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1、GETTING STARTEDSo you want to be a consultant. And you know that case interviews are an important tool consulting firms use to gauge how candidates might perform on the job. Dont worry. These practice cases, a partner, and lots of practice, are all you need. Doing well in a case interview is a matte
2、r of practice and preparation. Case interview skills are something you learn, not something youre born with. This book will help you review key concepts and expose you to an array of business issues. By practicing these cases, you will learn to present a clear, concise, focussed, and organized flow
3、of logical thoughts while analyzing a business problem. Remember that the field is growing and firms are starved for good candidates. All they need is a reason to hire you.HOW TO USE THESE CASESThese practice cases are designed to simulate the case interview experience for you and a partner. You sho
4、uld proceed as you would in an actual interview. This is your opportunity to sharpen your presentation, analytical and other critical skills while under fire. You should have a pen and a pad of paper on which to take notes, and a natural but professional disposition. Read the question, but only read
5、 the recommended solutions when you have first explored and exhausted all possible answers.ABOUT THE QUESTIONSMany of the questions presented are taken from actual case interviews with top firms. Others were developed specifically for this book. The questions vary in scope and length, and cover a br
6、oad range of industries and business problems. They are often intentionally vague. It is up to you to define the problems presented within the case materials. Only through practice will you develop a sense of the types of questions frequently asked. Acknowledgements and thanks go to the respective m
7、anagement consulting clubs of Chicago, Michigan, MIT, Stanford, and Wharton from which many of these cases are derived.ABOUT THE SOLUTIONSThere are no correct solutions per se, only effective and ineffective methods of investigating the problem. The solutions provided are only recommended (and in so
8、me cases only provide information and no solution at all), and provide you with some guidance as to what a typical answer might entail. Some may find the proposed solutions to be inadequate or factually incorrect. Your answers may be better. Also, information presented in solutions is not necessaril
9、y correct or factual.Solutions are often incomplete. It is up to the interviewer to provide additional information. Your partner, in administering the mock interview, should not necessarily adhere to the solutions too strictly. Instead, your partner should be creative and flexible to keep the experi
10、ence real. While you are being tested for your ability to structure a solution, do not simply use a framework as a crutch. While practicing, learn to develop your own methods and frameworks. Finally, dont memorize answers you need are interview skills, not answers.YOUR ROLE AS THE INTERVIEWEEConduct
11、 mock case interviews as if they were live. You are a hunter sniffing for clues, a doctor determining where does it hurt. Do not to merely provide an answer to the question. Your goal is to investigate the question and expose problems, then examine solutions. You should demonstrate your ability to a
12、ssess facts, prioritize information, organize lines of investigation, and present a thorough and transparent thought process. The purpose of the case interview is to test your analytical and presentation skills, and your mettle. Remain poised, calm, and enthusiastic. Never lose your temper or your c
13、ool, just remain professional and deal with adversity. You should make your thinking process available to the interviewer. S/he should know exactly what your are thinking and why. Too often, interviewees provide solid answers to difficult questions, but fail to adequately explain how they deduced th
14、eir conclusions or why. As you practice, seek feedback on many aspects of your conduct, not merely whether or not you nailed the answer.YOUR PARTNERS ROLE AS THE INTERVIEWERConduct each mock case interview as you might a live interview. Vary your degree of aloofness and warmth, and the help you prov
15、ide to your partner. Further, do not merely follow the suggested solution, use your creativity to fill in blanks. But keep your partner on track with helpful hints. Your main goal is to simulate the case experience for your partner, and to provide meaningful feedback that helps your partner improve
16、her interview skills.SOME THINGS TO THINK ABOUT AS YOU BEGINLanding a job in consulting requires tremendous effort, case interview practice, persistence, and networking. And thats the easy part. The long hours, miles of travel, lack of personal life, and other drawbacks are not an exaggeration. Make
17、 sure you want consulting, and be prepared to explain why. Search yourself thoroughly. Can you provide five good reasons why you want to be a consultant, and do these fit with the price youre willing to pay? Were not trying to scare you away, but being able to address this honestly will help you fin
18、d the right job with the right firm.ANATOMY OF A TYPICAL CASE INTERVIEWTHE BEHAVIORAL INTERVIEWMany case interviews will be preceded by a behavioral interview based on your resume and professional experiences. This portion is just as important the case, so be prepared and listen well. All the basic
19、interviewing techniques and rules apply here. That is, have your PARs down cold and seek to establish rapport. But there are specific skills consulting firms are looking for, and your stories should be geared toward these skills. This is your opportunity to fill-in the details of your experiences, t
20、o explain your weaknesses, to highlight your strengths, and to show off your poise and professional approach. Here are a few questions you should be well prepared for: Why consulting? Why this type of consulting? Why this firm? Describe what makes this firm different and attractive to you. Why Corne
21、ll? Why are you studying your chosen field of study? What have you learned? Describe a specific experience demonstrating a valuable lesson (in work and in school). What skills do you have that are relevant to consulting? What do you think it takes to be a good consultant? How would you describe your
22、self? How would others (e.g. coworker or classmate) describe you? What is your philosophy toward leadership? What have you done that demonstrates leadership? What have you done that demonstrates teamwork? What are your grades (or some form of this question)? GMAT scores? Other academic performance q
23、uestions. What accomplishment/s are you most proud of? What books have you read lately? What periodicals have you read? Describe what you learned. What are your career objectives? Where do you see yourself in 3-5 years? 810? Whats the most important thing not on your resume? Do you have a geographic
24、 or industry preference? Describe a situation when you had an impact on your organization or peers. Have you ever had to compromise your ethics? What are your criteria for selecting a consulting firm? If you receive multiple offers, how will you decide? Describe a work situation that was difficult?
25、Describe a time when you worked with a difficult coworker. Describe an experience where you failed? What did you learn? What are your strengths and weaknesses?Heres another hint. When you are asked anything (other than small talk), the underlying question is “Why Should We Hire You?” and you should
26、answer each question in that way. Your answers must be concise and compelling, and must relate to why you would be a great consultant. Position your answers well, but do answer the question.WHAT SKILLS AND ATTRIBUTES DO CONSULTANTING FIRMS LOOK FOR IN CASE INTERVIEWSProblem solving skills Can you so
27、lve problems, do you have brain power?Quantitative skills Are you comfortable with numbers?Presentation skills Are you articulate, do you communicate well? Are your ideas well organized?Poise and professionalism Do I trust you to represent my firm in front of clients?Firm fit Do I like you? Have you
28、 established a rapport?Expertise Do you offer something others do not?CASE INTERVIEWS When the case portion of the interview begins, you can expect to receive a description of a business problem, with varying amounts of related information. You are expected to ascertain, using questions and answers,
29、 the exact nature of the problem, and to offer proposed solutions. Specifically, identify main issues and “drill deeper” to find the source problem. Then recommend actions. This portion of the interview may not begin with clear “ready, set, go” command, so be prepared to switch into case-interview m
30、ode. For example, sometimes the case may be based on an item in your resume. The types of cases you may see will reflect a variety of business problems. Many cases will involve one or more different types of problems. Some types of cases are as follows: Estimation cases determine something you could
31、 not possibly know by making reasonable assumptions about critical variables. For example: How many golf balls fit into a 747, or how many gas stations are in Chicago? Market Sizing determine the size and attributes of a market for a product Profit/Losses analyze changes in profitability, revenues a
32、nd costs Stagnant sales or growth analyze sales drivers, such as changes in the market Business operations analyze how specific activities affect other business processes Make or Buy Decisions analyze whether or not Regardless of the type of case you receiveWHAT TO KEEP IN MIND DURING CASE INTERVIEW
33、S Listen well and look for helpful hints as the interview progresses Use paper and a pen/pencil (but ask first if it is okay to do so) Ask for a minute to think before you proceed, reflect on the question and organize your thoughts Identify the problem type, and determine which frameworks will be he
34、lpful Clarify the question and summarize the business problem back to the interviewer Determine the main issues and focus on these (remember the 80-20 rule) Gather information, assess its importance, and follow only critical issues Ask questions (related to the main issues), and be ready to explain
35、why the question was important Draw pictures and diagrams, if helpful. The goal is effective communication Make your thought processes transparent. That is, explain what you are thinking and why at every step Maintain your poise and professionalism under ALL circumstances (remember, they may be test
36、ing you) Be action oriented and provide solutions that relate to the problems you have discussed Summarize, Summarize, Summarize!FRAMEWORKS TO USEThe secret to performing well on case interviews is to use frameworks as guidance. A framework is in a sense a checklist of issues that will prompt you to
37、 explore certain areas, ask good questions, and maintain a structured thought process. Keep in mind no list is complete. While you should not rely on the frame works they are no substitute for an actual answer they are very useful. Do not use a framework explicitly. The trick is to perform naturally
38、, guided by a sense of logic, not as if you are merely following a check list (they dont pay MBAs to follow a list, they pay them to think). Eventually, you will internalize these frameworks and learn to use them naturally as you think. Now you are ready to be a consultant. . . May the Force Be With
39、 You!FOUR PS OF MARKETING: Product, Place, Promotion, PriceThis framework is suitable for marketing implementation cases. It is not usually appropriate for beginning the analysis, but it can be very helpful, when you discuss implementation to make sure that you cover all of the issues.Product Must f
40、it within positioning decision and market segmentation (e.g. high end, low end; consumer, industry) Differentiated good vs. commodity Features and capabilities Reliability, quality, brand name Packaging, size Service, warrantiesPlacement - Distribution Channel (decision based on product specifics, l
41、evel of control desired and margins desired) Coverage, availability Inventory TransportationPromotion - AdvertisingBuying process1. Consumer awareness for the product2. Interest for the product3. Trial4. Repurchase5. LoyaltySales method: Pull (generate consumer interest to purchase) or Push (generat
42、e merchant interest to sell)5 categories of promotional efforts: Advertising: Medium, reach (share of target market reached) and frequency (number of times reached). Personal Selling: When direct contact with buyer is needed. Sales Promotion: Incentives to consumer, sales force and channel members.C
43、onsumer incentives: coupons, refunds, samples, premiums, contests.Trading force incentives: Sales contest, Point of purchase displays, spiffs (payments to dealers), trade shows, in-store demonstrations. Public Relations and Publicity. Direct sales.Price What strategy? MC=MR? skim (high price, make p
44、rofits now)? Penetrate (low price. Gain market share)? Seek volume or profits? Establish barriers to entry Perceived value, cost-plus-margin pricing? How does price relate to the market, size, product life-cycle, competition. Economic incentives to channel (commissions, margin).THREE Cs: CUSTOMER -
45、COMPETITION - COMPANY This simple framework can be helpful for marketing cases as a simple way to begin looking into a companys position in the market. The first three Cs rarely get to all of the issues, but they do provide a broad framework to get the analysis started. As you practice cases, begin
46、to develop a series of potential questions related to each C that will help you to drill down further towards the root causes of the problem at hand.CUSTOMEREconomic value to the customerIndividual Who is the customer? What is the unmet need? Which segment are we/should we target? Are they price sen
47、sitive? Perceptions Loyalty Volume Switching costs Profitability of customer Preference Purchase Behavior UsageMarket Size Growth Segmentation Shares Maturity TrendsProduct Price Differentiation Life Cycle Technology SubstitutesCOMPETITIONIndustry analysis (5 forces) Size, Number of competitors, Market share What are strengths/weaknesses? How many are there and how are they concentrated? Competitors response Current strategy. Strategic value of product and commitment to product Corporate goals Capabilities Economies of scale/scope Cost structure Experience curve Reso
