How many questions can I ask for a business situation case (Market Entry, Product Launch, etc..), a Profitability Case, and an M&A Case

Hi there,

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

• First of all, and contrary to what other coaches have said, there is no rule for how many clarifying questions are appropriate because it depends on the information you initially receive from the interviewer. In some case studies, you receive almost all the necessary information, so you naturally have to ask fewer clarifying questions. In other case studies, you receive little to no information, potentially intentionally, so you have to ask more clarifying questions.
• Moreover, I would strongly advise you to instead think about which questions you need an answer to in order to create a great initial structure. If you would like more information, please feel free to reach out to me directly.

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 your application files, for your upcoming pre-interview assessments and/or interviews, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Hi there,

I believe about 5 - 10 if the case is very complex. It may sounds like a lot, but depending on the prompt you really need to deep dive to isolate the scope. You should know what problem you have to solve and what "solve" look like, so the idea is to really understand what you are dealing with and how success will be measured so that you can structure your answer based on the objective in a very crisp and efficient way.

Some questions that usually are useful:

1) What is the client's goal? What is the success metric? (increase profits, reduce churn, etc)

2) Does the client has a target? (e.g.: if the metric is profits, how much or by how much does he wants to grow?)

3) By when? (is there a deadline?)

4) Are there any constraints to be considered? (e.g.: the client is only interested in a particular investment if it has a payback of X)

5) + depending on the context, may be interesting asking WHY the client wants to do something, if there are underlying reasons that one should be aware of (context: enter a market, buy a company, launch a product; potential underlying reasons: respond to a threat, comply with government laws, respond to a market demand, etc.)

Best,

Mari

Hello, 

I know this is not what you want to hear, but it's not about the number of questions you ask (this is not a metric tracked by interviewers - it can be very misleading) but what you ask, when, and in what sequence. 

Here are some tips to improve at asking questions: 

• Don't jump around between your buckets: Don't ask a question in your 1st bucket, then jump to your 4th, then circle back to the 1st. This is the syndrome of a candidate who is just guessing and who is not driven by a hypothesis.
• Use a top-down approach: Don't ask a very detailed question first: This is the syndrome of an unstructured candidate who is likely to miss an important information.
• Explain why you are asking the question: Be selective, you don't have to do it every time. This will help the interviewer understand your rationale, and it's the syndrome of a structured candidate who is following a clear process and who is good at communicating.
• Ask "High-Probability Questions": These are defined by Victor Cheng as not-to-miss questions that can reveal key information in the case. 2 examples are: "Is this problem company-specific or industry wide?" and "What is the revenue split per segment?"
• Quantify a change: It's not enough to know if something is declining or growing. Ask "by how much", this will unlock deeper insights. 

Eventually, if you master these concepts, you will solve a case faster and ask fewer questions. 

I hope this helps! We've only scratched the surface here. Please feel free to reach out if you want to test these concepts in a case. I'm offering a buy-1, get-1 session this month, so let me know if you are interested!

Hey Hudson,

Great question—while it does depend on the case and interviewer style, a good ballpark is typically 4 to 6 well-structured, purposeful questions throughout the interview.

The key is to make sure your questions are hypothesis-driven and help you move the case forward, rather than gathering data for the sake of it. Some common types of questions to consider:

• “Can you tell me more about the client’s main objective or success criteria?”
• “What does the competitive landscape look like—are there major players or recent changes?”
• “Do we have any data on customer segments or preferences?”
• “How has the company’s performance trended over the last few years?”
• “Are there any constraints or risks we should be aware of before moving forward?”

If your questions are focused and tied to your structure or line of thinking, you’re unlikely to overdo it. But if you’re asking repeatedly without a clear direction, even a few can feel like too many.

Let me know if you’d like to run through a case together—happy to help with your prep!

Best,

Evelina 

hey Hudson! 

I normally recommend the following to my coachees: 

1. Market Entry / Product Launch
    • Typical: 3–5 well-placed questions
    • Examples: Market size, competition, barriers to entry, internal capabilities
    • Too much: >6–7 questions before structuring - just looks unstructured
2. Profitability Case
    • Typical: 2–4 focused questions
    • Examples: Trends in revenue vs. cost, pricing changes, volume shifts
    • Too much: If you ask about every cost bucket before even segmenting, it can slow momentum
3. M&A Case
    • Typical: 4–6 thoughtful questions
    • Examples: Strategic rationale, synergies, financials, cultural fit, deal structure
    • Too much: Going deep into finance mechanics (DCF, multiples, etc.) unless prompted

So overall, I would recommend to ask ~3 targeted questions early, then 1–2 more during analysis
 • Less is more if your structure anticipates key drivers
 • Too many questions without direction can signal uncertainty — aim for purpose, not volume

Best, Alessa

Hi there, 

Normally, you'd hear 3-5 questions. 

But yes, as you say, it 'depends'. 

The most important thing is to ask questions that generally matter, in the sense that either they help you clarify something or test some emerging hypothesis. 

The mistake that most candidates make is asking some questions just for the sake of asking them because they heard it helps. 

Best,
Cristian

It very much depends on the amount of info you are given.

In a normal case, somewhere in the range of 3-6 questions. But sometimes, you'll be given very little by the interviewer, and they'll expect you to probe various points of the logic tree. In those cases, you may need to ask more.

The key is to be logical - asking targeted questions which are likely to be material to the case outcome, rather than taking a scatter-gun approach. Be ready to explain the purpose/rationale of your question if asked.