Follow-up questions and structuring

Great questions — you're thinking like a top candidate already.

1. Follow-up questions:
Yes, it’s totally fine to take a few seconds to think. A quick pause shows you’re being thoughtful. You can say something like, “Let me take a moment to think that through.” Then aim to give a 1–2 point structured response, even if it’s quick — it shows clarity under pressure.

2. Brainstorming categories:
You're using solid ones already. Other useful structures include:

• Customer / Company / Competitor
• Revenue vs. Cost
• Value chain (e.g. suppliers → ops → customers)
• Short-term vs. long-term Pick what best fits the case context, and don’t overcomplicate — clarity > cleverness.

If you want more practice or feedback, feel free to check out High Bridge — we’ve got free tools and coaching focused on exactly this. You're on the right track — good luck!

Hi there,

First of all, congratulations on the invitation from McKinsey!

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

• First of all, there is really no general rule as to whether or not you can take your time. Instead, I would strongly advise you to think logically and ask yourself: Do I need time to think about the question? After all, an interview is nothing more than a conversation.
• Moreover, again, there is no universal set of groupings that can be applied to qualitative questions. Instead, I would strongly advise you to really think about the question and how best to break it down.

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 McKinsey interviews, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Great questions — and both are key to succeeding at McKinsey interviews.

1. Can I pause before answering follow-ups?
Yes, absolutely. It’s perfectly acceptable (and often wise) to take a brief pause — even just 5–10 seconds — to structure your thoughts before responding. Just say something like, “Let me take a moment to organize my thoughts.”
To improve structure on the spot:

• Mentally group your ideas into 2–3 themes before speaking
• Use clear signposting like “There are two main reasons…”
• Practice concise mental outlining during drills or mock interviews

2. Brainstorming structures that work well:
Your current approach using binary categories is strong. Here are a few more that work across a range of cases:

• Value chain (e.g. sourcing, operations, sales, distribution)
• Customer journey (awareness, purchase, post-sale)
• Stakeholder groups (customer, company, competitor, regulator)
• Revenue and cost levers
• Root cause categories (people, process, technology, external)

The key is picking a logical lens that fits the context. And always keep your buckets MECE (mutually exclusive, collectively exhaustive).

You're clearly on the right track — best of luck with your interviews!

Hi there!

Great questions.

1. Typically, you're not expected to take time for follow-up questions. But if you find one particularly tricky or deep, then ask for the time and take it. It's not a black and white thing, and you should instead let yourself be guided by what you feel is necessary for you to give a good answer. If time is what you need, take it. You're being assessed for the quality of your answers, not their speed. 

2. Please don't use typical structures. Anything that is conventional scores low on creativity, originality and at best it makes your performance average. 

You might find this article useful:

• Expert Guide: Mastering Structuring & Brainstorming

Best,
Cristian

Great question — especially since both structuring and follow-up answers are subtle but critical parts of the (McKinsey) interview.

1. Follow-ups: yes, take time — but think out loud.
It’s absolutely fine to take a moment to collect your thoughts — it often shows maturity and clarity. That said, pure silence for more than ~30 seconds can be a bit awkward, and you lose a key opportunity: your interviewer wants to hear how you think, not just what you conclude. So I’d recommend this flow:

• Start by paraphrasing the question in your own words — this buys time and shows active listening.
• Then say something like, “Let me break this down into the key areas I’d consider…” and outline your structure before diving in.
• If unsure, flag your assumptions: “I’m assuming we’re looking at this from the client’s point of view — in which case, I’d look at three things…”

This allows you to stay structured while also giving the interviewer insight into your thinking — which is arguably more important than landing a “correct” answer.

2. Structuring brainstorms: go beyond generic buckets.
Your current approach (e.g. internal vs. external) is a solid base — but what really stands out is when candidates use contextualized, case-relevant categories. Some that I’ve seen work well:

• Value chain: Inputs / operations / customer / distribution — this works well for product or supply chain cases
• Levers: Revenue / cost / risk / asset utilization (great for performance improvement cases)
• Stakeholders: Customer / employee / investor / regulator (helps for more strategic or political topics)
• Barriers: Market / product / capability / financial / regulatory (useful for new initiatives)

You can also layer categories — e.g. break the value chain into internal vs. external impacts. As long as it’s MECE and intuitive, creativity here is a plus.

In short: structure isn’t just a way to organize your answer — it is part of what’s being assessed. Clarity + logic > fancy frameworks.

Let me know if you want to test some examples or brainstorm together — happy to help.

1. Ask for time to think—the interviewer will let you know if it’s okay. What matters more than speed is staying top-down and structured, even in follow-up questions. That’s more important than the number of ideas you generate.
2. Never use generic categories in a brainstorming. You want to stand out among other candidates, and a generic approach won’t do that. Tailor your categories to the specific context and question of the case—it shows real understanding and creativity.

Happy to help you on both topics, just drop me a message.

Best,

Alberto

—

Explore my latest case inspired by a real MBB interview: Chic & Stitch - Fashion Market Expansion

Hi,

To answer your questions:

Time to think:

• Yes! You can always for a minute. You can even ask for a moment to just collect your thoughts. I generally think anything longer of 2 and a half minutes of silence is a bit long though. But at the end of the day, if your answer is correct, 2mins is fine. 

  You can simply say, “Let me take a few seconds to structure my thinking,” and then respond . Over time, practice will help you become faster at mentally organizing your thoughts without needing long pauses.

Brainstorming Structuring:

• Using generic pairs like long-term vs. short-term or internal vs. external is a great start, but there are specific frameworks for different types of answers. 

  For example there may be:

• Profitability Frameworks: Use for: Analyzing profit decline or improving profits. Breakdown is : Revenue = Price × Volume and Costs = Fixed + Variable
• Market Entry Framework: Use for: Deciding whether to enter a new market. Structure: Market size/trends, Entry barriers, Client strengths or Financials & risks
• M&A Framework: Use for: Evaluating an acquisition. Structure: Strategic fit (synergies), Target health, Deal feasibility, Integration risks

These are just three structures, there are more, but you can play around with them to find a system that suits YOU.

Here are some online sources that you can use:

• https://www.preplounge.com/en/articles/case-interview-frameworks

   

I'd be happy to chat further :)

1. Yes, you are allowed to take time.

Of course, act natural. This is a conversation. You should not be asking for time for every follow up question (sometimes you may take some seconds without asking for time, anyway).

2. Yes, that's exactly what you should be doing. Another one: supply and demand; current scope vs. new scope. 

However, note that you shouldn't always be verbalizing your structure. If it makes sense as a way to solve a problem, you can verbalize it. Otherwise, it is just a sort of support you are using in order to come up with more ideas.

But let me add a different type of approach for this. You may consider using other types of structures. For examples, processes or chains. Value chain, customer journey, etc. 

Hi there,

1. Yes you can, but if you’re pressured to give an answer on spot, you can use some phrases to gain time to think. E.g.: “Ok, so you are asking me why ABC, considering we have just found that Z has happen right?”

2. Think of it in the same way of your initial structure, that is the best way to go. Not everytime you’ll have the time to do a complete structure with layers and such, but aim for a more in depth organization than just using opposite words since this is what most candidates do.

I have been a McKinsey consultant and have a lot of experience in this practice. Feel free to DM me for a 20min free consultation call if you would like to understand how coaching could improve your odds in your upcoming interview.

Best,

Mari

Hey there, 

For McKinsey cases, you generally are expected / allowed to take time to prepare your answers before giving solutions to the interviewer, but to make this easy - always check with the interviewer if they are happy to give you time to do so. No harm in that. 

Regarding the structing / grouping, I'd be very carefully with having generic categorisations. Ultimately, you should see the brainstorming questions as mini structuring questions. There are many different approaches to this and you don't want to lose your flexibility / adaptability to be nuanced to the case. 

All the best