Oliver wyman

Hi Sasha,

Q: I am currently in the interviewing process with Oliver Wyman and was wondering if you have any advice, perhaps on the type of cases I should focus on.

I would recommend to share the country where you are interviewing for more tailored tips.

In terms of the questions asked, I have a DB with 90+ real OW cases, please feel free to PM me for more info.

Best,

Francesco

Hi Sasha, 

OW has similar cases to 80% of the firms. 

They tend to be mostly candidate-led and they come from any industry (unless you are specifically told differently because you are applying for an expert or industry-related role). 

My advice would be to just ask the interviewer for more details on the format of the interview. They're always willing to help and give you some tips. The content of the interview should be a surprise (obviously) but not the format. So gather as much info as you can beforehand. 

Aside from this, consider connecting with people who recently joined the firm in a role similar to yours. Have a chat with them and ask them for advice on the prep process - what worked, what didn't, what they would focus on now that they've been through the process.

Last but not least, apply widely to diversify your chances of getting at least one offer. Here's a guide on how to develop such an application strategy:

• Maximising your chances of getting a consulting job during an economic downturn

Best of luck!
Cristian

Hi Sasha,

I am happy to share some insights based on my own experiences - I interviewed with their Dubai office very recently:

• Use LinkedIn: If you know the name of the interviewer, check his profile on LinkedIn. My interviewer had extensive TMT experience and my case was about a telecommunication operator.
• Practice industry agnostic: As mentioned here already, OW's “focus” sectors differ by region (like almost every consultancy). However, generally speaking they work across all industries, so I would also avoid to practice only one sector (I heard from several sources that OW is not strong in TMT in that region and my case was about TMT)
• Don't underestimate fit: The case was actually quite straight forward and a bigger chunk of the interview was fit. So my last advice is to learn more about OW and develop a clear answer as to why OW is the best next step in your career.

Good luck for your interview. If you happen to interview in the Middle East with OW or other firms, feel free to reach out to me.

Best, Daniel

Hi there,

happy to share my thoughts..

• Case types: OW does candidate-led casing across the usual case types. Quite heavy emphasis on sizing questions in my experience and sometimes I still see them give brainteasers (while not so common anymore)
• Industry focus: this is a quite location-specific topic - could you please share? Assuming it's for ME region, the firm does a lot of work in Public Sector, Financial Services, Telco / Media, Logistics and Healthcare there.

I placed multiple coachees with OW in the ME over the last few months - feel free to reach out via DM if you'd like to learn more.

Hope this helps.

Regards, Andi

Hi Sasha,

From my personal experience OW is strong in financial services in Switzerland/Germany, so definitely be ready to have some cases there (if you apply in Europe).

That being said, I would try to estimate the share of revenues generated by a certain office in a certain industry (e.g., in Zurich there will be big focus on financial services, pharma, in Munich potentially automotive, etc.). It's not a guarantee but should give you some indication where to focus on.

Sometimes consultancies also put cases from random industries, as they don't want you to use your own know-how from an industry (if you apply as a general consultant)

Hope this helps :).

Best wishes,

Frederic

I am afraid to tell you that your expectations here are off. 

You should not expect any specific type of cases in particular. You can get anything. In any case, preplounge has a large collection of cases. Some are provided (or were inspired) by Oliver Wyman cases.

Hi there,

Please please don't try to focus on any specific case type. They can give you anything!

Are they more known for FS? Yes. Should you focus on that only? 100% not!

Same goes for whichever country you are in. (Yes, be aware of that country's industries, and don't ignore it, but don't focus solely on that)

Here's some more advice for you:

https://www.preplounge.com/en/articles/pitfalls-case-interview-preparation

https://www.preplounge.com/en/articles/how-to-shift-your-mindset-to-ace-the-case

Be flexible and adaptable.

Hi Sasha,

It would be helpful to know the role and region you are applying for, but in general, practice cases across the board - don't focus on any specific type (unless you are interviewing for a specialist position / have been told to expect otherwise). That way you can make sure you are prepared for anything they throw at you during the interview. OW cases tend to be candidate led.