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Signs an interview went well?

I just had my first-ever MBB interview and I'm curious what would be the cues that the interviewer will pass you on to the next round? What about if the interview went bad?

In particular, I was expecting the interviewer to give feedback on how I performed and how to improve. But we skipped that part and had a conversation about my questions for him instead. Is that normal? WIll the feedback come after the interview? 

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Top answer
Emily
Coach
on Aug 29, 2020
9 years in MBB Southeast Asia & China| 8 years as MBB interviewer | Free intro call

Hi, 

Don't expect or ask interviewers to give you feedback right at the spot or too soon after the interview. The interviewers won't be comforatble doing that because they don't want to convey the wrong message or set the wrong expectation.  

Usually the interviewers would feedback internally to the recruiting team, and the decision would be made after recruiting team has reviewed all the candidates of the batch. Only after the decision is made then they can communicate to you on performance and improvement.

Don't try to look for signs or read too much into potential signs. Your feeling could be totally off. I thought I might not pass the BCG round 1 because the interviewer was so stern, but actually he liked my performance and is a very nice person in actual work...

Best,

Emily

on Aug 29, 2020
#1 Coach for Sessions (4.500+) | 1.500+ 5-Star Reviews | Proven Success: ➡ interviewoffers.com | Ex BCG | 10Y+ Coaching

Hi there,

It is very difficult for candidates to correctly interpret their performance in interviews. Usually they just understand when they totally bombed it, since the bad signs are clear.

When I coach candidates, sometimes they think they have done great with a poor performance, sometimes poor with a great performance. Same thing happens often in actual interviews.

You never get feedback after the interview with the exception of few occasional comments. You will only receive it (usually not very detailed) when they call you with the results.

Best,

Francesco

Robert
Coach
on Aug 28, 2020
McKinsey offers w/o final round interviews - 100% risk-free - 10+ years MBB coaching experience - Multiple book author

Hi Anonymous,

Usually interviewers or HR persons giving the feedback to you are very scarce in their feedback. Partially it's a legal issue, partly also an administrative one.

However, it's very hard to evaluate your performance yourself and mostly its just speculation. You don't know the performance level of other candidates (and thus the bar.. in reality it's not really always that objective..) and you also don't know the expectations of your interviewer giving your case and your individual background.

In short: it's speculation and better focus each single second in your interview focusing on doing the best thing you can, instead of distracting your thoughts and trying to evaluation something which you simply can't.

Hope that helps - if so, please be so kind and give it a thumbs-up with the green upvote below!

Robert

Clara
Coach
on Aug 29, 2020
McKinsey | Awarded professor at Master in Management @ IE | MBA at MIT |+180 students coached | Integrated FIT Guide aut

Hello!

They will never officially tell you how it went inmediately after the interview. 

All interviewers + HR need to come together, deliverate and then give you a formal veridict. 

For the sings, as in any normal conversation between two people. You usually know when someone liked you for how the conversation flows, how personal it gets, the body language of the other person, etc. 

Hope it helps!

Cheers, 

Clara

Deleted user
on Sep 03, 2020

Dear A,

I would say that for you as a candidate it's almost impossible to assess fairly your level of performance. SO I would recommend you rather leave it and try to make your best at preparation. 

You can try to develop this sense while contsantly working with a coach, who will provide you with a feedback. 

Getting feedback from the interviewer usually comes with the final result. 

If you need any further advice, feel free to reach out. 

Best,
André 

5
on Aug 31, 2020
McKinsey | NASA | top 10 FT MBA professor for consulting interviews | 6+ years of coaching

Hi, I confirm the feedback will be collected by the HR and communicated to you only some days after your interviews. In case it didn't go well I strongly recommend to explicitly ask for a detailed feedback in order to improve your weaknesses for your next interviews 

Best,
Antonello

Ian
Coach
on Sep 01, 2020
Top US BCG / MBB Coach - 5,000 sessions |Tech, Platinion, Big 4 | 9/9 personal interviews passed | 95% candidate success

Hi,

There is no way to truly tell!

Seriously, some interviewers are just reserved people - they may actually like you and be more open to you, but you would never know! Their "friendly" would be your "they hated me". And, of course, the opposite holds true as well :)

Additionally, you will never get feedback right away. And please never ask! The feedback should come after, and you are absolutely allowed to ask HR or the caller if they have any feedback for you.

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