Pros
For those who work at HQ, a major perk is the ability to work on multiple projects at one time. Many staff work on 2 or 3 projects concurrently, and maybe a bit of additional time supporting an internal initiative or proposal. This is a great way to get exposed to different people and different interesting projects. LMI recently moved to a matrix org structure, in which you belong to a service line (advanced analytics, management advisory, digital services, or logistics) and also a market area. This means that on any project, you may find staff from multiple service lines working together.
The people at LMI are the types of people you want to work with – smart, collaborative, helpful, but not cutthroat or backstabbing. Staff works hard and meets deliverables, but it’s not a culture that pressures long hours. Unlike some other firms, there is no constant pressure to meet certain billable targets (these targets exist, but LMI doesn’t focus on them to the extent that other big consulting firms do). Work times can be flexible, so it is common for someone to work 8 – 3pm, leave early to avoid traffic, and then work 2 hours later in the afternoon. Working on internal projects is encouraged. I have personally found all the managers really encouraging and focusing on their staff’s growth. LMI will pay for pretty much any external training you want (within reason) if you are willing to put in the effort.
LMI’s building is beautiful, and really promotes collaboration. Staff sit in mid sized cubicles where you can stand up and talk to your neighbor. Most of the meeting rooms have glass walls where people write with erasable markers. You can always find a small glass team room to collaborate with just a teammate or two, without a reservation. All the meeting rooms have large monitors where you can plug your laptops into. Meetings usually include a Skype connection (we are now moving to Zoom, but pretty much the same thing). Free onsite parking makes it easy to drive to work (minus the rush hour Tysons traffic).
LMI makes a good effort promoting its culture though various extra curricular groups. The women’s forum (men are invited too) has been a recent overwhelming success, as well as groups for LGBTQ, Veterans, and more social clubs for runners, softball, golf, gamers, environmentalists. LMI has a really fun Toastmasters club that meets 2x a month. We also have occasional events like a trivia contest, company picnic, March Madness watch party, etc… Did I mention that we now have unlimited leave?
Cons
LMI’s flat organizational culture means that there are a lot of consultants, and just a few directors who consultants report to. The ratios can be pretty high, so in many cases It can be difficult to get face time with the director who will ultimately be giving your performance review. This could be especially hard for off-site staff. Staff still have project leads to seek for help for project related issues, but for more career related advice, the directors are pretty busy. With that said, I feel like all the directors really care about their staff, their time is just limited.
Along with LMI’s flatter structure, pay raises and bonuses lag behind those of other firms. Pay increases are modest year to year, and differences between bonuses for top and bottom employees isn’t huge. From what I have seen (and I admit the process is new), there is no big pay bump if you get promoted to from analyst to sr. analyst, etc….
