Second place isn't easy to swallow. In the end, BCG was just .51 of a point behind Bain. On the plus side, there weren't any deep score drops over the past year from BCG survey respondents. International Opportunities fell by .227 of a point -- a number that is tempered by a year of pandemic. Compensation slipped by .10 of a point -- a number that's softened by a .289 improvement over the past 2 years. The one number that does stick out: a .348 of a point drop over the past two year in Work-Life Balance -- a number that ultimately accounts for 10% of a ranking (and a rubric where Bain traditionally excels).