Guide To Consulting Interviews, 2016 Edition

Guide To
Consulting Interviews
2016 Edition
This guidebook will give you an edge in your consulting career, so dont share it with your friends.
Tom Spencer 2016
Contents
Introduction ........................................................................................................5
1. Interview Basics .............................................................................................5
1.1 Purpose of the Consulting Interview ....................................................5
Client Readiness...........................................................................................5
The Airport Test..........................................................................................5
1.2 Interview Structure...................................................................................6
Stress Interviews ..........................................................................................7
1.3 Interview Tips ...........................................................................................7
Top 5 Tips for Nailing the Case Interview .............................................7
10 More Case Interview Tips ................................................................. 10
1.4 Interview Expectations......................................................................... 13
What to Expect ......................................................................................... 13
What To Wear .......................................................................................... 13
What To Bring .......................................................................................... 13
2. Before the Interview ................................................................................... 14
2.1 Research .................................................................................................. 14
1. Why should you research? .................................................................. 14
2. How should you research? ................................................................. 15
3. What should you research? ................................................................. 15
2.2 Networking............................................................................................. 16
Gaining Contacts ...................................................................................... 16
Building Relationships ............................................................................. 17
2.3 Applications ........................................................................................... 18
CV and Cover Letter Basics ................................................................... 18
How to compensate for poor grades .................................................... 19
How to strengthen a non-business background ................................. 19
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2.4 Case Interview Prep .............................................................................. 19

3. Interview Questions ................................................................................... 21
3.1 Types of Questions ............................................................................... 21
3.2 Commonly Asked Questions .............................................................. 21
Why Consulting? ...................................................................................... 21
Have you ever failed at anything? .......................................................... 23
3.3 Behavioural Interview Questions ....................................................... 23
How to Answer Behavioural Questions ............................................... 24
Sample Behavioural Interview Questions ............................................ 24
3.4 Guesstimate Questions (aka Market Sizing) ..................................... 25
12 Tips for Nailing the Guesstimate Question ................................... 26
Approaching the Guesstimate Question .............................................. 28
Sample Guesstimate Questions ............................................................. 29
Sample Guestimate Answers .................................................................. 30
3.5 Math Questions ..................................................................................... 33
Sample Math Questions .......................................................................... 33
3.6 Brainteasers ............................................................................................ 34
Sample Brainteasers ................................................................................. 34
3.7 Factors Questions ................................................................................. 36
3.8 Business Case Questions ...................................................................... 36
Purpose of the Business Case Question ............................................... 36
Playing For Time ...................................................................................... 37
Setting Up The Case ................................................................................ 37
Tackling The Case .................................................................................... 38
Concluding The Case............................................................................... 39
Sample Case Questions ........................................................................... 40
3.9 Your Questions ..................................................................................... 43
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4. After The Interview .................................................................................... 44

4.1 Accepting An Offer .............................................................................. 44
4.2 Negotiating An Offer ........................................................................... 44
4.3 Turning Down An Offer ..................................................................... 47
4.4 How To Deal With Rejection ............................................................. 47
5. Core Concepts and Frameworks .............................................................. 48
5.1 Case Math ............................................................................................... 48
5.2 Profitability Framework ....................................................................... 51
5.3 Three Cs Framework ........................................................................... 55
5.4 Porters Five Forces .............................................................................. 62
5.5 Four Ps Analysis ................................................................................... 63
5.6 Value Chain Analysis ............................................................................ 64
6. Supporting Frameworks ............................................................................ 66
6.1 BCG Growth/Share Matrix ................................................................ 66
6.2 McKinsey 7 S Model............................................................................. 67
6.3 Outsourcing Matrix ............................................................................... 68
6.4 Product Market Expansion Matrix ..................................................... 70
6.5 Return on Invested Capital .................................................................. 71
7. Practice Case Questions............................................................................. 72
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Introduction
This guidebook is designed to help aspiring consultants understand,
prepare for and succeed in the consulting interview.
It will help you stand out from the crowd in the application and
interview process, and provides interview tips, sample questions and key
frameworks to help you structure and solve case interview questions,
which are the cornerstone of the consulting interview.
1. Interview Basics
1.1 Purpose of the Consulting Interview
Client Readiness
Management consultants are hired by senior executives to advise on
their most pressing and challenging problems.
Case questions, which form a core part of the consulting interview, are a
kind of role playing exercise; a test of your ability to perform under
pressure, undertake a structured analysis of an unfamiliar problem, and
communicate insights clearly and persuasively.
Your interviewer will want to know whether you are ready to be placed
in front of a client, and might ask questions such as, In the past 12
months, a large smart phone manufacturer has experienced reduced
profitability even as the size of the global market has grown rapidly.
What is happening, and what should the company do about it?
Are you client ready?
The Airport Test

In addition to all the questions that the interviewer will ask during the
consulting interview, they will also be asking themselves (whether
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consciously or not) would I want to be stuck with this person at an

airport?
You may have the right qualifications and have answered all the
interview questions correctly, but if you dont pass the Airport Test
then the interviewer will be unlikely to progress you to the next round.
Why do interviewers use the Airport Test? Two reasons. Firstly,
consultants spend a lot of time working in project teams, and if you are
annoying or obnoxious then this will affect the morale, enjoyment and
productivity of the team. Secondly, consultants often engage directly
with senior clients, and so the interviewer needs to feel comfortable that
you will be able to represent the firm.
Eye contact, a firm handshake, and a pleasant smile will take you a long
way.
1.2 Interview Structure

A consulting firm will normally conduct two or three interview rounds,
and each round will consist of two or more interviews back-to-back.
The case interview question is the cornerstone of the consulting
interview. Some firms employ a fixed structure for the case question,
asking each candidate the same set of questions. Other firms use a more
open ended structure where the candidate will be expected to drive the
case. This is done to see whether you can deal with ambiguity and drive
towards a solution.
In addition to the case question, interviewers will also ask personal
experience questions, guesstimate questions, math questions, brain
teasers, and factor questions. Interview question types are explained in
more detail in Section 3.
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Stress Interviews
Your interviewers may subject you to a stress interview. The aim of
which is to put you under pressure to see how you will react and
whether you can calmly defend yourself.
Your interviewers might do this in one of two ways. They might ask
you questions, one after another in rapid fire succession, while at the
same time making disparaging or rude comments about your answers.
Alternatively, they may give you the silent treatment, sitting sullenly in
silence, waiting for you to start talking and then making you explain even
your most basic comments.
Stay calm, its only a test.
1.3 Interview Tips

Top 5 Tips for Nailing the Case Interview
The Top 5 Tips were provided by Neal Dodd, founder of BriefcasesDirect and a
former McKinsey consultant who has interviewed and prepared well over 100 aspiring
consultants.
Top tier management consulting companies are the preferred destination
for many MBA graduates, as well as graduates with less traditional
backgrounds. In general, the consulting positions for those straight out
of an undergraduate program are fewer and farther between. Thats
because the more junior analyst positions typically dont lead to partner
track positions in most firms; analysts are expected to return to graduate
school and only then, should they return, be on a partner track. This can
vary from firm to firm but is definitely true for the McKinsey, Bain and
BCG type firms.
That doesnt mean that fresh graduates cannot find positions, even in
financial times as difficult as these. Believe it or not, consulting
companies are busier now than in the prior recession of 2001, so dont
lose hope. I have personally coached over a hundred potential
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candidates and many were truly amazed that they were able to secure the
coveted offer letter during a competitive interviewing season. In order to
maximize your chances during the interviewing process, its important to
prepare carefully; below are some tips to help you ace the interview.
1. Make a good first impression
This goes for any interview youre on but is particularly true for fields
like management consulting. Make sure you look like a consultant
what does that mean? Many of the smart people that interview for
consulting positions have not interviewed anywhere before or only for
academic type positions. Others are foreign born graduates of top MBA
programs. Whatever the case may be, they have never interviewed for a
top tier management consulting job or any similar position. The fact that
these firms interview the brainy types only makes the situation worse.
Invest in a well made suit, dark blue or grey with or without pinstripes is
perfect for men, for women, black can also work. A tie with a splash of
color is fine, it can convey a little bit of energy or pizzazz, but nothing
too flashy, they like energy but not attention seekers. A briefcase or
attach is a perfect complement to an outfit, you can always borrow a
friend or colleagues and it doesnt necessarily have to be new to convey
a polished look.
2. Keep your poise
Much of the interviewing process is very intense, with some companies
intentionally playing good cop, bad cop between their interviewers. All
this means is that you need to remain poised, dont let them ruffle your
feathers with abrupt or unfriendly behavior, pushing paper around or
looking angry. Remember, youre not here to make friends, youre here
to get a job and theyre here to test whether you can deal with nasty
clients, managers and co-workers should the occasion arise. Keep
smiling and maintain a resilient positive attitude, your interviewers will
find it irresistible.
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3. Think and listen

This might sound obvious, but most people dont do this during the
case interview and miss the boat on what the interviewer is asking for or
dont get the hints that are being dropped during the discussion. A
classic issue for interviewees is writing too much instead of listening to
the question being asked. Practice listening to case questions and writing
very few words, use symbols for profit (), revenue (R) and other
common words and dont write down the fluff in the questions, flowery
language is there to confuse and good consultants can spot the key facts
quickly. Listen and then think about the implications of the question
being asked. If there are declining profits in a business that is becoming
commoditized, then opine as much and state your rationale. You can be
thoughtful and comment on the question at hand based on what you
know. Continue this process throughout the case interview, each piece
of information is a clue, not just a plug into an equation or out of the
box framework so common in business schools.
4. Ask questions
Now that youre thinking about the case and the information youre
being given, be sure to ask intelligent questions; start a dialogue rather
than barrelling down a path that is preconceived or based on early
inferences from the information at hand. Remember, you are expected
to be engaging during team problem solving situations, be sure to appear
this way during the interview and engage the interviewer. There is
probably a lot you know about a particular industry based on general
reading (you should be reading business publications to build your
business acumen if you dont have a typical business background). If the
case is about the magazine industry, you should be able to guess what
their sources of revenue are without having worked in the business
thats just common sense, practice applying this common sense.
Curiosity is a relentless trait in good consultants, mix this curiosity with
intelligent thought to come up with hypothesis driven questions: One
would think that the roofing industry is seasonal..are there seasonal
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variations in this company causing cash flow issues? rather than, is

there uneven earnings throughout the year?
5. Pass the airport screen
Consultants always ask, is this someone Id like to be stuck at an airport
with for 4 hours or in a small team room for 8 12 hours per day for
weeks on end? Be sure youre the type of person that is tolerable,
hopefully enjoyable, to be around. Be yourself, dont be too pushy or
aggressive, it just turns people off. Have fun with the interview, if youve
prepared well it should be fun for both you and the interviewer. Be sure
to prepare well for the interview and the fit questions on your
background, resume, interests, strengths and weaknesses these all
count, remember, theyre looking for the next round of leaders for their
organizations, their people are their product so show them what a great
product theyre looking at!
10 More Case Interview Tips

Below are ten (10) additional case interview tips to help you ace the case.
1. Practice, practice, practice
Preparation is important for three main reasons:
1. The interview process is extremely competitive. You are unlikely
to succeed without a lot of practice;
2. Case problems are indicative of the type of work that you will do
as a consultant, and so your ability to answer case problems
indicates your readiness to hit the ground running; and
3. Your preparedness for the interview is an indicator of your passion
for consulting. If you cant be bothered to prepare, then you
probably dont want the job badly enough.
2. Take notes
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You should take notes when the interviewer is giving you the facts of
the case. Remember to bring graph paper and pen to the interview so
you can write things down.
3. Dont make assumptions
Your interviewer will most likely leave information out when giving you
the facts. You should not assume facts that have not been given to you.
4. Ask questions
Your interviewer expects you to ask questions in order to understand
the situation and to clarify vague information. For example, if you dont
know the first thing about the automobile market, ask how much it costs
to manufacture an engine. If you are asked to estimate the demand for
hamburgers in Sydney, feel free to ask how many people live in Sydney
and the surrounding areas. Your interviewer is likely to direct your line
of questioning to a specific area, but you must be ready to control the
conversation if the interviewer does not direct your reasoning.
5. Engage in active listening
Dont ask a pre-prepared list of questions. Listen to the information that
the interviewer provides and assess how it affects the problem. What is
unclear and what do you still need to know? Make sure you respond to
the information you receive and incorporate it into your analysis.
6. Maintain direct eye contact
Eye contact is important because it demonstrates confidence and
authority. As a consultant you will meet with upper management and
boards of directors regarding matters that you have been briefed on only
hours before. The case interview is practice for the real thing.
7. Take your time
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Its okay to take anywhere up to 90 seconds to collect your thoughts. It

is more important to give a well thought out and structured response
than to respond immediately.
8. Clearly structure your answer
Structure your answer by setting out a framework for analysis. For
example, firstly I will consider X, secondly I will consider Y, and finally
I will consider Z.
9. Think out loud
The case question is an opportunity to show the interviewer how you
think. As you analyse the elements of the case, be sure to talk out loud
and explain your reasoning. This is the only way the interviewer can
assess your performance.
10. Summarize your conclusions
You should be able to summarize your conclusions at any time,
supported by the key findings that you have been noting down as you
progress through the case.
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1.4 Interview Expectations

What to Expect
Consultants are the public face of the firms they work for, and firms
need to be able to trust their consultants to interact with senior clients
including CEOs and executive board members. As a result, consulting
interviews are a rigorous process designed to assess not only an
applicants analytical skills but also their confidence and professionalism.
What To Wear
Professionalism includes not only what you say, but also how you say it
and how you appear. You should arrive at interviews looking as though
you are already a consultant with the firm.
For men, appropriate interview attire includes a dark pressed suit, clean
and ironed shirt (white or light blue are safe colours), tie, dark belt, dark
socks, and dark polished shoes.
For women, appropriate interview attire includes a dark suit, blouse,
stockings, and nice shoes.
What To Bring
It is a good idea to bring the following items with you to the interview:
1. A black leather portfolio containing a pad of graph paper and a
couple of pens. You will need to take notes during the case question;
2. A few copies of your resum one for your reference and a few
additional copies for your interviewers.
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2. Before the Interview

2.1 Research
Applicants should research each consulting firm before applying.
Below we provide some ideas to help make your research as effective
and efficient as possible.
Why, how and what should you research?
1. Why should you research?

Take control of your career. Researching consulting firms doesnt just
help you prepare your application and improve your interview
performance, it will also help you decide whether you are really
interested in pursuing a career in the consulting industry.
The objective is to get a job offer. This point sounds obvious,
however it can be easy to take your eyes off the prize.
Researching consulting firms will help you figure out which firms suit
your personality and career goals and will significantly improve your
interview performance.
It is important to show a genuine interest. Being knowledgeable
about the consulting industry and the firm for which you are applying is
an easy way to demonstrate that you have a genuine interest in the
consulting industry.
It is important to remember that, regardless of your university grades,
the firm will need to spend a lot of money training you. A consulting
firm does not want to hire people who are not keen to be there.
Keep the stress levels down. Being well informed can help to lower
your stress levels. For example, if you have done your homework,
questions like Why do you want to work here? and What is it about
our firm that interests you? should not faze you in the slightest.
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2. How should you research?

Talk to people. The best source of information about a consulting firm
is from people who have had direct contact with the firm. Talk with
current and former employees, friends who have gone through the
interview process or the firms HR personnel.
Read the firm website. Every candidate will read the firm website, and
so this is necessary but by no means sufficient. The amount of
information that a firm provides on its website will vary but this will at
least be a good starting point.
Read widely. The more you know about the economy, different
industry sectors and the management consulting industry, the better.
3. What should you research?

Know the company basics. Having an understanding of the firm will
demonstrate your knowledge, professionalism and interest in the
consulting industry. Basic information that you should know includes:
The firms background,

Services and industry sectors,
Key office locations,
Recent media mentions, and
Key factors that distinguish the firm from its competitors.
When researching consulting firms, ask questions such as:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
What services does the firm offer?

Which industry sectors does the firm serve?
How many employees does the firm have? How many offices?
Does the firm offer a formal training program?
How much partner contact and client contact can junior
consultants expect?
6. What are the typical working hours? What is the firms travel
model? Is it possible to transfer between offices?
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7. At what level of experience are consultants required to specialize

by service and industry sector?
8. How are consultants reviewed? Does the firm have an up or
out policy?
9. How many positions is the firm looking to fill? How does that
compare with previous intakes?
10. What exit opportunities do the firms consultants typically
pursue?
Understand how the firm interviews. In addition to learning about
the firm, you should also find out about its interview process. What
qualities are they looking for in applicants? How many interview rounds
are there? Do they ask case questions? Does the firm put an emphasis
on asking questions with a numerical component?
2.2 Networking
Gaining Contacts
As an aspiring consultant, the purpose of networking is to build
relationships with industry contacts, gain information about target firms,
and obtain names that you can use in your application cover letter (e.g.
I am applying to Bain following my discussion with your Associate
John Citizen at the recent New York University careers fair.).
There are various ways to gain contacts prior to sending out
applications. Here are three (3) suggestions:
1. On campus recruitment events and careers fairs are the easiest way
to meet consultants and HR people;
2. Reaching out to family friends and classmates who are current or
former employees at your target firm is another good approach;
3. If you are at non-target school and dont have any relevant
contacts, then cold calling the recruiter and asking to talk with her
is a suitable fall back option.
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Building Relationships
Some people appear to believe that the goal of a networking event is to
collect as many business cards as possible. This was always the wrong
approach, however in a world with LinkedIn, it is also absurd since a
persons business card will provide much less information than their
Linkedin profile.
Networking is about building relationships not about the size of your
Rolodex; knowing one person who can help you is better than having
1,000 LinkedIn connections.
When it comes to networking, here are five (5) things to keep in mind:
1. First impressions count: Good grooming will not necessarily secure
you a job, but poor grooming can scuttle your chances. You will be
judged on your appearance. Its not fair, its not nice, and it may sound
like high school all over again, but you need to play the game. Invest in
one quality business suit, which you can wear throughout the
recruitment process.
2. Provide value early: Networking is about building relationships, and
a good way to build relationships is to give something of value to the
other person up front. If you are a practicing consultant then this might
include sharing industry knowledge or making helpful introductions.
Unfortunately, if you are an undergraduate student talking to an HR
person at a careers event then you are unlikely to have any such value to
offer. Luckily, nobody ever said you need to provide value of a
commercial nature. If youre a naturally funny person, feel free to tell a
tasteful joke.
3. Find common ground: As an ambitious aspiring consultant, you
may be tempted to barrage an HR person or consultant with a shopping
list of questions. Dont do it. You are there to build relationships, not to
tick boxes. Take an interest in the person you are talking to, ask them
about their interests and experiences, and see whether you can establish
common ground.
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4. Ask burning questions: Research the firm and its recruitment

process prior to a careers event in order to avoid asking dumb questions.
If you still have a few burning questions, feel free to ask them.
5. Follow up: If you had a good conversation with an HR person or
consultant, it is a nice courtesy to send a short follow up email. In your
email, re-introduce yourself, remind them what you talked about and
thank them for their time. Below is a short sample email to give you an
idea of what is required:
Dear Sally,
This is John Citizen, we met yesterday at the Bain careers evening
held at the Randolph Hotel in Oxford.
I enjoyed chatting with you about social enterprise and Michael
Porters shared value theory.
Thanks for taking the time to visit Oxford and share information
about Bains graduate program.
Best wishes,
John
2.3 Applications
CV and Cover Letter Basics
Top consulting firms receive thousands of applications per year, and so
your cover letter and CV form a crucial first step in your application.
These documents will determine whether you secure a first round
interview.
You need to tailor your cover letter and CV for each application and
highlight your most impressive and relevant credentials and work
experience to demonstrate that you are the right person for the job. The
recruiter will be looking for evidence of:
1. Strong academic performance
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2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Ability to work in teams

Leadership experience
Noteworthy achievements
Differentiating factors academic or extra-curricular achievements
Relevant technical skills, e.g. software, finance, economics
For more information about preparing your cover letter and CV, please
download our dedicated guidebooks:
1. How to Create a Winning Rsum;
2. How to Create a Killer Cover Letter.
How to compensate for poor grades

If you have poor university grades, you may face an uphill battle getting
an interview at a top consulting firm. You can take steps to combat this
hurdle by highlighting your most impressive work experience in your
cover letter. Additionally, or alternatively, you can selectively highlight a
specific subject or year of studies in which you excelled.
How to strengthen a non-business

background
It will help your application if you have prior business experience,
however if you come from a non-business background you can
strengthen your application by showing how your work experience
demonstrates team work, leadership, and the ability to achieve positive
outcomes.
Use action-outcome language in your rsum. That is, use action verbs
to describe what you did and strong adjectives to describe the outcome.
2.4 Case Interview Prep

Case questions form the cornerstone of the consulting interview. If you
want to perform successfully, then you will need to do a lot of practice.
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You should run at least 30 mock case interviews with friends,

classmates, contacts in the industry and anyone else who is willing to
help. You may be an Olympian with a GPA of 4.0, but this wont help
you in the consulting interview. There is no getting around the need to
practice.
In addition to the advice contained in this guidebook, here are some
additional case interview resources that you may find helpful:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Case in Point by Marc P. Cosentino (Recommended)

Case Interview Workshop by Victor Cheng
Look Over My Shoulder by Victor Cheng
Case Interview Secrets by Victor Cheng
Crack the Case by David Ohrvall
How to Get Into the Top Consulting Firms by Tim Darling
Mastering the Case Interview by Alexander Chernev
The Harvard Business School Guide to Careers in Management
Consulting by Maggie Lu
9. Vault Guide to the Case Interview
10. Ace Your Case! Consulting Interviews by WetFeet
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3. Interview Questions
3.1 Types of Questions
There are six (6) types of questions that you are likely to come across in
the consulting interview:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Behavioural interview questions;

Guesstimate questions (aka market sizing);
Math questions;
Brainteasers;
Factor questions; and
Business case questions (these are the cornerstone of the
consulting interview).
3.2 Commonly Asked Questions

Why Consulting?
Your interviewer may ask you the following straightforward question,
why consulting?
Relevance of the question
The question is relevant for two reasons:
1. Your interviewer is likely to ask it in the interview; and
2. You will be much more likely to succeed (in the interview and
afterwards) if you can clearly and passionately articulate in your
own mind the reasons why you want to work in the consulting
industry.
How to answer the question
The way you respond to the question is more important than what you
say. The most important thing is to be sincere and passionate about
getting into the industry.
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Think about why you want to get into the industry and write down each
reason as a bullet point. Review your points before stepping into the
interview.
Reasons to enter the consulting industry
Here are thirteen (13) reasons that you might give in answer to the
question why consulting?:
1. Early responsibility: Opportunity to get early responsibility
tackling real world business problems;
2. Skills: Opportunity to develop marketable skills in a prestigious
environment;
3. Learning: Continuous learning through project experience and
formal training;
4. Work experience: Working with intelligent and energetic people;
5. Mentors: Exposure to senior consultants and the chance to learn
how they think, act, and analyze problems;
6. Networking: Access to senior clients and an extensive alumni
network;
7. Variety of work: Opportunity to undertake a diverse range
projects across a broad range of industries;
8. Remuneration: Consulting is prestigious and the money is good;
9. Teamwork: Working as part of an elite fast paced team;
10. Impact: Creating solutions that lead to improved organisational
performance;
11. Travel: Opportunity to travel with work;
12. B-school: Increasing the chance of being accepted into a top
business school;
13. Exit opportunities: The skills, networks and branding of a few
years at a management consulting firm are likely to open new
doors and the experience will always look good on your rsum.
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Have you ever failed at anything?

This question is designed to assess your ability to learn from experience,
and overcome obstacles.
In preparing a response to this kind of question, develop a story about a
time that you were not able to achieve a goal, how you adapted your
approach, ultimately achieved the outcome you wanted, and what you
learnt from the experience.
Do not tell stories about academic failure, illegal activity, or failed
relationships.
3.3 Behavioural Interview Questions

In the consulting interview, the interviewer is likely to ask you questions
based on your rsum with the aim of understanding your skills and
experience.
Your rsum may provide a structure for these kinds of questions, but
you need to be prepared to elaborate on your experience including by
highlighting your skills using different examples from the ones contained
in your rsum.
The way you answer behavioural questions can be just as important as
what you say. Appearing confident and relaxed is crucial. Prior to the
interview, review your rsum and answers to the most likely questions.
Has the firm specifically stated what skills they are looking for? In
general, interviewers will be looking for the following qualities:
Leadership skills consultants need to be able to promote
themselves, their ideas, and the firm;
Teamwork skills consultants spend long hours travelling and
working together, and so need the ability to get along;
Analytical skills research and analysis are bread and butter
consulting skills;
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Communication skills good analysis is meaningless if you cant

convey your ideas;
Confidence clients can be busy and demanding, and consultants
need to have the right mettle. Sometimes one of the interviewers
will play bad cop to try and ruffle your feathers;
Personality do you have hobbies, interests, and a sense of
humour?
You should prepare answers ahead of time, so that you can address this
part of the interview without needing to think on the spot. Memorize
bullet points instead of lengthy answers, and have at least three stories to
demonstrate each personal quality.
How to Answer Behavioural Questions

When you are asked a behavioural interview question, consider including
five (5) things in your answer:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
A specific situation;
The goal you set for yourself or obstacle you faced;
The action you took;
The outcome achieved; and
What you learned from the experience.
Sample Behavioural Interview Questions

Below are thirteen (13) sample behavioural interview questions to give
you an idea of the kinds of questions you might be asked.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Tell me about yourself.

Can you provide an example of a time when you demonstrated
leadership?
Can you provide an example of an obstacle you faced, and how
you overcame it?
What role do you normally take in a group?
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5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
Can you provide an example of a time you worked with

someone in a group who didnt pull their weight? How did you
deal with the situation?
Describe a project that best highlights your analytical abilities.
What was your role?
Tell us about a time when you had to persuade someone. How
did you go about it?
When was the last time you thought outside the box?
Explain your approach.
What is the most stressful situation you have ever faced? How
did you handle it?
Which of your achievements are you most proud of?
What is the worst mistake you have ever made?
Why do you want to work at [insert firm name here]?
Why should we hire you?
3.4 Guesstimate Questions (aka

Market Sizing)
The guesstimate question frequently comes up in consulting interviews.
It will often be a market sizing question, which may be a standalone
question or part of a larger business case question.
What will you be asked to do?
The typical guesstimate question will require you to estimate a number
by doing a rough back of the envelope calculation. You are supposed
to reach a final answer by using a series of narrowing assumptions.
Your assumptions should have a sound basis and you should explain the
logic behind your assumptions, however it is not important that your
assumptions be 100% accurate.
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What is being assessed?

The guesstimate question is quite different from the kind of interview
questions that you are probably used to. For the guesstimate question, it
is better to arrive at the wrong answer with good assumptions and clear
logic than to know the right answer because you read it in a text book.
12 Tips for Nailing the Guesstimate

Question
Below are twelve (12) tips for nailing the guesstimate question.
1. Practice
Practice doing some guesstimate questions before the interview so that
you are prepared. It is a good idea to bring a pen and graph paper to the
interview so that you can keep track of your calculations.
2. Know some basic facts
You should know the key demographics for the country where you are
interviewing. Below are some basic facts that you might need to know.
No. Population Statistic
Estimate*
1.
World
7 billion people
2.
America
300 million people
(100 million households)
3.
UK
65 million people
4.
Australia
20 million people
5.
New York
8 million people
6.
London
8 million people
7.
Sydney
4 million people
8.
Life Expectancy
80 years
9.
Age distribution
Even distribution between
age groups
*Estimates are rounded or assumed in order to make the numbers easier to work with.
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3. Use round numbers

You are responsible for doing the calculations so pick numbers that are
easy to work with. For example, estimate the population of America as
300 million not 316.1 million.
4. Clarify the units of measurement
You should clarify the units of measurement that the interviewer wants
from you. For example, market size can be measured by revenue or sales
volume.
5. Take a moment
It is important to maintain your composure so before starting to answer
the guesstimate question take a moment to write down the key details of
the question, and consider your approach.
6. Have a clear approach
It is important to have a clear approach to help you answer the question.
Read more on this in the next section.
7. Ask questions
Your interviewer may be able to provide you with direction. If the
question is How many ping-pong balls will fit inside a 747? the first
question you might ask is What is the volume of a ping-pong ball?
8. State your assumptions
The interviewer may not know the answer or may not want to give you
direction so youll have to make assumptions. It is a good idea to clearly
state your assumptions. For example, lets assume that the diameter of
a ping-pong ball is 4cm. The formula for the volume of a sphere is
4/3.pi-r^3. So the volume of a ping-pong ball will be about 11-pi
centimetres cubed.
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9. Think out loud

The interviewer is trying to assess your thought process in getting to the
answer, not the answer itself. If you dont think out loud, you make it
difficult for the interviewer to give you points.
10. Explain your logic
As you make your way through the problem it is helpful to explain the
logic behind each of your assumptions. Instead of saying a 747 is about
100 metres long you could say I know that an average car is about 5
metres long and based on my experience I would say that 20 cars lined
up end to end would be about the same length as a 747. So I will assume
that a 747 is 100 metres long.
11. Answer the question
After doing all of the calculations remember to answer the question that
has been asked.
12. Be prepared for follow-up questions
After you answer the guesstimate question, you may be asked If you
had to find the real answer to the question, how would you do it? This
is a test of your creativity and resourcefulness.
Approaching the Guesstimate Question

A guesstimate question can be approached by breaking the question
down into smaller pieces by asking the interviewer questions and making
a series of narrowing assumptions.
You can break a question down either by starting big (e.g. making an
assumption about the total population) or starting small (e.g. making
assumptions about the average household or some other piece of the
whole and then extrapolating).
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After coming up with an estimate, sanity check whether the estimate is

in the right ball park by establishing reasonable upper and lower bounds
within which the answer should fall.
There are three types of guesstimate questions that you might receive:
population questions, household questions, and preposterous questions.
For population questions, the standard formula for calculating the
market size is the following:
=
=1
. =
[ % ]
=1
= .
=
In finding the market size, segmenting the population using simple

demographics will normally be the way to go. You might decide to
segment the population by age group, gender, geography, income, or
marital status.
Sample Guesstimate Questions

Below are twenty three (23) sample guesstimate questions broken down
by question type.
Population questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
How many births are there in America each day?

How many petrol stations are there in Sydney?
How many bottles of wine are consumed in France each
month?
How many cups of tea are drunk in England each day?
How many pounds are spent on haircuts in the UK each year?
How many weddings are performed in China each year?
How many mens suits were sold in the United States last year?
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8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
Billabong imports surfboards into America. Demand depends

on the weather and the company needs to order stock six
months in advance. How many surfboards should they order?
Estimate the total revenues obtained from the Harry Potter
movies.
What is the size of the market for mobile phones in America?
How many cars are sold in in Australia each year?
How many people are buried each year in England?
How many taxis are there in New York?
Household questions
14.
15.
16.
17.
What is the annual market for apples in America?

What is the annual size of the market for golf clubs in Japan?
What is the annual revenue of Harrods in London?
What is the market for bicycles in America?
Preposterous questions
18. How far does the average Premiership footballer run in a
game?
19. How much does Mount Kilimanjaro weigh?
20. How many ping-pong balls will fit inside a 747?
21. How much does a 747 weigh?
22. How many slices of pizza does it take to reach the moon?
23. How many tennis balls fit in a swimming pool?
Sample Guestimate Answers

Below is a sample answer to the preposterous question, How many
tennis balls fit in a swimming pool?
Interviewer: How many tennis balls fit in a swimming pool?
You: Do we know the volume of a tennis ball?
Interviewer: Assume 140 cubic centimeters.
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You: Are we talking about a standard Olympic sized swimming

pooling?
Interviewer: Yes.
You: Do we know the volume of an Olympic swimming pooling?
Interviewer: What do you think?
The interviewer does not know or does not want to give you the
information you need, and so you will need to make a series of
narrowing assumptions.
You: I know that an Olympic swimming pool is 50 meters long. An
Olympic swimming pool has 8 lanes and, based on my experience, each
lane is about 2.5 meters wide. So, I will assume that an Olympic
swimming pool is 25 metres wide. Based on my experience, an Olympic
swimming pool is about 2 meters deep at the shallow end and 3 meters
deep at the deep end. I will assume that the pool starts getting deeper at
the 30 meter mark and hits maximum depth 10 meters from the end of
the pool.
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You: The volume of a tennis ball in cubic metres would be:
You: So, now that we have estimates for the volume of the Olympic
sized swimming pool and the volume of a tennis ball, we can now
estimate how many tennis balls will fit in a swimming pool.
You: Roughly 20 million tennis balls will fit in an Olympic sized

swimming pool.
3. Establish upper and lower bounds
Establishing possible upper and lower bounds for an answer is a good
way to sanity check whether the final answer is in the right ball park.
You: The number of tennis balls that fit inside an Olympic sized
swimming pool is almost certainly more than 100,000 and less than
100,000,000. Therefore, our initial estimate seems to be in the right ball
park.
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4. Take the extra step

You: Since tennis balls are spherical, there will be small gaps between
the tennis balls. This means that the actual number of tennis balls that fit
in an Olympic sized swimming pool will be less than our initial estimate.
If we assume that 5% of the pool is filled with the empty space, then the
revised estimate for the number of tennis balls that fit in an Olympic
sized swimming pool is 19 million.
3.5 Math Questions

The interviewer may quiz you on your quantitative skills with one or two
short maths questions.
Sample Math Questions

Below are six (6) sample math questions to give you an idea of the kinds
of questions you might expect:
1. What is 13 x 13?
2. What percentage is 5 of 42?
3. The total smart phone market is $900 million and our clients sales
are $120 million. What is our clients market share as a percentage?
4. Our clients total costs are $350,000. Raw material costs account
for 25% of total costs. How much does the company pay for raw
materials?
5. A companys marketing costs are $50 million and it sells 40,654
units. What is the approximate marketing cost per unit?
6. An investment bank helps a mining company raise $35 million and
takes a 3% commission. Whats the investment banks
commission?
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3.6 Brainteasers
Brainteasers are another kind of question that you might confront in
consulting interviews. These questions are likely to be tricky and to
require out of the box thinking.
Why do interviewers ask brainteasers? Well, since clients can sometimes
ask questions which have no obvious answer, the goal of the brainteaser
is to assess how well you deal with ambiguity under pressure.
Sample Brainteasers
Here is a list of ten (10) sample brainteasers to give you an idea of what
to expect. Answers to the questions are provided in the next section:
1. Why are manhole covers round?
2. There are 6 blue socks and 6 purple socks mixed randomly
together in your sock drawer. It is dark, and you cannot tell them
apart. What is the smallest number of socks that you need to take
from the draw to be sure you have one matching pair?
3. Is there anything interesting about the following sequence of
numbers? 8, 11, 5, 4, 9, 1, 7, 6, 10, 3, 12, 2, 0
4. You have three boxes of eggs. The boxes contain (1) big eggs, (2)
small eggs, or (3) a mixture of big and small eggs. The boxes are
labelled: Big, Small and Mixed but every box is labelled
incorrectly. What is the least number of boxes that you will need
to open to know which eggs are in which box?
5. You invest $100 today in a company. The share price goes up
10% in the first year but then drops 10% in the second year. At
the end of the second year do you have more, less or the same as
you started with?
6. You are driving a bus and tracking the number of passengers on
the bus. At the first stop, the bus picks up 22 people. At the
second stop, 15 people get off the bus and 8 new passengers get
on. At the third stop, 5 passengers get off, and 13 new passengers
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7.
8.
9.
10.
get on. At the fourth stop, 5 passengers get off, and 2 get on.
What is the color of the bus drivers eyes?
In a tiny cabin in the woods, two men lie dead. The cabin is not
burned but the woods around it have burned. How did the men
die?
You are the owner of a pet store. You have a number of canaries
and bird cages. If you place one canary per cage, you have one
bird too many. If you place two canaries per cage, you have one
cage too many. How many cages and canaries do you have?
Marys father has five daughters: Nana, Nene, Nini, Nono, and
what is the name of the fifth daughter?
A rich father is dying and wants to leave his properties to his
wisest son. He asks them to purchase something that can fill the
bedroom, but is small enough to fit in their pocket. What did the
wisest child bring?
Brainteaser Answers
Here are the answers to the sample brainteasers listed above:
1. A round manhole cover cannot fall through the circular opening.
Circular covers don't need to be rotated or precisely aligned when
placing them. A round manhole cover can also be easily rolled.
2. 3 socks.
3. The digits are in alphabetical order eight, eleven, five, four,
nine, one, seven, six, ten, three, twelve, two, zero.
4. One box.
5. Less, you will only have $99.
6. Read the first sentence to this question.
7. The cabin is a cabin of a plane which crashed in the woods.
8. 3 cages and 4 canaries.
9. Read the question again.
10. A match box can fit in your pocket, but it can also be used to fill
the room with light.
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3.7 Factors Questions

Factor questions are designed to help the interviewer see how you think.
You might be asked What factors influence X, Y, Z? or What factors
would you consider when A, B, C?.
An example of a factor question is What factors would you consider
when marketing a new smart phone app?
3.8 Business Case Questions

Purpose of the Business Case Question
Consulting firms use the case question in order to assess a candidate for
a number of qualities:
Structured thinking;
Numerical ability;
Communication skills;
Comfort with ambiguity;
Speed of thought;
Knowledge of key business concepts;
Enthusiasm for consulting;
Calm resolve under pressure; and
Ability to represent the firm.
As part of a case question a candidate will be required to consider a

hypothetical business situation, uncover the source of the problem,
develop a solution, and provide recommendations. This process will
involve presenting a structure for analysis, making a series of commonsense assumptions, and asking the interviewer clarifying questions.
A case question is not intended to test your knowledge of a particular
industry. The recruiter is more interested in your thinking process than
the ultimate answer you provide, and so it is important to have a
structured approach and to think out loud.
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Playing For Time

If you get stuck during a case question then there are four (4) things you
can do to regain momentum.
Firstly, if the interviewer has just given you information you can say
something like let me take a second to consider that information. You
can safely stay silent for up to 90 seconds while writing down and
reviewing the key facts of the case.
Secondly, you can summarize what you have been told or where you are
up to so far. Summarising your position can help you pull your head
above water and see the bigger picture. It will also buy you some time
to think while you are talking.
Thirdly, consider the Three Cs Framework. Is there an obvious
element of the case that you failed to consider?
Fourthly, ask the interviewer for help. If you are truly stuck, then it is
better to ask for help than to spin your wheels and create a prolonged
and awkward silence.
Setting Up The Case

There are five (5) steps to setting up a case question:
1. Summarize the question
Give yourself time to think by writing down the question and
considering the key facts. You can safely pause for up to 90 seconds in
order to capture your thoughts on paper. When you have finished doing
so, summarize your understanding of the question.
2. Clarify vague information
Ask questions to help you understand the situation and clarify any
unfamiliar concepts or vague information provided by the interviewer.
3. Determine the goal
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Be clear about the objective of the case. Is the company concerned with
maximising profits, increasing market share, or something else? Does
the interviewer want a go/no go decision, or a list of
recommendations? For example, you might say From what you have
told me I understand that the company wants a list of recommendations
on how to maximize profits, are there any other objectives that I should
be aware of?
4. Structure the analysis
When answering a case question, structure is crucial. The interviewer
wants to know not only that you can provide a coherent answer but that
you can deliver your analysis in a client friendly way. That means
having a clear structure.
Select an appropriate framework for analysis. This will allow you to
gather the right kinds of information. However, dont nominate the
framework by name, for example dont say I want to use the three Cs
framework. Instead, use the framework to identify the issues that you
want to consider, and draw out a structure for the interviewer to see. A
good way to do this is to use a tree diagram. You can then walk the
interviewer through your structure and start asking for data or diving
into the details.
5. State a hypothesis
If the case is broad and open ended, for example profits have declined,
what should we do?, then it will be helpful to state a hypothesis about
the source of the problem. For example, you might say Profit is a
function of revenue and costs. My hypothesis is that declining profits
may have been caused by falling revenue. This will give your analysis a
starting point, and allow you to drive towards a solution.
Tackling The Case

Here are six (6) tips for successfully tackling a case question:
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1. Find the source of the problem You might get asked a

question such as Profits have declined, what should we do?
Before diving head long into an analysis of the companys revenue
and cost drivers, try to better understand the source of the
problem. Whats been happening in the economy? Is the problem
company specific or industry wide?
2. Find the trend If you are given figures for a particular year, it is
important to understand how things have changed over time. You
might say, I understand that the industry growth for 2015 was
10%, how does that compare with growth in prior years?
3. Break things down Aggregate figures can hide important
details. For example, you might know that total revenues have
been flat. Can you segment revenues by product line, distribution
channel, customer type or region? When looking at costs, can you
segment by value chain activities or into fixed and variable costs?
4. Think out loud State your hypothesis, and state your
assumptions as you progress in your analysis. The interviewer is
trying to assess the quality of your thinking, and you cant score
points for things that you think but dont say.
5. Keep it simple When doing numerical calculations, use round
numbers where ever possible. For example, you should assume
that the population of America is 300 million not 316.1 million.
6. Highlight key findings As you progress through the case,
record key findings so that you can refer back to them later. You
might do this by noting key findings on a separate piece of paper,
or by circling or highlighting them.
Concluding The Case

At the end of a case question it is important to provide a summary of
the problem and a set of actionable recommendations that answer the
question. Recommendations should be justified with the key findings
that you noted down as you progressed through the case.
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For example, you might say something like the company is trying to
decide whether to enter the Canadian market. Our recommendation is
that the company should enter this new market because they will capture
significant market share, face limited competition, and break even within
3 years.
Sample Case Questions

Below are a selection of sample case questions. The questions are
broken down into seven (7) question types to make them easier to
digest.
1. Declining Profitability
a) Our client is eBay. Its share price fell from $310 to $200 per share
on reports of declining profits. Whats going on and how can we
turn this around?
b) A large American beverage company acquired a fruit juice
company for $350 million five years ago with the goal to multiply
revenues tenfold. Revenues have instead fallen 50% to $20 million.
What's going on and how can we turn this around?
c) Our client is a mid-sized retail bank in Kazakhstan. The bank has
achieved sustained revenue growth over the last two years but its
profits have consistently declined. What is causing the decline in
profits, and what can we do about it?
2. Entering a New Market
a) Your client is a low-cost airline headquartered in Philadelphia with
frequent service to cities along the East Coast of the United States.
The CEO is interested in expanding service into a small town in
the Midwest; lets call it Greenville. What is your recommendation?
b) A large Korean electronics company is thinking about entering the
market for tablet computers. Is this a good idea?
c) A South Korean company is acquiring a U.S. smart phone maker.
What factors do they need to take into account?
3. Pricing Strategy
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a) The CEO of a large Asian electronics firm has come out with a
new smart phone, which is much like the iPhone. How should it
price this product?
b) Dr Pepper is trying to boost profitability by raising the price in
supermarkets. How is raising prices likely to affect profitability?
Should it go ahead with the plan?
c) Toyota has invented a car with incredible durability, it can be
driven a thousand times further than cars currently on the market
before needing to be serviced. The CEO asks you, How should
Toyota price this car?
4. Growth Strategy
a) Our client is the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. They want to
develop a growth strategy for the next five years. What would you
advise them to look at, and what are your recommendations for
growth?
b) You have been brought in as the CEO of Blackberry. The
company started making handheld wireless devices in 1999 and
gained substantial market share in the initial smart phone market
prior to the release of the iPhone in 2007. The company missed
the trend towards touchscreen smart phones and has fallen into
serious financial difficulty. How can we regain market share, and
return Blackberry to its former glory?
c) Emirates Airline is considering signing an agreement with Ben and
Jerries Ice-cream, which would allow them to serve several
flavours of ice cream on Emirates flights. Is it a good idea for
Emirates to sign this agreement?
d) Virgin Galactic has developed a new rocket that can take off and
land like a normal plane. Virgin Galactic wants to give customers
the opportunity to see the earth from space and experience low
gravity on a five hour flight. The prototype rocket will cost $1
billion to produce. Each additional rocket will cost $100 million.
a. Estimate the size of the global market
b. What price should Virgin Galactic charge for a ticket?
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c. How many rockets should it produce?

d. Should it sell rockets to competitors?
e) P&G has just discovered a new lightweight metallic compound
that could be used to produce metal containers like soft drink
cans. What should they do with it?
5. Operations
a) Coca Cola has a bottling plant in Mumbai. Over the past three
months, inventory has tripled and customer complaints have
doubled. What should the company do?
b) Cabana Surfboards manufactures surfboards at a factory in
California. It is currently summer, and Cabana is having trouble
meeting demand. Cabanas surfboards are distributed through surf
shops located near popular tourist beaches and, in recent years,
Cabana has developed a strong reputation among first time
surfers. What should the company do to keep up with demand?
c) A leading financial services company is trying to reduce operating
expenditures. How can it achieve its savings target?
6. Competitive Response
a) CanadaCo, the largest discount retailer in Canada, currently holds
the dominant market share in the industry. USCo, the largest
discount retailer in the United States, has decided to expand into
Canada by purchasing CanadaCos competition. How should the
CEO of CanadaCo respond?
b) Our client, lets call them AcmeCo, is a specialty shoe
manufacturer with retail stores in New York, San Francisco and
London. AcmeCo has discovered that Nike is planning to enter its
segment of the market. What should it do?
c) Our client is Kelloggs, a leading international manufacturer of
branded cereals. Over the past five years, supermarkets and
distributors in America have started selling private label goods
including private label cereals. Private label goods are produced by
manufacturers and sold by retailers and supermarkets directly to
the end user. The private label trend has started to impact
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Kelloggs market share. How should Kelloggs respond to this

competitive threat?
7. Turnarounds
a) Radioshack, an American consumer electronics giant of yesteryear,
faced chaotic trading on Wednesday as analysts predicted the
company would report its 10th straight quarter of losses.
Assuming RadioShack averts bankruptcy and achieves a successful
refinancing, what should the strategy be to turnaround and save
this iconic company?
3.9 Your Questions

At the end of a consulting interview, you will generally have an
opportunity to ask any questions that you might have, so it is a good
idea to prepare a few questions in advance.
What additional information do you need in order to make your
decision? For example, you may want to ask questions about the firms
travel policy, formal training programs, or the timeframe within which
consultants are expected to specialize.
Be sure to check whether your questions are answered on the firms
website.
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4. After The Interview

To find out about the next step in the recruitment process talk to the
recruitment manager (this will probably not be your interviewers).
It is a nice courtesy to send a short thankyou email to your interviewer
the day after your interview. The note should thank the interviewer for
her time, remind them of a few key points that you discussed, and state
again why you are genuinely interested in working with the firm.
If the date on which you expected to hear back from the firm has
passed, then feel free to call the recruitment manager to follow up on
the status of your application.
4.1 Accepting An Offer

If you are offered a position with a consulting firm, and are happy with
the terms of the offer, then feel free to accept it. You can talk to the
recruitment management to let them know your decision. You will then
also need to sign, date, and return the offer letter. Be sure to make a
copy for your records.
If you have successfully negotiated any terms of the offer, then you must
capture the additional or amended terms in writing. Ideally the firm
should provide you with an updated offer letter reflecting the agreed
terms. However, the recruitment manager may conveniently fail to
provide this, in which case make sure to capture the agreed terms in an
email sent from you to the recruitment manager. The firm may try to
wriggle out of its obligations later, and so you need to have written
evidence of what was agreed.
4.2 Negotiating An Offer

If you have received an offer of employment from the consulting firm
of your choice, you may want to negotiate the terms of the offer.
How should you go about doing this?
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Use your bargaining power

Your ability to negotiate the terms of your offer depends on how much
bargaining power you have. The consulting industry is currently
experiencing growth in various markets, and so it may be possible for
you to negotiate a more favourable employment contract.
Whatever the state of the economy, it is worth considering negotiating
the terms of your offer. After you accept your offer of employment you
will have virtually no bargaining power, and so the time for negotiation
is beforehand. If you are friendly and businesslike then negotiating
neednt create a negative impression, on the contrary, it demonstrates
that you have a keen business sense and a healthy level of self
confidence.
Obtain written confirmation
You need to obtain written confirmation of all terms that you
successfully negotiate.
Terms to negotiate
There are a number of offer terms that you may want to negotiate, these
include:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Office location;
Start date;
Compensation;
Starting position;
Annual leave; and
Offer response deadline.
1. Office location
To negotiate a change of office location, a first step might be to explain
the reason for your request to the recruitment manager. If they agree to
look into the matter, make sure you agree on a date to follow up with
them.
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If your request is turned down, try to identify a person in your target

office who can vouch for the transfer. When you find someone, contact
them to explain your situation and ask if theres anything he or she can
do to help you. Offer to meet with them in person.
2. Start date
In a weak economy, you may be able to negotiate a later start date. This
benefits the firm by allowing them to start paying your salary later than
planned.
3. Salary and bonus
Given the strong growth of the consulting industry, it may be possible
to negotiate an improved remuneration package.
The best form of leverage is to have another offer that pays more
money. If you are an MBA or lateral hire and your previous salary was
higher then you can use this as leverage. You may be able to convince
the recruiter that you are being undervalued.
4. Starting position
If the job offer is for a position at a lower level than you believe is
justified given your qualifications and experience then you can ask for a
higher starting position. If this doesnt work, then you might want to ask
for a shorter performance review period, which will allow you to prove
yourself and get promoted sooner.
5. Annual leave
If you dont like the amount of annual leave provided, try asking for
more. If that fails, ask about the firms unpaid leave policy.
6. Offer response deadline
Consulting firms are in a war for talent and can sometimes give
applicants an exploding offer, which expires within a very short time
period. Exploding offers are designed to pressure applicants to accept
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an offer as soon as possible in order to minimise the risk that the

applicant accepts a more favourable offer from another employer.
If you need an extension to the offer deadline, ask for it. Its a very
common thing to get more time to make a decision.
4.3 Turning Down An Offer

Once you have accepted (in writing) an offer from one consulting firm,
you can then reject any other offers you may have received.
If you have multiple offers then you will need to reject some of them. It
is a good idea to do this in a tactful and timely manner in order to
preserve the relationships.
4.4 How To Deal With Rejection

If you are not offered a position with your target firm, then you should
find out why. There are two reasons this is important. Firstly, getting
specific feedback on your performance is the only way you can learn and
improve. Secondly, you may discover that the firm has formed an
inaccurate opinion of you. It is usually impossible to transform a
rejection into an offer, but you really have nothing to lose.
If you believe that you were very close to getting an offer, then you may
want to try proposing a compromise. You could offer to work for free,
or on a trial basis rather than in a permanent full time position.
Tom Spencer 2016
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5. Core Concepts and

Frameworks
5.1 Case Math
Break Even Analysis:
Relevant when trying to decide whether to launch a new product or
invest in a project with high fixed costs.
=
Customer Lifetime Value:

Customer lifetime value is a prediction of the entire future value that a
company expects to derive from its relationship with a customer. It is a
useful tool for a company that is trying to decide which customer
segments to target and how much to spend on customer acquisition.
= 1 + 2 ()2 + 3 ()3 +
Net Present Value:

The NPV of an investment is the present value of the series of expected
future cash flows generated by the investment minus the cost of the
initial investment.
=
1
2

+
+ +
+

1
2
(1 + )
(1 + )
(1 + )
(1 + )
(1 + )
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Where r = discount rate; CFt = expected cash flow in year t; CFn =

expected cash flow in final year; g = long term cash flow growth rate.
Perpetuity:
A perpetuity is a constant stream of identical cash flows with no end.
=

+
+
+
(1 + )1 (1 + )2 (1 + )3
Price elasticity of demand:

Price elasticity of demand is a measure of the responsiveness of quantity
demanded to a change in price, and is relevant when formulating a
pricing strategy.
=
%
%
If demand is elastic (Ed > 1) then changes in price will have a relatively
large effect on the quantity demanded, and total revenue will rise if
prices are lowered.
If demand is inelastic (Ed < 1) then changes in price will have a relatively
small effect on the quantity demanded, and total revenue will rise if
prices are raised.
Product life cycle:
The product life cycle is relevant when calculating the expected lifetime
revenue of a product.
= ()
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Profit Margin:
Gross Profit Margin: Gross profit margin measures how much of every
dollar of sales revenue remains after subtracting the cost of goods sold.
=
= 1
Net Profit Margin: Net profit margin measures how much out of every
dollar of sales revenue a company actually keeps. Net profit margin is
useful when comparing companies in similar industries. A higher net
profit margin indicates a more profitable company that has better
control over its costs compared to its competitors.
=
= 1
[ + ]
Contribution Margin: A cost accounting concept that allows a company

to determine the profitability of individual products.
=
Return on Investment:
ROI is a performance measure that a company can use to evaluate the
efficiency of an investment or to compare a number of different
investments.
=
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Rule of 70:
The Rule of 70 is a simple rule of thumb that can be used to figure out
roughly how long it will take for an investment to double, given an
expected growth rate.
The rule can be described by the following equation:
() =
70

5.2 Profitability Framework

The profitability framework is probably the most important framework
for solving case questions. Profit equals revenue minus cost.
Profit
1. Revenue
2. Cost
Price
Units Sold
Variable Costs
Fixed Costs
Pricing Strategy:
Competitive, Cost
Based, Value
Based
Customer
segmentation;
Market share; New
markets; New
products
COGS: Raw
Materials,
Transport, Energy,
Labor
SG&A, Rent, R&D,

Depreciation,
Interest, Labor
(fixed contract),
Marketing
1. Revenue
Revenue is normally thought of as being a function of price per unit and
units sold.
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Declining revenue can derive from a fall in prices or a reduction in units

sold, and can be examined in four steps.
Step 1: Segmentation
What are the major revenue streams? It will typically be a good idea to
segment units sold, and this might be done by:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Product;
Product line;
Distribution channel;
Region;
Customer type (new/old, big/small); or
Industry vertical.
Step 2: Examination
What percentage of total revenue does each revenue stream represent?
Compare current and historical figures to identify how these percentages
have changed over time.
Step 3: Diagnosis
What is the underlying cause of the problem?
Step 4: Response
Develop a strategic response.
1.1 Diagnosis
If faced with declining prices or volume, factors to consider include the
following.
1. Macro Economy
PEST Analysis: Political upheaval; Economic decline; Sociocultural factors; Technology. Have there been any recent or
impending changes?
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2. Customers
Market growth: Has market growth slowed forcing competitors to
compete over market share?
Customer needs and preferences: Have customer needs and
preferences changed?
Price Discrimination: Can the company distinguish between
customers and charge different prices to different customer
segments?
Distribution Channels: What channels are used to reach
customers? Has there been a change in the cost effectiveness of
these channels?
3. Competition
Rivalry: Have competitors lowered their prices? How does the
companys product mix, product quality, and cost structure
compare to the competition?
Substitutes: Has the price performance of substitutes improved?
Barriers to entry: Has it become easier for new competitors to
enter the industry?
Buyer bargaining power: Has there been an increase in customer
bargaining power?
4. Company
Market Power: Does the company have market power (brand,
product differentiation, proprietary technology, economies of
scale, network effects)?
Products: What products and product mix does the company
offer? How do these compare to the competition? Is there
something different about the products that might allow the
company to raise prices?
Value chain analysis: Consider value chain activities: access to raw
materials; operating capacity; inventory handling and distribution.
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1.2 Response
Declining prices
In response to declining prices, there are three pricing strategies to
consider:
1. Competitive pricing: How do prices compare with the
competition? Is the pricing appropriate given the products quality
and relative position within the market? How is the competition
likely to respond to the firms pricing strategy?
2. Cost based pricing: Cost based pricing is a simple pricing
strategy that sets price relative to the companys costs. The price is
set by calculating the companys per unit cost and adding a margin
for profit.
3. Value based pricing: What is the customers willingness to pay?
For more on pricing strategy, see 5.5 Four Ps Analysis.
Declining sales volume
Faced with falling sales volume, there are four growth strategies that a
business might consider: market penetration, market development,
product development, and diversification.
For more on growth strategy, see 6.4 Product Market Expansion
Matrix.
2. Costs
The third driver of declining profitability (after prices and volume) is
rising costs.
2.1 Diagnosis
Examine the cost structure of the business to locate the source of rising
costs. This might be done by segmenting costs into value chain
activities: inbound logistics, operations, outbound logistics, sales &
marketing, customer service. See 5.6 Value Chain Analysis.
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Consider also fixed and variable costs. Have there been any significant
changes in the companys cost drivers? How do costs compare to the
competition?
2.2 Response
In responding to rising costs, see 6.3 Outsourcing Matrix.
5.3 Three Cs Framework

The Three Cs Framework can help to assess the business situation in
the context of entering a new market, M&A, product development, and
starting a new business. It involves examining customers, competition,
and the company.
1. Customers
Eight (8) factors to consider when examining the customer.
1. Customer Identification
In general terms, who is the customer?
In trying to identify the customer, remember that the person who makes
the purchase decision, the person who pays (the customer), and the end
user may all be different people. For example, a doctor may prescribe
medicine, paid for by an insurance company, and used by the patient.
2. Customer Segmentation
Customer segmentation can make it easier to understand customer
needs and preferences, and the size and growth rate of different revenue
streams.
It may make sense to segment customers by:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Age group;
Gender;
Income level;
Employment status;
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5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Distribution channel;
Region;
Product or product line;
New versus existing customers; or
Large versus small customers.
3. Size
How big is the market? How big is each customer segment?
4. Growth
How fast is the market growing? What is the growth rate of each
customer segment?
5. Customer Preferences
What do customers want? Do different customer segments want
different things? Are the needs and preferences of customers changing
over time?
6. Willingness to Pay
How much is each customer segment willing to pay?
How price sensitive is each customer segment?
7. Bargaining Power
What is the concentration of customers in the market relative to the
concentration of firms?
Do customers face high switching costs?
8. Distribution
What is the best way to reach customers (mail order, online store,
factory outlet, retail store, supermarket, department stores, or network
marketing)? Does each customer segment have a preferred distribution
channel?
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2. Competition
Competition can come from firms within an industry, or from firms in
other industries who produce substitutes.
Competition can also come from suppliers and customers within the
supply chain who exert bargaining power to extract a larger share of
industry profits.
Eleven (11) factors to consider when examining the competition.
1. Competitor Identification
Who are the companys major competitors? What products and services
do they offer?
Who are the companys indirect competitors? That is, which firms are
producing substitutes?
2. Competitor Segmentation
Is it possible to segment the competition? This might be done by
distribution channel, region, product line, or customer segment.
3. Size and Concentration
What are the revenues and market shares of major competitors? What is
the concentration of competitors in the industry?
4. Performance
What is the historical performance of the competition? Relevant
performance metrics might include profit margins, net income, and
return on investment.
5. Industry Lifecycle
Where is the industry in its lifecycle? Early stage, growth, maturity or
decline?
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6. Industry Drivers
What drives the industry: brand, product quality, scale, or technology?
7. Competitive Advantage
What is the competition good at? How sustainable are these advantages?
What are their weaknesses? How easily can these weaknesses be
exploited?
8. Competitive Strategy
What competitive strategy is the competition pursuing? Is the
competition producing products that are low cost or differentiated?
What customer segments is the competition targeting?
What is the competitions pricing strategy, distribution strategy and
growth strategy?
9. Barriers to Entry
The threat posed by potential competitors depends on the level of
barriers to entry.
Barriers to entry make it more difficult for potential competitors to
enter, and so reduces competitive rivalry and allows existing firms to
maintain higher prices than would otherwise be possible.
Key barriers to entry might include capital requirements, economies of
scale, network effects, government policy, switching costs, access to
suppliers, access to distribution channels, product differentiation, and
proprietary product technology.
10. Supplier bargaining power
Factors that affect the bargaining power of suppliers might include:
1. The number of available suppliers and the strength of competition
between them;
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2. Whether suppliers produce homogenous or differentiated

products;
3. The brand recognition of a supplier and its products;
4. The importance of sales volume to the supplier;
5. The cost to the firm of switching suppliers;
6. The availability of supplier substitutes; and
7. The threat of forward integration by the supplier relative to the
threat of backward integration by firms in the industry.
11. Customer bargaining power
Factors that affect the bargaining power of customers might include:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
The number of customers;

The volume a customer demands relative to a firms total output;
The availability of substitutes;
Customer switching costs;
Access to product comparison information; and
The threat of backward integration by the customer relative to the
threat of forwards integration by firms in the industry.
3. Company
Ten (10) factors to consider when examining the company.
1. Performance
What is the historical performance of the company? What is its market
share?
2. Competitive Advantage
What are the companys resources and capabilities? How sustainable are
the companys advantages? What are the companys weaknesses and can
they be remedied?
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3. Competitive Strategy
What is the companys competitive strategy? Does the company focus
on producing products that are low cost or differentiated? Which
customer segments does the company target?
4. Products
What does the company offer and how does it benefit customers? Does
the product have any downsides or side effects?
Is the product a commodity or differentiated?
How does the companys product offering compare with the
competition? Are there substitutes available?
Where does the product fall within its product lifecycle?
What is bundled with the product? For example, customer service,
warranties, or spare parts. Are there opportunities to bundle or
unbundle the product in order to increase sales volume?
5. Finances
If the company is considering a certain course of action, does it have
sufficient funds available to undertake the project? Whats the break
even analysis?
6. Cost Structure
Consider the cost structure of the business. This can be done by
segmenting costs into value chain activities: inbound logistics,
operations, outbound logistics, sales & marketing, customer service.
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Consider also fixed costs and variable costs. Have there been any
significant changes in the companys cost drivers? How do costs
compare to the competition?
7. Organisational Cohesiveness
Understanding a companys inner workings can be important since
competitive strategies can fail if they conflict with a firms general way of
doing business. Analysing the inner workings of an organisation can be
done by using the 6.2 McKinsey 7 S Model.
8. Marketing
What does the company stand for? How do customers perceive the
company and its products? How does the company communicate with
customers?
9. Distribution Channels
What distribution channels does the company use to reach customers
(mail order, online store, factory outlet, retail store, supermarket,
department stores, or network marketing)?
10. Customer Service
How does the company interact with and support customers? Does the
company have a customer loyalty program?
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5.4 Porters Five Forces

The Porters Five Forces framework is used to determine the
competitive intensity and attractiveness of an industry, and is relevant in
the context of entering a new market, M&A, or starting a new business.
The significance of the different forces will vary by industry.
The intensity of competition in an industry depends on five competitive
forces.
1. Existing competition
How strong is the rivalry among existing firms?
Factors contributing to competitive rivalry include:
Increased number of firms;

Slower market growth;
Low product differentiation;
Low switching costs;
Industry wide excess capacity;
High fixed costs; and
High exit barriers.
2. Substitutes
What is the price performance of substitutes? Do customers have high
switching costs?
3. Barriers to entry
What is the threat posed by new entrants?
Barriers to entry might include capital requirements, economies of scale,
network effects, government policy, switching costs, access to suppliers,
access to distribution channels, product differentiation, and proprietary
product technology.
4. Supplier bargaining power
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How much bargaining power do suppliers have?

5. Customer bargaining power
How much bargaining power do customers have?
5.5 Four Ps Analysis

A company can use the Four Ps to evaluate the marketing strategy for a
product.
1. Price
The pricing strategy that a company employs will affect its market share
and profitability. There are three key pricing strategies to consider.
1.1 Competitive pricing
How do prices compare with the competition? Is the pricing appropriate
given the products quality and relative position within the market?
1.2 Cost based pricing
What is the companys cost structure? What percentage of costs are
fixed and variable? A company that has high fixed cost and low variable
costs will benefit from economies of scale and so may want to lower
prices to increase market share.
1.3 Value based pricing
Is the product a commodity or differentiated? Do different customer
segments have a different willingness to pay? Are customers price
sensitive (see Price elasticity of demand)? If prices are changed, how
will this affect sales volume and product perception?
2. Product
Is the product a low cost commodity or differentiated? Products can be
differentiated where they differ in quality, features, availability or
branding.
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What are the products features?

How does the product compare with what the competition is offering?
Are their viable substitutes? Do customers face high switching costs?
3. Promotion
How does the company promote its products (advertising, direct sales,
indirect sales, trade promotions, public relations)? Is the company
reaching its target customers? Can the company afford to increase its
marketing budget?
Understanding the customers buying decision process can help a firm
decide where to influence the customers purchase decision.
Awareness
Information
Search
Evaluation
Purchase
Re-puchase
4. Place
What markets and market segments does the company serve? How
does this compare to the markets and market segments served by the
competition?
What distribution channels does the company use to get products to the
customer? Are there other channels that the company could use?
5.6 Value Chain Analysis

To understand which activities provide a company with a competitive
advantage, either through cost advantage or product differentiation, it is
helpful to separate operations into a series of value-generating activities
referred to as the value chain.
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Value Chain Analysis involves identifying all of the important activities

in which a company engages and then determining which ones give the
company a competitive advantage. By doing this, a company can:
1. Determine which activities are best undertaken internally and
which ones are able to be outsourced or eliminated;
2. Identify and compare strengths and weaknesses with the
competition;
3. Identify synergies between activities.
The primary value chain activities include:
1. Inbound Logistics: Receiving and storing raw materials;
2. Operations: Manufacturing products and services; the way in
which inputs are converted into final products;
3. Outbound Logistics: Inventory storage and distribution to
customers;
4. Marketing & Sales: Identification of customer needs and
preferences, marketing and sales generation;
5. Service: Interacting with and supporting customers.
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6. Supporting Frameworks
6.1 BCG Growth/Share Matrix
The BCG Growth Share Matrix can be used by a company to help it
allocate cash between products and business units.
The framework is based on the idea that the amount of cash a product
uses is proportional to the rate of growth of that product in the market,
and the generation of cash is a function of market share.
To be successful, a company should have a portfolio of products with
different growth rates and different market shares. Money generated
from high-market-share products can then be used to develop highgrowth products.
Under the BCG matrix, products are classified into four types:
1. Stars are leaders in high growth markets. Stars grow rapidly and
therefore use large amounts of cash. Stars also have a high market
share and therefore generate large amounts of cash.
2. Cash Cows are highly profitable and require low investment
because they are market leaders in a low-growth market.
3. Question Marks are low market share high growth products, and
almost always require more cash than they can generate.
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4. Dogs are low market share low growth products. BCG refers to
these products as cash traps. They require little cash but also
generate little cash.
6.2 McKinsey 7 S Model

The 7 S Model can be used to examine the inner workings of an
organisation, to identify strengths and sources of competitive advantage,
and to identify weaknesses and reasons why an organisation may not be
operating effectively. It can provide a guide for organisational change.
The seven (7) factors considered by the 7 S Model include:

1. Shared values refer to the values that are widely practiced
within an organisation and form the companys core guiding
principles.
2. Strategy refers to the plans that a company has for gaining a
competitive advantage (e.g. low cost; product differentiation;
new product development; entering new markets).
3. Skills refer to the competencies of the organisation, its staff
and management.
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4. Structure refers to the way in which an organisations people

and business units relate to each other. This includes
organizational structure, communication channels, and chain of
command.
5. Staffing refers to recruitment, selection, training, development,
and management of talent.
6. Style refers to the work culture, leadership style of upper
management and the way things are done.
7. Systems refers to the organisations processes and procedures
for things like budgeting, communication, recruitment,
compensation, and performance reviews.
6.3 Outsourcing Matrix

With the view to reducing costs, there are three questions that a firm
should consider:
1. How long will it take to reduce major cost drivers?
2. Are the activities strategically important?
3. To what extent do the activities contribute to operational
performance?
A company will want to eliminate or outsource costly activities that have

low strategic importance. If the activity has a low contribution to
operational performance it should be eliminated, and if it has a high
contribution to operational performance it should be outsourced.
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A company will want to retain control of activities that have high

strategic importance. This can be done by forming a strategic alliance or
increasing efficiency.
If a company wants to increase efficiency, then it will need to find ways
to reduce costs. Common cost reduction techniques include:
1. Procurement
a) Consolidate procurement or renegotiate supply contracts;
2. HR Management
b) Reduce labour costs through decreasing salaries, training,
overtime, benefits and healthcare, introducing employee stock
ownership, and right sizing;
3. Technology Development
c) Use IT and digital technology to reduce communication and
organisational costs;
d) Employ more advanced production technology;
4. Logistics
e) Partner with distribution companies (e.g. FedEx);
5. Operations
f) Outsource manufacturing to a lower cost jurisdiction (e.g.
China/India/other);
g) Improve the utilisation rate of plant, property and equipment;
h) Relocate headquarters to lower cost city, region or country;
6. Finance
i) Reduce working capital including inventory and accounts
receivable;
j) Refinance outstanding debt;
k) Divest non-core assets.
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6.4 Product Market Expansion Matrix

The product-market expansion matrix is relevant when considering
growth strategies. The matrix might be used on a stand-alone basis or as
part of a larger profitability framework.
There are four ways that a company can pursue growth:

1. Market penetration: A strategy to increase sales to existing
customers and increase market share. Market penetration can be
pursued through a combination of initiatives relating to pricing,
product, placement and promotion (see 5.5 Four Ps Analysis).
2. Market development: A strategy to sell existing products to new
markets which might include new regions, customer segments, or
distribution channels.
3. Product development: A strategy to sell new products to existing
customers to increase share-of-wallet.
4. Diversification: A strategy to develop new products for new
markets. This is the highest risk option. Look for markets with
strong market growth and high levels of industry attractiveness
(see 5.4 Porters Five Forces).
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6.5 Return on Invested Capital

Return on
Invested
Capital
Profitability*
(maximize)
Invested
Capital
(minimize)
Net Assets
Net Working
Capital
Fixed Capital
Cash + A/R
+ Inventory
- A/P
Plant,
Property, and
Equipment
*See the 5.2 Profitability Framework for a comprehensive breakdown of Profitability.
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7. Practice Case Questions

We are working to produce a number of fully worked business case
questions for the next edition of this guidebook so that you will be able
to practice with your friends and classmates.
In the meantime, we highly recommend:
1. Marc Cosentinos book Case in Point; and
2. Victor Chengs online tutorial Look Over My Shoulder.
You can access sample questions in section 3.8 Sample Case
Questions, and from the following consulting firm websites:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
McKinsey & Company;

Bain & Company;
BCG;
Oliver Wyman;
Deloitte;
A.T. Kearney;
Accenture; and
L.E.K. Consulting.
You can also access practice case questions produced by various

consulting clubs here.
Tom Spencer 2016
72

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2.4 Case Interview Prep .............................................................................. 19

4. After The Interview .................................................................................... 44

The Airport Test

consciously or not) would I want to be stuck with this person at an

1.2 Interview Structure

1.3 Interview Tips

3. Think and listen

variations in this company causing cash flow issues? rather than, is

10 More Case Interview Tips

Its okay to take anywhere up to 90 seconds to collect your thoughts. It

1.4 Interview Expectations

2. Before the Interview

1. Why should you research?

2. How should you research?

3. What should you research?

The firms background,

When researching consulting firms, ask questions such as:

What services does the firm offer?

7. At what level of experience are consultants required to specialize

4. Ask burning questions: Research the firm and its recruitment

Ability to work in teams

How to compensate for poor grades

How to strengthen a non-business

2.4 Case Interview Prep

You should run at least 30 mock case interviews with friends,

Case in Point by Marc P. Cosentino (Recommended)

Behavioural interview questions;

3.2 Commonly Asked Questions

Have you ever failed at anything?

3.3 Behavioural Interview Questions

Communication skills good analysis is meaningless if you cant

How to Answer Behavioural Questions

Sample Behavioural Interview Questions

Tell me about yourself.

Can you provide an example of a time you worked with

3.4 Guesstimate Questions (aka

What is being assessed?

12 Tips for Nailing the Guesstimate

3. Use round numbers

9. Think out loud

Approaching the Guesstimate Question

After coming up with an estimate, sanity check whether the estimate is

In finding the market size, segmenting the population using simple

Sample Guesstimate Questions

How many births are there in America each day?

Billabong imports surfboards into America. Demand depends

What is the annual market for apples in America?

Sample Guestimate Answers

You: Are we talking about a standard Olympic sized swimming

You: The volume of a tennis ball in cubic metres would be:

You: Roughly 20 million tennis balls will fit in an Olympic sized

4. Take the extra step

3.5 Math Questions

Sample Math Questions

3.7 Factors Questions

3.8 Business Case Questions

As part of a case question a candidate will be required to consider a

Playing For Time

Setting Up The Case

Tackling The Case

1. Find the source of the problem You might get asked a