What MBB Interviewers Look For In MBA Hires

PROBLEM SOLVING VS FRAMEWORKS

One thing that sets this book apart from other case interview preparation is its problem solving framework for cases, the authors say. There are plenty of frameworks out there that trainers prescribe for this type of case of that type. It’s often rigid and mechanical, however, and the interviewers can see through it.

“Even with a good framework, you will likely get, maybe, a 60 or 70% score on the case, but you’re never going to be the top rigidly following a framework,” Goh said.  “We advocate using our problem solving process as a guideline to work through the steps in a case, and that leads you to be able to adapt your approach to all different kinds of questions.

“We actually do this in our work. We use this problem solving methodology with our clients, corporate as well as other consultants, and we extracted the essence and applied it to a 30-minute case discussion. If students take nothing else away from the book, defining the objectives of the case is one of the most important things people often forget. Both in case interviews and in real life problem solving.  That’s why it’s more powerful than memorizing frameworks,” Goh said.

Seeming rigid and rehearsed is not a good example for how you will solve problems with a client of the firm, Muehlstein added. 

“I think it’s a fundamental difference with our approach to case interviews. I always tell younger consultants, or even aspiring consultants, that the one thing that will make them the most marketable is how well they know how to problem solve. Start with hypothesis based problem solving in the case interview, and you will be much more likely to get it right,” he said. 

MINDING THE PREPARATION TIMELINE

If your goal is an MBB consulting job, when should you start preparing? Probably yesterday. While the recruiting interview process typically starts the year before you graduate, it seems to be getting earlier and earlier, Muehlstein said. 

“I recommend that people start prepping as soon as they start the MBA, not just for the sake of doing the case, but starting with understanding what consulting is all about and trying to see what kind of consulting they’re interested in. The large consulting firms have different types of consulting, so there are a lot of questions that you should research and then start preparing for relevant cases in a smart way,” he said.

AUTHORS’ KEY ADVICE

“From the Interviewer’s Seat” walks readers through the skills interviewers are looking for in a case interview, and then breaks down a sample case with their problem-solving approach. It’s quite detailed, and applicable for MBAs preparing for other high-level interviews in other professions. Its scope is more than can be covered in one story.

But the authors did leave P&Q readers one piece of advice for MBAs preparing for their dreaded case interviews.

Goh: “Don’t over practice. You need to prepare, but there’s definitely over practicing.I think one of my favorite quotes is that it’s not true that practice makes perfect; Practice makes permanent. If you are practicing with people who are encouraging but who aren’t telling you how to do the right things, you just get used to doing the wrong thing. As an MBA, you probably have pretty good access to former consultants. Find the ones who have done interviews before. Or find MBA alumni who can help or friends who also want to go to consulting firms.” 

Muehlstein: “The people that impressed me the most in case interviews are people who I can see are generally enjoying the process of solving a business problem. It’s people who immediately jump up when they see a whiteboard with a marker because they want to jot down some ideas and reflect. It’s the people who are standing up, people who are owning the problem, people I’m having a great discussion with.”

FIND THE BOOK

From the Interviewer’s Seat: The Insider’s Guide For Aspiring Consultants is available at Casey, an online hub for case interview preparation. Go to caseyinterview.com to learn more.

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