How to hire a strategy consultant

How to hire a strategy consultant, step by step

Here's a step-by-step strategy consultant hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a strategy consultant job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new strategy consultant
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a strategy consultant do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The strategy consultant hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a strategy consultant to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a strategy consultant that fits the bill.

   Here's a comparison of strategy consultant salaries for various roles:

   Type of Strategy Consultant	Description	Hourly rate
   Strategy Consultant	Management analysts, often called management consultants, propose ways to improve the efficiency of an organization. They advise managers on how to make organizations more profitable through reduced costs and increased revenues.	$41-72
   Manager, Strategy	A strategy manager is a professional who reviews a company's objectives for growth and works with executives to formulate actionable plans to achieve these objectives. To make comprehensive recommendations, strategy managers must conduct data analysis of the organization as well as the overall industry... Show more	$37-73
   Business Development Consultant	The role of business consultants is to provide an analysis of a company on its business practices and make recommendations for long-term goals. This role is also connected with various duties and responsibilities, including reviewing the company's financial statements, engaging in research on how to improve the company's offers, and developing new business models... Show more	$25-65

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Healthcare
   • Project Management
   • Develop Recommendations
   • Client Facing
   • Market Research
   • Business Development
   • Data Analysis
   • Business Strategy
   • Emerging Technologies
   • Process Improvement
   • HR
   • Financial Analysis
   • Shared Services
   • Strategy Development

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Lead project to ensure integration of CMS and other regulations (HIPAA etc . )
   • Achieve SOX compliance requirements across organization.
   • Manage the remediation process using SDLC methodology.
   • Develop and manage all front-of-house operations / logistics including guest control planning, security, celebrity appearances and executive presentations.
   • Develop and manage value-based pricing strategy that maximize profitability and marketability of limited-inventory advertising portfolio.
   • Provide business development and growth direction to technology focuse entrepreneurs and small businesses.

   More strategy consultant duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your strategy consultant job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A strategy consultant can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, strategy consultants' average salary in indiana is 37% less than in alaska.
   • Seniority. Entry-level strategy consultants 42% less than senior-level strategy consultants.
   • Certifications. A strategy consultant with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a strategy consultant's salary.

   Average strategy consultant salary

   $115,244yearly

   $55.41 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level strategy consultant salary

   $87,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 24, 2025

   Average strategy consultant salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$140,688	$68
   2	Washington	$129,682	$62
   3	Massachusetts	$128,837	$62
   4	District of Columbia	$126,314	$61
   5	Maryland	$122,282	$59
   6	New York	$121,911	$59
   7	Texas	$120,577	$58
   8	New Jersey	$118,531	$57
   9	Georgia	$116,436	$56
   10	Oregon	$115,982	$56
   11	North Carolina	$115,823	$56
   12	Connecticut	$115,028	$55
   13	Pennsylvania	$114,776	$55
   14	Virginia	$113,917	$55
   15	Florida	$112,819	$54
   16	Arizona	$112,028	$54
   17	Colorado	$111,025	$53
   18	Utah	$109,975	$53
   19	Illinois	$108,573	$52
   20	Michigan	$104,291	$50

   Average strategy consultant salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Mayo Clinic	$149,562	$71.90
   2	Google	$144,490	$69.47	28
   3	ZS	$143,737	$69.10	53
   4	McChrystal Group	$131,340	$63.14
   5	Microsoft	$130,114	$62.55	14
   6	Amazon	$129,811	$62.41	131
   7	GLG	$128,533	$61.79
   8	Kaiser Permanente	$127,303	$61.20	90
   9	Ernst & Young	$126,191	$60.67	740
   10	Invesco	$124,745	$59.97	2
   11	State Street	$124,019	$59.62
   12	Putnam Associates	$123,850	$59.54
   13	Perkins & Co	$123,569	$59.41
   14	CVS Health	$123,125	$59.19	504
   15	Kronos Incorporated	$121,737	$58.53
   16	Salesforce	$120,420	$57.89	2
   17	Santander Bank	$120,272	$57.82
   18	Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky	$119,859	$57.62
   19	MX	$119,841	$57.62	1
   20	Grant Thornton	$117,650	$56.56	15

4. Writing a strategy consultant job description

   A strategy consultant job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a strategy consultant job description:

   Strategy consultant job description example

   Stax recently announced a strategic investment by Blue Point Capital Partners which will fuel a new chapter of growth in key areas across the firm including expanding our recruitment and talent development efforts. To support our accelerated growth, Stax is growing our talented team of consultants.
   
   We are seeking consultants with 3-5 years of experience who enjoy learning fast and finding new ways to solve challenging and complex business issues. As a Consultant, you'll have a highly visible role on your team, you'll gain terrific client exposure, and your work will directly impact the team's success.
   
   We recognize you are driven by the opportunity to learn by doing. Consultants directly interact with clients and are expected to take initiative, leading to increased responsibility. Working across a wide spectrum of industries on short-term engagements, you will constantly be learning, and expected to share your analyses and data-driven insights. For Consultants, Stax creates an environment where you will have enormous potential for client and industry exposure and career progression.
   
   Life at Stax is unique - our goal is to empower and challenge employees, with a better work/life balance than industry benchmarks. You get more content, more client exposure, and more time to think because of our business model. No question: you'll work hard like in any consulting firm, but Stax has several unique operational differences than firms in the sector, whether large, mid-sized, or boutique. Our case teams benefit from our global skill-specific research and analysis teams (secondary, primary, deep analytics) which provide overnight support. Our efficient and focused approach has always been around content and action orientation, rather than 3-4-5 day on-site models, and long-stays at client sites. While the world has reduced travel for the near term, Stax's model was always far less travel than traditional consulting.
   
   Stax's success stems from our ability to quickly diagnose an issue, develop clear fact-based answers and provide practical next steps. We tackle engagements by debating with facts and analysis. Our consultants are empowered to call it like they see it, rather than deliver answers they think clients want to hear. And this is why we have the client base of large and mid-cap private equity firms and their portfolio companies.
   WHY STAX High-profile engagements with the largest and most recognizable private equity firms globally, the leadership teams of their PE-backed companies, hedge funds, and investment banks. Front-line exposure and leadership roles with our action-oriented, non-bureaucratic client base across sectors and project types. Immersive learning opportunities in a fast-paced environment. Content-focused environment which can nourish your analytically driven opinion. Associates, consultants, and managers are supported by our unique business model with integrated international teams that deliver research, data, analysis, and overnight support to allow you more time to think. Opportunities for personal growth and career development based on the merits of your work - the chance to have more than a 2-3-year stint - real upward mobility. Good people who genuinely care about the firm's success and are consistently exploring ways to improve and build upon its accomplishments. Competitive compensation that rewards strong performance and solid career development through mentorship and coaching opportunities. In addition, we offer comprehensive benefits including medical, dental, and vision coverage for you and your family, 401(k) savings plan with company matching, 3 weeks of vacation, life and disability insurance, generous parental leave, pre-tax transit benefits, mobile phone stipend, wellness reimbursement, charitable gift matching, and more. Responsibilities As a Consultant, you will serve as a key project team member responsible for understanding the client's issues, structuring research plans, conducting in-depth analyses in support of client objectives, and building strategies. You will have exposure to a broad array of client needs and industries. Compensation consists of salary and bonus program competitive with leading strategy consulting firms. Travel pre-Covid was historically minimal (around 10%) and during Covid Stax is currently adhering to local safety guidelines across offices. Specifically, in this role you will: Lead modular components, major project objectives and occasionally own workstreams. Understand client's issues and effectively work with teams and "ask the right questions" to get at main issues and draw conclusions from the data collected. Design research plans, conduct business analyses, and discover insights from data. Develop as a subject matter expert (SME) for client and internal team.
   Structure client deliverables and act as the point person for content and structure thinking. Effectively present sections of a deliverable to clients and field any questions pertaining to your area of oversight.
   In many cases, you will be managing a small team of associates. Participate in client development efforts and help provide development opportunities to other junior team members. Qualifications Candidates must have 3-5 years of experience with a strategy consulting firm, strategic planning/corporate strategy group, or private equity/venture capital firm. Bachelor's degree with demonstrated academic excellence. An MBA degree is valuable but not required. Excellent strategic thinking, understanding of business research and analysis. Strong quantitative and analytical skills required. Detail oriented. Team player. Effective communication skills: written, verbal, and video. Self-starter with an intellectual curiosity, motivated to keep moving things forward. Ability to multitask and work in a fast-paced, time-sensitive environment. Experience hitting deadlines, and experience or interest in managing small teams on project specific modules. Strong command of Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint).

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right strategy consultant for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your strategy consultant job on Zippia to find and recruit strategy consultant candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with strategy consultant candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new strategy consultant

   Once you have selected a candidate for the strategy consultant position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new strategy consultant. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a strategy consultant?