EY Parthenon - Second Round

Hi,

A few things change with more senior interviewers:

• The basics (clean structure, solid maths) are taken more as a given, so they test your framing less and your business judgment and communication more. The evaluation grid is the same across rounds, but the weighting moves up.
• Senior interviewers also find it easier to go off script and will challenge your hypotheses even when they are correct, to see how you react under pressure. If that happens, either hold your recommendation with clear reasoning, or review it if the challenge genuinely makes sense.
• Given the Strategy and Execution focus, they will also want you to go beyond the diagnosis, so be ready to turn your analysis into concrete, actionable recommendations tied to implementation.

Hope it helps, and happy to run a case together before the round if useful!

Federico

Hi there,

I honestly am of the belief that it's more counterproductive to worry about this.

You have to be just as good in both. You have to demonstrate/exhibit the same abilities in both.

The difference between two interviewers is far far greater than the difference between two rounds.

That said, in general second rounds can be a bit more intense, a bit more abrupt, a bit more unstructured, and bit more focused on fit.

Given what you've said, I highly recommend my Full Interview Mastery Bundle. It'll help you strengthen both your case and fit performance and prepare for the more intense or unstructured style you may encounter.

Since your second round is with senior interviewers and you are interviewing at the Senior Consultant level, I'd also recommend a targeted coaching session. We can simulate this exact situation, identify any remaining weaknesses, and make sure you're ready for whatever they throw at you.

Hi there, 

congratulations on moving into the second round! 

My thoughts: 

• The case interviews largely stay the same. Focus on creating a clear and goal-oriented structure that you can follow. Drive the case but make sure to include the interviewer in your considerations. Come up with a clear recommendation that you are ready to defend
• More senior interviewers have been doing this for a while, so sometimes they like to get "creative" and explore more unconventional areas of cases as they have done this exact case a million times. Hence, make sure that you get the hygiene factors right as they have a good basis for comparison
• Much more importantly, however, is that those senior consultants will more thoroughly test your motivation and your fit into the company, especially as you are a lateral hire. Also the bar for clear casing, good structure and concise communication will be higher

I was a lateral hire myself at BCG, coming from Banking. If you want to chat, reach out anytime! :) 

Best, 
Sebastian

Hi there,

First of all, congratulations on the progress in the application process with EY-Parthenon thus far!

I would be happy to share my thoughts on your question:

• First of all, expect the cases themselves to be less "textbook". Senior interviewers sometimes open it up in a loose way, so the prompt can be vague and the data can be messy. They assume the basics like clean structure and correct math are already there, so what they really watch is your business judgment and how you talk to them.
• Moreover, I would advise you to prepare for pushback. A partner or director will challenge your answer even when it is right, just to see if you fold. When this happens, listen properly, say what part of their point you agree with, and then either defend your view with a reason or update it openly. Both are fine, what is not fine is panic or a silent switch of opinion without explaining why.
• Lastly, I would strongly advise you to invest real time in the personal fit part, because at senior consultant level this is often what decides the interview round. They want to hear why EY-Parthenon and not the other firms, what kind of work you want to do, and concrete stories from your own experience.

You can find more on this topic here: How to succeed in the final interview round.

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

Best,

Hagen

Hi,

A common and important question. My take is that it is really impossible to predict your R2 experience. I've had coachees who have had super standard R2s in the sense that the partners have given them very standard, typical cases. I've also had coachees (and happened to me as well) where the partner went completely off-script and seemingly random.

The evaluation form they will use is the same. So the bottom line is that you are expected to show the same skills, but they will focus on what they think is more important (most of the time, getting to insights and business judgement). 

So what i would encourage you to do is to fret less on predicting what will happen but instead focus on the fundamentals - if you have good fundamentals, it really doesn't matter what the interviewers are throwing at you. 

Given your experienced hire profile, you may also find my articles helpful:

5 Reasons Why Experienced Hires Fail the Interview
Using AI for Case Preparation
Succeeding in Consulting as an Experienced Hire

All the best!

hey there :)

For the second round, I’d expect the cases to be less about testing basic case mechanics and more about how you think as a senior consultant. The interviewers will likely push harder on your assumptions, recommendations and ability to handle ambiguity.

Given the Senior Consultant level, I’d also expect more focus on leadership, client communication and how you would drive an analysis or recommendation with a team. Make sure you can clearly explain your previous project experience and your personal impact.

I’d prepare with live cases and specifically practise defending your recommendation when the interviewer challenges you. That is often where the seniority difference becomes most visible.

Good luck, and feel free to reach out if you’d like to practise a second round case together. Best, Alessa :)

Second-round partner/principal cases shift from standard execution mechanics to high-level commercial judgment and executive presence.

Expect less guidance, more pushback on your business assumptions, and a heavier focus on commercial due diligence, investor returns, and implementation feasibility. Partners test whether you can confidently manage client workstreams and defend strategic trade-offs under ambiguity. 

Feel free to reach out if you want to practice structuring partner-level cases.