Management consulting giant McKinsey is dangling career coaching services and nine months worth of pay to staff keen on leaving the firm, British newspaper The Times reported on Saturday.
According to The Times, managers for McKinsey’s UK offices can spend up to nine months searching for a job instead of working on client projects, citing people familiar with the situation.
Besides continuing to receive their salary, managers would also have access to McKinsey’s resources and career coaching services, per The Times. Staff, however, would still have to leave McKinsey even if their job hunt proves unsuccessful.
The same offer has been reportedly extended to managers working at McKinsey’s US offices as well, though the pay duration offered could be different, The Times said in its report.
A spokesperson for McKinsey did not confirm the specifics of The Times’ reporting, but told the outlet that the company’s mission remains to help their staff “grow into leaders, whether they stay at McKinsey or continue their careers elsewhere.”
“These actions are part of our ongoing effort to ensure our performance management and development approach is as effective as possible, and to do so in a caring and supportive way,” the spokesperson continued.
This wouldn’t be the first time McKinsey has tried to trim its headcount amidst a slowdown in the consulting industry. The consulting giant said it would be cutting about 1,400 jobs or about 3% of its headcount last year, per Bloomberg.
In February, Bloomberg reported that McKinsey had given 3,000 employees poor performance ratings. According to the outlet, employees who receive such ratings have around three months to improve their performance, or they’ll be “counseled to leave” McKinsey.
Last month, McKinsey told senior employees they only have about two and a half years to be promoted, per Bloomberg — amping up the pressure on staff to move up, or out.
Representatives for McKinsey did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.
