KPMG Strategy & Operations Case Interview (Financial Sector) – What to Expect & Prep Tips?

Good that you have the Deloitte feedback. Both gaps are fixable.

What to expect in the room: KPMG S&O in financial services tends to be ops-heavy. Think cost reduction, process redesign, regulatory response, or efficiency improvement at a bank or insurer. Market entry and M&A are less common. You do not need deep technical knowledge, just a basic understanding of how a bank makes money and what drives its costs.

The structure problem is your priority: For ops cases, an issue tree splitting people, process, and technology works well alongside a standard profitability split. Take the pause, write it out, then present top-down. Do not start talking before your structure is clear.

Fix the math outside of cases: Drill timed arithmetic every day for two weeks. Fast and basic. The goal is making it automatic so it does not eat up mental energy during the case.

For practice, focus on financial services profitability and process improvement cases.

Hi there,

Expect anything.

Please stop playing the game of trying to anticipate the cases. You can't. If you try, you are much more likely to fail.

I know this isn't the answer you want. But it's the truth.

Go in expecting healthcare? You'll get electric scooter ride sharing. Go in expecting no charts? You'll get 10.

Please, just train yourself in being flexible and adaptable.

I have a list of all the questions asked to my candidates in their interviews. Feel free to reach out for it.

(By the way, what will you discover? There is no pattern).

Here's some reading that directly addresses this:

Most Common Pitfalls in Case Interview Preparation

How to Shift Your Mindset to Ace the Case

Case Interview Course

Hi! Good that you already have feedback — that’s actually a big advantage going into this round.

On KPMG Strategy & Operations (financial sector), you can expect cases that are a bit more practical and implementation-oriented compared to MBB.

Typical topics are:

• profitability / cost optimization (very common)
• operational improvement (process efficiency, cost reduction, turnaround)
• sometimes growth / market entry, but usually more grounded
• banking-specific angles (e.g., improving a product line, optimizing a division, digital/AI initiatives)

So yes, similar “types” of cases, but with a stronger focus on “what would you actually do”, not just high-level strategy.

On how technical they are:
You don’t need deep finance knowledge, but you should be comfortable with basics like:

• how banks make money (fees, interest margin, etc.)
• key KPIs (cost-income ratio, volumes, margins)

It’s more about being business-aware than technical.

Now on preparation — based on your feedback, I’d focus on two things:

1. Structure (priority #1)
This is usually what makes the difference.

Keep it simple:

• start clean (e.g., revenue / cost, or a clear process)
• don’t jump into lists
• always have a clear logic behind your buckets

If your structure is solid, the rest becomes much easier.

2. Mental math under pressure
This improves quickly with practice.
A few tips:

• write things down clearly (avoid doing everything in your head)
• talk through your calculations
• practice basic drills (percentages, breakeven, ratios)

Also, don’t rush — accuracy and clarity matter more than speed.

3. Be practical in your answers
KPMG will appreciate answers like:

• “I would pilot this in X region”
• “We could reduce costs by focusing on Y process”

Less theory, more “what would we actually do on Monday morning”.

Overall, don’t reinvent everything before this interview.
You already know what to fix: structure + math.

If you improve those two, you’ll already be in a much stronger position than last time.

Congrats on advancing with the interviews!

To make your life easier (or harder, depending on how you take it), there aren't KPMG specific cases that you can expect for this role. 

Since the role is more focused on strategy & ops, you are likely to have most cases during the interview process from these areas, but not all of them. 

And in terms of style, the cases are more likely to be candidate led than interviewer led. 

Also, don't hesitate to reach out to the recruiter and ask them this question. Some might share useful info that will allow you to target your prep better. 

I've worked with multiple KMPG candidates, so if you have any questions, don't hesitate to reach out.

Best,
Cristian

hey there :)

you’ll typically see cases around profitability, cost optimization, process improvement or sometimes growth within banks or insurers, so less “pure strategy” and more operational levers like efficiency, digitalization or risk processes, they are usually not super technical in finance but you should be comfortable with basic concepts like revenue drivers, cost structures and maybe lending or insurance mechanics; given your feedback the priority should be really tightening your structure upfront and simplifying your math approach under pressure, so practice building very clear, MECE issue trees and do timed drills with percentages, ratios and quick estimations, that alone already moves the needle a lot, if you stay structured and communicate cleanly you’ll be in a much stronger spot this time

happy to run through a FS case with you if helpful

best,
Alessa :)