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Interviewing Successfully
A Special Type of Interview: The Consulting Case
- Purpose: It allows the company to view your analytic and
communicative skills in a situation that simulates problems you might
encounter on the job.
- Goal: To break problems down into relevant issues, assess the
importance of each issue and offer solutions based on the most significant
issues. Make sure you talk through each step of your analysis and ask
insightful questions that will enable you to gather information and solve
the problem.
- Types of Cases:
- The Brain Teaser: Calculate a number that you would not
ordinarily know, making assumptions as you go along. e. g. How many car
tires are sold each year in the U.S.?
- Business Problem: Analyze a business problem that was probably
encountered by the interviewer. e.g. Your client has developed a new diet soda.
How should it be marketed?
- Economics-Based Problem: The interviewer wants to assess your ability
to apply economic principles to a real life situation. These problems are
usually reserved for students who majored in economics. Questions might include
"Your client is an airline that wants to lower its prices on leisure fares by
10%. If no other airline lowers prices, would you expect overall revenue to
increase or decrease and why?"
General Advice for Case Interviews:
- While there are no "right" answers, often one answer will be more
"right" than others. In other words, the interviewer is looking for certain
types of responses.
- Begin all problems by clarifying the approach of the question.
- Approach the problem as if you and the interviewer are on the same team;
if you're hired you will be on the same team.
- If you say something completely wrong, admit it and try again. Don't
worry that your wrong answer will "ding" you. If the interviewer calls for a
time out, he/she is giving you another chance.
- If the interviewer suddenly says "Let's look at this from another
angle," it is often a sign that you're doing well with your current analysis
and she wants to try something different.
- Practice case questions with a friend until you feel comfortable with
the approach.
- The CDO Resource Library has many resources to help you prepare for the
case interview. You can also pick up a free copy of the CDO Resource Guide,
Prepare and Practice for Your Case Interview.
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