Not given time to come up with a structure

Hi Anonymous,

the basic rule is: you follow the guidance of the interviewer! So if he immediately asks you a brainstorming question (and these questions typically indeed aim at you coming up with a structure that covers the deep dive areas which the interviewer wants to discuss later on), then you do the following:

• Say something like: "Interesting question. Let me quickly check whether I have completely grasped all information that you just conveyed." --> then check wheter all is clear. If not: "Before adressing your question I need to clarify two points: ..."
• After clarifying you state: "Okay now all is clear. I'd like to take an instant to think about all the relevant aspects to consider in order to answer your question" --> take time, outline your approach, and then walk the interviewer through your thinking.

If the interviewer then wants to directly deep dive into one ore several areas - just follow his guidance. You have already defined the structure which will guide the rest of the case.

Typically, such cases are much easier than "classical" candidate-led cases if you have properly learned how to approach and navigate through business problems. Essentially, the "issue prioritization" aspect is outsourced to the interviewer, which reduces the complexity of your task.

However, one caveat to be aware of: when learning cases, candidates have to lead. It is practically impossible to build robust case skills by focusing the practice on the candidate-led style. Once your case muscle is properly built, then interviewer-led cases are not a problem either.

Cheers, Sidi

(editiert)

Dear A,

in general a good structure can be evaluated by a certain depth and breadth. The “depth” should be at least 3-4 levels while the “breadth” should cover the entire solution space. You can cross-check this with the MECE principles (For details see respective article on Preplounge), but the CE (collectively exhaustive) part is basically defining your breadth.

Finally, make sure to check for inter-linkages in your structure and point them out.

Simon

Hi,

Obviously, the brainstorming question requires the structure as well. The key thing here is that you hesitate to ask for time and hesitate to ask the clarifying questions. You should solve it for yourself.

Best

Dear A,

From the one side, you should follow the instructions of the interviewer, but you have to follow them in a smart way - if you need a time for brainstorming or claryfying questions - you have to ask for this.

Best,
André