Case Coaching with Kearney

Question

Hello all,

I got a case coaching session scheduled with Kearney, Dubai. The email says that my performance during the session might impact my eligibility for the interview process. Can someone share on what basis the assessment is done during these coaching sessions at Kearney?

Answer 1

Hi there,

That's actually a bit odd! Normally these are (technically) non-evaluative.

Definitely prep as if it's the real interview. Try to be mostly case ready for it.

By the way, even if they didn't say this, you should always treat every single interaction with a firm as evaluative, whether they say so or not.

Here's some reading to help:

https://www.preplounge.com/en/articles/pitfalls-case-interview-preparation

https://www.preplounge.com/en/articles/how-to-shift-your-mindset-to-ace-the-case

Answer 2

Hi there,

Q: Can someone share on what basis the assessment is done during these coaching sessions at Kearney?

This is unusual as coaching sessions are not normally used for screening. It seems this is a screening call rather than coaching.

In terms of the assessment, the key components should be the same as in a standard interview. In some cases a screening call is conducted by HR and/or have a case only without fit and/or the case is shorter.

You can find a few tips below:

▶ How to Prepare for a Consulting Interview

Good luck!

Francesco

Answer 3

Hi there,

Yes, that's a bit odd. Treat it as an actual interview then.

For other firms, such as McKinsey, the practice session with a coach is really just a practice session. But this differs from firm to firm.

Best,

Cristian

Answer 4

What a weird thing for them to do! You should treat this ‘coaching’ session as a case interview and prepare to be assessed in the same way. I recommend being prepared to go through the case and then taking cues from the ‘coacher’ if there are other topics that they want to cover.

Good luck!

Answer 5

Hi there,

First of all, congratulations on the invitation from Kearney!

I think this is an interesting question that may be relevant for many people. I would be happy to share my thoughts on it:

First of all, this is quite surprising since proper coaching sessions, which are being provided more and more by strategy consulting companies, are non-evaluative.
As such, since this meeting should be called "preparatory case study interview", I would highly advise you to prepare for the "coaching session" the same way you would do for a regular case study interview, since you will most likely have to solve a case study.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to best prepare for your upcoming interviews, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen