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读过 Case in Point
INTERVIEW (time: what firms look for) Intro Quick exchange: overall package; eye contact, smile Questions About You 5-10 min: leadership, drive, enthusiasm, persuasion Why Consulting? 2 min: commitment to consulting Possible Math Question 1 min: grace under pressure Case Question (s) 10-15 min: poise, analytical & communication skills Your Questions 3 min: intelligence, homework The Grand Finale 2 min: selling – why hire you?引自第2页
COMMONLY ASKED CONSULTING INTERVIEW QUESTIONS Tell me about yourself. What are you doing here? Why consulting? Why did you pick your school? What do you think consultants do? What do you know about this job and our firm? Why would you choose our firm over our competitors? How are your quantitative skills? What percentage is 7 of 63? Tell me of a time you showed leadership skills. Tell me of a time you were a team player. Give me an example of a time you influenced or persuaded a group. Tell me about a recent crisis you handled. Have you ever failed at anything? Tell me about a time you took the initiative to start something. What type of work do you like to do best? With what other firms are you interviewing? Which other industries are you looking into? What accomplishments have given you the greatest satisfaction? What experiences/skills do you feel are particularly transferable to our organization? Why should I hire you? Q: 1 Have you ever failed at anything? Dos: […] talk about how you failed, what you learned from that mistake, then how you turned it into a success. […] Have a story to tell; make it memorable. Don’ts: Don’t talk about a personal failure. Stay away from anything that is going to make the interviewer feel uncomfortable (i.e., […] “My girlfriend dumped me…” […] ). Interviewers don’t want to hear it. The other thing they don’t want to hear is an academic failure. Q: 2 With what other firms are you interviewing? It’s okay to tell them that you’re interviewing with other consulting firms. […] However, you must be able to tell them why they’re your first choice and what makes them better in your mind that the other firms. Q: 3 With what other industries are you interviewing? In fact, McKinsey’s and BCG’s biggest competitor is Goldman Sachs – not one another.引自第3页
Why Consulting? Now this is important – not only should your answer be immediate, but you must look the interviewer right in the eye. If you look away, it indicates that you are thinking about the question and that’s enough to end the interview right then and there.引自第4页
PRE-INTERVIEW QUESTIONS 1. What type of consulting does the firm do? 2. In what industries does the firm specialize? 3. How big is the firm? How many domestic and international offices does the firm have? How many professionals are in the firm? 4. What kinds of training programs does the firm offer? 5. What type of work does an entry-level consultant do? 6. How much client contact does an entry-level consultant have the first year? 7. Does the firm have a mentor program? 8. How often do first-years sleep in their own beds? What’s their travel schedule like? 9. How many hours make-up a typical workday? 10. How is a case team picked? 11. How often do you get reviewed? 12. How many consultants does the firm expect to hire this year? 13. How does that compare to last year? 14. Where do the consultants go when they leave the firm? 15. Is it possible to transfer to other offices, even international offices? 引自第5页
The best ways to collect these answers are to: Attend career fairs and speak to the firm representatives Scour the company’s web site Talk to alumni and graduate school students who used to work for the companies that you’re interviewing with Attend company information meetings Search the Wall Street Journal or LexisNexis for articles on the firm引自第6页
The Grand Finale: Why Should I Hire You? You may want to simply state that they should hire you because you want to be a consultant.引自第7页
The Case Commandments 1. Listen to the Question 2. Take notes 3. Summarize the Question 4. Verify the Objective(s) 5. Ask Clarifying Questions You will cross the line when interviewer says, “What do you think?” 6. Organize Your Answer 7. Hold that Thought for “One Alligator” 8. Manage Your Time Answer from a macro-level and move the answer forward. […] stay focused on the original question asked. 9. Work the Numbers Demonstrate that you think quantitatively and that you are comfortable with numbers. 10. Be Coachable 11. Be Creative and Brainstorm 12. Exude Enthusiasm and a Positive Attitude 13. Bring Closure and Summarize引自 3 Case Questions
Strategy Scenarios: 1. Entering a new market 2. Industry analysis 3. Mergers and acquisitions 4. Developing a new product 5. Pricing strategies 6. Growth strategies 7. Starting a new business 8. Competitive response Operating Scenarios: 9. Increasing sales 10. Reducing costs 11. Improving the bottom line 12. Turnarounds When operations cases are really about strategy (e.g., Strategy: Should we proceed with a turnaround? Vs. Operations: How do we proceed with a turnaround?) then think about using cost-benefit analysis (in which you analyze the pros and cons of each possibility). The First Four Steps 1. Summarize the Question 2. Verify the Objectives One objective is to raise profits. Are there any other objectives that I should know about? There are two objectives, I need to break the case in half and tackle one objective at a time. 3. Ask Clarifying Questions The key is to ask broad, open-ended questions. The company: is it public or private? How big is it? Is it growing? The industry: Where is the industry in its life cycle? Competition: Both internal (Who are the major players? What is our market share?) and external market factors (i.e., substitutions, the economy, interest rates, unemployment rate, price-cutting by competitors, rising material costs). The product: if it’s a new product, ask about both the advantages and the disadvantages. (Everyone forgets to ask about the disadvantages, but oftentimes disadvantages can drive your answer more than the advantages.) *Note: Keep in mind how the economy, the Internet, and other new technologies affect each question. 4. Lay Out your structure引自 Ivy Case System
[Entering a New Market] Question: Your client manufactures hair products. It’s thinking about entering the sunscreen market. Is this a good idea? Step 1: Determine why? What’s our goal? What’s our objective? Does it fit into our overall strategy? Step 2: Determine the state of the current and future market. What is the size of the market? What is the growth rate? Where is it in its life cycle? (Stage of development: Emerging? Mature? Decline?) Who are the customers and how are they segmented? What role does technology plan in the industry and how quickly does it change? How will the competition respond? Step 3: Investigate the market to determine whether entering it would make good business sense. Who is our competition and what size market share does each competitor have? How do their products and services differ from ours? How will we price our products or services? Are there substitutions available? Are there any barriers to entry? Such as: capital requirements, access to distribution channels, proprietary product technology, or government policy. Are there any barriers to exit? How do we exit if this market sours? What are the risks? Such as: market, regulation or technology? Step 4: If we decide to enter the market, we need to figure out the best way to become a player. There are three major ways to entering a market: Start from scratch (see Starting a New Business) Acquire an existing player within the desired industry From a joint venture/strategic alliance with another player with similar interests Analyze the pros and cons of each. This is sometimes called a cost-benefit analysis. You can use this whenever you are trying to decide whether to proceed with a decision.引自 The 12 Case Scenarios