All questions tagged PrepLounge: Personal Fit - Consulting Q&A - PrepLounge.com

How you answer this question should vary for when you are answering it.

• In a cover letter
• In person - after a few interviews
• In a final round - once you've got to understand the company better

The critical factor here is to be specific. The best way to do it is to think about yourself. If you had an offer from this firm along with the others you applied to - would you reject all the others in favour of this one? Why would you take this offer? (though as a grad doing my first interviews for myself it was more why not!)

There is no magic formula but there are various ways you can come up with a great answer for yourself and for the interviewer

In order of priority:

• Speak to people working at the firm - why do they like it, what's good / bad (reach out to friends of friends, mutual LI connections, even cold emails - you'll be surprised how few do this and how most people will respond)
• Reflect on your own interactions - during the interview process ask the right questions at the end to refine your understanding of "what makes this place different, really)
• Read the latest thought leadership - build an idea in your head of what this firm is good at or known for
• Good old google is your friend - look at forums like this

A great answer is specific around a few different areas that make consulting firms different:

1. Culture - team, history, work style
2. Specialisms - type of work they are known for
3. Sectors - e.g. OW is FS, Bain is IP/Retail/CPG, BCG is TMT
4. Clients - working with the biggest and best vs. the small but cutting edge vs. government/non-profits etc

Hi Anonymous,

Most answers might not be completely wrong, but lack a fundamental and decisive detail in looking at this question.

The underlying question really is "What's in it for us" from firm perspective when they ask this question. Please bear in mind that you are working in a customer-centric service industry, so therefore you need to primarily think which value you can create for your clients as well as for the firm.

Once you figured that out, main job for that question is done.

In addition to that - and only last in importance - might be an addendum how that could benefit you.

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

Robert

This is one of the most classic questions: Make sure you have this answer prepared!

During your answer make sure you:

1) Start with a quick summary of the context/challenge and what ended up happening

2) Highlight not just the challenge, but what the anticipacted consequence would have been

3) Make sure you took action AND articulate why you did it (i.e. the logic)

4) Finish with a positive end, with tangible results (i.e. we delivered on-time and with glowing reviews)

Hi!

To answer your question directly: Your interviewer expects that you provide very concrete and clear examples of leadership in a difficult situation to show. So here's what you need to do:

1. Think of an example that truly demonstrates you taking leadership. An example where you ran a team successfully to a specific goal or through a difficult challenge. The interviewer does not want to hear that you've been in a leadership position, but instead that you have evidence of being an effective leader. So, saying you were responsible for a large team is not good enough because you may not have been very good at it :). But explaining that you led that large team to deliver a multi-month project through major challenges is impressive. And be sure to highlight what the challenges are. Which brings me to...
2. Summarise at a high-level
   1. ​who you led
   2. what you led them to do
   3. what was difficult about it
   4. what you did to be successful
   5. Bonus: what about you specifically made it successful (e.g. your confidence, tenacity, etc.)
3. And then be prepared to go into detail with your interviewer:
   1. Explain what you did, said, and thought. Remember, this is not about your team, it is about you so get comfortable using words like "I did...", "I said...", "I figured out that...", etc.
   2. Describe specific difficult moments and how you overcame it (again, it's all about what you did)
   3. Explain any planning you did beforehand and why
   4. Share and celebrate the outcome (which should be positive) and maybe any learnings or things you would do better.

All the best!

This is quite an unoriginal question to be asked and also rather outdated, but apparently, some consultants keep asking it (not really reflective of the times either).

I generally believe honesty is the best policy, and for someone at the start of their career whilst you may have a view of where you want to get to in 5 years, it is unrealistic to expect either

a) you know specifically what exactly you will be doing in 5 years

b) that you won't change your perspective along the way

Having interviewed 50+ candidates both in and outside consulting, I would be skeptical of anyone who gave an answer that was too specific or tailored for consulting as being either ungrounded or disingenious e.g. saying they want to be a partner (yes I've heard this before!), principal or thought leader.

At the same time, you don't want to be too broad or unclear e.g. saying you have no idea, as that wouldn't send a great signal either.

A good middle ground might look like something like:

• You don't really know what the world will look like in 5 years so couldn't say specifically (good, signals honesty and realistic)
• But you want to work in consulting to apply your current skills (tailor this), develop new skills and also figure out what sectors / types of work you are good at and enjoy (good, signals you are giving and also taking)
• That said, you have had an ambition to be a business leader or thinker... (tailor this)

Increasingly, firms are more open to an honest exchange to maintain the appeal of consulting vs. big tech to grads. MBBs highlighting the alumni network, exposure/training for 2/3 yers, the exit opps into tech/politics/industry etc.).

The best answers I heard when interviewing Associate Consultants at Strategy& balanced a humbleness (wanting to deliver / learn / work hard), honesty (consulting being a great first career) and ambition.

Hi,

This is one of the most frequently asked questions. The response to this question is quite generic, but it works all the time. When I interviewed with MBB, this is how I answered the question and you can follow a similar logic:

I focused on the fact that I was a recent graduate who did not know what to specialize in, in terms of industries (e.g. healthcare, consumer goods, retail, etc.) or functional topics (e.g., finance, HR, strategy, digital, etc.). Thus I emphasized that I wanted to get into consulting to better understand what I am passionate about by working on a different set of projects.

Moreover, I also mentioned that the skillset that I will acquire in consulting (e.g., team management, time management, client management) would be applicable anywhere I go next.

Lastly, I also highlighted the opportunity to take up significant responsibilities in the early stages of my career, as it is rare to find someone who is in his/her mid-20s sit on the same table with key industry leaders and make recommendations to them.

Best,

Deniz

This is a key part of the interview! Please do not overlook it at all.

DO

Ask questions about one the below 3:

-consulting industry (how have clients need evolve?)
-case (did you wind up proposing this to the client? which were the roadblocks during the project?)
-himself (which step of the consulting career did you like best?)

AVOID

Ask stupid questions on:

-questions you can ask to HR (how long before I have an answer?)
-basic consuling career stuff (how often do you promote people?)

Hi!

The first thing to recognise is why interviewers ask this question. Ultimately, they want to know how aware you are of your development areas, how you feel about you "weaknesses", and whether those "weaknesses" are red flags :)

I advise my clients to:

1. Answer honestly & directly... but not too honestly (this is not a confessional :)). Interviewers can tell if you're being ingenuine and know when you're trying to cover up your weaknesses. For example, "I work too hard" is not a weakness so don't say that. And don't say something that will obviously be a complete deal-breaker.
2. Pick a "weakness" that is important for consultants to have. i.e. it should be relevant to the role. Saying you want to be a better investor is not relevant to the role. However, saying you could be better at managing your time is something that is relevant to being a consultant
3. Show that you have already worked on this "weakness" and have a plan to improve it even more. Interviewers want just want to see that you have "weaknesses" (they already know you do because we ALL have weaknesses). They want to see that you're the sort of person who is doing something about it to improve yourself because as a consultant, you have to be open to feedback and take steps to address that feedback.

Here's an example of what this might sound like (remember, this is just an example that demonstrates an example that is direct, honest, relevant, and improvement-focused. You will need to cater this to yourself:

• "A weakness of mine is my ability to present confidently in situations where I'm less familiar with the topic. This stems from a complete fear of presenting just a few years ago, which I worked on through the support of my colleagues and by putting myself in situations where I had no choice but to present, get feedback, and then refine and try again. So I feel like I've already come a long way. The work I'd done preparing myself for these interviews have helped me gain additional communication skills to improve how I feel presenting less familiar topics, but it is still an ongoing effort, which I continue to work on."

Hope this helps! Get in touch directly to get some specific practice in.

Best!

This question is usually asked in the very beginning of McKinsey interview and does NOT strictly constitute a part of personal fit questions (which are situation-based). In contrast to business cases and personal fit questions there is also no exact system for evaluating your answer to this question. The “tell me about yourself“ question during McKinsey interview serves just one purpose – to actually help you relax, let you talk about something you are familiar with and to help your interviewer to get to know you a bit better (sort of to put a face to whatever she read in your CV).

So, I would use it as a chance to make yourself memorable and to leave a positive impression. What do I mean by that? I mean, of course, do say a few words about your studies and work experience, but also say what you are passionate about and what you want to achieve in life. Are you passionate about swimming? Say it! Are you passionate about singing? Say it! Do you want to eventually build your own business? Say it! It’s important for an interviewer to understand what kind of person you are and for you to leave a memorable mark, so make sure you highlight those things which throw a bit of light on your personality.

This is not going to be a direct question asked by an interviewer during McKinsey interview – but in all of the PEI dimensions you are preparing for (Personal Impact, Leadership & Entrepreneurship), it’s very good to have an element of it. When writing down your stories, think about a situation you could include when, for example:

• there was a difficult team member – but you managed to successfully include him/her into the team and he/she became fully engaged with the team work
• you took a practical decision, which significantly helped the team to move forward with the work (you followed 80/20)
• there were 2 team members who couldn’t stand each other and you mediated peace (e.g. by talking to each one of them, bringing them together, discussing the issue)
• you inspired the team somehow and everybody got super motivated and delivered the results
• you knew something personal about some team member (e.g.she really wanted to go to this football match) and you used it to lift up her spirits (e.g. you bought her the tickets) to ensure she performed well as part of the team

In the end of course you need to focus on the question at hand in each of the PEI dimension – but if you bring those elements into the game as well, this will be a plus ;)

Empathy; trust; open and honest feedback; clear team norms.

Best,
Antonello

Answering this question it’s important not to show “ready-to-die” dedication, but rather your ability to approach things in 80/20 way.

What is 80/20? It’s a rule which basically states that 80% of the results come just from 20% of your efforts. So, in practice it means that you need to be able to prioritise and make trade-offs to complete more work in a given time vs striving for perfection in one specific task (and killing yourself and your team while doing so)

So, while answering the question, highlight that you are of course ready to work long hours. But you are also a fan of working smart vs. working hard and you are sure that for any situation there are shortcuts one can take to make sure you don’t kill yourself or your team.

Hi!

Please emphasize how you enable the people around you to overcome obstacles. This corresponds to McKinseys exact definition of "Leadership".

Cheers, Sidi

Essentially, failure experience is regarded very positively by MBB: if you failed, you took risks, i.e. you have proven your entrepreneurial nature. So, do not be afraid to talk honestly about the times you failed.

However, an important thing to focus on in your answer to this question is what you have learnt from your failure. And I would try to turn these “lessons learnt” into something valuable for consulting. For example, you tried doing everything by yourself and after this failure you really started understanding the importance of team work and really improved on this front. Or, you tried doing everything perfectly and after that failure you understood that it’s important to have trade-offs and to compromise to achieve the results you want (80/20 or “better done than perfect“).

So, be honest, talk about your failures, but remember to highlight some lessons learnt to give your story an overall positive twist.

This question is simply a spin on the question of “Describe your strengths and weaknesses”. It tests your ability to reflect on your own development needs. A good answer would highlight three strengths and three development areas.

For strengths, try to focus on areas that relate to the consulting competencies (e.g. problem-solving, teamwork, communications, client impact) and for weaknesses be careful not to highlight ‘fatal flaws’ (e.g. I am totally disorganised or hopeless with maths!). Good answers frame a weakness as a strength or highlight strong self-awareness and indicate how you are addressing this. (e.g. I can sometimes be too detail oriented. I am aware of this and am taking steps to ensure I regularly stand back from the detail to take stock of the bigger picture).

This question is a part of McKinsey personal fit Leadership dimension. Here it’s important to focus on a few things while telling your story:

• Highlight your interpersonal skills, i.e. focus on how you felt, what you thought about how other people felt, and why you thought other people acted some way or the other (vs focusing on content of the problem);
• Show that you are able to take initiative, also in a difficult situation like this one;
• Demonstrate that you can efficiently work with all kinds of people, no matter how difficult they are.

Best,
Daniel

Every time a candidate would put a word “reading” into the hobbies section on their CV, I really loved to ask this question. I am myself a voracious reader, and I love a good discussion on books – so, I would definitely ask a candidate in the beginning of an interview what is his or her favourite book or what is the good book that they’ve read recently. So you better have an answer for this, or don’t put it on your CV :)

As regards to what to reply – of course, there is no right or wrong answer here. Just be honest and authentic, do not make stuff up or mention a book you’ve never read (because your interviewer might have). So, if you enjoy non-fiction and topics like biology and genetics, talk about it. But also if you enjoy adventure novels or modern crime fiction, talk about it. In the end what matters is that you are able to show a bit of who you are. MBB are looking for unique personalities – people who are interesting to talk to, people whose company both clients and the colleagues would enjoy, people who can inspire by their uniqueness. So, do not be afraid to show it :)