Hi,
I am currently preparing for a Bain interview. Bain has a heavy emphasis on graph interpretation, so I've been doing lots of exercises on graph/table/or any non-graph and non-table kind of graphs. Would you shed some light on interpreting Bain visuals and what Bain consultants are looking during case interviews?
How do you concise discuss visuals during a case with your interviewer? Obviously, you should start with a main insight. At first, I had a difficult time identifying the main insights. I practiced this area for several weeks, and now I am getting more confident with the interpretation of graphs. I then devised the following approaches. I follow this approach whenever I encouter any type of visual to analyze during a case. I'd like to see if there are any other recommended approaches.
For those who are familiar with Bain interviews, would you provide some insights regarding this matter?
1. I first ask for few seconds to examine and quickly look at the title, x-axis, y-axis and any abbreviations or terms that I should clarify.
2. I look for any red flag to the client's profitability or business situation.
3. Then, I look for what we can calculate based on the visual and how this calculation can help us move forward to solve the client's issue.
4. If I find neither any red flag nor any cacluation, I look to pinpoint further areas of data to request and state the reason why.
5. I also keep in mind that often, visuals are shared to help me eliminate areas to look. For example, if the client's profitability has been down, and the visual shows that the revenue is going up steadily, I no longer need to discuss the revenue during the case. It indicates that the problem is mainly with the cost. It's time to look a a more deep-dive data on cost segments.
What other approach do you suggest?
What particular exercises do I need to do or what am I supposed to be familiar for Bain interviews? Thanks!