In public sector cases, what do we mean by the goal being demand or supply driven? Could you give an example?

BCG McKinsey and Bain McKinsey & Company non-profit Public Sector
New answer on Apr 14, 2021
5 Answers
1.6 k Views
Anonymous A asked on Apr 13, 2021

Hi! I've been reading through threads on public/non-profit sector cases, and I noticed a couple of experts talking about evaluating whether the goal/solution is demand/supply driven. What do you mean by that? could you give some examples? Appreciated!

Overview of answers

Upvotes
  • Upvotes
  • Date ascending
  • Date descending
Best answer
Ian
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Apr 13, 2021
#1 BCG coach | MBB | Tier 2 | Digital, Tech, Platinion | 100% personal success rate (8/8) | 95% candidate success rate

Hi there,

i can't really speak to what they mean by this (as I didn't write that), but that's quite a confusing way to break it down. Fundamentally, there are a myriad goals that public sector cases could have, and you have to be able to think through how to resolve them.

They could be improving educational attainment, resolving key issues, ensuring smooth rollouts of initiatives, etc. etc.

I think supply vs demand is confusing and oversimplistic...

My approach

Public sector cases are tricky because they feasibly be any case type (Product Launch - new service for citizens; M&A - merging two departments; even Profitability - cost cutting mandate). For any public sector case, I recommend:

  1. First identifying the type of case it is.
  2. Second, leverage your knowledge of the public sector as constraints/considerations.

Considerations/Constraints

Regards #2, you know that public perception is particularly important to consider in any public sector move. Additionally, you can count on bureacracy/slowness in implementation. You should identify the goal/mission of the organisation as well and keep this top of mind (if it loses money, but achieves it's goal of helping the poor, no problem). Howvever, just because the government sector doesn't have profit as a target, doesn't mean you should ignore the profit tree altogether - governments are still obliged to take into costs (and sometimes revneues) in decisions (example: setting up a public transport initiative). Don't get tricked into thinking you can't consider the economics of the case!

Other items to consider include, but are not limited to:

  • Politlcal landscape (i.e. upcoming elections, special interest groups)
  • Sustainability
  • Private-public partnerships
  • International vs governmental vs state vs local partnerships/alignment
  • Income = taxes/budgetary landscape
  • Digitialization of government
Was this answer helpful?
Anonymous A on Apr 16, 2021

Hi Ian, I already read your recommendations for public sector cases indeed and found it helpful. I was refering to the comment from Anonymous here Sure. The first reply by Anonymous mentions: Options Analysis -' is it demand driven?' (https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/any-framework-for-government-cases-2769)

Florian
Expert
updated an answer on Apr 13, 2021
Ex-McKinsey | 5+ years consulting experience | Active interviewer & coach | Healthcare industry | Inhouse Consulting

Could you please provide a bit more context or an example? I think otherwise there might be misinterpretation what your question is actually about. Thank you!

(edited)

Was this answer helpful?
Anonymous A on Apr 16, 2021

Sure. The first reply by Anonymous mentions: Options Analysis -' is it demand driven?'

Anonymous A on Apr 16, 2021

https://www.preplounge.com/en/consulting-forum/any-framework-for-government-cases-2769

Francesco
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Apr 14, 2021
#1 Coach for Sessions (4.500+) | 1.500+ 5-Star Reviews | Proven Success (➡ interviewoffers.com) | Ex BCG | 10Y+ Coaching

Hi there,

I agree with Florian and Ian that this is very difficult to assess without knowing the exact goal and comment. I would recommend adding it so that we can comment on that.

Best,

Francesco

Was this answer helpful?
Antonello
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Apr 14, 2021
McKinsey | NASA | top 10 FT MBA professor for consulting interviews | 6+ years of coaching

Hi, a link to the previous case would be essential to understand the context. There are no general rules, but the client goal is crucial in understanding how to better structure it

Best,
Antonello

Was this answer helpful?
Mickle replied on Apr 14, 2021

Awesome answers. Thanks!

Was this answer helpful?
0
Ian gave the best answer

Ian

Content Creator
#1 BCG coach | MBB | Tier 2 | Digital, Tech, Platinion | 100% personal success rate (8/8) | 95% candidate success rate
1,094
Meetings
77,146
Q&A Upvotes
232
Awards
5.0
151 Reviews
How likely are you to recommend us to a friend or fellow student?
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
0 = Not likely
10 = Very likely