Career & Application at Simon-Kucher & Partners

Hello! I would follow these steps:

• Population calculation: if it´s not given, stimation based on your knowledge of other european cities.
• Different evacuation ways: cars, trains, buses, etc. How many people can each of those transportation means evacuate? (e.g., not everyone has a car, there are limited buses and trains, etc.)
• Bottlenecks: the total capacity of those transportation means is the "ideal" scenario in which there are no issues such as traffic jams, etc.

Always bear in mind that here there is not a right or wrong answer, and they are not looking for a candidate that only deviates X% from the solution they have calculated. What is being tested here is you ability to synthetise, be creative, estimate, etc.

Hope it helps!

Cheers,

Clara

Hey there,

I was until recently a senior consultant in SKP.

They usually can have 2 math tests, 1 as a first screening test and 1 during the final round aka recruiting day.

Both are fairly similar however the first one is longer and more towards math (e.g. ratios) while the second one more towards logic.

PM for details!

Hi,

ich hatte vor vielen Jahren mal ein Interview bei Simon-Kucher in Bonn, kann daher nur dazu Aussagen treffen:

• Wurde viel nach Personal fit gefragt?
  • Etwas weniger im Vergleich zu MBB+
• Waren die Cases intensiv mit Fokus auf Pricing/Umsatz?
  • Ja, sehr!
• Wer waren die Interviewer? Nur Senior Berater oder auch Partner?
  • Beides
• Wurde es an dem Interview-Tag entschieden oder gibt es auch eine zweite Runde?
  • Es gab nur eine Runde, aber die Entscheidung wurde trotzdem erst ein paar Tage später mitgeteilt
• War der Mathe-Test schwer?
  • Nein, nur Grundrechenarten (wichtig: Prozentrechnen, schneller Umgang mit Brüchen bis 1/20, Dreisatz, lineare Algebra, Zehnerpotenzen)

Hoffe, das hilft! :)

Best regards

Hi Harshika,

congratulations on your offer! If you want to prepare in advance before you start, I would recommend working on technical, communication and stress management skills.

• On the technical side, Excel will be the most important technical thing to master at the beginning, in particular for VLOOKUPs and Pivot tables; you could also review PowerPoint, which you will also use quite a lot.
  • At BCG we got learning courses we could use to improve on them, and I guess you will receive the same at SK, but so far that you have already mastered the skills before joining (you can find several courses online for both), even better.
  • Tip for Excel: learn how to use as much as possible the keyword and relegate the touchpad to the minimum – this will skyrocket your productivity in the long term. Some computer programs such as KeyRocket provide tips to improve on this.
• For what concerns communication, I would recommend the classic book on the topic: “How to Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie.
• For stress management, I would recommend two books:
  • “The Miracle Morning” by Hal Elrod – great tips to start in the right way your day
  • “The Magic of Thinking Big” by David Schwartz – a great sum up of some of the best tips be positive, productive and achieve more

Below you can also find a list of things that could be useful to practice during your first weeks:

1. Take notes when your manager tells you something – this will help you to remember details and will show you care about them to the team.
2. Always double check. The first impression is very important in consulting: if you show you are reliable from the beginning, you create a reputation of a reliable person. Double checks should be done on expectations for your job, your excel analysis, your slides – basically everything.
3. Define priorities before starting any set of tasks. The majority of the results usually come from a subset of activities – this is true also for your tasks in consulting. You have to identify which they are and prioritize them – the application of the so-called 80-20 rule or Pareto Principle.
4. Socialize with your colleagues and start to build a network. Consulting is a people business and you should build a good network both within and outside the company. A good start is key to develop good relationships long-term
5. Organize your private life activities. You want to organize your calendar to leave some space for personal activities (sport/ friends/ family). This is not easy but can be managed if you organize well, and long-term will be critical to keep a balance between work and private life. Also, it is better to align with your manager/teammates from the beginning on your core needs, so that there are no surprises later on.
6. Ask for feedback every two-three weeks – this will show you are proactive and willing to learn.
7. Ask for help when you don't know what to do – better to let know you are in trouble with meeting a deadline then missing the deadline.
8. Be social and respectful with the support staff – these people are great and influential as well in the company.

Hope this helps,

Francesco