Presenting your structure in interviewer-led cases

Question

Hello everyone,

what is your recommendation for interviewer-led cases: A) Should we present the structure after the prompt summary?
B) Or in this case should we follow the interviewer's questions without presenting our potential approach?

Thanks in advance for your support!
Kind regards,
Dominika

Answer 1

Hi Dominika,

I think this is an interesting question that may be relevant for many people. I would be happy to share my thoughts on it:

First of all, I would highly advise you not to overestimate the difference between interviewer-led and interviewee-led case studies, since the only difference is that after you make a proposal (e.g., for the initial structure or for a solution to a quantitative question), you will give the interviewer time to react to your proposal, which they will either follow or not. I have seen this misconception way too often, that you would not need to show case leadership with interviewer-led case studies.
The typical format of a case study is as follows: The interviewer will present the prompt, you will recap the situation and ask clarifying questions, and then you will ask for some time to structure the question(s) at hand, which you will present afterwards.

If you would like a more detailed discussion on how to address your specific situation, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

Best,

Hagen

Answer 2

Dear Dominika,

How it usually works:

Interviewers introduce the prompt
You ask clarification questions on a. company/situation and b. to operationalize the goal
The interviewer will ask you the initial specific question of the case (you take time to think about it and then answer it)

Don't worry about this as the interviewers will guide you in this process.

Cheers,

Florian

Answer 3

Hi Dominika,

Always…for ANY interview…ANY company…follow the interview's guidance.

If they ask for x. Do x. If they ask for y. Do y.

Please don't “override” your common sense because you read something somewhere. Take their cues and their guidance! (For McK, you can “expect” them to give you a specific question)

Answer 4

Hello Dominika,

If the interviewer has asked you a specific question after your summary then go ahead with answering that question.

The first question could indeed require you to make a structure, but always follow the interviewer's instructions.

Best,

Rushabh

Answer 5

Hi, here some tips and tricks as well as explanations of what the interviewer expects: 1. General Approach to Struc... (read entire answer)

Hi, here some tips and tricks as well as explanations of what the interviewer expects: 1. General Approach to Structuring a Problem Instead of relying on rigid structures, I e... (read entire answer)