Analysis Group Interviews and Culture

Updated

Today, as we continue our firm profile series, we’re looking at Analysis Group. Founded in 1981, Analysis Group is one of the largest international economics consulting firms. Stacked full of big-brained folks, most of the firm’s 1,200-strong staff hold advanced degrees in law, economics, finance, accounting, or business. Analysis Group clients include the likes of government agencies, law firms, and Fortune 500 companies around the world.

It’s not just the impressive credentials that set employees apart; Analysis Group has a strong reputation as a great place to work and has scooped up a hatful of awards, including its 2023 ranking in the top ten of Vault’s “Consulting 50,” which ranks the best consulting firms to work for in North America.

Interested in learning more about Analysis Group and if it is a good fit for you? We have all the information you need – dig in now!

Firm Profile Overview (click to jump to section):

KEY STATS

  • Website: www.analysisgroup.com
  • Headquarters: Boston, MA
  • Employees: 1,200+ Consultants
  • Locations: 14 Offices
  • Chief Executive: Martha S. Samuelson
  • Revenue: $250M
  • Engagement Cost: $450K (estimated)

ANALYSIS GROUP HISTORY

Analysis Group was formed by Bruce Stangle and Michael Koehn – both PhD holders and former Arthur D. Little consultants – in 1981 in Belmont, MA. Analysis Group’s initial focus was on mergers and acquisitions before moving into other areas such as intellectual property and antitrust. The firm’s ethos, as evidenced by its bent toward advanced degrees, is a blend of academia and business litigation through economic research. The firm takes on both large legal disputes and pro bono engagements with nonprofits. Analysis Group also has a multidisciplinary health care practice and does work in policy and business strategy.

Initially working out of nine offices in the US and one in Montreal, in the last decade Analysis Group has begun to stretch its wings internationally, having opened a Beijing office in 2012, as well as three offices in Europe (Brussels, London, and Paris).

ANALYSIS GROUP CAREERS

As Analysis Group has grown over the past few years, the firm has become well known for creating a collaborative environment. Everyone is in it together, and everyone wants to help each other succeed.

Compared to MBB, you’re unlikely to get as much access to C-level execs, but you are going to work with a large number of experts across a number of fields. To use its legal work as an example, Analysis Group has worked with most of the top law firms in the country, giving you access to some of the greatest legal minds around.

On a day-to-day basis, you may be helping a law firm critique an opponent’s expert analysis and develop financial models, or you may be helping government and corporate clients value companies and analyze markets for mergers and acquisitions. Alternatively, in the health care practice, you may be quantifying the cost-effectiveness of health care treatments or using real-world data sources and analytical techniques to assess disease burden and treatment outcomes.

Analysis Group seems to be uniquely positioned in the consulting world. In some ways, it feels like a boutique firm, whereas in others, it feels more like a traditional strategy firm.

Practice Areas

Industries

Analysis Group is mostly known for its economics consulting work with law firms and governments. However, it also offers economics, financial, and strategy consulting services to corporations and government agencies, and it has a robust health care practice.

Analysis Group Locations

Asia

  • Beijing, China

Canada

  • Montreal, Quebec

Europe

  • Brussels, Belgium
  • London, UK
  • Paris, France

United States

  • Boston, MA – Headquarters
  • Chicago, IL
  • Dallas, TX
  • Denver, CO
  • Los Angeles, CA
  • Menlo Park, CA
  • New York, NY
  • San Francisco, CA
  • Washington, DC

Analysis Group Career Path

Analysis Group is pretty prescriptive in terms of the careers that are open to its employees, depending on their level of education. If you are an undergraduate or a graduate student with limited work experience, you will start out as an analyst. At other firms, an MBA or advanced degree is a surefire way of getting hired into a more senior role, but relevant experience will also open that door to you. At Analysis Group, however, you simply will not get above the analyst pay grade without a master’s degree.

If you do have the requisite education and experience, you will be hired as an associate. From there, assuming all goes well, you will then become a manager, then vice president, and then principal or managing principal.

Analysis Group Internship and Externship

An Analysis Group internship can take the form of either a summer analyst (undergrad) or summer associate (advanced degree) position. As with most internships, the goal for the firm is to lock down full-time talent early, which is why many of the firm’s internship slots go to students at its target schools. Because of the dearth of internship slots as compared to full-time, the Analysis Group internship process is more competitive.

Analysis Group also offers an externship program to introduce rising sophomores from historically underrepresented backgrounds to the world of economic consulting.

Exit Opportunities

Opportunities abound for Analysis Group alumni. Even though Analysis Group is a boutique firm, the work it does is across a broad enough spectrum of industries and practice areas that you will not be pigeonholed in the same way you would be coming from other boutique firms.

Compared to MBB, whose alumni often go on to become CEOs at brand-name companies, Analysis Group’s alumni portfolio is not as impressive – but should by no means be disregarded. Having Analysis Group on your resume conveys intelligence and a driven, high-performing nature.

One thing that cannot be ignored: Given the high number of staff members with PhDs and law degrees, one common exit opportunity is to go back into academia or law. In addition to this, having so many staff members with degrees that are uncommon among the mainstream field of management consultants gives former Analysis Group staff the chance to exit into fields that are unavailable to most management consultants.

It’s often said that one year in consulting is worth three years in the industry, and working at Analysis Group is a valuable experience to have, no matter what you want to do after.

Notable Alumni

  • Eric Bukovinsky – Partner – Yaletown Partners Inc.
  • Clark Kibler – Senior Product Manager – Google
  • Jiaona Zhang – Chief Product Officer – Linktree
  • Andrew Song – Co-founder – Make Sunsets
  • Elizabeth Stone – Chief Technology Officer – Netflix
  • Sura Tilakawardane – SVP, Global Head of Pricing, Packaging and Promotions – Streaming – Warner Bros. Discovery
  • Josiah Seale – Director and Senior Principal, Real World Data Operations – Clarivate
  • Vikas Bhagat – Senior Director, Head of Product Marketing – Webflow
  • Nancy Wogrin Confrey – Principal – Inflexion Point Consulting
  • Kumi Harischandra – Research Scientist – Meta
  • Reed Hatch – Owner – Moffit Peak
  • Jonathan Casper – Investment Analyst, Vice President – T. Rowe Price

ANALYSIS GROUP CULTURE

Analysis Group’s firm culture is one of its strongest selling points. Analysis Groupers can’t seem to stop themselves from waxing lyrical about how great it is to work there, how great the management staff is, etc. etc. etc. – always a good hallmark of any culture.

Just like that friend of yours who’s saturating social media with pictures of their new kitten, Analysis Groupers gushing praises can start to sound a bit monotonous after a while. Let’s not forget, however, that having staff who are as happy as Analysis Groupers seems to really speak volumes about what it must be like to work there.

Among the many things that Analysis Group consultants can’t seem to get enough of is the work-life balance at the firm (although you should not be surprised if you’re working 16+ hours days as you approach important deadlines), the fact that you don’t have to travel as an Analysis Group consultant, and the investments that middle and senior management make in junior colleagues.

In terms of career development, again, the report is very positive. There are lots of formal and informal training opportunities and classes, as well as support if you’re applying for graduate school.

The whole graduate school issue does raise an important consideration for those of you without advanced degrees. Without an MBA or a PhD, you won’t get very far up the ladder, which, no matter how talented you are, is going to have a huge bearing on your compensation. The good news? Analysis Group pays if you want to go back – yet another reason to rave about how great it is to work there. Analysis Group also recently sponsored a part-time graduate school sponsorship program through which high performing analysts can obtain financial support to pursue a master’s degree while continuing to work at the firm.

Analysis Group Salary

For a full look at Analysis Group salary at either the analyst or associate level, check out our salaries report.

Core Values

  • Access – Maintaining close ties to top-level individuals in government, academia, and industry, with the goal of providing clients access to the best people possible.
  • Collaboration – Fostering good relationships within teams, between teams, and with clients.
  • Responsiveness – As a result of all the work they do with experts, Analysis Group can quickly identify who to work with and can scale its cases up or down as the situation requires.
  • Pragmatism – A simple focus on workable and relevant solutions.

Awards

While most of the awards that Analysis Group wins are internal (large cheering section of employees), the firm is recognized externally as well:

(2024) America’s Greatest Workplaces for Women (Mid-size Companies) – Newsweek

(2023) Top ten of Vault “Consulting 50” list of the best consulting firms to work for in North America

(2023) Top 100 Women-Led Businesses in Massachusetts – The Women’s Edge

ANALYSIS GROUP INTERVIEWS

About half of Analysis Group’s recruitment comes from its presence on various campuses, with another large portion coming from online applications. The firm generally conducts interviews over two rounds. The first-round interview is typically conducted virtually and the second is in office.

While it is always a smart move to be sharp when it comes to cases, at Analysis Group, they don’t do case interviews. What?! That’s right – they are one of the only firms without a focus on cases. It’s great news for those of you with dazzling personalities who break into hives at the sight of mental math.

As such, you need to make sure you can talk about your resume and your experience backward, forwards, and at length. Interviews will focus on behavioral and technical questions. You will also have the opportunity to ask questions about the role, the work, and life at Analysis Group. Analysis Group places a much higher value on the fit element of the interview when compared with other firms, so be prepared with 15+ specific stories.

Target Schools

Analysis Group recruits at a number of schools, and the schools are usually tied to the presence of a hot, fast-growing regional office.

  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • Harvard University
  • Dartmouth College
  • University of Pennsylvania
  • McGill University
  • Middlebury College
  • University of Virginia
  • Georgetown University
  • George Washington University
  • University of California, Los Angeles
  • The University of Chicago
  • University of Southern California
  • Williams College

Diversity Programs

Analysis Group is an equal opportunity employer and has five affinity groups: Asians@AG, AG Pride, AGWomen+, Black@AG, and Latins@AG.

Analysis Group also has an established DE&I team that executes DE&I-focused initiatives and programming, as well as a dedicated DE&I recruiting team.

In addition, the firm has had a female CEO, Martha Samuelson, for almost 20 years. But does that move the needle when it comes to DE&I? We’re sure it does – see the awards above.

Conclusion

Analysis Group is a reputable firm in the world of economics consulting. If you’re eyeing a career at AG, tailor your resume to the firm’s requirements to stand out as a candidate. Work with MC on case interview prep if you need a helping hand in the process!

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