Just finished BCG final rounds- the cases seemed very unstructured?

Question

I had my final round in the last couple of days; I was as prepared as I could be and felt good about the first of two interviews where I got to know the partner and got through a case that the partner created on the spot. It was very unusual as he didn't ask me to do any numbers but got me to go through structures repeatedly (apparently a weakness from my first interview) I did well and got to the answer with confidence and poise.

That said the second interview was way harder. An M&A case prompt that somehow mutated into a high-level profitability case. I was fine with the pivot until the first exhibit was given- at that point, I ran through my various hypotheses but struck out; went back to my structure- but struck out again.

I essentially had to ask for a hint by discussing the apparent contradiction in the direction of the case and how each hypothesis was "for later" and he said- "okay let me give you a hint- xxx" at which point I saw the light and solved the case in 8 minutes.

I have never gotten stuck in a case before this and to be honest, it's got me rattled when I think about it after the fact.

Anyways- any opinions? What are my chances given the above? How could I have improved upon the situation?

Answer 1

Hi Anonymous,

solving the case without hints is obviously better, but a hint is not necessarily a no-go (at the same time, you may solve the case without hints and still get rejected due to poor behavioral or communication performance).

If you get stuck I usually suggest to:

Ask for 30 seconds
Repeat the question
Repeat the information you found until that moment

If you are still stuck after that, then asking for help is the only thing you can do.

Best,

Francesco

Answer 2

Hi,

The best-case scenario is to solve the case without any major hints, but I have seen many candidates managed to get offers with a hint as well. Your success would be highly dependent on the performance of others as well.

Best of luck,

Deniz

Answer 3

Hi,
it not necessarily blocks you from getting the offer. The only other thing you could have done is to take 30 seconds and make a summary of the case: it can help to think about aspects stated before but important only in the last stage of the case resolution.

Best,
Antonello

Answer 4

Hi,

If you are saying you never got stuck with a case before - this probably means you naver had a decent case partner. Thus the overall prep level should be questioned.

Best