real Projects with real impact
Many universities have courses and student clubs that allow students to work on non-profit consulting projects for local organizations. As excellent as these experiences are, they’re often not widely available, and tend to be more theoretical than practical. Students are not on-site interacting with the client every day, and their work is often not implemented.
Beacon is different. In addition to working with a real, experienced MBB consultant, you’re working on a real project solving a real problem that the client is facing. Simply put, Fellows’ work is never theoretical. Our Fellows’ work makes it to executive management and gets implemented — the impact is real.
We apply five primary parameters when developing a project with our clients:
1. Projects are real and impact the client significantly. The project is not a collection of menial tasks but is important to the client’s core mission.
2. Projects translate into tangible results. Consultants are successful only insofar as they can have a measurable positive impact for the client.
3. Projects are challenging and push Fellows beyond their comfort zones. Solutions are usually complex, and Fellows arrive at them only via significant mental effort and creativity.
4. Projects are multi-dimensional, forcing the Fellows to use & develop the whole of their business acumen, knowledge, and skills.
5. Projects are robust and substantial to engage Fellows throughout the entire Fellowship.
examples of Past Projects
Below are some past projects our Fellows have worked on. With every client, we develop a project that matches their own needs, meaning every project is unique. However, regardless of the industry, client size, or project scope, it will be both challenging and an excellent experience in consulting.
Market Viability
Client: Airbus: the top aircraft manufacturer in the world
Project Lead: Viet, Harvard Business School MBA, 3 years at McKinsey
Team: 16 Fellows
Location: Madrid, Spain
Project: Beacon was asked to test the market for a cutting edge technology for Airbus; Fellows had to analyze competitors and potential customers in order to determine if this product had a viable market in the aerospace industry.
Outcome: The Fellows were able to identify three potential industries for Airbus to focus their attention; they also outlined some next steps for the company to take in order to secure these potential customers. Airbus was given a detailed plan of action in order to capture the available market for their new product.
Emerging technology & marketing Strategy
Client: MedLab Media Group, a technology enterprise that develops AI healthcare & database solutions
Project Lead: Eric, 3+ years at McKinsey
Team: 8 Fellows
Location: Madrid, Spain
Project: MedLab had Fellows determine the market size of of emerging technologies in different regions, conduct a competitive analysis in the e-Health, blockchain, AI, and VR-AR realms, identify technology trends for future market penetration, and implement a scaled long-tail, low-cost PPC digital marketing strategy.
Outcome: After synthesizing the Fellows' work, the client will transition into implementation.
P2p marketplace Go-to-market Strategy
Client: vendi, a verified peer-to-peer marketplace for new & used smartphones
Project Lead: Viet, 3+ years at McKinsey, Harvard MBA
Team: 12 Fellows
Location: London, United Kingdom
Project: Fellows investigated vendi’s expansion into 3 new international markets as well as expansion within the UK. Fellows focused their analyses by country, including cultural understandings, market sizing, and competitive forces. The Fellows even conducted customer interviews on the streets of London and used data to back up their final recommendation for international expansion.
Outcome: After working closely with the Fellows, the CEO and COO are now using Fellows’ recommendations to guide their expansion timeline going forward.
Summer 2019 Beacon Fellows at the Vendi client site in London.
2019 Fellows refine slides during project work at the BaseKX client site near the UCL campus in London.