Help with time management during case interview

Hi,

Question 1:

For initial structure - draw the full structure:

• For some cases like profitability, I might have a structure with 3 levels (especially if I have multiple revenue streams) structured as an issue tree
• For other cases like Market related cases (market entry, new product, PE deal) I will have just 2 levels (buckets + bullet points under the buckets)
• For some cases like cost cutting or logistics I may have just 1 level (cost cutting framework (https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/operations-cases-mck-1105#a2134) or Value chain)

Same with the number of buckets. If it is an issue tree - you may have 2-4 buckets in the first level, with market-related cases it will be 3-4 buckets, value chain 3-6 buckets, etc

For structuring during the case - depending on how confident you are with your structure either take 30 sec to make a new structure or draw it while presenting it

Question 2:

Always take:

• 1-2 min for initial structure. But the faster the better. 1.5 looks fine
• Up to 1 minute for the conclusion. Again, the faster the better. But always take the time! Your conclusion should be very well structured and your arguments should include supporting numbers and you need time to collect them
• 30 sec - 1 min for questions on creativity. It's really hard to be creative "On-the-go"

It's a bit more tricky with taking time during the case:

• It's not OK to take 30 seconds and then come up with just 1 or 2 ideas. And then if the ideas are not correct to keep the science again. This is called "Guessing"
• It's OK to take 30 seconds, draw a new structure (or continuation of your previous structure) and come up with a structured way to approach the problem further.

Best,

Vlad