Case Study Interviews
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Without a doubt the most intimidating element of the consultancy recruitment process, the case study interview really separates the wheat from the chaff.
The format of case study interviews varies. In some cases you will be presented with background documents and questions in advance and given a short amount of time to digest and come up with your response, before presenting in the interview. In others you may walk in to the interview to have a situation dropped in to your lap.
Broadly speaking, the aim of the case study interview is to test your ability to construct a convincing response to a difficult and unfamiliar problem.
Quite often this problem will be business based, but sometimes a much more esoteric question will be asked - such as how many light bulbs there are in the UK, or how many tennis balls gets used during a Wimbledon tournament.
You won't be expected to come up with the right answer straight away (or even at all), but your ability to reason and think laterally through the problem will be examined very closely.
It's tough, and an experience virtually unique to consultancy interviews. As ever, the best way to get the hang of it is practice. We've put together a list of tips - and links to all the example case studies produced by management consultancies.
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Careers
- The Application Process
- Graduate Schemes
- Case Study Interviews
- Psychometric Tests
- Interview Tips
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Case Study Examples
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Consultancies recognise that the case study is the most tricky and worrying part of the recruitment process, and some provide warm-up examples to get you used to what may come up in the live situation. Below are links to the case study examples we've found available. Do as many as you can - there's no better way to prepare!
Accenture - Case study example and answers along with a document review exercise. Both contained in 'Your Second Interview' section'.
A.T. Kearney - Comprehensive guide on case study interviews, including tips and 6 sample cases.
ATOS Origin - Not standard case study tests, but good examples of the kind of work done by ATOS in case form.
Bain & Company - 3 detailed interview case examples.
Booz Allen Hamilton - One interactive case study, five short case questions and answers.
Boston Consulting Group - Interactive 'Trevor's Toys' case study.
McKinsey & Company - Two practice cases here; Magna Health and Great Burger.
OC&C Consulting - Three case studies here, as well as some good interview tips.
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Prepare for the hardest part of recruitment
Improve your numeric and verbal reasoning
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Case Study Interview Tips
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Having a logical approach to case studies is key to your success. Follow these steps to help you on your way.
Understand the problem
Break the problem down
Address issues one at a time
Address all important issues
Perform the important analyses
Test your hypotheses
Request additional information
Reach a conclusion
- Listen to the problem. Make sure you are answering the question that you have been asked.
- Set a structure. Think of four to five sub-questions that you need to answer before you can address the overall issue.
- Stay organised. When discussing a specific issue, remember why you are discussing it and where it fits into the overall problem.
- Communicate clearly. If you have considered some alternatives and rejected them, tell the interviewer what and why.
- Step back periodically. Summarize what you have learned and what the implications appear to be.
- Ask for additional information when you need it. But make sure that the interviewer knows why you need the information.
- Watch for cues from the interviewer. Any information given to you by an interviewer is given to help you - listen to them carefully and follow their lead.
- Be comfortable with numbers. You will often have to work with numbers in a case. This requires comfort with basic arithmetic and sometimes large quantities. You may also be asked to perform estimations.
- Don’t focus too hard on finding the answer. It is much more important to demonstrate a logical thought process than to arrive at the solution.
- Use common sense.
Things to avoid
- Misunderstanding the question or answering the wrong question.
- Proceeding in a haphazard fashion: Identify the major issues that need to be examined - resist jumping from one issue to another without outlining your overall approach.
- Asking too many questions: You must explain to the interviewer why you need the information.
- Force-fitting familiar ideas to every question: Consider their relevance carefully, and don't misapply a relevant business framework that you do not really understand as a substitute for simply using common sense.
- Failing to focus your answer: Be concise - you probably won't have time to talk about everything
- Not asking for help: Some people feel it is a sign of weakness to ask for help when they are stuck. Whether it is a misunderstanding related to the overall problem, or whether you are struggling with a specific analysis, be sure to ask for help when you need it - you could get in to deeper trouble if you don't.
