I’ve reviewed thousands of networking emails from MBB candidates over the past decade. Most of them follow the same pattern:
“Hi [name], I’m currently pursuing my MBA at [school] and have always been fascinated by management consulting. Your career trajectory is incredibly inspiring. I’d love to pick your brain over a quick coffee chat to learn more about your experience at Bain. Please let me know if you have 15 minutes in the coming weeks.”
This email will sit unread in someone’s inbox until it disappears.
Not because the person is rude. Because this email gives them nothing.
Here’s what most candidates get wrong: they treat networking like a transaction where they’re the customer.
“I need information. You have it. Please give it to me.”
But you’re not the customer here. You’re the seller. And the person you’re emailing? They’re deciding whether to buy what you’re offering.
What are you offering in return for Twenty minutes of their evening explaining their job to a stranger. NOTHING! That’s a terrible product.
Every interaction in your professional life is a sales. The case interview is a sales process. The fit interview is a sales process. The Partner chat is sales. The networking email is just the first interaction in the sales process.
And here’s the uncomfortable truth about sales: nobody cares about the seller’s needs
Stop thinking about what you want from them.
Start thinking about what problem you can solve for them.
“But I’m the candidate. I don’t have anything to offer a McKinsey Principal.”
Wrong. You have plenty to offer. You just haven’t thought about it correctly.
Your job is to deliver one of these things.
Part One: The Opening
Your first sentence determines whether they read the rest.
Most candidates open with themselves:
“I’m a second-year MBA…”
“I’m currently working at…”
“I’ve always been interested in…”
This is backwards. Open with them.
Specificity beats flattery.
Generic: “I really admire the work BCG is doing in healthcare.”
Specific: “Your piece on value-based care reimbursement models raised a question I’ve been thinking about since my time at UnitedHealth.”
The specific version works because it signals three things: you actually read their work, you have relevant context, and you might have something interesting to say.
If you can’t be specific, be direct.
“I’m reaching out about Associate roles in your Chicago office. I have a specific question about how BCG evaluates non-traditional candidates.”
Direct is better than vague. Consultants respect efficiency.
What never works:
“I hope this finds you well” (filler)
“I know you’re busy, but…” (then why are you emailing?)
“I’d love to pick your brain” (what does this even mean?)
Part Two: The Value
This is where most emails collapse.
The typical candidate lists credentials:
Years of experience
Company names
Degrees
“Passion for problem-solving”
Credentials are table stakes. Everyone applying to McKinsey has credentials. Listing them tells the reader nothing about why they should engage with you specifically.
Instead, demonstrate thinking.
Here’s the shift: don’t tell them what you’ve done. Show them how you think.
Weak: “I have 5 years of experience in supply chain at P&G.”
Strong: “I led a distribution network redesign at P&G that cut logistics costs 23% – the interesting part was convincing plant managers to accept lower utilization rates. Happy to share what worked if it’s relevant to your consumer goods practice.”
The second version offers something. It hints at an insight. It gives them a reason to respond beyond charity.
The best version: give before you ask.
“I noticed Bain recently published on grocery delivery economics. Based on my work at Instacart, I think there’s a missing variable in the unit economics model – the hidden cost of picker fatigue on order accuracy. Wrote up a quick analysis here [link]. Would value your reaction if you have five minutes.”
You’ve now given them something useful. The dynamic has shifted entirely.
Part Three: The Ask
Make responding require zero effort.
Bad: “Let me know if you’d be open to connecting sometime.”
This forces them to check their calendar, think about their schedule, compose a thoughtful response. That’s five minutes of work. They’ll do it later. Later becomes never.
Better: “Could you do 15 minutes on Tuesday at 6pm or Wednesday at 7pm ET?”
Best: “I know your schedule is unpredictable. Send me any two slots that work over the next two weeks and I’ll make either happen.”
The second option gives them a binary choice. Easy to answer.
The third option signals you understand consulting life – they’re staffed on projects, they travel, their calendars change hourly. You’re accommodating their reality.
Highest probability: shared affiliation
Same school. Same previous employer. Same hometown. Same undergraduate institution. Same obscure extracurricular.
The shared context does half the work for you. Use it.
Underrated: go senior
Most candidates target Associates and Engagement Managers. They’re closer in age, less intimidating.
But Partners and Principals get fewer networking requests. They have more autonomy to make introductions. And they’re often more generous with time because they remember what recruiting felt like.
The catch: you need to bring real substance. A Partner won’t spend 20 minutes explaining “what a typical day looks like.”
Often overlooked: recruiting team
Recruiters are measured on hiring quality. Finding strong candidates makes them look good. They’re not gatekeepers – they’re talent scouts. Treat them accordingly.
Lowest probability: random LinkedIn connections
Everyone does this. It rarely works. The signal-to-noise ratio is terrible.
Email beats LinkedIn.
LinkedIn messages scream “I’m job hunting and messaging everyone.” Email signals intention. You found their address. You made an effort.
Most consulting email formats are predictable: firstname.lastname@firm.com
Your alumni database likely has direct contacts. Use it.
If you must use LinkedIn:
Remove the “Open to Work” banner immediately. It commoditizes you.
Send a connection request with a note, not an InMail. InMails feel transactional.
Keep it even shorter than email. LinkedIn messages over four sentences don’t get read.
Consultants have bizarre schedules. Monday is travel day. Friday is internal meetings and trying to leave early. Wednesday and Thursday are usually client site days.
Best windows:
Tuesday morning before 9am
Sunday evening (yes, they’re working)
Within an hour of them posting content online (they’re clearly at their computer)
One follow-up after 7-10 days is appropriate. Two maximum. Then move on.
No response doesn’t mean rejection. It means they’re drowning. I’ve seen responses arrive months later.
Most candidates approach networking as supplicants. “Please help me. I need this. I’m asking for a favor.”
This energy is palpable in every word you write. It makes people want to avoid you.
The alternative: approach networking as a peer offering value.
You have experiences they don’t have. You’ve seen industries from the inside that they only see as clients. You have perspectives shaped by work they’ve never done.
That’s not nothing. That’s valuable.
Your job is to package that value in a way that makes engaging with you obviously worthwhile.
Here’s an email that worked for a candidate I coached last year. She was targeting BCG’s healthcare practice from a nursing background – non-traditional, no MBA.
Subject: Quick question on BCG’s payer work
Hi [name],
Your recent piece on Medicare Advantage risk adjustment caught my attention – particularly the point about documentation gaps driving revenue leakage.
I spent six years as a nurse care manager at Humana, and I saw this from the clinical side daily. The problem isn’t just documentation – it’s that the EHR workflow actively discourages complete capture. I mapped out where the friction points are and have some ideas on intervention design.
Would you have 15 minutes for a call? I’m exploring roles in BCG’s healthcare practice and would value your perspective. Happy to share my analysis regardless – might be useful for future payer work.
Available Tuesday or Thursday after 6pm ET, or whenever works for you.
She got a response within four hours. The Principal was genuinely interested in her EHR analysis. That conversation led to a referral to recruiting.
Notice what she did:
You’re going to read this and agree with it. You’re going to think “this makes sense.”
Then tomorrow, you’re going to write: “Hi, I’m a current MBA student interested in consulting…”
Because changing habits is hard. Because writing about yourself feels safer than offering value. Because you’re not sure you have anything worth offering.
You do. You just need to find it.
Tonight, pick one person you want to reach. One. Look at what they’ve published, posted, or worked on recently. Find the intersection between their world and yours.
Then write an email that makes them think: “This person is sharp. I want to talk to them.”
That’s the whole game.
The best networking doesn’t feel like networking at all. It feels like two professionals exchanging ideas.
That’s how you get into McKinsey, BCG, and Bain through the side door.
As a former Bain recruiter, I’ve helped countless candidates turn ignored outreach into real conversations and referrals. Book a free intro call with me today, and let’s craft a strategy that actually gets you responses.
Good luck – and enjoy the ride!
As a coach with consulting experience, I can provide you with more tips and one-on-one practice to sharpen your estimation techniques. Book a intro session with my team to know more.
