Blue-chip consulting firm Bain is reportedly offering new hires $20,000 to become yoga instructors or go on safari for a year

Bain is reportedly offering new MBA hires tens of thousands of dollars to delay their start at the consulting firm. Rick Friedman/Corbis via Getty Images

• Bain is offering new MBA hires tens of thousands of dollars to delay their starts, per The Wall Street Journal.
• Some MBAs were offered $20,000 to become yoga instructors or go on safari.
• The incentives come as the consulting industry faces layoffs and a challenging economy.

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Bain & Company is offering new MBA hires tens of thousands of dollars to delay their starts at the firm, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.

In an effort to push back start dates in an uncertain economy, the consulting firm is offering some new MBA hires $40,000 to work for a nonprofit and push their start dates to April 2024, per the Journal. Other communications show the firm offering new hires $30,000 to learn a new language and $20,000 to become yoga instructors or go on a safari in Africa, per the Journal.

McKinsey, meanwhile, did not notify most of their MBA hires of start dates until this week, and some won't start work until next year, per the Journal.

The move to push back start dates for MBA candidates comes as layoffs hit the consulting industry, along with the tech and finance sectors that account for a large number of consultancies' clients.

McKinsey announced plans to eliminate around 2,000 jobs in February. The layoffs reportedly target support roles and are meant to save money that can be used for consultant jobs.

Keith Bevans, Bain's global head of consultant recruiting, told the Journal that asking new hires to delay their start by a year is new for the firm.

"We try to encourage more people to start earlier when times are busy," Bevans said.

Bain did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

Firms like Bain and McKinsey often offer new MBA hires some of the highest salaries in an industry that is already one of the highest paying for business school graduates. Both firms offered a base salary of $192,000 in 2023, according to Management Consulted, a resource site for careers in consulting.

In previous years, Bain and McKinsey have offered base salaries of $175,000 to between $190,000 to $192,000 to MBA graduates.