How would you answer this question in your Personal Fit interview? Receive feedback on your answer and browse through the Q&As to review the approaches of other applicants and experts.
What would be the reason why you would have someone on or off a project?
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It’s a tricky question because consultants need to balance between a) interests of their clients and b) interests of their people (keeping the talent happy and creating opportunities for growth).
For on the project:
- If the client really wants the person and you feel like the person can contribute;
- If the person’s professional profile fits your project and you feel like the person can contribute;
- If the person is super motivated to join and you feel like, even though the person doesn’t have required experienced, by the sheer energy they will be able to create impact.
For off the project:
- If the person doesn’t deliver and feedback discussions as well as mentoring didn’t help
- If the person has an issue with the client – they cannot find a good way of working together and mediation didn’t help
- If the person undermines team’s work – and again, your intervention didn’t help
Hope this helps!
Best,
Daniel
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As a job manager, the way you put together the right team can be the difference between a successful engagement (with sell-on) and a burned client relationship.
When I was managing engagements, I thought about (in order):
- If I could rely on them for their work
- If they were hard-working, diligent and always (over)delivered
- If they had worked in the sector
- If they were fun to be around and grab a beer with
- If they had preexisting relationships with the client
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Depending on his/her skills and abilities i might want to include or exclude someone from a project. It's about efficiency, not personality. I want to work with people who can create synergies and people who are already in track and can perform their task properly
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Motivation and learning ability: if someone is highly motivated to join a project and they have the needed skills and knowledge or shows a proven potential to learn quickly then that is reason enough to have them in a project. the other way around if someone is in the project and they show no motivation and at the same time they are lacking the skills and the willingness to learn, then that is a reason to lay them off.
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I would say trustworthiness is the most important reason for me to have someone on or off a project. And someone is trustworthy if open in the communication, honest about things he or she is able to do or not, motivated to contribute effort, and eager to develop with the team. Capability is also an important factor to have someone on or off, but trustworthiness comes first.
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Sucessful
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technical skills, reliability, availability, personality: if I can choose, I would not put someone on the project if the person is a complete asshole, c.p.
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On project: Relation with the client. Motivated. Knowledge.
Off project: Bad client relationship. Bad review. Undisciplined with DDL.
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On:
Motivated
Some degree of experience and/or knowledge
Prior work on similar/client
Off:
Inadequacy with the subject
Bad client relationship
Disorganized and unable to meet deadline
Bad review from coach/client
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The clients want a specific person. Person fits the project. Person done a couple of projects like this.
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1. I have the ability to identify each person's strengths and potential, and I will allocate the proper tasks and projects to them accordingly in order to improve their skills and fully develop their potential.
2. Considering the teamwork, it is important to make sure everyone plays an important and unique role in this team to deliver high-quality results on time.
3. Respect each team member's decisions.
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When someone brings certain useful hard and soft skills I would like to have him or her as a team member.
When someone brings difficulties due to his or her attachment to certain projects and people I wouldn't like to have him or her as a team member.
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capabilities, motivation, experience
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Are they able to deliver under pressure
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I would prioritize teamwork and the balance of the entire team
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Wenn es in noch nicht ausgeräumte persönliche Differenzen gibt. ( dann sollten diese zuerst ausgeräumt werden bevor ein möglicher Einsatz ansteht.)
Wenn sich jemand in unpassender Art und Weise geäußert hat, und sich derjenige, dadurch beim Kunden als nicht passend erweisen würde. (Bsp.: jemand mit großen ethischen Gefühlen, sollte nicht auf ein Oil& Gaz Projekt gestaffed werden)
(edited)
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we can have different field of expertise which may or may not be required for a particular project. Or there is someone better we may include and for that we have to make space by letting one of the present team member go.
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character
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Tem player or not
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On Project: Skill, connections, attitude, ambitions
off: lack of knowledge or communication skills
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Their motivation. Even if they are not very good at it, if they are motivated it would usually be worth the time to teach them into becoming a better consultant.
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The most important for me would be that he or she is motivated.
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Stubborn and someone who is imposing their ideas/thoughts.
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There are different criteria for a project team member:
- Personal fit (team player or not? self-responsibility? …)
- Useful expertise?
- Personal motivation?
- Project-specific experience?
- Enough time for the project?
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Hello!
On top of the insights already shared in the post, the "Integrated FIT guide for MBB" has been recently published in PrepLounge´s shop (https://www.preplounge.com/en/shop/tests-2/integrated-fit-guide-for-mbb-34), adressing topics precisely as your question.
It provides an end-to-end preparation for all three MBB interviews, tackling each firms particularities and combining key concepts review and a hands-on methodology. Following the book, the candidate will prepare his/her stories by practicing with over 50 real questions and leveraging special frameworks and worksheets that guide step-by-step, developed by the author and her experience as a Master in Management professor and coach. Finally, as further guidance, the guide encompasses over 20 examples from real candidates.
Furthermore, you can find 2 free cases in the PrepL case regarding FIT preparation:
Intro and CV questions > https://www.preplounge.com/en/management-consulting-cases/fit-interview/intermediate/introduction-and-cv-questions-fit-interview-preparation-200
Motivational questions > https://www.preplounge.com/en/management-consulting-cases/fit-interview/intermediate/motivational-questions-fit-interview-preparation-201
Feel free to PM me for disccount codes for the Integrated FIT Guide, since we still have some left from the launch!
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