Feedback kearney - areas to improve and how

Hi there,

Thanks for sharing — it sounds like you're in a strong position going into the final round!

Given what Kearney highlighted, here’s what I’d recommend focusing on over the next few days to sharpen the key areas:

1. Structure:
Practice clearly laying out your initial framework in a top-down, MECE (Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive) way. When given a prompt, take a few seconds to silently organize your thoughts before jumping in. You want to show that your thinking is both logical and comprehensive from the outset.

2. Brainstorming:
Focus on coming up with a diverse set of ideas quickly and grouping them into categories (e.g., internal vs. external, revenue vs. cost, etc.). Aim for structured creativity — showing both insight and the ability to organize your thoughts clearly under pressure.

3. Business Sense:
Push yourself to ask “So what?” at each step of the case. Practice articulating why a number or insight matters for the client’s business. Try reading short business cases or news articles and summarizing the implications in 2–3 bullet points. This helps build commercial intuition.

If it would be helpful, I’d be happy to do a case or run through drills with you — feel free to reach out.

Best,

Evelina

Hey - congrats on making it to the final round! The Kearney process in general places a high degree of focus on fit. It sounds like you already have that area down pat, which is great. Given the feedback you got, I would focus on the following areas going into the final rounds:

1. Case structure: how you structure and framework the case at the beginning is very important - interviewers are more looking at how you think vs. what the "right" answer that you arrive at is. Try to memorize a few more frameworks and work through those in the next few days to give yourself some more flexibility when facing different types of cases throughout the interviews.
2. Creativity: brainstorming is all about creativity. Interviewers like seeing out of the box thinking and diversity of thought - if everyone thought the same way, they wouldn't need to hire you. Practice thinking on your feet and quickly brainstorming root causes for specific business issues.
3. Overall business sense: you can better show this one throughout the case by incorporating thoughtful questions and points while you're solving the case, e.g., "doing XYZ would decrease margins but help word of mouth" or simply by sprinkling in more thoughts around the business case while you're completing the case. The interviewer just wants to see that you understand the business landscape.

If you'd like some additional tips or want to run through cases, feel free to reach out to schedule some time with me - I've been on the hiring end of both first and final rounds at Kearney, so am well versed in our hiring rubric and what we're looking for in particular. Best of luck!

Best,

Charlene 

Congrats on getting this far!

Yes, a few things to keep in mind for last round interview:

1. Work on the feedback provided in the previous rounds. Most firms communicate the feedback from the previous rounds to the final interviewer. It's important then to show the final interviewer that you have a growth mindset and are reactive to feedback. This matters immensely. Make sure you are clear on your development areas and that you get the right support to polish them before the final interview.
2. Expect less structure. Senior interviewers already have the confidence that you are a decent candidate, your skills having been already vetted by their younger colleagues. They are rather more interested in your as a person and your way of thinking. So they might present you with an unusual case, or one that is created on the spot or no case altogether. Expect anything.
3. Focus on excellent communication. Senior interviewers care a lot about how clearly you communicate and how you manage to forge a connection with the interviewer. It's important to be top-down and concise as much as possible with your answers, while allowing the conversation to flow in a natural way.
4. Put yourself in their shoes. The one question senior interviewers are asking themselves throughout the interview is what will happen when they'll put you in front of a client they've groomed for years? Make sure that even based on this first impression you seem somebody who can be trusted and who can work with any client regardless of how difficult they might be.

As a last note, if you want to increase the likelihood of success, consider hiring a coach to assess your readiness for the final interview. 

This question has been asked previously in a similar fashion. You can read it HERE.

Best,

Cristian

Hi there,

Congrats on making it this far in the Kearney process — that’s already a big milestone.

If you’ve got clear areas to improve and not much time, working with a coach can be a game-changer. You’ve already put in so much effort — don’t let the final mile trip you up for lack of focused prep. The return on investment at this stage is massive.

Also, keep in mind that final round interviewers usually know what feedback you received in earlier rounds. They’re not just assessing performance — they’re looking to see how you acted on that feedback. Coachability is a big green flag for them.

If you’d like support, just drop me a message. Happy to help.

Best

Alberto

Hey there, 

Great feedback overall! In the next 4 days, focus on tightening your initial structure, practice 5–10 opening frameworks out loud, and aim for clear, MECE buckets with quick transitions. For brainstorming, push for depth and variety (e.g. internal vs. external factors), and always link ideas to impact. To boost business sense, read 1–2 case walkthroughs daily and think aloud through trade-offs and implications.

You’re close, refining these areas will make a real difference. Happy to do a mock or review frameworks if helpful!

Best,
Alessa 😊