Bain's hypothetical questions

Hi Kasturi,

In addition to Ian's helpful examples and explanation, I would like to point out a general strategy to answer these types of questions.

Consultancies want candidates that pragmatically find solutions while still being able to keep al stakeholders happy. In 99% of the hypothetical questions you encounter as candidate, you will have multiple stakeholders. Your response should demonstrate that you think about all stakeholders at the same time and deal with the situation effectively. E.g.:

Hypothetical situation: Team member underperforms on a project.

Possible line of responding to that: You help him/her out to meet the immediate deliverable, but also analyse with him/her what the problems are and share best practices and how to improve. Also understand if colleague is doing well or struggling in general and point out helpful resources.

What you showed: Prioritizing goals (making the client happy and ensuring project success first) while not forgetting about your responsibility for your colleague.

Answer directly and clearly after giving it a few seconds of thought. Be concise but still lay out multiple stakeholders to be adressed or multiple steps of your actions.

I have seen hypothetical questions being used extensively in other firms as well, so be prepared for that! Especially when interviewers want to deep dive on a certain aspect in the personal fit part and test if you have derived the right learnings regarding e.g. teamwork, hypothetical questions are a go-to.

Hope that helps!

Best,

Gero

Here are two that were recently asked to my candidates:

1) If your team member is stressed about a very simple thing, how would you handle it? They’ve come to you for help. And how would you measure success?

2) · An intern is assigned to help you on a task in which you’re the subject matter expert. How do you handle this?

Ultimately, you need to listen to the question, ask follow-up questions if needed, understand the real situation, and have a structured, logical response to answering.

Remember, it's not about memorizing these 2 questions + “answers”, but rather learning how to respond, on the spot, in a structured, smart manner. 

Make sure to practice getting these on the spot and answering on the spot, and definitely consider coaching to help you learn how to answer these properly!

Hi Kasturi,

Ian is correct. 

You need to learn an approach to answering questions that is replicable and robust, no matter the question. You will never be able to memorize answers for all potential questions as interviewers switch them up all the time.

Once you learn an approach to these answers and practice answering on the spot, you will be in much better shape.

For instance, another question would be: “You see a colleague who is talking publicly about the project they are working on. How do you react?”

Take this question as an example and create an approach that works for you based on certain criteria:

1. Structure (number and signpost your actions)

2. Providing several options of actions you could do, not just one (shows you are thinking ahead and not in a tunnel). You want to discuss there pros and cons

3. Highlight which option you think is the best one

Repeat this process with a variety of questions and you will see how it will become more natural to answer them on the spot.

Cheers,

Florian

Hi Kasturi!

I see you already received a few example questions that could pop up during the interview. 

What is important is that you develop a set of 4-8 stories that you could deploy across different dimensions and types of questions. 

Actually, using the McKinsey dimensions of the PEI is a good starting point when preparing also for the assessment with other MBBs. 

Then you need to practice being able to adjust these stories to be tailored to the question. And being able to do so live. 

Best,
Cristian

There is a large number of possible questions - but the tested dimensions tend to be quite similar (conflict, leadership, problem solving, ownership, entrepreneurship, communication, …).

You should be aware of Bain's cultural traits. For example: “a Bainie never lets another Bainie fail”, “being True North”, etc. Not showing adherence to this values / cultural traits will prevent you from getting an offer.

A few things to remember: 

• Leadership is not about assigning tasks or controlling schedule, it is about making others improve their performance in order for the team to reach a certain goal. 
• Managing conflict it is NEVER about being right or having great arguments/evidence. Is about listening to other people, understanding their motivations, connecting to them and aligning on common goals.