But Just in Case Can You Explain It to Me but Just in Case Can You Tell Me the Whole Thing Again
The case interview: it's the ultimate test of strategy and executive communication for the management consulting industry. When I first checked out how to go a consultant, I quickly discovered that the consulting case interview is a creature dissimilar whatever other.
To approach management consulting case interviews, you demand iii basic things:
- You should exist structured and use frameworks, only not overly structured.
- You demand to practice for the interviews in advance.
- You must be comfortable with mental math.
Truthful, true and true again. However, it's essential to go beyond basics when preparing for instance interviews. During consulting recruiting, your case interview performance drives effectually eighty% of the outset round pass/fail score and effectually fifty% of the second round scoring, when a hiring decision is on the line.
Table of Contents:
In this commodity, nosotros'll cover the following critical points to put you in the best position possible to excel in management consulting interviews:
(Click to jump to section.)
Case Interview 101
- What Is A Case Interview? – With a full understanding of the case interview procedure, you lot'll avoid early prep mistakes.
- Example Interview Process – Know what y'all're getting yourself into and what to await.
- Case Interview Frameworks – The 3 major example interview frameworks, 3 bonus frameworks, and a discussion of caution on robotic case interview structures.
- Mental Math for Instance Interviews – You were probably better at mental math in seventh grade than you are now. Brush upwardly on your skills to ensure you can ace the interview.
- Case Interview Examples – See what real consulting applicants experienced during the instance interview process.
- Case Interview Prep – Ordered steps to prepare for your management consulting interview.
Case Interview 102
- What are Firms Looking for in Interviews? – First step: exercise for case interviews to proficiently pause downwardly issues. Second stride: Identify your 10-Factor.
- Case Interview Differences at the "Big iii" or "MBB" (McKinsey, Bain, BCG) – How do you lot stand up out to be the all-time of the best?
- How to Scissure the Instance Like a Real Consultant – Bring information technology all together.
- Instance Interview Tips: Execution – The day of the interview has arrived. You lot're prepared – but what else can you exercise to optimize operation?
- Top Case Interview Videos – We accept a bomb YouTube channel near case interviews. Hither are our meridian picks.
- Virtual Case Interviews and More than – What practice you do when you run beyond a virtual, chatbot, presentation, or grouping case interview? We take answers.
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What Is A Case Interview?
Research a career in management consulting, and the example interview is THE consequence. But if this is your first exposure to a case interview, yous are probably wondering: what is it really like?
In short, the case interview is a critical piece of the hiring procedure. Applicants take to solve real-world bug alive with an interviewer. The cases mimic the kinds of scenarios consultants work with daily – in fact, well-nigh are pulled directly from real-life client experiences.
The instance typically consists of a problem or situation faced past an organization (company, NGO, or authorities agency). Applicants are given the problem verbally, and in a fix amount of time must clarify the instance, make up one's mind what data is needed, ask for the data, compute potential scenarios, and evangelize a presentation on that solution.
While there is also a behavioral portion to the consultant hiring process, the case interview is the most meaning filter. It's make or pause, and at firms like McKinsey it'due south mostly break – under 10% of interviewees get an offer.
Nosotros've compiled a Complete Prep Guide to make sure you make information technology – no breaking here! Our in-depth preview of what to await from the interview volition help you know how to demonstrate you're ready to exist hired equally a consultant.
Case Interview Process
At present you know what the case interview is, but that still doesn't tell you what to await in a case study interview . There are small variations between firms, but generally the instance interview portion of the hiring process is quite consistent across the industry.
A typical new hire goes through 4-half dozen interviews in total, which are unremarkably divided into two rounds occurring on separate days. (Superdays, with Round i in the morning time and Round 2 in the afternoon of the same day, are possible just less common in consulting than in cyberbanking.) The interviews are each 30-hr long.
The first 5-15 minutes of each consulting interview are usually spent on a " Fit Interview ." In the fit interview, the firm's screener/southward—usually consultants themselves—ask you a variety of questions to better understand your sense of motivation, leadership, teamwork, and your general fit for the company.
After the fit interview, you lot'll become directly into the example interview, which usually lasts twenty-40 minutes. We'll go into the 8 parts of a example interview in just a bit, but hither is a kickstart:
- Capture the problem (take notes and ensure you sympathise it)
- Plan your assault and share your plan
- Inquire for data and compute answers based on what you get
- Provide a recommendation
Audio easy? Read on.
There are of import differences between the starting time and the 2nd round of case interviews. The first circular tests y'all on a variety of general skills, including time management. In about interviews, you accept only 20 minutes – and the firms usually turn down 75% of applicants in this round because they tin't digest and solve a problem in a short time.
In the second round, the material requires deeper analysis and applicants work with more senior interviewers. Further, interviewers in the 2nd round sometimes play the function of "bad cop" or "devil'southward advocate" along the style, request yous to rethink your methods and offer potentially misleading information to brand your chore more than difficult and test conviction. If you want a more in depth understanding of this, check out our article: " Structure of Three Instance Interview Rounds ".
While the example interview is consistently challenging, firms practice add nuance and individuality to the overall consulting interview process. Hither are some exceptions:
- Nearly fit interviews are office of the overall interviews, but some fit interviews tin can be totally separate from case interviews and facilitated by different interviewers.
- Most example interviews are completed 1:ane with an interviewer, just some example interviews situate applicants in teams instead of working independently.
- Most case interviews are live and presented verbally, merely for some you get a bundle either overnight or for 1-3 hours prior to the interview and outcome in a presentation.
The good news? Prepping for a traditional out-loud example interview will ensure you are ready for all exceptions to the rules.
Case Interview Frameworks
Instance interview frameworks give you a helpful starting point to solving the instance interview. These frameworks offering a systematic way to approach different kinds of business organisation bug.
Case frameworks, however, are wildly misunderstood. Your goal is not to memorize a meg frameworks and then apply the "correct" framework to a particular problem.
The goal is to memorize a scattering of cadre frameworks to give yourself a mental repository of categories that you can option and choose from to create your own custom framework for the problem you're facing.
Some frameworks we'll accept a look at in this next section:
- The "marketplace entry framework" to help you decide if a client should enter a new market
- The Victor Cheng case interview framework – Cheng took the well-known 3 C's framework (which stands for Visitor, Customers, and Competition) and added Products equally a quaternary category of consideration.
For an even deeper dive into frameworks, read our Ultimate Guide to Frameworks .
Market Entry Framework
Consultants often help clients decide whether to enter new markets. Therefore, yous will see a scenario in your case interview where a market entry question is being proposed.
The market entry framework is the general framework for dealing with this kind of scenario. Relevant factors often include the situation of the market place being entered, the state of the competition, and the process & strategy of first entering the market.
Profitability Framework
Maximizing profits is the essential purpose of any company or enterprise, and is an important consideration for non-turn a profit and authorities organizations every bit well. 100% of consulting projects are bottom-line related, and thus many case interview questions involve considering ways to better profitability.
The profitability framework is a basic approach for analyzing profit problems. In that location are always a variety of drivers to examine, merely the outset step is to carve up cost and revenue. A deeper wait into the profitability framework will familiarize you with the nuances of applying the framework.
Hither's an case of a generic profitability framework in action:
You can too watch a profitability case interview here.
M&A Case Framework (Mergers & Acquisitions)
How do yous advise a company when they are because merging with, acquiring, or beingness acquired by some other company? Many aspiring consultants overlook the possibility of beingness assigned a mergers & acquisitions case and and so are surprised to be confronted with one during their interview. Avert that fault by getting comfortable executing an K&A case framework .
In this framework, the question is elementary: should i company invest in or buy another?
The primary directive in the One thousand&A case framework is to drill down on your understanding of the acquiring company's position. The acquiring company is motivated by either brusque-term or long-term considerations – a fiscal heir-apparent buys to increase short-term value and sell, while a strategic heir-apparent acquires to hold the target for the long-term.
Your response in an Grand&A situation volition exist binary: either a merger/acquisition is appropriate or it isn't.
Other Frameworks:
Pricing Framework
Deciding how to price products & services may seem like a relatively banal activity in comparing with mergers & acquisitions. Merely in reality, pricing decisions are some of the most influential decisions any company makes, exerting a groovy influence on profitability. Information technology's no surprise that consulting applicants oft rely on the pricing framework model in their interviews.
three Cs Framework
The three Cs framework gives a bird'southward-eye view of a visitor'south overall situation. The three Cs themselves refer to the categories of Company, Customers, and Contest. Separating information and inquiries into these three categories helps give a comprehensive sense of a company's operation in a given moment.
Porter'south 5 Forces Framework
Sometimes a particular example or client scenario requires y'all to develop an understanding of a whole industry or sector, besides as how a particular visitor fits into that overall environment. This is what the Porter's v Forces Framework is designed to help with. The five Forces to consider are: the threat of new entrants, competitive dynamics, supplier power, heir-apparent power, and the threat of substitutes.
Case Frameworks Are Not a "Argent Bullet"
Call up – frameworks exist to help you figure out an approach to difficult problems. They are not a pre-written script to force-fit in response to a particular question you're beingness asked. The framework serves the trouble, non the other mode around.
Think of a case interview more like a chess game, in which each framework represents i potential maneuver in a longer sequence of moves.
Too, remember that the case interview is not only a problem to be solved but an audition. You want to demonstrate to your interviewers that you take the ability to respond to a question fluidly, independently responding to new inputs and maintaining perspective every bit you recall on your feet. It is not helpful to demonstrate a rote memorization of the frameworks .
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Mental Math for Case Interviews
Solid fluency in mental math is essential to skilful instance interview operation – and to the work of consulting in general. No calculators are allowed in case interviews, so if you're rusty (and you lot probably are), information technology's fourth dimension to dust off the cobwebs. I matter nosotros highly recommend is going off your calculator six months in advance of your case interview.
Honing your mental math skills is an essential part of case interview prep. Start with our free drills here .
If yous really want to acuminate your abilities, we've designed an entire course on mental math for consulting . Doing things similar calculating tips, analyzing your budget, etc., can help yous get comfortable working with numbers in the way y'all'll have to during the interview process.
4 Steps for Case Math
When you're working on a complex case, you lot can easily lose yourself in calculations. Thankfully, here's a sneak acme of our simple four-step arroyo you can use to keep your math organized and on bespeak. Get a more than in-depth breakdown of case math.
Step 1: Recap the Problem
These problems are delivered verbally. Some people are great at math simply bad at listening, so the starting time step is to review the data and what yous're solving for. An out-loud epitomize gives y'all fourth dimension to think and ensures you start with accurate information. The recap too gives the interviewer the confidence yous volition formulate a clear and coherent approach. And if you've misunderstood something about the trouble, recapping it gives the interviewer the run a risk to intervene.
Step ii: Structure Your Approach
After the epitomize, organize a systematic approach – out loud. Devise a step-past step algebraic approach to get an answer. Call up, you're non only structuring the arroyo for your own sake—you're besides demonstrating to the interviewer that there is a logical methodology behind your work.
Step 3: Run the Numbers
Yous take the right information and a process to solve for the reply. Now, perform the mathematical operations yous laid out. Utilize your mental math and double-cheque to ensure your answer makes sense.
Step four: Develop and Evangelize Insights
The first three steps produce an answer. This quaternary and final step – sharing about what the answer ways and what the organization should do next – separates top performers from amateurs, and is 100% required in second round interviews.
Example Interview Examples
We have prepared over 25,000 applicants for case interviews. So far, no one has come back and said "that was so much easier than I expected."
That's the bad news.
But here's some good news – the case interviews you lot'll see at different firms have a lot in common, and they will demand largely similar things from you as an applicant. For that reason, the first 80% of your case interview prep should exist general (i.e., not business firm-specific).
Our curriculum volition fix yous for whatsoever case interview, from MBB firms to boutique firms. Still, there are some things that make every business firm unique. In gild to help yous get a sense of what you'll encounter at some of the consulting firms to which yous'll be applying, here are several instance interview examples.
McKinsey Example Study Interview Examples
You tin can find many McKinsey case report interview examples on the McKinsey website , and in our Example Library, which contains over 500 cases (with solutions and guidance then you can learn as you become). Go instant access hither .
BCG Case Interview Examples
Just similar McKinsey, BCG likewise includes multiple BCG case interview examples on its website. Again, there are dozens of BCG case interview examples (including solutions) in our Case Library .
Bain Instance Interview Examples
As with its competitors, Bain includes Bain instance interview examples on its website . While practicing by yourself is fine if you're a beginner, take the next step by working ane:1 with one of our MBB coaches. We'll coach you through cases, assess your strengths and weaknesses, and build a plan for yous to go interview-ready.
Boutique Firms Instance Interview
The bones construction of a case interview is not very unlike at a boutique firm. Some boutiques specialize in certain industries or sectors, which will then exist represented in the types of cases they requite out.
Here's an example called " Promotional Planning " from Kearney.
Compared to material from the MBB firms, boutique firms' case interview examples are a niggling bit harder to come up by, that is, if you look outside of our Instance Library .
Instance Interview Prep: Be Fix for Your Interview
The case interview is the hurdle in an entire management consulting career. The unmarried biggest regret nosotros hear? Under-preparing.
Here are fundamental tips to avoid common interview prep pitfalls:
Case Interview Prep Timeline
In a perfect world, your case interview prep timeline should commencement 6 months before your interview – time for 1-two out loud interviews a week and plenty of math and structure drills in between. Look alee to the time you'll outset the interview process and build your prep schedule backward from at that place.
Of grade, many people find themselves with less than six months before their desired interview fourth dimension. Heck, I had ii weeks. That doesn't disqualify yous – information technology but means you must be strategic to prepare on an accelerated timeline.
In our Blackness Belt plan, one of our MBB coaches will build a personalized prep plan for you that is 1 week or 1 twelvemonth long, and based on any groundwork.
If you are in school, in that location are certain optimal times to apply.
U.Southward. Undergrads:
Tiptop recruiting season for juniors and seniors begins in July. Starting time preparing for the case interview (and get your resume ready!) by March.
International Undergrads:
Application drop in October. Begin instance interview prep by May.
Advanced Degree Candidates (ADCs):
Nosotros recommend applying for the competitive Bridge Programs in March, and full-time recruiting begins in July. For the best shot, brainstorm preparing for the case interview in November or December of the prior year.
MBAs:
Offset year MBAs will interview in January for internship roles. Yet, diverseness recruiting begins at conferences every bit early as September so you should begin interview prep in May, afterward matriculation only earlier fifty-fifty coming to campus.
2d years re-recruiting for full-time roles should brainstorm to refine their casing skills as soon as February (later on internship interviews). For second years who decide after a summertime internship that consulting is the right career path for you, beginning prep as soon as you figure out you want to pursue consulting. Your best option? Join our accelerated Black Belt programme .
Experienced Hires:
If yous're not applying directly from an educational program, the firms offer rolling application deadlines. However, summit hiring season takes place from March-May and success is almost entirely dependent on networking referrals.
See detailed, current awarding deadlines hither .
Audio Review
The case interview is an in-person out-loud process, and your communication and people skills are simply as important as your technical know-how. This is a verbal every bit well as a mental examination – if you don't simulate the interview environment in your prep process by practicing out-loud, you lot won't succeed.
We differ from the norm here, just we help brand sure y'all're more successful so nosotros're okay with that.
Don't read books. If yous must read, do it after y'all've listened to or watched instance interviews, and tried at to the lowest degree x out loud on your own with a partner.
Start to get a sense of what the case interview looks and sounds like by watching our walkthroughs on YouTube .
In one case y'all've gotten a sense of what a case sounds similar, piece of work with an proficient coach to put it all together for yourself. Our coaches behave mock instance interviews and offering actionable feedback – this is the most constructive way to get ready for the example interview.
Practice Out Loud
Left to their own devices, many aspiring consultants study as they would for any other test – past silently doing cases on their own. This presents a huge problem when you arrive on the day of the interview and discover that yous accept to talk, write, and think at the aforementioned time.
Even if you think you lot're considering how to communicate the piece of work you're doing as yous do practice cases, you'll find that yous audio much smarter in your caput than you lot will out loud .
The reason the case interview is a verbal procedure is and so that the interviewer can follow your thought procedure in real time. Practice out loud to build your confidence and identify weak spots that otherwise won't surface until information technology's besides late!
Structuring Process
Structure is everything. In fact, the most mutual feedback is "be more structured" and that starts the infinitesimal the case begins.
Every bit you keep through practise case studies, take 2 minutes to structure your arroyo and two minutes to read information technology out. Use a timer. Stop with your hypothesis.
Desire info on structuring? Check out our Construction Video Walkthrough.
Want help with structuring? Swoop in to structure drills and compare your answer to an MBB sample.
Do Your Homework
The average successful applicant does 30 to 50 practice cases – and yes, some people pass with 10 cases, and others demand 100. How do you lot know what you need?
First – if you want to optimize your case prep, review every case you do right after you terminate information technology and keep a log of your learnings. Repeat mistakes without fixing them is a recipe for disaster.
Practice with a Case Partner
Partner with other aspiring consultants who share your appetite to help keep you lot accountable. Get firsthand feedback on your performance is helpful – just in add-on, providing feedback to other people helps improve self-awareness.
Employ the practice for what information technology is – an opportunity to get over fear and build conviction. Exist conscientious, though. If yous decide NOT to hire an practiced autobus, don't put too much weight on the feedback y'all get from amateur example partners.
Get Skillful Help
We've said it already but it bears repeating: working with an expert omnibus will increase your odds of acing the case interview. Our coaches first succeeded as candidates, and so served every bit interviewers.
An expert coach can as well cut the number of necessary practice cases in half. We recommend the Black Chugalug Interviewer package , which offers 8 hours of 1:1 coaching. A staggering 60% of our Black Belts earn offers from tiptop x firms nationwide. Not too shabby, when you compare that to the industry average acceptance rate of 3%.
Case Interview 102
What Are Firms Looking For In Interviews?
Interviewers expect for a wide range of problem-solving skills – including simply not limited to business acumen, communication skills, and belittling ability. Let'southward break down the 12 skills that volition aid you lot stand up out in your case interview.
-
Structure
Consulting success depends on your ability to pause downward a problem into its component parts, and then prioritize the correct component to find the fundamental cause of a problem.
As a consultant, yous possess influence without dominance . Therefore, you must be able to develop a articulate process that will gain buy-in from your peers, manager and potentially client.
Finally, you'll be working with large quantities of information as a consultant. Being structured (or organized) in the interview conveys that y'all'll exist able to clarify large amounts of data on the job to go far at insights that make a departure for your client.
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Segmenting Data
One of the frequent challenges consultants face is that business situations involve not simply large quantities of data just a variety of data. Maintaining the integrity of the data is critical to solving problems. Consider the Profitability Framework. First it separates profitability into revenues and costs, and the kinds of information proliferate from in that location into increasing levels of granularity.
In a example interview, yous'll have lots of numbers thrown at you – digital advertising costs and starting time quarter revenues and profit margins. If yous can't organize data, you'll never be able to wrap your mind effectually a problem, let lonely develop a solution.
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MECE
MECE, which stands for Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive, is core to a consulting mindset and is the optimal way to organize information.
Let's commencement with the Mutually Exclusive part. This ways that in that location should be no overlap in your data segments or framework categories. Here's a simple case: let'southward say Netflix is looking at subscriber data. If they accept one category for North American subscribers and another category for English language-language subscribers, a vast number of subscribers will exist double-counted, in one case in each category. Therefore this categorization is not Mutually Exclusive, and thus isn't "clean" information.
The second principle is Collectively Exhaustive . This means that all of the relevant data should fall within at least i category, with nothing left out. So in the instance used to a higher place, if Netflix decided to organize subscriber information by continent, just failed to include Europe, they would non have an authentic picture of their subscriber base because European subscribers won't exist included anywhere.
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Prioritization
Case interviews frequently involve not just one problem but a cluster of interrelated problems. One of the things you'll have to demonstrate in your thinking is an aptitude for prioritizing the unlike bug in a coherent and logical fashion. Prioritization means creating a bureaucracy of information, issues, opportunities, and responses, and recommending what to do next.
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Draw On Practical Experience
It'due south important that y'all don't just sound like you're reciting memorized passages from a textbook equally you complete your case interview. Draw from your practical experience when interacting with an interviewer. This is context that you lot tin can bring to the tabular array that your peers potentially cannot, and will communicate your confidence and executive presence in the interview process.
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Ace the Math
You don't have access to a reckoner in the example interview – your ability to practice math and extract insights from the numbers will be tested extensively. There are 3 elements to pay attention to equally you set for case interview math: your speed, your accurateness, and the business insights yous communicate.
Focus on accuracy start, and then devote time to getting faster. Finally, brand sure yous e'er end your math by contextualizing the number for your interviewer.
Acquire more about the different types of mental math for case interviews.
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Atomic number 82 the Interview
Post-obit the guidance nosotros've already laid out will ensure that you can organize bug and information in such a way that yous tin guide yourself and your client to a solution. Consultants are expected to exist self-guided and independent. Evidence that you have the analytical and leadership skills necessary to develop a process and lead yourself through it to a solution.
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Be Teachable
One major ruby-red flag for an interviewer? When you bristle at their direction and feedback. Be hypothesis-driven yet teachable. When (non if) your interviewer pushes back on one of your assumptions or statements, respond to the direction they want yous to go. "That's a adept question, let me get back and reexamine that" is an example of the kind of tone you lot want to display inside of a case interview.
-
Go on the "So What?" in Listen
1 way to go on your footing as you go on through the case interview is to keep the main question top of mind. Equally yous progress through your initial construction, the math, and the brainstorming, make sure you tie each part of the case back to how what y'all're doing will answer the initial question you were asked .
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Stay Hypothesis Driven
Consultants are hypothesis-driven; they e'er come to the tabular array with a point of view. You should demonstrate this aforementioned skill in your case interviews. Structuring your questions in terms of hypotheses positions yous as an advisor. For example, instead of request a clarifying question similar: "When yous say North American market, which countries does this include?" you should ask, "I'grand bold that in this example, the North American market refers to the U.S. and Canada – is this authentic?"
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Advice
If consulting were simply virtually mechanistically applying frameworks, the industry would have a lot less apply for human beings. Instead, the work is human-capital intensive and success is highly correlated to your communication abilities . Even when solutions seem technically straightforward, they still need to be delivered persuasively to clients. So, demonstrating your ability to communicate clearly and concisely is a huge role of success in the instance interview.
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Conviction
Consultants don't simply expect for the right reply – they have to convince clients to believe that what they are proposing is the right answer. An effective consultant must demonstrate a sense of executive presence, gravitas, and confidence in the assertions they are making.
McKinsey Case Interview, BCG, Bain, vs Other Consulting Firms
The undisputed acme consulting firms in the world are McKinsey , Bain , and Boston Consulting Group (BCG). Collectively, they are known as MBB . Each has a truly global footprint, clientele that include the world's most powerful companies as well as regime partners, and a reputation for consulting excellence. They are perpetually the nigh alluring employers for aspiring consultants.
All iii of the MBB firms make rigorous use of the case interview as part of their hiring procedure. For the almost part, each MBB interview is similar. They accept similar structures, lengths, problem types, and degrees of difficulty. They too exam for the same traits and skills. The showtime fourscore% of your case interview prep, therefore, does not demand to be customized to 1 house.
All the same, there are some differences between the MBB firms that yous'll desire to be enlightened of to help in the final 20% of your prep procedure.
McKinsey Example Interview
McKinsey — the largest of the MBB firms — prides itself on being unique. The house is known for putting its ain spin on industry-standard practices, and this includes the McKinsey case interview. The McKinsey cases follow an "interviewer-led" methodology, where the interviewer leads the candidate through the example.
The McKinsey instance interview begins, every bit all case interviews practise, with a broad problem or scenario. Just the McKinsey case interview includes a sequence of smaller questions to be answered forth the way to solving the overarching problem. Information technology's more similar a sequential examination than a "choose-your-own adventure."
Information technology'due south hard to get lost in a McKinsey case, just McKinsey compensates for information technology with the hardest math problems of the MBB firms.
McKinsey is also known for drilling downwards more on other components of the interview procedure. The personal fit portion is chosen the Personal Experience Interview at McKinsey and usually takes longer & goes deeper than at Bain or BCG. Likewise, there is a slightly unique format to McKinsey's Trouble Solving Exam , which evaluates applicants' central problem-solving skills and has a pass rate of just 33%.
See a McKinsey Case Interview Instance here.
BCG Case Interview
The BCG case interview has a lot of similarities with its MBB cousins and other big consulting firms across the industry, merely there are some features that make the BCG case interview unique.
Notably, BCG interviewers are known for including "curveball questions," which crave the applicant to improvise and all of a sudden pin to include new considerations. This tests an applicant's flexibility and inventiveness, also as speed, fluidity, and accuracy when confronting new challenges.
In addition, the BCG case interview is described as "candidate-led," allowing the candidate to control the pace with which problems and the relevant information/complications are considered. Don't be fooled, though – the responsibility of leading is a Large DEAL. We consider BCG cases to be the hardest overall of the MBB case types.
Considering case interviews are frequently adapted from real-earth projects, the kinds of example interviews BCG conducts will reflect the company's unique industry contour. All three of the MBB firms work with all kinds of companies, but BCG has a particular focus on strategic innovation, business concern growth, and corporate development.
Meet a BCG Case Interview Instance hither.
Bain Instance Interview
Bain cases are a strong blend between BCG style (y'all begin with the illusion of full control and leadership), yet tin shift rapidly to McKinsey style if you lose your way.
The nearly unique component of the Bain case interview process is the then-chosen "pressure test." The interviewer introduces time deficits, strategic criticism, and other headwinds to test the interviewee's ability to maintain focus and clarity in the confront of adversity.
The other factor that differentiates the Bain case interview from other MBB firms is Bain's client portfolio. Bain works in nearly every industry and region, but they work with individual equity funds and other principal investors more than other MBB firms do.
Encounter a Bain Example Interview Case here.
Boutique Consulting Firms
Many aspiring consultants are non meant for i of the MBB firms – the pressure, even in case interviews, is excruciating. There are likewise disadvantages to working for ane of the large three, including extremely long hours and seemingly impossible standards.
There is often more flexibility and diverseness when working at boutique consulting firms , where every employee is a larger component of the overall functioning and your feel is more personalized.
Because of the smaller feel of a bazaar business firm, likewise equally the greater variety of tasks and communications to be washed by each employee, boutique consulting firms rely more than heavily on the behavioral/fit component of the interview process.
At the same time, example interviews for boutique consulting firms reflect the firms' focus either on a key practice area or 1-3 industries. Be aware of the company's client portfolio before your interview to tailor the final days and weeks of your case grooming.
How To Cleft The Case Similar A Real Consultant
There are as many possible case interview bug as there are business organization scenarios. Let's take a walk through a sample example to give you a gustatory modality for i possible case interview type.
Example Problem: You are contracted to help San Zembla—a fictional South American country—improve its educational outcomes. San Zembla has a new democratic regime elected on a platform of public education reform, a strategy that promises to give a long-term heave to the economy. Your business firm is existence asked to diagnose existing problems and limitations facing San Zembla'southward education system and to assist outline new strategies for improvement.
Case Interview Opening: Example
To showtime the case, recap the Instance Problem out loud. Inquire up to 3 clarifying questions about the organization, the data, and the business problem the organisation is facing. Each question should get-go with a mini-hypothesis, for case:
"Referencing other South American countries, I'd assume San Zembla has between ten-25 million people. Is that a off-white ballpark for estimation purposes?"
or…
"These bug often have years to appraise and implement. I would assume a 2-three year timeline at a minimum would be sensible. Is that reasonable?"
Instance Interview Structure: Example
After recapping the instance, develop a plan to tackle this problem.
The primary problem y'all might identify with the San Zembla example is that information technology's actually quite hard to assess educational outcomes in a vacuum and without any context or comparison. Therefore you might decide that coming up with a reliable metric for evaluating educational outcomes and comparison them to other contexts is necessary.
If you're having trouble identifying the problem/south you should be prioritizing, one of the nearly powerful and simple tools y'all can utilise is the consequence tree . This is a simple style of organizing related problems into branches of causality.
In the San Zembla example, you might detect that obvious quantitative measures such as school spending and grade sizes don't seem to exist the cause of the problem. Therefore you might consider that the problem has something to do with sure qualitative factors relating to the educational system. To showtime, yous might come up with an issue tree like this:
As you drill down on your categories, you might notice i type of data would fit in multiple categories. Alternatively, you might notice one category in particular filling up with more information than the others.
If you desire to make sure you've properly accounted for all the relevant issues, carry a MECE review to make certain your categories are Mutually Exclusive and Collectively Exhaustive (MECE). The above structure is ME, but needs some more information to exist CE.
No sweat, but all of this structuring needs to take place in under ii minutes – quietly, on paper.
Then, y'all have 2 minutes to explain it to your interviewer.
Case Interview Math: Example
Subsequently you've presented a solid, articulate plan, you can ask for the information yous'll need to solve the problem.
Hither, a chart offers additional information about some of San Zembla's cardinal pedagogy metrics in comparison to other countries in South America.
Describe your observations out loud as you begin to make sense of the chart. Practice yous notice whatsoever meaningful trends? Remember, suggest calculations yous'd similar to perform before performing them. Retrieve you tin can ask the interviewer questions to assist clarify the data if demand be.
Your goal in comparing San Zembla in neighboring countries is to make up one's mind how to improve educational outcomes. Information technology would make sense to appraise whether any of the included categories of data correlate with/predict the average standardized test score.
Intuition might tell y'all that having a lower number of students per instructor, or else a greater corporeality of money spent per pupil, might correlate with average standardized exam score. Withal, the data doesn't back up this. Developed economies accept like class sizes but better test scores. As well, variations in spending within regions don't seem to dictate a particular effect in examination cores.
Changing budgets and class sizes are 2 rather obvious strategies to improve educational outcomes, so it'due south very helpful to know that those solutions may non brand a difference in this context. But we yet need to drill downwards further if we want to discover out what kinds of changes would actually have an touch on outcomes (as measured by standardized test scores).
Instance Interview Creative: Case
Speaking of drilling down farther, almost case interviews involve some kind of brainstorming. Let'due south imagine for a moment that the interviewer will push button you on this, asking "What kind of changes can you retrieve of that might have an bear on on standardized test scores?" You'll need to come up with a list of ideas – out loud, but writing them down at the same fourth dimension so you can keep your thoughts organized.
Here are some ideas:
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- Teach concepts, not "to the exam"
- Teach problem-solving strategies to enable cognitive flexibility
- Incorporate 1:1 mentoring / coaching into standard curriculum
- Set a cap on number of students per grade
Provide Recommendations
Summarizing your recommendations puts a bow on all the piece of work yous've done and so far. Call up that how you present your recommendations is every bit important every bit the solutions you actually recommend.
The simplest and most powerful style to structure an statement is using the Pyramid Principle. The Pyramid Principle organizes an overall bulletin into a hierarchy of supporting arguments. Employing the pyramid principle to provide a recommendation to the San Zembla case might look something like this:
Instance Interview Grooming Tips: Execution
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Starting time Every Case Strong
Bring an energy and enthusiasm to the kickoff of each instance. Act like you bask the process and enjoy solving business issues. This is the "secret sauce" to the success of many candidates – if you can't bring that joy to solving a false trouble, you won't exist any fun to work with on an actual project.
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Inquire Clarifying Questions
We frequently aren't enlightened of this, but our natural problem-solving skills typically involve isolating areas of uncertainty and drilling downward on them. You'll practise yourself a large favor if you force yourself to start articulating what those uncertainties are as y'all go on. This volition help you communicate your thinking during the case interview.
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Stay Hypothesis-Driven Throughout the Instance
Maintaining a consistently hypothesis-driven arroyo is one of the best general strategies yous can implement. At the end of every example section, make an acting recommendation on what your client should do based on what you've examined so far, and what you lot'd desire to examine next.
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Be Instance-Specific
One of the easiest mistakes for an interviewer to spot is a candidate who is over-relying on pre-scripted frameworks. Frameworks are designed to give y'all a mental "pick list" of categories that yous can employ to create your own custom framework that specifically addresses the trouble at manus.
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Enquire Almost Trends
The interviewers working alongside yous will have admission to potentially relevant information that is not necessarily given to y'all at the beginning of a instance . But, the interviewer volition only give yous the information you ask for . Equally long every bit you ask in a hypothesis-driven way, it's okay to inquire.
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Analyze Instance Charts and Graphs
Recap what you see offset. And so structure your math arroyo before yous start calculating. So do the actual calculations. Finally, drive to insights – what exercise the numbers hateful for your client at present and into the future?
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Recollect Out Loud
The case interview is a test of your ability to communicate as you recall. This allows the interviewer to come across your problem-solving approach and advice skills at the same time.
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Stop with a Potent Recommendation
Recollect that the consultant's task, as far as the consulting firm is concerned, is not merely to calculate the "correct" solution to a problem. The consultant'southward job is too to sell that solution to the client. You'd be surprised how many people practise a reasonably skillful job on the example, simply and so stop before wrapping it up with a strong recommendation (including an assessment of next steps and risks). To provide a clear recommendation, follow the Pyramid Principle . In a nutshell, give the reply first, then the "why" or supporting data.
Many cases don't have unmarried right answers. And then if you fail to make it at what seems similar an open-and-shut decision, don't allow uncertainty infect your conclusion. Y'all've arrived at one possible solution among many, and whatever that solution is, your job now is to convince the "client" (i.eastward., your interviewer) that you believe that solution adequately answers the question at hand.
Determination
Direction consulting has been a hot industry for years, and shows no signs of slowing downward (see the salaries if you don't believe the states). The consulting path offers intellectual stimulation likewise as lucrative material rewards.
But in order to enter the industry, you're going to have to make it through the case interview. Nosotros trust this guide has given you a thorough overview of what it will have to set up for this crucial step in your career.
Recollect, piece of work 1-on-one with an expert coach from our team. Larn more and schedule today.
Thanks for reading, and good luck with your prep process. Nosotros're here for y'all!
Jenny Rae and the MC Squad
Additional Reading:
- Example Interview Frameworks: Ultimate Guide
- Instance Interview Examples: Main List
- Profitability Instance Walkthrough- BCG Mode
- Consulting Resume: Consummate Guide
Source: https://managementconsulted.com/case-interview/
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