Reply to: anyone contracted at Accenture?

[Churchill]

I worked with them a couple of times, decent environment, good set of lads and ladies.

No problem at all. Got invited out on all the jollies too.

[darmstadt]

Never worked for them but had to rewrite a load of their code at a clients site as it was absolute crap. Written by graduates apparently, no comments, no documentation, no structure and didn't bloody work.

[expat]

having them on my marketing brochure as a client hasn't done my business any harm at all.

Quite so. I might well agree with AtW's presumed feeling that it shouldn't look good, but it does.

[DaveB]

Pretty much the same as any of the big consultancies. Having worked along side Cap Gemini for two and a half years I could say about them exactly what Denny said about Accenture.

[Denny]

I worked with a full compliment/pack/gaggle of Accentures consultants on one of the worst projects of my life. Wasn't helped by the fact that the permie PM couldn't run a bath. Accenture was just taking the piss. These guys were being charged out at £2k per day and they couldn't use msproject let alone write a plan or any other essential project docs.

Wonkers

I've worked with Accenture as a consultant and Anderson Consulting as a temp years ago, before the branding change. When I worked with AC as support staff years ago long before getting my degree, the consultants all seemed to be very slick, professional and highly competent and it was a pleasure working for them.

Now I'm not so praiseworthy. However, I put that mainly down to the general demise in educational standards overall and perhaps my own eductational elevation, changing my perceptions in the process. Their consulting skills seem good enough but their grasp of the essentials - putting together a good presentation, for instance, is appalling. I do think they work extremely hard though, working very long hours, and they certainly have the 'jargon gobbledegook' down pat but I sometimes sense they may be a bit dishonest when they want to be, perhaps telling clients what they want to hear rather than what they need to know and they've certaintly mastered the art of keeping the fees rolling in by making the end-client depend on them totally. I also know, from working as a consultant, that getting on in Accenture is more about office politics rather than competence with favouritism being rife in the organisation. Mind you, that's hardly unique to Accenture.

All of the consultants seem to have an air of mannerly ruthlessness about them too, ensuring that they adopt the end-client culture down pat whilst keeping information in-house when it suits them, and they don't have any human weaknesses on show either. Although superficially polite, even friendly and likeable, their emotional state always seems to be constant no matter what pressures they must be under. They're never tired, bored or annoyed to the point of being tetchy or even that happy, come to think of it. I've never met an Accenture consultant admit that they're having a bad day, look stressed out or demonstrate any kind of human failing. Yet they must feel something because most of them jump ship with burn out after about 4 years. It's a bit like working with a bunch of Star Trek 'Spocks' minus the pointy ears which I sense is part of their own 'onwards and upwards or else you're out' culture forced down their throats by senior management.

They're not as bad as some consultants I've worked with and the Accenture culture is certainly better than what I experienced both at Ernst and Young and Price Waterhouse. They also seem friendly enough now that I'm in business consulting myself and having them on my marketing brochure as a client hasn't done my business any harm at all.

[spankmebono]

I worked with a full compliment/pack/gaggle of Accentures consultants on one of the worst projects of my life. Wasn't helped by the fact that the permie PM couldn't run a bath. Accenture was just taking the piss. These guys were being charged out at £2k per day and they couldn't use msproject let alone write a plan or any other essential project docs.

Wonkers

[ViolentCheese]

I am working with them at one of their client sites. Aside from the s3 group of tosers, they are the biggest bunch of ******* on the face of the planet.

I would laugh at their deaths. Sadly, pissing on their graves would be a waste of urine.

[Billy Pilgrim]

I'm working for them in Warwick at the moment. they seem a good set of lads....but accenture management expect the earth from you.

Still in the office now (61st hour of the week) - luckily I am getting paid for the full whack !!!

[ratewhore]

Some of them just bin CVs with Assenture and other well known companies.

Do you have evidence of this or is it just hearsay? Sounds a load of bollox to me...

[oloks]

Worked with them in Newcastle, and don't think I would want to do it again. Mine was a very hostile working environment.

[DimPrawn]

enture

HTH

[AtW]

Not to mention lots of other companies are bound to love the look of Accentue on your CV.

Some of them just bin CVs with Assenture and other well known companies.

[ratewhore]

Been there - done that - on client site. It was fine, no problems to report of and the accenture permies were OK...

[Ardesco]

Not to mention lots of other companies are bound to love the look of Accentue on your CV.

[decode]

Would never do it. Think about how much people moan about how much agents cream off the top of your rate. Now think about how much Accidenture charge the client and what you're getting. It's obscene.

Also, no offense, but everyone I've ever come across from the big consultancies are numptys...

I've always found it to be a bit of a myth that the big consultancies are full of idiots. I use to work for one and there were some good people working there. Of course they had their fair share of idiots, but you get that anywhere you work, not just large consultancies. I couldn't give a f*** what they charge their client as long as I get a decent rate into the bargain.