Choosing coach with genuine interest

Hi there, it is unfortunate that you had such an experience. However, here are some things you can do to improve your success with coaches.:

• Before you sign-up for a session with a coach - you have the ability to chat with the coach over messages for an unlimited amount of time. Please take advantage of this to conduct proper due-diligence in a 1-on-1 manner
• You can follow coaches on the consulting forum and understand their style and approach - choose those that suit you
• Depending on your interview calls - you might want to select coaches from some specific consulting firm - each coach has their history in their profile
• Coaches have reviews and ratings that can help you determine feedback from their coachees. If a coach had employed any negative tactic - their coachees would realize it and that could have impacted their ratings and shown in their reviews. Reviews can be anonymous as well.
• When you book a session with a coach - you yourself must be prepared and focused in what you want to do in the first place. A coach is merely a guide - the coachees must do a lot of heavy lifting. Communicate your expectations from the session very clearly. It makes it much easier for the coach to focus on your request and give you very specific and constructive feedback.
• Lastly, you have complete freedom to choose a different coach for every single session. If you don't like a particular coach - try to find another one. 

You have 3 ways of doing a due dilligence to a coach:

1. Analyze their profile
2. Go through their answers on Q&A
3. Exchange messages asking him to explain his approach (and explaining what you want from a coaching session).

Someone pointed out that the ratings are not helpful, and I believe they are right, as most coaches have a 100% recommendation rate (this means that if you didn't like the coach, please rate him accordingly to help others).

Regarding what you should look for:

• A good coach will have relevant experience in one of the following forms: 1) real interviewing experience as a recruiter (which also means relevant consulting experience) or 2) otherwise a decent track record as a coach. Ideally both. You can check this on their profile.
   
• A good coach will be knowleadgeable and eager to share their knowledge. I.e., I would expect them to be active and helpful on the Q&A.
   
• A good coach wants to know where you stand. If the coach does not assess you before giving you a case, then it is not a good coach. I always prepare my sessions beforehand asking a couple of questions to the candidate. This means that a good coach won't give you a tought case (or a “non-standard” case type) without knowing your specific needs or at least how much preparation you already have. 
   
• A good coach will customize the session to your needs (or to whatever you request). So a good coach will ask you a few questions in the beginning of the session, propose an approach and seek your agreement.
   
• This one may be controversial, but in my opinion effective coaching is not about “roleplaying” an interview (unless this is what you ask for, because you want to practice or want an independent assessment). Effective coaching means giving you direct feedback (in the moment) and an opportunity to practice / rehearse during that same session.
   
• Finally, if you don't leave the session feeling that you became better prepared then it was not a valuable session. While you have to do a lot of preparation on your own, a session should provide you with a knowledge of 1) where to improve and 2) how to improve. And the real value of a coach is on the “how”.

Hope this helps. Good luck with your next coach!

I don't have an answer but would like to echo what I've seen on PrepLounge recently.

I noticed that there is an influx of coaches spamming the Q&A with their products and coaching services.

There are some exceptions though, one coach I really like is Ken (ex-McKinsey), he has pointed out before that he only replies to McKinsey, McKinsey London or general type of questions.

Sidi (ex-McKinsey & ex-BCG) is really good too, he has been preaching first principle thinking from his earlier posts.

Hi there,

I am not sure there are a lot of coaches that follow a strategy of “hard case first with the goal to coach more” – it probably has more drawbacks than advantages. 

Personally I try to give cases matching the particular need of the candidate and provide an exact score on the performance to understand how far you are from a pass. I believe most coaches do something similar.

In terms of how to choose, I would recommend the following:

1. Define your criteria for choice (eg company or budget)
2. Filter the coaches based on the criteria
3. Read reviews/profiles – define a shortlist (eg 3-5 coaches)
4. Message the coaches with your questions and what you would like to work on to see if there is a match
5. Select the coach matching the most your needs

As a bonus point: you can check the Q&A answers – they should give an idea of the style of the coach and if it matches what you are looking for.

Hope this helps,

Francesco

Hey there,

1. I would simply go into the coaches database and filter for

• Employer: Consulting firm of your choice
• Recommendation Rate: Descending

2. Look at the first couple of coaches, read their reviews and success rates. 

3. Reach out to them and ask for an intro call.

4. Go with the one you like most.

5. Check the reviews specifically for feedback that candidates booked more sessions than one. Apart from the success rate that is a key differentiator.

Cheers,

Florian

Hi there,

My honest advice is to have a call/conversation with them! Gauge whether they seem genuinely interested or not!

I would say that higher-tier coaches (with strong reviews) are far more likely to truly care, but, regardless, you should do your own filtering!

Additionally, you can always ask other candidates (those you case with) who they're using if they like them.

Best of luck in the search :)

Hello,

I'm sorry to hear you've had this experience. Unfortunately there's no hard or fast rule. I would recommend the following when choosing a PrepLounge Coach:

• Go on their profile and look through any reviews and ratings. Read their coaching offerings. Is this someone you think you would like to work with?
• To echo Agrim's excellent suggestion, be sure to message any potential coaches to do some due diligence, ask them a bit about their coaching style, and so on.
• Be very explicit about what you would like to work on. The more specific you are, the better a coach can tailor their session for you. For instance, if you are just starting the case prep process and are wary of doing difficult cases from the get-go, explain this situation to the coach you want to work with.