Procurement Career Change: Should You Join a Large Firm or a Small Consultancy?
Posted by Daria Tkach, Senior Recruitment Consultant on Thursday, October 10, 2024
Choosing between a large and a smaller consultancy can have a significant impact on your professional growth as a procurement professional. Whether you are looking to broaden your experience, take on new leadership challenges, or improve your work-life balance, each option presents its own set of advantages and disadvantages.
Here, I outline some of the pros and cons of working for each, so you can make a well-informed choice that aligns with your personal ambitions and professional goals.
The advantages of working for a Big Procurement Consultancy
Career Development Opportunities
Larger consultancies usually provide structured career paths and development programs. With defined ladders and performance reviews, they offer clearer promotion pathways within procurement. Formal training, mentorship, and leadership tracks facilitate long-term procurement career progression. You could have the opportunity to transfer between various procurement departments, clients or relocate to international offices.
Compensation and Benefits
Large procurement consultancies typically provide competitive salaries along with performance-based bonuses, enabling employees to earn extra income based on individual, team, or company success. This rewards high performance and recognizes employee contributions. Additionally, they offer comprehensive benefits packages, including health and life insurance, as well as generous annual leave. Increasingly, many big firms also provide flexible work options, such as remote work and flexible hours.
Procurement Industry Exposure and Networking
Being associated with a well-known firm can enhance your professional credibility and marketability within procurement, as employers can recognise this experience as a sign of high standards, strong skill sets, and exposure to best practices within the industry.
A big consultancy allows you to work across diverse industries and complex, high-value procurement projects making you a more versatile and in-demand procurement professional.
Working with high-profile clients and suppliers can be great for building a strong network in the procurement industry.
The disadvantages of working for a Big Procurement Consultancy
Less Variety in Work
Many big firms specialize in certain industries or sectors. Repeatedly working on similar types of projects can lead to a lack of diversity in daily tasks and duties. In a large organization, individual roles may be more specialized, with employees having less control and fewer responsibilities. This can lead to a sense of being a small cog in a large machine, which may limit job satisfaction for those who prefer a more hands-on, varied approach to their work.
Less Visibility and Recognition
Employees may find it harder to get noticed in what may be a highly competitive environment where numerous talented individuals at the company work on similar projects. This can make it challenging for individuals to stand out and gain recognition for their contributions, leading to the potential for feeling overlooked.
Work-Life Balance
Big procurement consultancies typically deal with high-stakes clients and large-scale projects. Meeting tight deadlines, managing complex supply chains, and ensuring client satisfaction can often lead to employees working long hours. The demanding nature of procurement consulting means that workloads are often unpredictable, with projects requiring extensive research, negotiation, and travel, sometimes making it difficult to maintain regular working hours.
The advantages of working for a Small Procurement Consultancy
Broader Responsibilities
The job roles at small companies are often less specialized than at large firms. Employees at small consultancies have to wear multiple hats, from sourcing and supplier management to contract negotiation and spend analysis. This breadth of experience can accelerate professional development, as individuals are exposed to different aspects of procurement.
Impact and Visibility
The collaborative and intimate environment in smaller firms allows individual contributions in projects to be more visible. Employees frequently engage directly with clients and stakeholders. This allows them to build strong relationships and directly shape procurement strategies that align with client needs, enhancing their ability to deliver tailored solutions and value.
Greater Work-Life Balance
Smaller firms tend on average to promote a better work-life balance compared to larger corporations. This flexibility can lead to a more relaxed atmosphere, enabling employees to focus on delivering high-quality procurement solutions without the pressures often found in larger corporate structures.
The disadvantages of working for a Small Procurement Consultancy
Economic Vulnerability
Smaller consultancies often operate on tighter budgets and may lack the financial reserves that larger firms possess. This makes them more vulnerable to economic downturns, market fluctuations, or changes in client demand. A sudden loss of a major client or an economic recession can significantly impact their revenue streams, putting jobs at risk.
Limited Access to Advanced Tools and Technologies
Small consultancies often operate with tighter budgets, which can restrict access to advanced tools, technologies, and training that larger firms typically offer. This limitation can hinder efficiency, reduce competitiveness, and make it challenging to deliver optimal solutions to clients.
Limited Client Base
Small procurement consultancies often depend on a few major clients for revenue. If one of these clients reduces spending or switches to a competitor, the firm can face significant financial strain. A lack of client diversity may restrict exposure to different sectors and limit opportunities for professional growth.
Conclusion
There is no right answer for which option is better. You as a job seeker need to ensure that the company you choose alights with what you most want.
Whether you're drawn to a large company for its perks and opportunities to work on diverse, larger projects, or prefer the close-knit community and impactful contributions of a smaller firm, it's important to find the right fit for you.
Get in touch with Maxim Recruitment to help you choose the right procurement consultancy, tailored to your needs and career goals.
You can also explore our Procurement opportunities here.
Daria is a Senior Recruitment Consultant with day-to-day responsibility for researching, shortlisting, contacting, and interviewing premium construction industry candidates. Daria works with our UK team to help construction industry jobseekers into exciting new construction jobs with our market leading employer clients. Daria also covers the Canadian market as part of her international recruitment responsibilities. Her focus is on Toronto, Vancouver, Ottawa and other major cities in Canada.