case interview bootcamp - management …...case interview bootcamp management consulted 1 pre-test...

1/23/20

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QUESTROM SCHOOL OF BUSINESSJANUARY 2020

PRESENTED BYJENNY RAE LE ROUX

CASE INTERVIEW BOOTCAMP

MANAGEMENT CONSULTED

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PRE-TEST

Size the market for suitcases in Germany (2 min)

Then, defend your answer to a partner (1 min each)


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4 STEPS TO SOLVE ANY SIZING QUESTION

Population /

Households

% Who Own/Buy

Frequencyof Purchase

Weighted Avg. Price


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NEED TO KNOW INFO

U.S. Population

Population of city living in

Population of city interviewing for

Population of 2 Countries/ContinentMANAGEMENT CONSULTED

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QUESTION

What is one thing you hope to take away from today?


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AGENDA

� Market Sizing� Case Interview Overview� Case Walkthrough� Strategy Simplified� Case Structures and Key Equations� Case Practice Plan


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WHAT WE DO

www.managementconsulted.com


MCFree

content

On-site bootcamps

Self-study training

materials

1:1 editing/training

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MC COVERS THE FULL PROCESS

Resumes & Cover Letters

Networking

Fit Interview PrepCase Interview Prep

On-the-Job Skills Training

JOB OFFERS!


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CLIENTS RECEIVE OFFERS FROM:


CLIENTSRECEIVEOFFERSFROM:

MANAGEMENTCONSULTED

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CASE INTERVIEWS

It’s not about the answer – it’s about the process.


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THE INTERVIEW PROCESS

OFFER!

Case Interview

Fit Interview

Network


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THE REALITY OF SCORING

Fit Interview

Case Interview

Fit Interview Case Interview

1st round 2nd round


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1:1 Interview

Presentation Interview

Group Interview

3 KINDS OF CASE INTERVIEWS


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WHY FIRMS USE CASE INTERVIEWS

Can you do the tactical work of a consultant?

Do you understand how a consultant works?

Are you someone who would be fun to manage?


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BACKGROUND –Jenny Rae


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3 EVALUATION CATEGORIES

Structure Problem-solving Communication


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CASE INTERVIEW ANATOMY

• The Background

• The Recap

• Case and Objective Clarification

• The Grand Pause

• The Game Plan

• Creative Questions

• Quantitative Questions

• Case Summary and Next Steps


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KEY CASE INTERVIEW DIFFERENCES


Top 3

Big 4

Boutique

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SCORING (MCK; BY QUESTION)

Scoring key 1 (Opening question)

1 Candidate does not recap the background

2 Candidate recaps the background with too much detail or lacks confidence

3 Candidate hits most of the key elements but provides them in an unstructured way; begins to ask detailed questions not relevant at this point in case

4 Candidate gives answer that hits key elements of background at a high level but does not demonstrate complete understanding of what company does

5 Candidate provides clear, concise, structured response and, if appropriate, asks 1-3 clarifying questions


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SCORING (MCK; OVERALL)

Interviewer Summary ___ 1 Opening Question (1-5) ___ 2 Initial Structure (1-5) ___ 3 Quantitative (1-5) ___ 4 Creative (1-5) ___ 5 Summary (1-5) ___ 6 Overall Structure (1-5): Candidate consistently presents ideas in logical lists and

bullets, even during creative responses; manages the flow of the case with ease and does not get confused.

___ 7 Overall Problem Solving (1-5): Candidate maintains focus/awareness on hypothesis and drives to solutions; excellent at math (mental/calculations), quick to realize and correct mistakes, adept at tying data to overall conclusions.

___ 8 Overall Communication (1-5): Candidate provides concise, well-spoken responses to each question; demonstrates confidence and works through difficulty (but maintains positive attitude). You would enjoy working with and managing this candidate, and would trust them to be clear and complete.

_______ OVERALL TOTAL _______ OVERALL AVERAGE


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SCORING (BAIN/BCG; ABBREVIATED)


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CASE INTERVIEW OPENINGS

You never get a second chance to make a first impression.


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CASE INTERVIEW OPENINGS

Case and objective clarification

The recap

The background


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CLARIFICATION FOR BETTER STRUCTURES

OKAYNew data

New objectivesMetrics for success

GREATAnything you missed

Confirm understandingReduce problem scope


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SAMPLE CASE INTERVIEW OPENING

Your client makes popular organic snacks, including snack bars, organic bite-size chocolates, and organic chips. The client has strong distribution in North America and has been in operation for 8 years. The company’s overall revenues last year were $600M with 2,000 employees.

The client is interested in accelerating growth. What should they consider?


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CASE INTERVIEW STRUCTURE

The grand pause

The game plan


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Bucket A

• Data 1• Data 2• Data 3

Bucket B

• Data 1• Data 2• Data 3• Data 4

Bucket C

• Data 1• Data 2

Bucket D

• Data 1• Data 2• Data 3

1 2 4 3

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CASE MATH QUESTIONS

Support your blob of ideas with some real numbers.


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KEYS TO GETTING IT RIGHT

Use all 4 structured steps Do all steps

verbally Accuracy >speed Don’t pause

(exception: McKinsey)


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CASE MATH I

� Your client is interested in expanding into France. 20% of consumers in France do not eat snacks. Of those that do, there are 3 segments of snackers in France – occasional (2 snacks/week), consistent (4 snacks/week), and frequent (7 snacks/week). The breakdown is 50% occasional, 30% consistent and 20% frequent. How many snacks are currently consumed in France each year?

� What does this mean to the client?


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ANSWER KEY – CASE MATH I

� 70M French residents� 80% who eat snacks = 56M snackers

� 28M occasional, 16.8M consistent, 11.2M frequent eaters� 56M occasional, 67.2M consistent, 78.4M frequent/week

� Total snack consumption/week = 201.6M snacks/week� Total snack consumption/year = 10,080M snacks/year

(10.1B snacks/year)� Rounded using 50 weeks


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CASE CREATIVE QUESTIONS

Dive deep into your plan with structured brainstorming.


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KEYS TO GETTING IT RIGHT

Use all 4 structured

steps

Do all steps verbally but take notes

What else?Don’t pause (exception: McKinsey)


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CASE CREATIVE I

� After reviewing the market, your client is interested in selling in France. What are some of the things they should be considering over the next 3-6 months to plan for the market entry?


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ADDITIONAL CASE PIECES

Extra creative/extra math for the win


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CASE MATH II

After gathering extensive data about consumer wants, the team believes there is significant opportunity associated with the introduction of our current products in the market.

Given budget constraints at Orgo, the president would like to know how many snacks they would need to sell year 1 to break even. Assume the following:-Unit production cost $0.50/snack-Fixed costs: advertising and promotion $10mm; SG&A $2mm-Revenue/snack $1.25� What is their breakeven point?� What does this mean to the client?


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ANSWER KEY – CASE MATH II

� Contribution Margin = $1.25 – 0.50 = $0.75� Incremental Fixed Costs = $12M

� $12M/$0.75 = 16M units� What does this mean?


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CASE CREATIVE II

� Our client is interested in new product development in the U.S. What additional new products would make sense for them to launch, and why?


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CASE CLOSINGS

Make a great last(ing) impression.


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CASE CLOSINGS

Final recommendation

3 elements of every

case closing

2 types of case

closings

Why the case closing

is so important


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CASE INTERVIEW CLOSING

� Your client is interested in a summary of what you have done so far.


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STRATEGY SIMPLIFIED

This is what you should spend the first 30 secondsof every case figuring out


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QUESTION

How do you calculate profit?


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PROFIT EQUATION

• Profit = Revenue – Cost

OR, more appropriately:

• Profit = P * Q – (VC * Q) – FC

• Applied: Is a business primarily a fixed cost business or a variable cost business? Which it is affects its strategy.• Fixed cost businesses price to maximize revenue• Variable cost businesses price to maximize contribution margin


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MC STRATEGY SIMPLIFIED 2X2


Premium (Variable cost) Unicorn (Both)

Undesirable (Both) Common (Fixed cost)

Volume

Price – VC (Contribution

Margin)

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PRIMARILY FIXED OR VARIABLE COST?


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Start strong – it will make or break the case.


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QUICK STRUCTURE QUIZ

• Duration to create• Duration to present• Number of categories• Number of levels• How to end

What are characteristics of a good case structure?


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ANSWER

• Completed in 2 minutes (not more, not less)• 2 minutes• 4 categories (this lines up with staffing)• 2 levels: 1st level is concept, 2nd level is data• Ends with hypothesis (open or defined)

What are characteristics of a good case structure?


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CASE FRAMEWORKS

Market Sizing Profitability

Market StudyMergers & Acquisitions


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PROFITABILITY

4 types of profitability cases

Key clarification questions


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PROFITABILITY STRUCTURE

Price

• Demand• Customer

negotiation• Product mix• Discounting• Competitor

pricing

Volume

• Channels• Marketing• Competitor

features• Price

elasticity

Variable Cost

• Variable Labor

• Materials• Distribution

Fixed Cost

• Fixed Labor/Salaries

• Rents• Utilities

? ? ? ?


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BREAK OUT – PROFITABILITY

Your client is a large video content streaming provider in the U.S. The platform is under pressure to stop a decline in profitability, and they believe user experience is to blame.

The managing director of content has 2 choices: either roll out more U.S. focused content or focus on international growth. Which should she choose, and why?


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MARKET STUDY

3 types of market study cases



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MARKET STUDY STRUCTURE

Market

• Size• Growth• Cycles

Competitor

• Share• Growth• Features• Price

Customer

• Segments• Growth• Share by

segment• Needs

Company

• Capabilities• Sales force• Fixed

operating costs

• Fixed investment costs (R&D)

Product/Service

• Features• Messaging• Variable

costs

? ? ? ? ?


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BREAK OUT – MARKET STUDY

Our client is a major U.S. airline carrier. The client currently operates over 1000 flights per day in the U.S., Caribbean and LATAM.

The client has 3 major international locations to which it runs 6 flights per day. However, over the last year they have been losing share on those routes. What should they think about and why?


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MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS

2 types of M&A cases



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M&A STRUCTURE

Market (Target)

• Size• Growth• Competitors• Fragmented/c

oncentrated

Company (Target)

• Revenues• Profits• Market share

Post-Acquisition

Strategy• Revenues• Costs• (Synergies)• Exit strategy

Risks/Benefits

• Management• IP• Regulation

1/2 1/2 3 4


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BREAK OUT – M&A

Our client is a major U.S. grocery retailer with operations in 14 states and over 200 stores. The firm began as a mom and pop grocery shop over 50 years ago and has now become a supply chain master with expertise in complex operations.

The client has the opportunity to buy a discount grocery chain with 20 U.S. stores. Some of its competitors are also interested in the purchase. What should they do, and why?


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ADVANCED CASE STRUCTURE (LEVEL 2)


Mix & match structures

•Worry more about being non-MECE than being MECE

•Never use full Profit + others•3 levels (2 written, one

spoken)

Clearly use metrics

•Longer structure, faster case•Data Example: Who are our

competitors vs. how much market share do competitors have?

Stay practical

•Rename buckets•Add categories•Establish data to support

them•Structure example:

Competitive Landscape, Operations, Customer Acquisition, Risks

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CASE INTERVIEW BUCKETS

Price VolumeVariable

Fixed Cost

MarketCompetitorsCustomers

Product/Service

CompanyPost-Acquisition Strategy

SynergiesRisks/Benefits

MarketingProduct Mix

Inorganic GrowthChannels

RevenueCost


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BREAK OUT – ADVANCED

Our client is an indoor arcade center with games, entertainment, and birthday partners. The company has operated for over 40 years, has $800M in annual revenue, and boasts over 200 locations.

The client has historically had major market share in the birthday party market for ages 2-12. However, in the last 3 years, their market share has declined. They are interested in figuring out what’s happening.


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THE ULTIMATE CASE PRACTICE PLAN


You’re welcome

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THE ULTIMATE CASE PRACTICE PLAN

Start with Market Sizing questions – 2

per day

Diagnostic interview

Do 10 cases 2X

MC Offerings


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DIAGNOSTIC INTERVIEWS CAN HELP!

• Do 1-3 hours of structuring• Read CIB, watch structure videos• Review Crack the Case, Case Interview Secrets

Structure help

• Do 2-3 hours of math problems under time pressure• Re-do math problems with no time pressure• MC drills/GMAT drills

Math help

• Ask case partners to push you to Top Rec of what to do• Review insights after case• Record case prompt, biz problem, key insight

Insight help

• Time yourself on each section of the case• For sections you go over, re-do in the moment • Video yourself and review/watch others’ videos

Communication help


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MC COACHING PLAN

Example outline for 8 hours� Start with a diagnostic case to learn best practices� Enables coach to learn strengths and 2-3 weaknesses to devise a plan

specific to student

� Structure coaching – Multiple case starts in one session to practice tailoring frameworks and implementing a hypothesis driven approach (individual “homework”)

� Math coaching – Practice how to set up a variety of math problems in an efficient, structured manner (individual “homework”)

� Fit coaching – Practice telling your story!� Combined coaching – Creative brainstorming, charts, etc.

� Practice multiple cases to refine problem solving and communication� Target a variety of case types to give exposure to different content or

target specific cases that strengthen weaknesses

Diagnostic session (1 hour)

Targeted sessions

(2-4 hours)

Refine(3+ hours)


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case interview bootcamp - management …...case interview bootcamp management consulted 1 pre-test...

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