Bain Middle East First round interview

Hi there,

1) What type of cases does Bain give during the first round interview for the ME office ?

I helped several candidates to get offers from Bain Dubai and know a good number of real questions asked there. The most common types based on them are:

• Profit/Revenue/Cost issue
• Investment/strategic decision out of given alternatives
• Market entry

2)  Should I expect a candidate led type of interview or interviewer led one?

It could actually be both, but more likely interviewee-led.

3) Lastly, what would you recommend would be best to focus on in terms of business knowledge (i.e focus on profitability cases, market entry or not even adopt that approach) ?

Honestly I would not over-engineer this. They may ask any type of case so you should be flexible. Having said that, the most common types I saw are those in answer 1.

If you need help please PM me, I have a DB with 20+ real questions asked specifically at Bain Middle East.

Best,

Francesco

Hi there,

First of all, congratulations on the (alleged) invitation!

This is indeed an interesting question which is probably relevant for quite a lot of users, so I am happy to provide my perspective on it:

• Case studies at Bain are very similar to those of other consulting companies. As such, I would advise you to expect and prepare the most common case study question types (e.g. strategic questions, problem solving questions, growth questions, M&A questions).
• Obviously, I would advise you to think about the elements you will most likely have a look at depending on the case study question type. While there is no meaning in memorizing structures, there is also no meaning in approaching every case study question without having a basic knowledge in the back of your mind.
• Regarding the dominating industries in ME office - and as such the context of your case studies, feedback from coachees of mine and my personal network was that they have a certain focus on Civil Economics, Infrastructure, and Oil & Gas.
• Bain case studies generally are interviewee-led which might be slightly harder than interviewer-led case studies. Still, please bare in mind that an interviewer might still want to direct you to a specific type of question.

In case you want a more detailed discussion on how to best prepare your Bain interviews, please feel free to contact me directly.

I hope this helps,

Hagen

Hi there,

Short and simple: Be ready for anything!

Please try to avoid going in with set expectations! You could get a ton of charts or none. You could have an intense case or all brainstorming. It could be oil & gas or the art industry.

That said, here are a few things to keep in mind and be ready for:

1. Bain is candidate-led
2. Be prepared for charts and exhibits (they've even started showing multiple charts on one page in some offices)
3. Be particularly well-read on industries that are common in the ME (Oil&Gas, Energy, Government, Tourism, etc.)

Good luck!

Hello!

Agree with other coaches here, you need to prepare to be an all road, and not make the mistake to focus on industries or type of cases (since, what happens if when you arrive to the interview, it´s a totally different thing, which is most likely what will happen?)

Cheers, 

Clara