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How To Ace Case Study Interview

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Tips To Ace Your Case

ACE THE CONSULTING INTERVIEW – Interview tips from Ex-McKinsey consultant (case study etc.)

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Final Tips For A Successful Case Interview

The critical thing to remember about a case interview is that it is not meant to stump or frustrate the candidate. They reflect real challenges that businesses and organizations face every day and encourage creative answers.

Preparing for a case interview can feel daunting, but the more time a person puts in before the meeting, the better results they should see. Confidence in their problem-solving abilities and probing questions go a long way. Each interview is an opportunity to grow and practice those skills even if the interview does not result in a job offer, it can still be a rewarding experience.

Top 5 Consulting Fit Questions

Here are the top 5 most common consulting fit questions:

  • Introduce yourself / walk me through your resume.

  • Tell me something thats not on your resume.

  • Tell me about your greatest accomplishment.

  • Now lets step through each of the top questions so youll be prepared for them.

    #1 Why firm X?

    Weve covered the “Why McKinsey / BCG / Bain?” question in detail in the past. Almost all consulting firms will ask you that question at some point.

    Note: At McKinsey and BCG, this question is more likely to be asked during a networking or firm event than it is to be asked during the behavioral interview.

    This is to check that your interest in their firm is genuine and not only based on their reputation.

    As you prepare for consulting interviews, try to grasp what sets each of the firms apart by talking to consultants in your network or at recruiting events.

    Here are the top 5 most common Personal Experience Interview questions:

    Tell me about a time when…

  • You led a team through a tough situation

  • You worked in a team and had to manage conflict

  • You had a disagreement with a colleague / boss

  • You had to change someone’s / a group’s mind

  • You overcame a really difficult challenge

  • Expect to get mostly, if not exclusively just PEI questions at McKinsey and BCG.

    Personal experience interview questions are different than fit questions because they are less generic.

    Here are the main five themes that will be covered in these personal experience interview questions:

    #1 Leading others

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    C Merger & Acquisition Cases Framework

    M& A refers to the consolidation of companies or assets. When you are given a case that would require you to determine whether or not an acquisition would be beneficial for the company, you can use the M& A cases framework to analyze the transaction and develop a hypothesis. Working on M& A cases requires consideration of market and company attractiveness and synergies and potential risks related to the acquisition.

    Which Candidates Get A Bcg Written Case Interview

    How To Prepare A Case Study For An Interview

    BCG does not use written cases in all of its locations. Weve heard of BCG using written cases in U.S. offices, Russia, Sweden, the Netherlands, and South Africa.

    When they do use written cases, its always in the second round of interviews and you will know well ahead of time to prepare for them, so no need to worry if it will be a surprise come interview day.

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    What Is The First Round Interview

    So what is a round of interviews anyway?

    Management consulting firms typically have 2 or more interviewers meet with a candidate on the same day in back-to-back meetings. This set of interviews is called a round and if its your first interview, its the first round.

    Having candidates meet with multiple interviewers allows the company to ask candidates about different types of business situations and to get multiple points of feedback.

    Consulting firms invest a lot of time and resources into hiring great people. They want to make well-informed decisions. Having candidates meet with multiple interviewers helps them do this because it reduces the potential for bias from any one viewpoint. It also ensures candidates dont just get lucky/unlucky with one interviewer.

    In addition, once a candidate is hired, they could be placed on a team with any of the consultants theyve met with or any other consultant at the firm. Consulting companies want to make sure candidates arent just qualified to work on one type of case but on a broad range of business problems. They also dont want a consultant who can work effectively with one or two people theyve met, but with anyone at their firm.

    Case Study Interview Example Questions

    Unlike other common interview questions, its not as easy to prepare an answer to case study interview questions. Even though you know its a case study interview, you dont necessarily know the specifics of the case or what problems youll be asked to solve.

    That said, its likely your case study interview questions will cover one or several of these concepts:

    • Entering new markets
    • Competitive response

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  • Get a feeling and true understanding of the problem and the objective
  • Lay out an exhaustive, well-thought-through structure
  • Build an initial hypothesis and prioritize the different areas
  • Gather data based on your hypothesis and priorities
  • Evaluate the data keeping in mind your problem and goal
  • Track down the root cause and the area which would have the biggest impact
  • Develop possible solutions, weigh them, and choose the best one. Make sure your solution is based on the data irrespective of whether it is positive or negative. Keep in mind that the best feasible solution is truly the best solution!
  • Do you need more insightful tips on how to approach your case interview in management consulting? Read our comprehensive case interview guide that gives you tips for your case interview preparation, step-by-step explanations to solve the case, and lastly 13 valuable tips for your actual interview day.

    Organizational Structure The Heart Of A Company

    How the Job Description Helps You Ace the Interview | Case Study in Advanced Techniques

    When it comes to organizational structure, it is important to notice the fine line between the companys ownership and management.Technically, at the highest level, there are . For private companies, the group of shareholders and their shares are not necessarily disclosed and publicly tradable. For public companies, on the other hand, shares are publicly traded on different stock exchanges. One of the most famous is the NYSE, which stands for New York Stock Exchange.

    Board of DirectorsPresidentChairmanChief Executive Officer CEOSupervisors.

    Below CEOs, there are two generally two ways of structuring the company. One way is through business lines and the other one is through functions. Think of business lines as mini-companies themselves inside the big company.

    Within functions, here are a few most typical divisions most companies have:

    Also Check: Interview Questions On Ci Cd Pipeline

    What To Expect In Your First Round Interviews With Consulting Firms

    First round consulting interviews are usually held on-campus with more junior consultantsanalysts, associates or engagement managersconducting the interviews. Candidates are selected for first round interviews based on their resume and cover letter.

    If you attend a non-target school where the firm does not recruit on campus, your first interview may be a single phone call before you have your official first round. This may also be the case if youre applying as an experienced hire .

    The Problem Driven Structure

    MyConsultingCoachs Problem Driven Approach is a universal problem solving method that can be applied to any business problem irrespectively of its nature. It works by generating a bespoke framework for each individual case question and is a simplified version of the roadmap McKinsey consultants use when working on engagements. The canonical seven steps from McKinsey are simplified to four as the analysis required for a six-month engagement is clearly different from that of a 45-minute case study. However, the underlying flow is the same. Let’s take a look.

    Identify the problem

    Many candidates will manage to irretrievably mess up their cases within the first few minutes of starting off. Often, these candidates will not realize what they have done until they are getting near the end of their analysis. It is then that they suddenly see that they have misunderstood the case prompt and have effectively been answering the wrong question all along! With no time to go back and start again, there is nothing to do. Even if there were time, making such a silly mistake so early on will also make a terrible impression on your interviewer, who might well have written them off already. The interview is scuppered and all their preparation has been for nothing.

    As a final point, it goes without saying that showing this level of diligence early on where so many other candidates do not is a great start in terms of impressing your interviewer!

    Frame a solution

    Lead the analysis

    Read Also: Email To Schedule An Interview With Candidate

    How To Answer Case Interview Questions

    Firms use case interviews to evaluate analytical ability and problem-solving skills. Your interviewer is more interested in your overall approach to the problem than the final outcome.

    Your future employer is trying to see if you can analyze complex problems critically and break them down in a logical manner. Do you take all critical aspects into account? Do you avoid jumping to conclusions? Do you ask insightful questions? Do you have strong critical thinking skills?

    If you arrive at the right answer or close to it, you get a gold star. However, its not always possible to get the right answer either because there are multiple correct responses or critical information is not provided.

    You can ace the case interview without getting the answer correct as long as you show that your thinking and problem solving processes are sound.

    Your process will highlight your strengths in key competencies: numerical and verbal reasoning, communication and presentation, listening and observation, and understanding of business models and concepts.

    Here are some high-level guidelines for answering case interview questions effectively :

    How To Ace Your Case Study Interview

    12+ Case Study Examples

    Our tips will help you approach your case interview with confidence

    For most prospective West Monroe candidates, the case study interview is perhaps the most daunting part of the application process. Why? Because our case studies dont simply assess what you know the technical or industry capabilities that one can study for they assess how you think. And thats on purpose. For one thing, it levels the playing field, allowing candidates with diverse backgrounds and skillsets with the opportunity to succeed. For another, venturing into the unknown and relying on the ability to think like a consultant mirrors what we at West Monroe often have to do on the job. In our 45-minute interviews, candidates are given a story-driven case study pulled right out of a real-life West Monroe project from there, the candidate will act as a consultant on the project. Were looking for our candidates to demonstrate critical thinking , problem solving , and communication skills . Just because were more focused on seeing how you think doesnt mean you cant prepare. Thats why weve outlined three key pieces of guidance for prospective candidates. Follow these, and youll be well on your way to acing your case study interview.

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    Case Interview Tips With Instant Results

    Imagine a case interview just falls out of the sky and into your lap, scheduled for tomorrow how can you even prepare?The answer lies in a few quick and dirty tips, which Ill share with you in a moment.I am a firm believer in the 80-20 rule which states that 20% of the causes lead to 80% of the consequences. In the case interview prep context, 20% of your learning efforts will bring about 80% of the improvements so the key to instantly and dramatically improve your case performance is to identify and focus on that 20%.

    In the next 8 chapters, Ill tell you the killer tips and tricks that helped me get a McKinsey offer, the majority of which were previously only available in the premium End-to-End Secrets Program, including:

    Accounting And Financial Terms The Language Of Business

    Accounting & Financial Terms are often called the language of business, which is used to communicate the firms financial and economic information to external parties such as shareholders and creditors.There are three basic financial statements: Balance Sheet, Income Statement, and Cash Flow Statement.Balance SheetA snapshot of the current stage of the companys property, debt, and ownership at one given point in time, showing:

    Assets:Liabilities:EquityOperation:Financial:Investing:

    Upon completion this section, you should be able to read and interpret financial statements for business diagnosis and decision-making. More importantly, you possess the conceptual base to start solving case interviews on your own. Do not forget that, as with any other language, becoming proficient with accounting and financial terms require constant practice.

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    How Many People Pass First Round Interviews With Management Consulting Firms

    This answer varies. The percentage of people passing McKinsey first round interviews is different from the percentage passing Deloitte first round interviews. The percentage of people passing at different schools also varies, as does the percent hired one year versus another.

    In general, only 10-20% of candidates pass first round consulting interviews. This is why we created this website. Its not easy to get a job in management consulting.

    If youre serious about consulting as a career, we want to help you maximize your chances of success! So dont worry that the odds are badkeep reading.

    Tips For Closing Your First Round Interview

    How to Ace the Deloitte Consulting Case Interview: A Case Example + MCOs 6 Tips

    Be prepared to close the discussion with questions for your interviewer that show you are genuinely interested in working for their company. These should not be questions that could be answered with a 1-minute Google search, but something that probes deeper into the firm and the work they do.

    Examples:

    • What was your favorite case at McKinsey/Oliver Wyman/Deloitte?
    • What was the case team you most enjoyed working with?

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    How Can You Prepare A Presentation For A Case Study Interview

    It is highly likely that as part of the case study interview, you will be expected to create a presentation of your results.

    In some cases, this might be through an informal discussion with the interviewer, but in many cases, you will have to present your recommendation more formally so that you can be assessed on your presentation skills, communication, and confidence.

    In this case, you should prepare for the presentation by practicing presentations. Some case interviews will expect you to create a slideshow of your findings and speak about them, so knowledge of software like PowerPoint will help here.

    The most important preparation you can do is about how you present yourself. The interviewer wants you to be poised, confident and comfortable with what you are saying, so you can get the best results by practicing speaking clearly, taking complicated ideas, and simplifying them, and actively listening when you are asked a question. Think of any topic work-related or not and create a short presentation on it that could be understood by anyone, and then present it to a friend or a relative.

    Tip : Pay Attention To Cues

    Sharing your thoughts gives the interviewer an opportunity to guide the conversation. Make sure you follow any feedback they offer on your approach and listen closely for any hints about where to go next.

    Be aware, however, that some partners like to stress-test final round candidates to ensure they can defend their answers. If you think youre right, stick to your recommendation.

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    Research The Framework Of Case Study Interviews

    A case study interview, also known as a fit interview, is laid out like a brief. Youll be informed about a business scenario. You, in turn, need to review the necessary materials and present a solution to the interviewer. However, there may be other elements to the interview such as slideshow presentations, where you may have to summarize the importance of each slide like you would with the client. So, make sure youre prepared for all kinds of potential scenarios by thoroughly researching the company beforehand.

    Related: 5 Situational Interview Questions

    Flexible Problem Solving: Working From First Principles

    12+ Case Study Examples

    Our innovative problem-driven structure approach takes a radically different approach to old-fashioned frameworks. For one thing, there are no generic sets of instructions to be precisely applied. Rather, we teach a set of skills with guidelines on how to apply those skills flexibly to any new problem. Indeed, our method was derived as a streamlined version of the seven-step system used by McKinsey consultants on real engagements.

    The first step of our method is always to understand the case you have been given in detail and on its own merits. From here you draw up a unique problem driven structure which you can think of as building your own new framework for each individual question.

    Clearly, this solves the problem of inflexibility which lets down candidates attempting to apply old-fashioned frameworks to unique, irregular cases. By contrast to such limitations, problem-driven structures – as a method for approaching issues from first principles – is sufficiently general that it can even be applied well outside the realms of business problems.

    You can learn more about why frameworks are unreliable and how our method works in this video:

    Now, lets take a break from all this theory and learn more about how case interviews work in real life.

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