Oliver Wyman HR and Case Interviews

Hi there,

1) I’ve recently been informed that I have a HR interview scheduled for this week in the Johannesburg office and I’m not sure how to prepare for that. 

Most likely it will be a round of fit-only questions (you can double-check with HR if needed). If that's the case, I would prepare an answer for the most common fit questions.

Common questions you could receive are:

1. Tell me about yourself
2. Why consulting
3. Why OW
4. Give me an example of when you led a team
5. Tell me about a time when you had to convince someone
6. What has been your major achievement so far
7. Tell me about a time when you failed
8. Why should we hire you

2) I am only familiar with the McKinsey interview style as I had an internship with them. How can I best prepare for OW type case interviews? 

McKinsey interviews are a bit different compared to other companies. You can find an explanation of the main differences below to prepare accordingly:

▶ 4 Ways McKinsey Interviews are Different

Good luck!

Francesco

Hi there,

First of all, congratulations on the invitation from Oliver Wyman!

I would be happy to share my thoughts on your questions:

• First of all, for the HR interview, I would advise you to familiarize yourself with Oliver Wyman's values and culture, and think about how your experiences and motivations align with them. Be ready to explain why you want to work specifically for Oliver Wyman and what sets you apart from other candidates.
• Moreover, for the case interviews, while McKinsey uses a more interviewer-led approach to case studies and Oliver Wyman a more candidate-led one, it is important not to fall for the fallacy of thinking these are fundamentally different. In both cases, you need to show case leadership, even if it is you (for candidate-led), not the the interviewer (for interviewer-led) who makes the final decision how to proceed. Build upon your existing understanding of consulting concepts and frameworks, and be ready to apply them to diverse business situations.
• Lastly, because Oliver Wyman tends to have more quant-heavy cases, I would advise you to brush up on your math skills, including mental math and data interpretation. Familiarize yourself with diverse business metrics and calculations to help you navigate the case comfortably.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to best prepare for your upcoming interviews, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Hello,

Congratulations on your interview invite! Practice more candidate-led cases (as opposed to McKinsey's interviewer-led)! Also, be sure to prepare for the behavioral part of the interview by going through common behavioral questions, being able to walk through your resume, and so on.

Hi there,

Congratulations on the interview!

Remember that OW is most likely to be candidate-led. So, the main thing to focus on is going to be case leadership (driving the case forward). 

This is a tough thing to just quickly teach, but, essentially, you're leveraging your frameworking (and updating it+other frameworks) throughout the case to drive things forward.

Here's some reading to help:

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

Hi there!

Congrats on the interview invite!

If you passed the McKinsey interview, by and large, you should find this similar. 

The core difference is that OW uses more candidate-led cases, where you as the candidates need to form a hypothesis early on and then forget ahead with the case, leveraging the interviewer as a source of insight. 

It would be worth practicing a few times to get adjusted to the new style. 

Best,
Cristian