Do Mckinsey final round interviews have FIT components (as well as case + PEI)?

McKinsey Final Round
New answer on Oct 27, 2020
7 Answers
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Anonymous A asked on Dec 17, 2018

I have a final round interview with Mckinsey London this week and I want to know if there tends to be an additional FIT component this round? I have read conflicting things online and would appreciate some clarity on the matter.

Thank you in advance.

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Vlad
Expert
replied on Dec 17, 2018
McKinsey / Accenture Alum / Got all BIG3 offers / Harvard Business School

Hi,

What's the difference between the FIT and PEI?

Partners on the final round will ask the general PEI questions as well as whatever they like. Remember - they are partners and thus they are super experienced in asking the right and challenging questions. However, having multiple stories for each PEI questions will help you to adapt them quickly to any situation.

Best

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S
Certified
replied on Dec 17, 2018

Hello,

I've recently had my final interviews with McKinsey. My hypothesis is that you should definitely prepare for fit questions while it also depends on your background and feedback from early rounds.

In my case, both of my final-round interviewers asked "Why consulting" and then straight passed to the case with no PEI in between. However, it is important to note I have an unconventional background and they truly want to understand your motivation by asking several follow-up questions.

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Gaurav
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Oct 27, 2020
Ex-Mckinsey|Certified Career Coach |Placed 500+ candidates at MBB & other consultancies

As an ex-Mckinsey consultant and part of recruiting team, here is my perspective:

How do these interviews with the partners differ from the first round interviews?

Every partner discussion is different and the direction the conversation takes depends on role that you are interviewing for, feedback that the partner has got from earlier rounds and of course the Partner’s personality.

However, generally it is advisable to keep the following things in mind.

1) Are the cases delivered with the same style of precision and structure as the first round?

- A lot of times, the Partner round case discussions are less structured. Partners tend to give real life case from their experience or sometimes they can also pick a situation from the candidate’s CV, make a few changes and turn it into a case.

2) Is the Fit format consistent with the PEI, or do the partners take these conversations in different directions?

- Generally, Partners will hit fewer topics but will go much deeper. So they will ask you about something and then you should expect a lot of follow on questions. They really want to understand the full story

3) Generally, what portion of the hour-long session is dedicated to the case study?

- approx. 30-40 minutes

3) What personality traits are most important to demonstrate with the partners?

See the answer below.

Keep the following things in mind while preparing for the Partner interview:

Better synthesis – Your analytical mindset has already been tested in earlier rounds. Partners would like to test your client readiness. Partners pay more attention to how you draw your conclusions, communicate your conclusions, how you synthesis etc.

Comfort with less structured case discussion – Partners love to test your creativity, out of the box thinking. Multiple times in the discussion they can ask you your opinion on the data point/clarification that you had asked, to check your business acumen e.g. you asked, what is the growth rate of our client; partner responds what number would you want to assume? or open ended questions e.g. tell me more, is there anything else?

Consistent stories and deep dives – Partners would want to know your story. They want to see whether your decision to join McKinsey is consistent with your career story. Whether the achievements you have mentioned on the CV are consistent with your project stories. Partners will drill down into your experiences and achievements to the extreme. They want to understand how you react to challenges and how you think and communicate about your past work.

Feel free to get in touch with me in case of further clarification/advise on this topic.

All the best!

GB

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Henning
Expert
replied on Oct 27, 2020
Bain | passed >15 MBB interviews as a candidate

Yes they will. However, sometimes a bit less strict in following the cookie-cutter approach. Some partners deviate from the standard process (but still ask very pointed questions). Your approach on how to answer them should be the same as in the first round interviews.

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Anonymous replied on Jul 14, 2020

Dear A,

Specifically, the main difference you will find in a final round with partners is that at that stage they spend more time on fit questions and your alignment with the company.

Best,

André

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Anonymous replied on Jul 14, 2020

Dear A,

the structure of the final is the same (fit + case+ your questions); however there is more emphasis on communication and fit to the company.

Specifically, the main difference you will 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 - I am sending your attached FAQ for different companies

  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:

  • Review in detail your personal fit stories – they will matter more than in the first two rounds. In some finals I had almost exclusively behavioral questions

  • Work on your communication (reaction under pressure is extremely important, how to gain time when you do not have a structure ready, connect with the interviewer, etc). This is something you can do with peers or with me.

  • Prepare cases as you did for the first rounds. More market sizing practice may be useful to think out of the box if you get unusual questions.

In case you need help with unusual cases please feel free to PM me, I do a specific session on them (eg How would you estimate the effect of the Coronavirus on the economy in the Middle East)?

Best,

André

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Clara
Expert
Content Creator
replied on May 01, 2020
McKinsey | Awarded professor at Master in Management @ IE | MBA at MIT |+180 students coached | Integrated FIT Guide aut

Hello!

On top of the insights already shared in the post, next week will be pusblished in PrepLounge´s Shop material related.

In concrete, the "Integrated FIT guide for MBB". It provides an end-to-end preparation for all three MBB interviews, tackling each firms particularities and combining key concepts review and a hands-on methodology. Following the book, the candidate will prepare his/her stories by practicing with over 50 real questions and leveraging special frameworks and worksheets that guide step-by-step, developed by the author and her experience as a Master in Management professor and coach. Finally, as further guidance, the guide encompasses over 20 examples from real candidates.

Hope you find it useful!

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Anonymous B replied on Dec 18, 2018

Had 3 McKinsey final interivews. FIT was similiar to R1 - in-depth question on leaderhsip, enterpreneurial drive and impact. If you get a partner or Sr partner, they might just ask tell me "some story" and have no follow-ups, more junior partners might be more strict about following a standard mckinsey fit interiew structure (tell me about a time when you...). Bottom line - prepare like it's R1 fit question.

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Vlad gave the best answer

Vlad

McKinsey / Accenture Alum / Got all BIG3 offers / Harvard Business School
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