How to prepare for corporate strategy interviews?

You've diagnosed it perfectly. Corp strat tests judgment and instinct, not a clean MECE framework. The MBB muscle can work against you, because pausing to structure reads as slow.

So drop the visible framework. Lead with a quick point of view, then reason out loud: "My gut says X because of A and B, though I'd check C."

Pre-think your stance on the recurring questions: build vs buy vs partner, where we have a right to win, capital allocation, responding to a competitor.

Don't master each sector. Learn each company deeply: their strategy, how they make money, their big threats. Read their investor day deck.

Hello, I have been through corporate strategy interviews when applying for MBA internships a while back, so a few thoughts that should help.

The one shift that fixes most of what you describe: corp strat interviews are not testing whether you can build a framework, they are testing whether you have a point of view on a business. The pacing and the free-flow format both come from that. Once you stop reaching for the consulting reflex (pause, structure, ask for data) and start with "here is how I would think about it, and here is my initial take", the format stops feeling alien.

On your three questions:

1. Prep strategy: how do you adjust vs consulting? Practice forming a view fast and defending it out loud, rather than applying a framework. The interviewer wants to debate with you, not watch you fill in a tree.
2. Key questions: what should you be able to answer about any business in a few minutes? (I) How does it make money (the few real value drivers); (II) Where is growth coming from (organic, new markets, M&A); (III) What are the main threats (competition, disruption, regulation); and (IV) where would you place your bets if you ran strategy? Nail those four and you are ready for most of what they throw at you.
3. Time management: how to handle the cross-sector load? Do not try to master each sector, it does not scale. Build one reusable lens (the four questions above) you can apply to any business fast, then spend your firm-specific time on the company itself (latest annual report or investor day, last couple of earnings calls). It also helps to get a quick view on the latest trends in the industry, which you can pull together fast with AI (recent trends, M&A activity, product launches).

Hope it helps. Feel free to drop me a message if anything is unclear and good luck with the switch!

Hi there,

I think the biggest adjustment is realizing that corporate strategy interviews are much closer to how strategy discussions happen inside a company than to consulting interviews.

A few suggestions:

• Shift from breadth to depth. Instead of mastering generic frameworks, spend time understanding the company itself. Read the latest annual report, investor presentation, recent earnings call, and major strategic announcements. Many questions are rooted in the company's actual challenges.
• Practice making decisions with imperfect information. In corporate strategy, you often won't receive additional exhibits or data. Interviewers want to see how you reason, what assumptions you make, and how you would validate them if you were on the job.
• Think like an internal strategist. Your recommendations should consider implementation, organizational constraints, available capabilities, and the company's existing priorities. It's less about finding the theoretically optimal answer and more about proposing something management could realistically execute.

Regarding preparation across industries, I wouldn't try to become an expert in every sector. Instead, spend your time understanding each company's business model, strategic priorities, and competitive position. That's usually a much better investment than reading broad industry reports.

If you're already at MBB, the analytical skills are there. The biggest change is adapting your communication style to a setting where you're acting as a long-term advisor to one company rather than an external consultant solving a discrete case.

Hi,

I landed some offers before but never took them, and recently just coached a MBB friend to land a Senior Director role at one of the payments companies. 

You ask important questions - and I hate to be a consultant but the answer is that it really depends. Some firms like Revolut have a more standard case style. On the other hand, I've had coachees who went for other big industry players (who said they would do a case) but they never did a case and instead ended up talking either industry expertise or their own previous CV experience.

So the approach I would think of it is the following:

1. Identify your target firms - just like any application process, you will have to decide which firms you really want and which you are less keen on
2. For your priority firms, this is where you need to leverage your network to suss out what the interview process really is - and also spend more time prepping for them

Happy to have a more detailed chat anytime.. just drop me a dm.

In the meantime you can check out my article: The Corporate Strategy Interview Guide

Hi there,

Interesting that you're highlighting this difference. 

It's also critical to know that for corporate strategy / internal consulting roles, there isn't one typical format (as opposed to interviews with consulting firms, which tend to be more standardised). 

So what actually matters more here is staying close to the recruiter to understand as accurately as possible what is the format of the interview and to get their advice on how you can best prepare. You can even discuss with them what the different expectations are from, say, a consulting interview.

Best,
Cristian