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I had interviews with 3 (medium sized) consultancies and received 3 rejections for the same reason: The cases were fine, the rational content of the personal fit questions as well, but the interviewer could not "establish a connection" and feel the enthusiasm, one even classified me as "too rational".
Personally, I am aware that I am not the most extroverted person, but I would also not see my self as introverted. Especially in the interviews I had had the personal impression that it worked quite well. I am extremely motivated for consulting, have practiced numerous cases in the past 4 months and am also certain that I would like the job and be good in it. But somehow, this message did not come across in the interviews.
What can I do to improve this unconscious part? I am afraid that I will have trouble getting an offer, no matter how many more cases I practice, unless I can also improve in this regard.
I had interviews with 3 (medium sized) consultancies and received 3 rejections for the same reason: The cases were fine, the rational content of the personal fit questions as well, but the interviewer could not "establish a connection" and feel the enthusiasm, one even classified me as "too rational".
Personally, I am aware that I am not the most extroverted person, but I would also not see my self as introverted. Especially in the interviews I had had the personal impression that it worked quite well. I am extremely motivated for consulting, have practiced numerous cases in the past 4 months and am also certain that I would like the job and be good in it. But somehow, this message did not come across in the interviews.
What can I do to improve this unconscious part? I am afraid that I will have trouble getting an offer, no matter how many more cases I practice, unless I can also improve in this regard.
Please look at these two threads as I believe they are very relevant to your questions. Bottom line: you are right, it is critical that interviewers feels your joy and excitement during the interview.
Please look at these two threads as I believe they are very relevant to your questions. Bottom line: you are right, it is critical that interviewers feels your joy and excitement during the interview.
I believe establishing e connection has several components:
Your "look and feel"
Your energy level and being friendly, smiling and cheerful
Your ability to listen to the interviewer
Your ability to ask questions
Your interests besides career and consulting
1) Look and feel. Try to eliminate the personal root-causes: if there is something more than just case and fit. Maybe it's the way you are dressed, the way you behave, body movement, etc. Do you look mature enough? Do you behave professionally? It may sound obvious, but many candidates miss that. Make a video of your interview and show to your friends or even random people. Ask them if they would personally hire you.
2) Your energy level and being friendly, smiling and cheerful. In many cultures, it is not natural to always smile and you really have to develop that skill. Also, sometimes, when the case is hard, it is really easy to stop get deep into a thought process and get tired. When you get tired your pose and gestures are different and others can easily see that. The only recommendation here is to always control it.
3) Your ability to listen to the interviewer - don't ever interrupt an interview. Listen to him demonstrating your genuine interest
4) Your ability to ask questions. The main objective is to have a good conversation and highlight your intellectual capacity and curiosity.
It is ok to ask:
Questions that cause positive emotions and highlight consulting pros (e.g. Mck people)
Questions on the topics you are excited about (e.g. data science)
Non-business questions (e.g. team retreats)
It's not ok to ask:
Questions that can cause negative emotions (e.g. work hours)
Information you should learn before the interview (e.g. typical career path)
Questions that may show that you are unfamiliar with consulting work (Like are you specialized in strategy or operations?)
5) Your interests besides career and consulting. Talk about your interests. Tell the interviewer what motivates you besides career and money. Don't be too rational. Talk about your friends who work in consulting and their experience that motivates you. Talk about your professors / entrepreneurs / CEOs whom you admire and who were consultants before. Talk about your personal experience of working with consultants. Or about your experience in participating in consulting events. It's always good to have some personal stories that can demonstrate your passion for particular industry or function.
Best,
Vlad
Hi,
I believe establishing e connection has several components:
Your "look and feel"
Your energy level and being friendly, smiling and cheerful
Your ability to listen to the interviewer
Your ability to ask questions
Your interests besides career and consulting
1) Look and feel. Try to eliminate the personal root-causes: if there is something more than just case and fit. Maybe it's the way you are dressed, the way you behave, body movement, etc. Do you look mature enough? Do you behave professionally? It may sound obvious, but many candidates miss that. Make a video of your interview and show to your friends or even random people. Ask them if they would personally hire you.
2) Your energy level and being friendly, smiling and cheerful. In many cultures, it is not natural to always smile and you really have to develop that skill. Also, sometimes, when the case is hard, it is really easy to stop get deep into a thought process and get tired. When you get tired your pose and gestures are different and others can easily see that. The only recommendation here is to always control it.
3) Your ability to listen to the interviewer - don't ever interrupt an interview. Listen to him demonstrating your genuine interest
4) Your ability to ask questions. The main objective is to have a good conversation and highlight your intellectual capacity and curiosity.
It is ok to ask:
Questions that cause positive emotions and highlight consulting pros (e.g. Mck people)
Questions on the topics you are excited about (e.g. data science)
Non-business questions (e.g. team retreats)
It's not ok to ask:
Questions that can cause negative emotions (e.g. work hours)
Information you should learn before the interview (e.g. typical career path)
Questions that may show that you are unfamiliar with consulting work (Like are you specialized in strategy or operations?)
5) Your interests besides career and consulting. Talk about your interests. Tell the interviewer what motivates you besides career and money. Don't be too rational. Talk about your friends who work in consulting and their experience that motivates you. Talk about your professors / entrepreneurs / CEOs whom you admire and who were consultants before. Talk about your personal experience of working with consultants. Or about your experience in participating in consulting events. It's always good to have some personal stories that can demonstrate your passion for particular industry or function.
As a former part of a recruiting team, I can only add that it always shows if the candidate is not completely at ease during the interview. It mainly has to do with the approach that the interviewee has.
What the recruiters expect from you is not only the case solving skills, but also a good fit to the team, a good cultural fit.
The unconcious practice could consist in thinking about the interviewers as "already colleagues" rather than somebody who is going to judge and evaluate me.
Cheers,
GB
Hi there,
sorry to hear about the rejections.
As a former part of a recruiting team, I can only add that it always shows if the candidate is not completely at ease during the interview. It mainly has to do with the approach that the interviewee has.
What the recruiters expect from you is not only the case solving skills, but also a good fit to the team, a good cultural fit.
The unconcious practice could consist in thinking about the interviewers as "already colleagues" rather than somebody who is going to judge and evaluate me.
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!
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.
McKinsey Questions
Tell me of a situation where you had an opinion and no one seemed to agree with you.
What was your goal when you decided to join university / work / clubs / a sports team?
Did you have a goal that you were not able to reach? What did you do?
What do you want to be remembered for and how are you achieving it?
What is your typical way of dealing with conflict?
Tell me of a situation where you had an opinion and no one seemed to agree with you.
What was your goal when you decided to join university / work / clubs / a sports team?
Did you have a goal that you were not able to reach? What did you do?
What do you want to be remembered for and how are you ... Open whole case
BCG Questions
What arouses your interest when you are working / studying / doing another activity (from the CV)?
Tell me of a time where you had no idea what you were doing.
When did you use an uncommon approach to do something?
Have you ever had responsibility for other people?
Tell me of a situation where you were not the official leader.
What arouses your interest when you are working / studying / doing another activity (from the CV)?
Tell me of a time where you had no idea what you were doing.
When did you use an uncommon approach to do something?
Have you ever had responsibility for other people?
Tell me of a situation where ... Open whole case
Bain Questions
Tell me about a difficult situation you had to cope with.
Tell me of a task which you didn’t like doing and explain why you performed it nevertheless.
Why do you do things?
What do you like doing most / What is your favorite hobby?
Walk me through a situation where you showed leadership skills.
Tell me about a difficult situation you had to cope with.
Tell me of a task which you didn’t like doing and explain why you performed it nevertheless.
Why do you do things?
What do you like doing most / What is your favorite hobby?
Walk me through a situation where you showed leadership skills ... Open whole case
MBB Final Round Case - Smart EducationOur client is SmartBridge, a nonprofit educational institution offering face-to-face tutoring services. The client operates in the US.
The mission of SmartBridge is to help as many students as possible to complete studies and prevent that they drop from the school system, in particular in disadvantaged areas.
The client is considering starting operations for its services in the Chicago area. They hired us to understand if that makes sense. Due to the nonprofit regulation, SmartBridge should operate on its own in the market, without any partnership.
How would you help our client?
Our client is SmartBridge, a nonprofit educational institution offering face-to-face tutoring services. The client operates in the US.
The mission of SmartBridge is to help as many students as possible to complete studies and prevent that they drop from the school system, in particular in disadvant ... Open whole case
The Top 5 Questions
Questions
Tell me something about your background.
Why should we hire you?
Describe a difficult situation and how you handled it?
What did your boss or colleagues criticize about you?
Do you rather work in a team or independently?
Questions
Tell me something about your background.
Why should we hire you?
Describe a difficult situation and how you handled it?
What did your boss or colleagues criticize about you?
Do you rather work in a team or independently?
Open whole case
BCG final round refinement package 
The Secret McKinsey PEI Cheat Sheet by Robert 
Integrated FIT Guide for MBB by Clara 
