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Anonymous A
on Aug 16, 2023
Global
I want to receive updates regarding this question via email.

How to conduct "daily reading" to accumulate business knowledge?

Hi experts, seeking your view on how to spend time effectively doing the daily reading, with the objective of accumulating business knowledge and business sense. I have a lot of materials on hand, but the problem is that I haven't come up with a structured way to study these materials effectively. I'll break down this question into: 

1) What is the suggested material and types of articles I should read?

Resource I have on hand is: Economist, Bloomberg, Consulting project slides, Consulting white paper / publications

2) How to read effectively to reach my target (develop business sense)?

Should I just glance through the articles to accumulate general knowledge, or should I select topics to deep dive (taking notes and thinking the “so what” when reading)? Any tips on this please.

3) What is the time I should dedicate? I'm treating this process as a daily routine.

- Is 30 min per day enough?

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Diana
Coach
on Dec 24, 2023
Ex McKinsey Consultant| Coached/interviewed 20+ students| France & USA

In consulting interviews, while direct testing of your knowledge is rare, a broad understanding of industry trends and business concepts is essential. Overall, not more than 10-15% of your total interview preparation time should be spent on this.

To deepen your industry knowledge, I'd recommend to spend: 

-80% of your prep time on knowledge your get from case studies, 

- The remaining 20% can be dedicated to staying updated with journals/newspapers you mentioned. 

1. Suggested Materials & Types of Articles to Read

Primary Focus - Case Studies (80% of Industry Knowledge): Immerse yourself in case studies from various industries. This will be your primary source of industry-specific knowledge. Case studies provide insights into industry challenges, strategic frameworks, and problem-solving approaches used in consulting.

Supplementary Reading (20% of Industry Knowledge): Complement your case study insights with articles from The Economist, Bloomberg, and similar publications. These sources will keep you informed about the latest industry trends and news, ensuring you're well-prepared for discussions with industry experts.

2. Reading Effectively to Develop Business Sense

Organized Approach: Create a document or a digital notebook for each industry (e.g., Health, Automotive, Energies, Public/NGOs). Populate these with insights from case studies as well as relevant articles from your reading. This method not only helps in building focused knowledge in each sector but also in efficiently retrieving information when needed.

Analytical Reading: For each piece of information, whether from case studies or articles, analyze its implications, challenges, and potential solutions. This is where the "so what" analysis becomes crucial - understanding why a piece of information matters and how it could be applied in a business context.

3. Time Dedication

Daily Reading (10-15% of Overall Preparation Time): Dedicate a portion of your daily study time to reading articles and revisiting case studies. While 30 minutes a day is a good starting point, be flexible to extend this if the topic requires deeper exploration.

Regular Synthesis Sessions: Set aside time weekly/monthly to synthesize information from different sources. This helps in building interconnected knowledge and understanding broader industry trends.

Additional Recommendations

Diversify Learning Formats: Include formats like podcasts, webinars, and video lectures, which can offer varied perspectives and insights.

Engage in Discussions: Discuss what you've learned with peers or mentors. This can reveal new viewpoints and deepen your understanding.

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Benjamin
Coach
edited on Aug 16, 2023
Ex-BCG Principal | 8+ years consulting experience in SEA | BCG top interviewer & top performer

Hi,

This is a common question, and one I faced myself when I was preparing for consulting interviews. I studied History in college, and had zero exposure to business. 

A couple of key pointers I can share (assuming you are applying for entry level):

  • It's important to realize that consulting firms are not testing you in terms of technical business knowledge, nor industry knowledge, at the entry level
  • What you are expected to demonstrate is critical thinking and strong logic combined with ‘business sense’
  • But business sense, at the entry level, is more of ‘common sense’ than technical knowledge. This means the ability for you to recognize logic/patterns that happen in everyday life that you highly likely have either observed or experienced
  • The 2 most helpful things for me was to:
    1. Critically read and take apart well written articles, if you have been trained in a rigorous research based college degree this would be 2nd nature to you 
    2. Build up my own ‘library’ of interesting business nuggets that I could use as ‘analogies’ for reasoning or solutioning during the case. 
      • This will never be exhaustive however, and I saw this as a ‘good to have but not critical’
  • End of the day, its far more important to build up your core problem solving skills

All the best!

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Anonymous A
on Aug 16, 2023
Thanks, Benjamin, I agree that consulting firms are looking for "skills", which many experts said. However, I feel that in later rounds, when being asked free-flow business questions, it's important to bring out business insight and understanding of the industry. (In my experience, partner might directly ask me industry-specific questions without giving context. Could you elaborate on this point based on your interview experience? Thanks!
Sidi
Coach
on Aug 16, 2023
McKinsey Senior EM & BCG Consultant | Interviewer at McK & BCG for 7 years | Coached 400+ candidates secure MBB offers
No! If you are interviewing for a non-expert role in MBB, Partners are NOT asking for your factual knowledge! What they are testing is whether you have a sound PROCESS to address questions which you have zero clue about. Do you understand what are the critical definitions and information points you need to align on before starting a discussion? Or are you behaving like an immature student who thinks he must just blurt out a "correct" answer, like in school? If it is the latter, you would be a risk on the team who just runs ahead with non-aligned ideas in his/her head - an absolute no-go for MBBs. I fully second and endorse what Benjamin has explained above! :)
Anonymous A
on Aug 16, 2023
Thanks a lot, Sidi, for the explanation! I've been mixing up corporate strategy and consulting, as I'm interviewing for both roles. Totally understand the expectation for "strategy consulting" now. Just to clarify, in the case of "corporate strategy" roles, do the roles typically test both "industry knowledge" & "strategy skill set", and "industry knowledge" becomes critical?
Cristian
Coach
on Aug 18, 2023
#1 rated McKinsey Coach

Hi there!

It's great that you're interested in building your knowledge for the interviews. 

But realistically speaking, consulting interviews test for skills, not knowledge. 

So unless you are applying for an expert role, I wouldn't spend too much time polishing my knowledge. I'd focus instead of skills such as structuring, approach to maths questions, brainstorming, top down communication, etc.

In terms of building on your knowledge, I'd recommend you just do cases and look up new terms and new industries as they come up. This way you'll build your knowledge organically based on the sort of topics that actually show up in cases. 

You can also leverage ChatGPT for this, prompting it to give you the top X trends in industry Y, or to give you a sort of digest of that industry.

Best of luck!
Cristian

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Deleted user
on Aug 29, 2023

Hello,

Personally, I’m a big fan of business newsletters that curate the news for you. Some examples: Axios Markets, Axios Macro, Accelerated, Market Snacks, Morning Brew, GRIT capital, Money Stuff. WSJ, Bloomberg, FT, and Axios also have a host of other newsletters you can subscribe to based on your interests.

Alternatively, you could also read the front page of Bloomberg / Economist / FT / WSJ each day, and see what catches your eye.

Regarding reading effectively, my best advice is just to be engaged when you read. Don’t just skim an article to check it off your list – make sure you’re understanding what’s going on, look up things if something is unclear, and so on. Some people like to take notes, but I don’t think this is strictly required for good reading. 

Regarding time, how much time do you have? There’s always going to be more content out there than you have time to read, so I wouldn’t worry too much about this. 30 min / day is a good baseline, though!

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Frederic
Coach
on Oct 01, 2023
ex A. Partner McKinsey |Senior Interviewer| Real Feedback & Free Homework between sessions|Harvard Coach|10+ Experience

Certainly, effective daily reading to build business knowledge and business sense is a valuable habit. Here's a structured approach:

1) Selecting Material:
  - Prioritize articles that align with your areas of interest or expertise.
  - Diversify your sources to get a well-rounded perspective.
  - Focus on quality over quantity – it's better to read one in-depth article than skim through several.

2) Effective Reading Techniques:
  - Start by skimming the article to get an overview.
  - Identify key points, main arguments, and the 'so what' factor.
  - Take notes on critical insights or interesting facts.
  - After reading, reflect on how this information fits into the broader business context.

3) Time Dedication:
  - 30 minutes a day is a reasonable starting point.
  - Adjust based on your schedule and how much depth you want.
  - Consistency is key, so stick to your daily routine.

Remember that building business knowledge takes time. It's not just about the quantity of information but also your ability to connect the dots and apply insights to real-world situations. Over time, your business sense will naturally develop.

Warm regards,
Frederic

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Ian
Coach
on Sep 30, 2023
Top US BCG / MBB Coach - 5,000 sessions |Tech, Platinion, Big 4 | 9/9 personal interviews passed | 95% candidate success

Hi there,

I run through all of this in my coaching/course!

But, in general, I recommend the FT, the Economist, a number of podcasts, McK+BCG insights, and Robinhoodsnacks.

^what I asign/advise chancges on the individual and is based on what they need to learn + how they learn best

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