Case Interview Preparation & Management Consulting | Strategy | Critical Thinking
This podcast, produced by Firmsconsulting and StrategyTraining.com, focuses on case interview preparation for management consulting roles at top firms like McKinsey, BCG, and Bain. It shares lessons from training clients, emphasizing a high success rate achieved through guidance from former partners. The content covers communication, image, technical skills, and case interview strategies.
Episodes
867: Be a professional, don't be a business person (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
What is your understanding of the consulting culture or philosophy? What do you think defines and separates the top consulting firms from the others? For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we spoke about the real culture of consulting firms apart from what people think it is and what distinguishes great consulting firms from others. Here are some
866: Sanity Checking Estimations in Cases (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Many candidates forget to sanity-check their calculations in a case. That is a bad idea. Without a sanity-check there is no way to meaningfully assess the accuracy of your answer. More important, how you perform the sanity check is the key. All sanity-checks must involve the reduction of the answer to a number that you can intuitively compare to your own experiences. Unless you do this, you can ne
865: Harsh Partners (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Being a young business analyst or associate on the receiving end of blunt and harsh feedback from a partner is a very jarring experience. However, it is also somewhat of a compliment. I never understand this very, very important point until my mentor, a senior partner, pointed this out to me when the managing partner gave me a very time about an initiative I was running. In hindsight, this was one
864: What Michael Jordan Can Teach You About Strategy (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Aspiring NBA stars make a classic mistake when trying to watch, analyze and replicate the reasons why someone like Michael Jordan was so successful. In this podcast I explain why aspiring management consultants and those in industry make the very same mistake when watching, analyzing and replicating the reasons why McKinsey and BCG are so successful. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Appro
863: Five phrases to avoid (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Communication and image in a case interview is governed by both what you say and how you say. It is true that how you say something tends to carry more weight. However, in some case, certain phrases should definitely be avoided because they cause much damage it is very hard to recover from them. We discuss them in this podcast. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Man
861: Making sexist comments in interviews (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about candidates making sexist comments in interviews. Due to culture, tradition and even good intentions, candidates make sexist remarks. Sometimes, a very innocent remark may come across as sexist. This podcast examines some the incidences we have encountered which have hurt candidates in cases. It is
860: Too Junior For a Partner Meeting (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a classic Case Interview & Management Consulting discussion where we talk about an associate we placed at BCG who emailed us with a dilemma. A senior partner and managing director of the firm was visiting her office and she wanted to meet him. Her colleagues told her to forget about it as she was too junior to warrant his attention. Her peers who gave her this advic
859: Guidelines When Seeking Help In Case Interviews (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Going into interviews, aspiring consultants will be relying an a huge number of people for help: peers, classmates, consulting alumni, consultants, career counselors, etc. For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about simple suggestions on how to seek and use help without hurting your relationships in the long-term. Here are some free gifts
858: Barter System in Cases To Ask for Information (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about a way for candidates to ask information in a case interview. A steep hurdle for many candidates is knowing how and when to ask for information / advice from an interviewer. To help our candidates, we developed the barter system / concept to fix this problem using a very simple technique. As explai
857: Damaging Resume Cliches Across Firms (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about resume cliches across firms. Editing out cliches from Deloitte and Accenture resumes tends to take up the majority of time when we work with candidates from these firms, and the other accounting firms like PWC, E&Y and KPMG. Typically, when we start the editing sessions, it is very difficult for t
856: Watching cases vs. listening to cases (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about learning cases through listening and watching. When learning cases, it is far more effective to watch a person on Skype or in person. The problem with merely practicing over the phone or another verbal format is that you cannot observe crucial mannerisms or allow your practice partner to observe y
855: Neat calculation sheets are important (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we explain why neatness and writing style is so important. It is really surprising how little care candidates take in writing in an appealing way, considering that is all the interviewer can see for the 30-45 minute case. Neat writing will not get you an offer, but it can be an annoying distraction both to you a
854: Important case interview elements to consider (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we talk about important case interview elements to consider. Analyzing customers, competitors and the market: 3 areas which must always be considered in cases, even when it is not clear why. In essence, all businesses exist to serve customers. A business cannot exist without customers and to understand demand yo
853: Brainstorming with definitions (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we talk about brainstorming with definitions. Brainstorming is very difficult and a crucial skill to have when solving cases, especially with McKinsey where the interviewer will constantly ask you to probe and brainstorm different areas of the case. This podcast examines the initial parts of the brainstorming st
852: Giving interviewers benefit of the doubt (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we talk about the importance of you, the candidate, never ever giving the interviewer the benefit of the doubt, why this is vital, how to do this in a case and the improvement it will immediately deliver. The main value of adopting this mindset is that you tend to explain everything to the interviewer because yo
851: Building Hypotheses From Data Exhibits (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Reading graphs is a perennial problem for many candidates. Yet, the problem is not the interpretation of the graphical data itself. Rather, it is knowing what to do with that data once you have interpreted it. This podcast introduces a simple 4-step process we introduced for a Yale doctoral client, Felix, and a technique called the One-Sentence-Test which we again developed for the same client. Th
850: You Cannot Join McKinsey Strategy (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Far too many candidates demonstrate poor knowledge of consulting by insisting that they want to work for McKinsey strategy and not operations or BTO. This is a flawed strategy which will only hurt their chances in the short, medium and long-term. This podcast explains why and how to compensate for this misunderstanding. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed St
849: Ignoring partners in an interview (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
You have been brainwashed by every single forum and case book to assume that McKinsey wants a framework and set of hypotheses, that you have stopped listening as carefully to the interviewer and simply providing hypotheses even when the interview is not asking for them! Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.c
848: Evaluating your firm's training (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss consulting firm's training. Too often clients ask the wrong questions when it comes to assessing training at consulting firms: do smaller offices have poorer training, should I attend training as soon as I join, does BCG have better training than Bain etc. When considering training you need to both co
847: Economic impact of poor business judgement (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss the economic impact of poor business judgement. The economic impact of poor business judgement, is a topic we managed every day as partners. Each time an associate made a poor "common sense" decision we needed to explain both the potential reputation and economic damage done to the firm. The former is
846: Generating multiple creative hypotheses (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic, building of our technique to develop hypotheses, this podcast explains a clever way to generate creative hypotheses. In essence, the podcast will be useful to candidates who have already seen how we brainstorm and generate hypotheses, since this podcast expands on that thinking. The core of this idea is that if more
845: McKinsey senior partner networking success (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we share a networking success story with a McKinsey senior partner. We always ask our clients, especially those from weaker schools, to network with the most senior partners of consulting firms. This is a podcast about a PhD client, from a weaker school and no existing consulting relationships, who painfully fol
844: Estimation Sensitivities During Calculations (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we look at how to make estimations when calculating smaller values or working with enclosed spaces like restaurants, the importance of sensitivity analyses and a new limitation of demand-driven cases. This is a very important technique which can significantly improve accuracy and efficiency in case math. Here
843: Bonus vs. salary resume editing (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss bonus versus salary resume. Bonus versus salary resume is a very simple test we do on resumes. This podcast explains the test. We basically look at whether or not a bullet point explains an action which earned you a salary or would have resulted in a bonus. The latter is vital and the former should be
842: Key differences in Bain FIT questions (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss key differences in Bain FIT questions. In looking through our database of over 240 former clients and speaking to Bain partners we know, we see two unique ways a Bain fit interview differs from a McKinsey PEI. The first relates to way in which you interact with the interviewer as you deliver your re
841: Changing practice styles manages uncertainty (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about our practice styles. Over the course of the case interview training program, it becomes very important for us to change our coaching style. First, candidates become used to solving cases in just this one style and we need to ensure they can adapt to any style. Second, candidates become adept at re
840: Myths about management consulting (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
This general podcast describes some of the common misconceptions applicants and even practicing McKinsey/BCG consultants have about their own firms. It will be useful to anyone who wants to understand some of the broad themes and misunderstandings about the profession. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com
839: Why should you bring energy to the interview? (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss why you should bring energy to the interview. Lots of candidates leave it to the interviewer to determine the energy levels, tone and mood of the call. That is a bad idea. In our experience, the best candidates always bring a light mood to interviews. Seriousness can hurt you as it is confused for a
838: Sanity Checking Estimations in Cases (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Many candidates forget to sanity-check their calculations in a case. That is a bad idea. Without a sanity-check there is no way to meaningfully assess the accuracy of your answer. More important, how you perform the sanity check is the key. All sanity-checks must involve the reduction of the answer to a number that you can intuitively compare to your own experiences. Unless you do this, you can ne
837: How to Network with a Senior Partner (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Networking with a partner is counter-intuitive. It is much easier to network with a McKinsey / BCG partner for at least four reasons. First, partners always return emails. Second, partners are generally willing to take a call just to explore your profile. Third, partners are less hung up on things like degrees etc. since they look deeper at a profile. Fourth, partners are accessible with easy to f
836: How do you gain more experience? (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss how to gain more experience. Many candidates are declined with the suggestion to gain more work experience. Unfortunately, candidates take this feedback at face value. This podcast explains what this feedback means and suggests a vital shortcut to fix this problem. Hint, it does not require work exper
835: Anecdotes on Poor Networking Calls (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
In this podcast we have listed some of the most common and most significant networking mistakes made by candidates. Since many of these have been made by clients, we have had an opportunity to discuss the mistakes, their motivations, the fall out and their response. Therefore, we can provide a comprehensive discussion on the implications of these mistakes. In general, no matter how badly a McKinse
834: Harsh Partners (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Being a young business analyst or associate on the receiving end of blunt and harsh feedback from a partner is a very jarring experience. However, it is also somewhat of a compliment. I never understand this very, very important point until my mentor, a senior partner, pointed this out to me when the managing partner gave me a very time about an initiative I was running. In hindsight, this was one
833: Using Storytelling in Cases (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Storytelling is a very powerful technique to ensure someone remembers you after an interview. In fact, even when we screen people at Firmsconsulting today, we use this technique I applied as a partner. The rule is simple: if I can remember your key messages from the interview the next day, I would make you an offer. That, of course, assumes you had passed all the other hurdles well enough. One way
832: Five phrases to avoid (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Communication and image in a case interview is governed by both what you say and how you say. It is true that how you say something tends to carry more weight. However, in some case, certain phrases should definitely be avoided because they cause much damage it is very hard to recover from them. We discuss them in this podcast. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Man
831: How to Hold Networking Conversations (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Networking calls/coffee chats are tricky. You should not be following the advice found for general recruitment. We insist our clients network with partners so most of the advice we provide is for networking with McKinsey and BCG partners. The reality is that partners are best equipped, and most influential, to assess a unique profile and make a judgement call on the spot. The danger is that if you
830: Speed is the wrong focus area (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss speed. Far too many candidates focus on being faster. That is another myth. Speed is an outcome of having good technique. So if you are slow, deconstruct your technique, analyze weaknesses and develop a new way to solve arithmetic. That is key. Unless your technique improves aka "your process to sol
829: Case length and details (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we dtalk about case length and details. When we ask candidates for more details in their resume, fit responses and cover letter, they always write longer sentences. There is an important difference between "more details" and "greater length". Most candidates are accustomed to spending just a few minutes on a
828: Career rotation vs. progression (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about career rotation vs. progression. Candidates always want to show improvement on their resumes in the months leading up to their applications. For those working in industry or rival consulting firms, showing leadership and career development is crucial. This podcast explains that career rotation,
827: Estimation = Brainstorming = Structures (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about the three core technical concepts around cases. We always teach clients estimation technique first, followed by brainstorming technique and finally full case technique. There is a simple reason for this, which is explained in this podcast. Estimations tend to be, but not always, a brainstorm wit
826: Leadership versus teamwork answers (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about leadership versus teamwork answers. If you are thinking through responses to leadership and teamwork questions, the starting point should be knowing the differences between both. At its core, to McKinsey especially, leadership is about influencing a group people to undertake and complete an init
825: Six priorities for case interviews (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we provide a simple set of priority areas that a novice aspiring consultant should focus upon in the building up to the MBA full-time September interviews. It ties together themes from existing podcasts but presents them in the format of a case interview preparation roadmap. Here are some free gifts for you:
824: Why candidates fail profit cases (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss why candidates fail profit cases. Most candidates would tackle a McKinsey profitability case by presenting a revenue-cost framework and offer options to lower costs and increase revenue. The reality is that such a framework and explanation shows a deep misunderstanding of business and business strat
823: Difference between learning and practicing (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
99% of clients misunderstand learning and practicing. At its essence, you cannot practice McKinsey cases until you learn McKinsey cases. Most candidates start of their case interview preparation by reaching out to colleagues and consultants to practice cases, not having gone through the learning steps. Without a good strategy of separating learning from practicing you will simply absorb what you h
822: The importance of communication (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discussed why communication is the most critical skill that a consultant must possess and how to effectively communicate in a logical and structured way. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach McKins
821: If you speak english (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we covered a topic about different offices and locations to work if you are an English speaker and its upside and downside you may consider. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach McKinsey & BCG winning
820: The candidate that we took (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we spoke about a candidate that we took that did not go well and the important lessons we learned from it. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsco
819: Brainstorming (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss what brainstorming is in consulting and what it is not. You will learn what you should actually do when asked to brainstorm. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach McKinsey & BCG winning resu
818: Exit opportunities (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we spoke about the reality of exit opportunities in management consulting. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf Get Exc
817: Culture by Design: How Leaders Drive Strategy, Execution, and Performance with Krista White
In this episode, Krista White, coauthor of Culture Design and cofounder of Culture Design Lab explains how leaders can treat culture as a strategic lever rather than an HR initiative. 1. Culture is inseparable from strategy Krista stresses that culture cannot be treated as background. It determines whether strategic plans survive contact with execution. "We were noticing that there was a gap in p
816: Be a professional, don't be a business person (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
What is your understanding of the consulting culture or philosophy? What do you think defines and separates the top consulting firms from the others? For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we spoke about the real culture of consulting firms apart from what people think it is and what distinguishes great consulting firms from others. Here are some
815: The situation of not having the best undergraduate school (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss the situation of those people who may not have had the best undergraduate school, are not landing interviews, or do not impress their interviewer too well and how to fix this kind of problem. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: ww
814: Why confidence is important (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss the importance of confidence in management consulting and how the lack of confidence will impact your performance in crucial situations. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach McKinsey & BCG
813: What is to be a management consultant (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss the responsibilities of a management consultant, how they should act and how they manage certain kinds of situations. We also cover the type of jobs that management consultants do and the skills they need. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies fre
812: It's not always about being fast in math (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
What does it mean when someone tells you that you need to be good at math? For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss the common mistakes when doing math, how to structure your math problems, and what you should do to improve your math skills. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free
811: Look at long term (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
How do you decide on which firm you want to join? For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss the decision-making criteria for choosing a firm, the three levels of consultant, and the impact of learning from a senior partner in your career. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free downlo
810: The different types of interview approaches (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we spoke about the different interview approaches used by big consulting firms. We also discuss brainstorming, estimation case, and full case, and how cases are conducted—which we know will be very helpful to you and your career. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strateg
809: What types of cases can you expect in a consulting interview? (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we talk about the different kinds of cases you may face in an interview and the techniques you can use to solve them. We also discuss the meaning of market sizing and deregulation cases, and the importance of segmentation. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studi
808: Advice for deeply experienced candidates (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we look at the profile of an older MBA candidate who has extensive oil and gas expertise. We offer some counter-intuitive advice to this candidate for their career and planning. While we use an oil and gas profile, this advice is relevant to any experienced hire and we caution candidates to think very carefully
807: Never start training with McKinsey cases (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
This is a mistake common to most case interview candidates. They start with the McKinsey approach. This is a very, very bad idea. McKinsey cases are those were the interviewer leads the case. If you are only trained to do cases in this format, you will never learn how to lead a case. This is no small matter. The prompts and guides provided by a McKinsey interviewer play a significant role in helpi
806: Networking with more junior consultants (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
We use the terms junior consultants to loosely refer to anyone at the engagement manager level and below: senior associates, associates, consultants and analysts. Our history of working with so many clients indicates that the best results occur when networking directly with partners. There is no dispute on this point given the difference in our client base between those who networked with partners
805: Taking resume feedback (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Taking resume feedback is one of the most fundamental steps as you begin your application process and case interview preparation. If done badly, no matter how well you practice for cases, you will not get the interview. Feedback refers to two parts. First, is the philosophy around how you collect the feedback. Second, is the physical steps you take as you are collecting the feedback. Both are equa
804: Stressful interview situations (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
This podcast examines the typical tell-tale signs candidates show when placed under stress in a case interview and offers suggestions on how to manage these situations. The key to managing this problem is not to reduce the stress, which may be impossible to do, but to change the way you show your stress. We also provide anecdotes on how our own clients manage, or struggle to manage, stress in thei
803: Invisible presentation technique (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Solving a case while talking an interviewer through your thinking (written or otherwise) is, for the interviewer, a little like trying to understand a presentation without seeing the slides. Or at the very least seeing untidy slides – that is, assuming your working sheets are messy. Here we talk through the anatomy of a case dialogue pointing out key mistakes candidates make and a very simple tech
802: Confidence and content traps in case interviews (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
This podcast is about the impact of confidence on cases and the importance of avoiding the content trap. We use simple ratios to explain why you need to be confident and how the content-trap sinks many candidates. The content trap occurs when a candidate tends to have poor knowledge of the first principles of cases and rather relies on completing as many cases as possible in the hopes of memorizin
801: Structure fails at 60% McKinsey cases (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
At least 90% of aspiring management consultants assume that all McKinsey et al cases MUST be solved with frameworks. That is a dangerous myth. At least 60% of all McKinsey full cases (we are not referring to brainstorming, estimates, etc) cannot be solved with structures and you will fail if you used structures to solve them. In this podcast, we use the experiences of a client, Felix, to explain h
800: Important case interview elements to consider (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we talk about important case interview elements to consider. Analyzing customers, competitors and the market: 3 areas which must always be considered in cases, even when it is not clear why. In essence, all businesses exist to serve customers. A business cannot exist without customers and to understand demand
799: Brainstorming with definitions (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we talk about brainstorming with definitions. Brainstorming is very difficult and a crucial skill to have when solving cases, especially with McKinsey where the interviewer will constantly ask you to probe and brainstorm different areas of the case. This podcast examines the initial parts of the brainstorming
798: Giving interviewers benefit of the doubt (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we talk about the importance of you, the candidate, never ever giving the interviewer the benefit of the doubt, why this is vital, how to do this in a case and the improvement it will immediately deliver. The main value of adopting this mindset is that you tend to explain everything to the interviewer because yo
797: Building Hypotheses From Data Exhibits (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Reading graphs is a perennial problem for many candidates. Yet, the problem is not the interpretation of the graphical data itself. Rather, it is knowing what to do with that data once you have interpreted it. This podcast introduces a simple 4-step process we introduced for a Yale doctoral client, Felix, and a technique called the One-Sentence-Test which we again developed for the same client. Th
796: You Cannot Join McKinsey Strategy (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
Far too many candidates demonstrate poor knowledge of consulting by insisting that they want to work for McKinsey strategy and not operations or BTO. This is a flawed strategy which will only hurt their chances in the short, medium and long-term. This podcast explains why and how to compensate for this misunderstanding. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed St
795: Ignoring partners in an interview (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
You have been brainwashed by every single forum and case book to assume that McKinsey wants a framework and set of hypotheses, that you have stopped listening as carefully to the interviewer and simply providing hypotheses even when the interview is not asking for them! Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.c
794: Evaluating your firm's training (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss consulting firm's training. Too often clients ask the wrong questions when it comes to assessing training at consulting firms: do smaller offices have poorer training, should I attend training as soon as I join, does BCG have better training than Bain etc. When considering training you need to both
793: Economic impact of poor business judgement (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss the economic impact of poor business judgement. The economic impact of poor business judgement, is a topic we managed every day as partners. Each time an associate made a poor "common sense" decision we needed to explain both the potential reputation and economic damage done to the firm. The former
792: Psychologist and New York Times Best-Selling Author on the Discipline of Letting Go
In this reflective conversation, psychologist and author Dr. Bob Rosen examines the unspoken attachments that often shape executive behavior, frequently without conscious awareness. His framework, drawn from decades of work with leaders navigating volatility and pressure, identifies recurring psychological patterns that can impair decision-making, reduce well-being, and diminish long-term effectiv
791: Generating multiple creative hypotheses (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic, building of our technique to develop hypotheses, this podcast explains a clever way to generate creative hypotheses. In essence, the podcast will be useful to candidates who have already seen how we brainstorm and generate hypotheses, since this podcast expands on that thinking. The core of this idea is that if more
790: McKinsey senior partner networking success (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we share a networking success story with a McKinsey senior partner. We always ask our clients, especially those from weaker schools, to network with the most senior partners of consulting firms. This is a podcast about a PhD client, from a weaker school and no existing consulting relationships, who painfully f
789: Why should you bring energy to the interview? (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss why you should bring energy to the interview. Lots of candidates leave it to the interviewer to determine the energy levels, tone and mood of the call. That is a bad idea. In our experience, the best candidates always bring a light mood to interviews. Seriousness can hurt you as it is confused for a
788: Estimation Sensitivities During Calculations (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we look at how to make estimations when calculating smaller values or working with enclosed spaces like restaurants, the importance of sensitivity analyses and a new limitation of demand-driven cases. This is a very important technique which can significantly improve accuracy and efficiency in case math. Here
787: Bonus vs. salary resume editing (Case Interview & Management Consulting classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss bonus versus salary resume. Bonus versus salary resume is a very simple test we do on resumes. This podcast explains the test. We basically look at whether or not a bullet point explains an action which earned you a salary or would have resulted in a bonus. The latter is vital and the former should
