of a sheer desire to enact change is certainly noble, it is also not feasible for most people. Furthermore, the characterization of the financial services sector, specifically consulting, as a dishonorable path due to its role in making money off of helping people make money is unfair, because it fails to recognize the ways in which that money is then often used to serve society’s needs and desires. It also places an unfair stigma on those who wish to pursue wealth for various reasons.
Alyssa Imam is an Opinion columnist for The Cavalier Daily. She can be reached at a.imam@cavalierdaily.com.
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