STUDENT SUCCESS CENTER

Case Interview Basics

Case interviews are an interview format, most often utilized by consulting firms, where candidates are presented with a
business situation or problem and are asked to walk the interviewers through the process of solving it. The reason the
interview is structured this way is that employers want to see your approach to solving problems. Case interviews will
vary greatly depending on the employer, so use this guide to understand the essentials of a case interview to inform
your study/research process.

Interview Structure Four Commandments

The four commandments are a problem solving strategy for business that leads to
Fit Interview 10-15 mins. logical effective decision-making for clients, especially in consulting. The
interviewer is your client, and you will want to write down the information they
share and get clarification.
Case Interview 30-40 mins.

Listen & Plan & Think & Structure &

Conclusion 5-10 mins. Clarify Hypothesize Gather Close
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What to Research

Case interview theories and Candidate-led Interviews Interviewer-led Interviews

common questions
Consulting frameworks (e.g., the
Candidate-led interviews feature In this style of interview, the
five C's, the 4 P's, SWOT analysis,
broad problems to be solved. It is interviewer is in control of the
the BCG matrix, Porter's Five Forces)
then the candidate’s job to ask case. This means that the
Financial statements: Understand
probing questions to gather interviewer will break the case
the basics of what drives profits and
additional information to inform down into smaller parts and have
typical expenses
their strategy. the candidate work on one
Issue trees: Customized frameworks
question at a time.
to break cases down into smaller
Candidates will have much of the
parts
control over structuring the With this style, it is less important
MECE Principle: Mutually exclusive,
problem, developing frameworks, to solve the overall case than it is
collectively exhaustive approach to
asking for additional data and to nail each individual question.
consulting
synthesizing information to find
Practice mental math
solutions.
Recent economic and market
trends

Types of Case Interviews Skills Being Assessed

DON'T focus on the answer of
the overall problem. Brain Teasers Business Acumen
Competition Commercial Awareness
Growth Communication
DO focus on your thought
Mergers & Acquisitions Creativity
process and ability to
Pricing Numerical and Verbal Reasoning
communicate your reasoning.
Profitability Presentation
New Initiatives Problem-Solving
New Product Structure and Thought Process

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 STUDENT SUCCESS CENTER
Case Interview Basics

Case Interview Resources

Books
Hacking the Case Interview by Taylor Warfield
The Ultimate Case Interview Workbook by Taylor Warfield DO focus on the key
Case Interview Secrets by Victor Cheng specific details shared in
Embrace the Case Interview by Brad Schiller the scenario. Ask follow
up questions to give more
Podcasts context to impact your
The Case Interview Podcast analysis and inform your
Case Interview & Management Consulting Podcast decision-making process.

Websites
casequestions.com managementconsulted.com
myconsultingcoach.com mconsultingprep.com
igotanoffer.com

Firm and Company Websites

Accenture
https://www.accenture.com/us-en/about/company/all-stories
Bain & Company
https://www.bain.com/careers/interview-prep/case-interview/
Booz Allen Hamilton
https://www.boozallen.com/careers/candidate-resources/preparing-for-your-booz-allen-interview.html
Boston Consulting Group
https://careers.bcg.com/case-prep
Deloitte
https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/careers/articles/join-deloitte-case-interview-prep-tool.html
Ernst & Young (EY)
https://www.ey.com/en_us/careers
KPMG
https://home.kpmg/xx/en/home/careers/strategy-careers-overview.html
LEK
https://www.lek.com/join-lek/apply/interview-preparation
McKinsey
https://www.mckinsey.com/careers/interviewing
Oliver Wyman
https://www.oliverwyman.com/careers/entry-level/interview-preparation.html
PricewaterhouseCoopers
https://www.pwc.com/us/en/careers.html
Roland Berger
https://www.rolandberger.com/en/Join/Join-Us/Start-Your-Journey/Tips-tricks.html

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