Bain 2nd Round Interview Tips

Hi there,

In general, the structure of the rounds is the same (fit + case+ your questions); however in finals there is usually more emphasis on communication and fit.

Specifically, the main differences you may find in a final round with partners is that at that stage they:

1. Spend more time on fit questions and your alignment with the company
2. Check more closely your communication (eg how you react to challenging questions)
3. May not have a “proper” structured case to present – during one of my MBB finals I had one interview which was made by two market sizing questions and a brainteaser, without any business case. That's because during the final they know you can structure and crack a case (you passed 1 or 2 rounds already) and are more interested in your logic, personality and fit with the company

So in order to prepare I would concentrate on the following:

• Review in detail your fit stories – they will matter more than in the first round. In some finals I had almost exclusively behavioral questions
• Work on your communication (reaction under pressure, how to gain time when you do not have a structure ready, connect with the interviewer, etc). This is something you can do almost exclusively in interviews with peers.
• Prepare cases as you did for the first round. If you got feedback on a specific area, focus more on that part.

If you need help please feel free to PM me, I helped several candidates to get offers from Bain and have 50+ real case questions they asked specifically in final rounds in different offices.

Best,

Francesco

Francesco's answer covers most of the aspects there are to the answer. I would like to show you another perspective that can hopefully calm your nerves further as well.

There is no ‘fundamental’ difference in the rounds. The minor differences that do come - come because the interviewers are more senior. The more senior an interviewer - the more interviews they have done. They have a better experience in weeding out the good and not-good candidates. As some would say - they can ‘smell’ out the bad lemons.

• Case can be less conventional: Mostly the partner made it themselves, and probably rooted in their past project. Hence they will be able to tweak it in real-time towards any direction. It will not be a simple cut-and-dry approach - they will try to judge you on specific capabilities through the case
• The personas can be unconventional: Many of the stress interviews are by partners - they are able to do this because they are less focussed on giving the case (which they have done many times) - but more focussed on judging your personality.
• More grilling on personals: Since they have seen their fair share of bad lemons - they usually like to poke a bit more than round 1s on personals to try to and determine your personality through fit questions.

Hi there,

First of all, congrats on making it to the 2nd round!

A few key points:

1. The 2 rounds are very similar, so please don't stress too much about differences
2. Work extensively to “fix” any weaknesses that you had in the 1st round
3. Be ready for a bit more of an “nonlinear” or unconventional approach. It may not happen, but it's more likely for a Partner to go off the beaten path a bit more
4. Be prepared for more fit/behavioral and brainstorming questions

Good luck!

Hey there,

Congrats on the final round! You have what it takes since the final round won't differ too much from the first round

1. same style of cases
2. same evaluation metrics
3. same skills needed to pass

• Focus working on your perceived and communicated weaknesses from round 1.
• Expect maybe less linear and more freestyle type of interview by the partners -→ don't be surprised if they deviate from what you expected

Fingers crossed!

Cheers,

Florian

Hi, I confirm the structure of the interviews will be the classical one: fit (10-30 min) + case (15-30 min) + final questions to them. In terms of the assessment grids, a major emphasis will be dedicated to communication, problem structuring, and fit with Bain. Feel free to text me to know how I supported tens of candidates this year in passing it

Best,
Antonello