Get Active in Our Amazing Community of Over 452,000 Peers!

Schedule mock interviews on the Meeting Board, join the latest community discussions in our Consulting Q&A and find like-minded Case Partners to connect and practice with!

Top 5 Case Interview Frameworks

case frameworks Case Interview case interview preparation Case structure and frameworks Framework frameworks
New answer on Feb 11, 2022
8 Answers
1.6 k Views
Anonymous A asked on Feb 10, 2022

Hello everybody,

What are the five most common case interview frameworks that I should definitely master? I know that for example market entry and profitability cases are very common. What would be the top 5 from your experience? Thank you in advance!

Overview of answers

Upvotes
  • Upvotes
  • Date ascending
  • Date descending
Moritz
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Feb 10, 2022
ex-McKinsey EM & Interviewer | 7/8 offer rate for 4+ sessions | 90min sessions with FREE exercises & videos

Hey there, please do not approach casing and frameworks in this fashion! I simply can't stress enough that you won't get very far otherwise!

To give an example of why your approach doesn't work: there is no “market entry” framework. That's because you may enter markets for different reasons under completely different circumstances. The right framework depends entirely on the actual question being asked by the interviewer. If you just give them your standard “market entry” framework, you will loose any hope of progressing then and there.

Instead of learning frameworks by hard, learn how to THINK for yourself and take it from there. Building good frameworks is a skill you can develop with good training. It requires, among other things:

  • Listening skills (what is actually being asked of me)
  • Structuring skills (MECE)
  • Business acumen (what's really important here)
  • Top-down communication (what is your approach and why)

Hope this helps. Let me know if you'd like to learn more!

Was this answer helpful?
Maikol
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Feb 10, 2022
BCG Project Leader | Former Bain, AlixPartner, and PE | INSEAD MBA | GMAT 780

I don't know a single person who got an offer because he/she learned frameworks by heart. 

As other experts said, you should learn how to think. This means:

  1. Figure out exactly what the case is asking you to do
  2. Ask probing questions to further understand the request and the issues you have to solve
  3. Devise your approach and plan to solve the case (this is what really makes the difference in my view in consulting prep, as an interviewer at Bain and AlixPartners, and as PE professional)
  4. Solve the issue in a precise, structured and top-down way showing strong business acumen, ingenuity, and mental clarity
  5. Communicate clearly throughout the case engaging the interviewer

That said, it is important to understand the dynamics (not frameworks) of the most important topics you will likely discuss.
So you have to understand how a P&L works, how you sell products (direct salesforce vs distributors vs e-commerce), how a product launch works, how a PE fund evaluates an investment, how you cut costs (e.g., reduce purchase prices vs reduce demand vs change specs). Start with those topics, keeping in mind the above 5 points. 

If you want to deep-dive, let's talk.

Best,
M

Was this answer helpful?
Best answer
Cristian
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Feb 11, 2022
#1 rated MBB & McKinsey Coach

Hi there, 

One way to figure this out is to look at the ‘Topics’ filter in the Case Library on PrepLounge. There you should see all the main types of cases and frameworks.

It's good to get an understanding of the main types of frameworks but think of it as the additional wheels you put on a kid's bike to learn them to ride it. Ideally you should get rid of them as soon as possible in order to ride the bike properly. Otherwise they risk getting in the way. 

Was this answer helpful?
Allen
Expert
replied on Feb 10, 2022
Ex-McK Experienced Hire and EM - I show you how to perform at your best

Okay, but what does thinking for yourself actually mean? 

The approach I like to use when coaching is: If it was your billion dollars, what would you like to before you made the decision? Then just structure that in a MECE way and communicate it well.

This is the approach I used myself after miserably failing 95% of case interviews in school and finally succeeding in getting hired by McKinsey as an experienced hire.

Happy to explain more,

Allen

Was this answer helpful?
Pedro on Feb 11, 2022

I usually use a similar approach! Upvoting this :)

Ian
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Feb 11, 2022
#1 BCG coach | MBB | Tier 2 | Digital, Tech, Platinion | 100% personal success rate (8/8) | 95% candidate success rate

Hi there,

Not the way to learn, but I'll humour you :)

  1. Profitability
  2. Growth
  3. Market Entry
  4. M&A
  5. Investment
Was this answer helpful?
Ebru
Expert
replied on Feb 10, 2022
McKinsey|ex Firm Case Coach| LSE

I fully agree with Moritz! Save yourself the time and effort in memorizing frameworks and invest in learning how to properly solve cases. 

Was this answer helpful?
Adi
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Feb 10, 2022
Accenture, Deloitte | Precision Case Prep | Experienced Interviewer & Career Coach | 15 years professional experience

100% agree with what other coaches have said. Please dont memorise frameworks, rather use them as reference to guide your thinking.

Was this answer helpful?
Pedro
Expert
replied on Feb 11, 2022
30% off in April 2024 | Bain | EY-Parthenon | Roland Berger | Market Sizing | DARDEN MBA

Just forget frameworks. That doesn't work. 

There's 90% candidates memorizing frameworks to “pretend" they know how to solve problems. It doesn't work, it's obvious to every interviewer, and it also absolutely prevents one to distinguish oneself from every other candidate. It's a recipe for failure. 

Just follow Allen's suggestion. You'll have to solve it by yourself, and shouls start practicing that as soon as possible.

To get ideas that you can use when coming up with your own approaches, you can go to the “Bootcamp” section in the Resources section of Preplounge.

Was this answer helpful?
Cristian gave the best answer

Cristian

Content Creator
#1 rated MBB & McKinsey Coach
687
Meetings
28,590
Q&A Upvotes
125
Awards
5.0
216 Reviews