Case preparation

Hello,

My first question would be - do you know what it is that slows you down during the case? What feedback have coaches given you so far? 

If it's a particular part of the case (e.g., math or creating the initial framework), I would target that part in your preparation and do some drills focusing on it. 

If it's more of a general issue - i.e., nothing sticks out as a struggle in and of itself, but the case is a bit slow all round, I would try to do some drills where you time yourself for each part and really work on speeding it up. For instance, listen to the case prompt, and then give yourself two minutes to come up with a framework. Work on thinking quickly, writing the minimum amount necessary, etc.

Something else to point out is that this is not an uncommon issue early on in the process. How many cases have you done so far? If you are in early stages of case prep, this is perfectly normal, and my advice would be to just keep practicing cases, and you'll get faster with time.

Hope that helps and let me know if you have any more questions!

Hi there,

Did these coaches help you get to the root cause of this speed?

Here are a few things to keep in mind:

1. Insight first (not talking forever)
2. Always keep the objective front and center
3. Anything that doesn't help answer our question, is a waste of time
4. Look for differences in data/numbers
5. Don't “guess” for data/info/numbers. Rather, use case leadership to figure out, at the highest level, what is needed
6. Consider recording yourself casing
7. Case others in cases you struggled in

This article might help as well: https://www.preplounge.com/en/articles/how-to-shift-your-mindset-to-ace-the-case

Hi there,

Q: Would appreciate any recommendations that helped you become faster in casing! 

The way to fix the issue depends on the area with the problem, thus, as a first step, I would recommend identifying the area where you are slow. There are probably specific parts where you lose more time, such as the math or graph sections.

Once you have identified that, you can try to understand why you are slow in that area and look for possible solutions. For example, if you are slow with math computation, you might want to do drills specifically for that.

If you cannot find a way to fix the problem, I would recommend posting a new question with the specific issue you have identified.

Good luck!

Francesco

Hi there,

thanks for sharing. This is a common concern among candidates and I can assure you that there is definitely hope - this can be fixed. 

Typically slow casing can be caused by various factors, such as…

• Untargeted structure 
• Slow verbal comms & language command
• Quant deficiencies
• Low energy level; 
• Lack of live end-2-end case experience (not offline practice); and most importantly
• Flaws in case management / candidate's case process

Now if content-wise you're typically doing fine and it's just about speed, this can definitely be fixed. Most of the above can be ironed out rather easily. 

In order to advise specifically and give you a concrete plan on how to address though, would need to see what your baseline is, but usually it will be one or a combination of the factors mentioned. Feel free to reach out via DM, if you'd like to have a quick chat about how to tackle this. Will be happy to help.

Hope this helps.

Regards, Andi
 

Hi there,

I would be happy to share my thoughts on your situation:

• First of all, being slow in case studies can be due to various reasons. It could be because you're taking too much time to structure your thoughts, or perhaps you're spending too long on the calculations. It's important to understand what exactly is slowing you down, hence, could you possibly provide more detail on that? What feedback have your previous coaches provided in this regard?
• Moreover, practice is key to improve speed. Although you have already done 50+ case studies, I would highly advise you to keep practicing, with a focus on time management. This does not mean rushing through the case studies, but rather making every minute count. Consider setting specific time goals for each part of the case study and try to stick to them.
• Lastly, learning to synthesize information quickly and efficiently can help you become faster. Techniques such as skimming and scanning can be very useful in this. I would advise you to explore and practice these speed reading techniques.

You can find more on this topic here: Speed reading techniques.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to best prepare for your upcoming interviews, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Hi there, 

Speed is not necessarily an issue. 

This is not a speed test, it's a depth and insightfulness test. 

Candidates who are slow still get an offer. Candidates who are wrong, don't. 

Why are you slow though? From the coaches you've worked on, what triggers have they pointed out that influence your process? What are techniques that you use to approach calculations questions or chart interpretation? 

From my experienece the biggest chances in speed come from knowing how to approach technically things in the right way (for instance, clearly separating the stages of a calculation question instead of trying to do everything at once). 

Best,
Cristian