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This information is provided by Strategic Resource Services, Inc.
3380 146th Place S.E., Suite 310 Bellevue, WA, 98007
425-688-1151 Fax 425-688-1272
www.strategicresources.com
Tips for Case Interviewing
Contributed by Vault Reports, 1998 Vault Reports Your impressive resume may get you an interview with a consulting firm, but it won’t get you the job. Consultants know that a resume, at its very best, is only a two-dimensional representation of a multi-faceted, dynamic person. And because consulting firms depend on employing those multi-faceted, dynamic people, the firms rely heavily on the case interview, an on-the-spot assessment of a business problem, to screen candidates. Following your case interview, your consulting interviewer will likely be completing a written evaluation form. The evaluation forms often include a list of qualities, traits and abilities and ask the interviewer to assess the candidate against the list. Following is a list of these special traits that, according to consulting insiders, interviewers will be keeping an eye out for as you work through the case interview: Leadership skills You’ll hear this from every consulting firm out there -- they want leaders. Why,
you might ask, would a consulting firm need a leader -- especially since many beginning consultants
are consigned to independent number-crunching and research. The fact is, however, that
consultants are often called upon to work independently, shape projects with very little direction, and
direct others.
You should demonstrate your leadership skills by taking charge of the case interview. Ask your questions confidently. Inquire whether the case interview relates to the interviewer’s own experience. While your resume and previous leadership experience will probably most strongly convey your leadership ability, your demeanor in the case interview can help. Analytical skills The core competency of consulting is analysis -- breaking down data, formulating it
into a pattern that makes sense, and deriving a sensible conclusion or recommendation. You should
display this skill through your efficient, on-target and accurate questions and wrestling your case to a
solution.
Presentation skills The case presentation is an essential part of consulting. Once consultants have
analyzed their case engagement and decided on the proper course of action, they must present their
findings and recommendations to their case team and to their clients. Interviewers will be watching
you closely to see if you stumble over words, use inadvisable fillers like "um" or "like" frequently, or
appear jittery under close questioning.
Remember: when you’re speaking, slow down and smile. If asked a question that temporarily stumps you, take a deep breathe and pause. It’s always better to pause than babble. This information is provided by Strategic Resource Services, Inc.
3380 146th Place S.E., Suite 310 Bellevue, WA, 98007
425-688-1151 Fax 425-688-1272
www.strategicresources.com
Energy Even the most qualified and analytical consultant won’t be much good if she quits at 5 p.m.
during a long and arduous engagement. Interviewers look for zest and energy -- firm handshake,
sincere, warm smile, bright eyes and bushy tail. Remember that consulting firms expect you to take a
ten hour flight and show up at work the next day, alert, perky and ready to go.
Attention to detail/Organization Consultants must be as painstaking as scientists in their attention
to detail. And consultants who juggle two or more flights a week and engagements all over the world
must by necessity be extremely organized. You can display this skill through a disciplined, logical
approach to your case solution, and by showing up for your interview prepared. You’ll want to take
notes, so bring a pad of paper and a pen. Interviewers notice when candidates must ask for these
materials.
Quantitative skills Those spreadsheets you’ll be working with as a management consultant need
numbers to fill them. Consulting interviews will inevitably test your grasp of numbers and your ability
to manipulate them. Many interviewers will assess your quantitative skills by giving you a
"guesstimate," either within the case question or separately.
Flexibility Consultants may have to arrive at the office one day and be packed off to Winnipeg for
six months the next. This kind of flexibility of schedule is mirrored in mental flexibility. To test your
grasp of a case interview, the interviewer may suddenly introduce a new piece of information ("Okay,
let’s say the factories must be opened either in Canada or China") or flip the terms of the case
interview. ("What if this labor contract is not guaranteed, as I said earlier?") and then watch how
quickly you’re able to alter your thinking.
Maturity Consultants must often work with executives and company officials decades older than
they are. (This is why consultants are taught the right way to answer the question "How old are
you?") What this means in an interview is a minimum of giggling, fidgeting and references to
awesome fraternity events you may have attended, even if the interviewer seems receptive.
Intelligence, aka "mental horsepower" Rather straightforward -- consulting interviewers are
looking for quickness of analysis and depth of insight. Don’t be afraid to ask questions for fear of
looking stupid -- smart people learn by asking questions and assimilating new information. At the
same time, asking your interviewer to repeat an elementary (or irrelevant) concept twenty times will
not burnish your image.

Source: http://www.strategicresources.com/library/job_seekers/case_interviews.pdf