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Cases de consultoria para treino
Tipologia: Exercícios
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Recruiting Process Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s)
1. What are consulting firms looking for? Many companies are quite explicit about the qualifications they are seeking; details can be found on their websites. In general, however, most firms are interested in the following: - Solid résumé A solid résumé shows that you have the potential to be successful in consulting: o Show diversified experience (for general practice) – a good indicator that you are willing to learn new things and able to learn quickly. o Show skill sets transferable to consulting – it’s important to emphasize 3-4 skill sets throughout your résumé, 1-2 of which are unique to you. Most firms are particularly interested in leadership, problem solving, strategic thinking, curiosity, quick learning, a focus on results, communication, and teamwork abilities. o Companies may also be interested in your GMAT scores, undergraduate GPA, etc. Generally, GMAT scores above 700 and GPAs above 3.5 should be put on your résumé. - Substantive anecdotes of leadership, teamwork and communication abilities o Interviewers will probe the impact you had on the organizations you’ve been involved with across a variety of areas - Strong problem solving skills o Shown through the case interviews, which are used to test problem solving, presence and poise, quick thinking, and comfort with ambiguity. - Good personal fit with the company o Many firms will refer to the “airport test” as a way in which they assess fit: Would the recruiter want to be stuck in an airport with you for several hours? Do you just talk about work and yourself or are you able to engage others in interesting conversation? o Attitude is important. Be professional and dress well. Be positive and smile during the interview. Some amount of nervous energy is good, but do not allow your nerves to negatively influence your performance. o Have good interactions with recruiters during recruiting events. o Consider listing hobbies, aspirations or extracurricular activities that showcase your personality in the “additional” section of your résumé. 2. How should I behave in consulting corporate presentations or other recruiting events? When is it appropriate to send thank you emails? - Show up on time, and do not leave early. - Turn your cell phone off, leave your laptop at home, and do not talk with your peers while the presenters are speaking. - Wear appropriate attire (most functions are business casual). - Use the presentations to learn about the firm, not showcase yourself. - Research the firm before you attend the presentation. - Use the opportunity to learn about the firm – ask intelligent questions that are not obvious and not answered on the firm website. - If you go to MBA2 presentations, let the MBA2s & graduating evening students ask the questions. You will get your chance when the firms come to present to MBA1s. - Do not swarm around recruiters after the presentation and overwhelm them. - Be courteous to your fellow classmates - expand the circle so they can join in or give others a chance to ask questions.
Recruiting Process Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s)
Recruiting Process Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s)
7. All firms appear the same. How do I compare these firms? - The firms are similar in a lot of ways; however, they are different in many ways too. You will gain your own understanding of this by speaking to recruiters, interns and alumni or by reading the Vault guides and company websites. - Metrics you can use to compare companies For each candidate, the weight of each of these metrics may differ. Create a table, and try to learn about the company on each of these aspects as you move through the recruiting process. - Brand - Office location (e.g. international offices, offices in locations where your Partner is, proximity to industry of your choice (e.g. High-tech in San Francisco, Pharma in New York, Consumer Goods in Midwest)) - Size of the firm and the office - Availability of resources (e.g. to perform research) - Generalist vs. Specialist approach (i.e. when do you begin to specialize. Also includes the number of projects you are typically staffed on at one time.) - Type of work (Operations, IT, Strategy, etc.) - Type of client (e.g. Fortune 100 companies for McKinsey and BCG or small-medium enterprises for Bain) - Specific expertise (e.g. private equity for Bain, financial services for BCG, public and private cector for Booz Allen, etc.) - Work/life balance (firms have different staffing models and therefore involve different amounts of travel) - Staffing model (e.g. McKinsey’s staffing is centralized whereas Bain’s staffing is office-/region-specific) - Compensation (some firms pay second-year tuition) - People/culture (talk to as many people as possible) - Firm values/philosophy (this is an area where firms really think they are different) - Performance evaluation (frequency and metrics, upward feedback on managers and partners) - Client exposure and interaction with client - Interactions with Partners - Training and development, mentorship 8. Do consulting firms sponsor international student visas? - Most of the major consulting firms do sponsor international student visas, but not all of the smaller firms do. Do some initial website research, but if you don’t see an obvious answer, this is a legitimate subject to ask the recruiter about. 9. Is it true that recruiters sometimes randomly call people on the phone? - Recruiters might call you for a casual chat to learn more about you and your interests. To prepare for such phone calls, o Make sure you are in a quiet environment and are mentally ready to talk when you take the call. Otherwise, you could ask to reschedule. o Be ready to ask the recruiter some questions. o Be ready to answer basic questions such as “why consulting, why this firm,” etc., and feel comfortable discussing items on your resume.
Behavioral Fit Interview – Overview & Sample Questions
Overview
Common general questions asked during fit interviews
Résumé related questions
Case Interview – How to Approach a Case
1. Listen carefully to the problem statement and repeat back the key facts and main issues a. Make sure you get all the facts of the case. Practice writing and understanding the case facts fast by listening for key issues, as sometimes the problem statement can be very long. b. Rephrase the key facts and main issues aloud to the interviewer at the end of the case explanation to make sure you understand it correctly and have not missed anything. It is okay to ask the interviewer to repeat certain facts if you didn’t understand them in the first place. 2. Ask clarifying questions a. If necessary, ask 1-2 high-level questions to clarify your understanding on issues such as what the client does, the product, revenue sources, what the client’s criteria are to measure certain things (e.g. ROI, sales force effectiveness), etc. For instance, if the client is launching a new product – and the interviewer has not explained what exactly this product is – you could ask now. 3. Structure the analysis on paper a. Develop a comprehensive structure that will facilitate the identification of the problem (i.e. hypotheses development). This structure will guide you through the case discussion. b. The structure should be MECE (Mutually Exclusive and Collectively Exhaustive). In laymen’s terms, MECE means thorough yet non-redundant. 4. Gather data to test your hypotheses a. Follow the structure and ask appropriate questions to test whether your hypotheses are true. b. Elaborate on the reason why you want the information when asking questions so the interviewer understands your thought process. c. Avoid asking random questions and avoid jumping around the structure. d. Make sure to prioritize issues as you collect data. e. When you discover facts that you believe are highly relevant to the end solution, feel free to comment on the importance of the discoveries to show the interviewer what your big-picture instincts are; however, be careful not to be pulled too far away from your structure. 5. Make a recommendation: a. Think of your recommendation as a 1-minute elevator pitch to the CEO of the client. b. Synthesize your findings in the recommendation: i. What do you recommend the client should do? ii. What is the rationale behind the recommendation? iii. What is the impact of and risk associated with the recommendation? iv. What are next steps and ways to mitigate the risks addressed? c. Avoid simply repeating the facts or analyses you and the interviewer already discussed. d. It’s okay to ask for a minute to work on the recommendation.
Case Interview – How to Approach a Case
Important Tips
to see what we have covered so far.” This can help you clear your thoughts.
puzzling you. This can help the interviewer understand what you are thinking, and he/she may be able to provide you with some guidance. This is a lot better than keeping quiet, in which case the interviewer might just assume that you don’t know or are panicking.
Case Interview – Basic Frameworks
Note: This section is a summary of basic framework templates you should be familiar with. Please refer to other club resources for framework details. Never use one of these frameworks “as-is” for your entire case structure. The best structure for any given problem likely draws pieces from several frameworks.
Basic Frameworks and Concepts
1. 4Cs – Customers, Competitor, Company (Capability), Collaborator 2. NPV Calculation - Calculate free cash flow and WACC 3. The Big Picture (by Professor Nordhielm) - 4Ps – Price, Promotion, Place and Product - STP – Segmentation, Target, Positioning 4. Porter’s 5 Forces - Barriers to entry - Supplier power - Buyer power - Threat of substitutes - Rivalry amongst existing firms 5. Cost/Benefit Analysis - Understand the metrics and list the pros and cons – qualitatively or quantitatively. 6. Value Chain Analysis or Competitive benchmarking Understand how the product flows through the organization, think about each step in the value chain, and analyze the efficiency (e.g. costs, speed). To understand whether the client’s costs are low or high, use “competitive benchmarking” or compare between their different plants. 7. McKinsey’s 7S’s (can be useful in re-organization cases): these are elements that make the organization successful. - Strategy - Systems (such as IT, compensation, performance evaluation) - Structure (organizational structure such as reporting structure) - Style (leadership and management style) - Skills (competitive advantage of the firm) - Shared Values (philosophy and values) - Staff (training and motivating) 8. Growth-share Matrix (BCG Matrix) Each company needs a portfolio of products. - High growth/high share (star): It is profitable, but may need more cash than it can generate. If it continues to have a high share, eventually it will become a cash cow.
R&D Manufacturing Distribution Marketing/ Sales
Customer Service
Forecasting
Warehouse (Inventory)
Case Interview – Basic Frameworks
Framework Checklist List of issues/drivers you should keep in your mind when you create your structure.
Product • Type of products and services
New
New
Current
Current
Case Interview – Basic Frameworks
Company/Capability • Core competencies
Case Interview – Sample Structures
The bold titles are different types of cases you might get. Below the bolded lines are questions to ask/information to find out to help solve the case. These are only some ideas about how to structure your case using the information we described in this document so far. Note that in many cases greater detail is listed here than you would realistically get to in the typical introductory planning minutes.
1. Industry analysis - Customers o Concentration o Buying attributes/behaviors How do the buy; where do they buy; when do they buy Why do they buy (what do they value the most): - Price; quality; service; delivery/timeliness; reputation - Relationships (sales people) - Breath of product - Availability of alternatives o Competing products o Substitutable products Differentiation - Multiple ways to differentiate - Suppliers o Concentration o Patents/differentiation o Channel power o See all aspects listed above for customers and just consider them from the supplier perspective. - Substitutes/Potential Substitutes o Differentiation/patents/etc. - Competitors o Concentration/market share o First/second mover advantage o Price/cost structure o Differentiation Product attributes Brands Technology Reputation Product/Service quality - Capabilities/Competitive Advantage o What is the company good at? How does this match with the market/industry conditions? Technology Production Distribution/sales force Relationship Intellectual capability Scale Installed base/location Brand(s) Financial capital Human capital
Case Interview – Sample Structures
Increase volume (spread more units over fixed cost base) – Economies of scale o Possible ways to reduce variable costs
Case Interview – Sample Structures
o Capabilities o Financing – how will this be done? o Management – does the management have the expertise to implement it? o Government/Regulatory – does it require government/regulatory approvals? (e.g. FDA approval for drugs)
5. Reduce Costs - Assess the costs o Get the cost breakdown (focus on big cost buckets) o Value chain analysis o Fixed-Variable costs breakdown o Anything unusual? o Benchmark with competitors to see costs that are high o Benchmark with across different facilities: transfer best practices across - Cost Analysis (again, you can use value-chain analysis or use fixed-variable costs) o What internal changes can be made? (labor, overhead) o What external changes can be made? (suppliers, distributors, centralized sourcing to get volume discounts, source outside the US) 6. Increasing Sales - Assessment o Growth relative to market share o Have there been any changes in market share? o What are competitor’s strategies? Our strategy? o Who are our customers? - How? o Use Revenue equation: Revenue = Price X Quantity o Quantity = # of customers X # of products each buy Therefore, you can change price (increase or decrease based on price elasticity), or increase the number of customers or the number of products the client sells. Use the above equation to brainstorm ways to increase each of the drivers. 7. Competitive Response - Why is a competitive response necessary? o New product? Find out more information about what is causing the problem. o Has the competitor’s strategy changed? How? o Have competitors increased market share at your expense? - Strategy (analyze to see which one makes sense given the circumstances) o Acquire or merge with other competitors or the competitor posing the threat o Hire management from competitors o Change marketing strategy to target new customers/new market o Change/innovate products 8. Mergers and Acquisitions - Understand the objective (increase profits, growth or pre-empt competitor) - Ensure the acquisition meets the objective (e.g. profits)
