Practice With Beginner Cases on Various Topics
Popular Case Categories
New
BCG Beginner Case: Fashion startup
Your client is a D2C (direct to customer) online fashion business in a developing country. It is a new brand, launched about 2 years ago and founded by ex-investment bankers. Their brand focuses on trendy, edgy design that is less main-stream (versus big brands like H&M, Uniqlo, Zara etc) for adult men. While they have been growing fast, they want to understand how they can further improve their sales.
Simon Kucher Case: Unlocking Revenue at AlpenGlide
AlpenGlide is a well-known ski resort located in the Austrian Alps. Their revenues have stagnated over the recent years, and management is concerned that they are not capturing their full revenue potential.AlpenGlide has engaged Simon-Kucher to help understand what’s behind the stagnation and recommend actionable levers to unlock new revenue growth opportunities.
DHL Consulting Case: Local Commerce
DHL aims to create a new E-Commerce business model that combines:A DHL-owned online marketplace.Participation limited to local retailers.Same-day parcel delivery services by DHL.The strategic goal is to strengthen the stationary retail sector as an important customer group. The DHL Consulting team is tasked by the DHL Business Unit "Post & Parcel Germany" (P&P) with identifying a suitable German city for a pilot project and estimating the potential revenue in that city.
Practice Cases with Peers That Are Currently Looking for Interview Partners.
SET Case: Your own Management Consultancy
As one of three management consultants with many years of experience, you have SET yourself the goal of founding your own management consultancy. The topics, contents and solution offering with which you can advise and support potential customers are clear. The legal company is already founded and registered in the commercial register. Now you must pitch your business plan to the banks to get the necessary start-up financing!Especially the banks are interested in the underlying rationale of the SET Management Consulting business model. Your goal is to think of relevant financial KPIs and be prepared to explain the underlying revenue and cost streams in more detail.With that, you have following assumptions in your business plan:10 consultants in total (including yourself)Average yearly salary per consultant 100.000 € (fixed)Average hourly rate as minimum pricing point that clients are willing to pay 250 €Founding costs (e.g., legal fees etc.) 20.000 €High-end IT equipment per consultant as invest 4.800 € (useful life 2 years)No office in the start-up phaseWebsite + SEO 40.000 €Expected employer’s contribution to base pay salary 20 %Financing requirement EUR 300.000, expected interest rate 3% p.a.The assumed utilization for the start-up phase can be taken from the assumption illustration (See exhibits)
Oliver Wyman Case: On the Right Track
TrainCo is a manufacturer of rolling stock, or trains, with production sites in three European countries. The company has seen declining profitability over the past years; however, they are currently in a very good position to bid for and win a big contract for regional trains for a Swiss national rail company. They have asked you advise to them on whether they should place a bid for the contract.
DHL Consulting case: Bike Shop
You have been hired to support the owner of a bike-shop as a business consultant. The bike-shop has suffered a significant revenue decline during the last year, and now the owner would like you to assess the situation and options for the way forward.They want to know last year’s profit, i.e. how it was affected by the revenue decline, and what the priority actions are to survive the next year. (short term)In addition they would like to understand the strategic competitive position of the shop better and how to increase revenues again mid- to long-term.
FastFood Chain Turnaround
Our client (FastFood Co) is a fast-food company that has > 20 restaurants in the city. Recently, the business has encountered significant challenges, with net profit drops to negative.The client wants us to help them turn around the business. How would you help them?
Pets Medicine Profit Improvement
Your client is a global drug company producing and selling medicine (pills, powder, ointments, injections, etc.) for a variety of pets (dogs, cats, birds, fish etc.). In addition to organic growth, the company grew significantly over the past few years by acquiring several other pets medicine companies in different parts of the world. During this period, profitability of the company decreased significantly. The CEO is concerned with this decline and wants to put in place a plan to raise the profitability to at least 70%.
Commercial Feasibility of Natural Gas Pipeline
A large natural gas field is unexpectedly discovered on the Mediterranean island of Corsica. The gas can be accessed and produced relatively easily and is of good quality. Europe, and especially Germany as the largest gas consumer in the EU, is looking for alternative gas suppliers to reduce its one-sided dependence on Russia. An initial market study has shown that stable demand in Western Europe would allow for around 10 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas per year from the new gas field to be sold on the European market for the next 25 years. To achieve this, however, the gas must be transported to the important Western European gas hub Baumgarten in Austria. Several large oil and gas companies sense a business opportunity here and are now asking themselves whether it is economically feasible to build a corresponding gas pipeline from Corsica to Austria. One of these companies has approached you as a consultant to provide your assessment.
Options Evaluation: Profitability of Brewing Company Startup
Your client is Alistair, a brew master from the east coast of the United States. He has developed a beer recipe he believes will revolutionize the beer drinking experience in the US. Alistair was able to convince his family and friends to invest in his business idea after letting them taste a sample of his new beer. With the investment money, Alistair founded the Allstar Brewing Company (ABC) and bought himself a mothballed brownfield brewery. This was already one year ago and Alistair has been working on perfecting his recipe since, but he has yet to produce a barrel of beer from the acquired production site. In the meantime, ABC has been approached by two other companies that both submitted a respective offer. Alistair seeks your help in determining the best course of action.
Market Sizing WITH SOLUTION - Number of Taxis
An entrepreneur has come to you looking to disrupt the taxi industry in NYC. They are interested in determining the number of taxis in Manhattan, in order to understand how large their fleet would need to be to compete. How would you go about determining how many taxis exist in Manhattan?If the candidate asks, you may clarify the following:This is pre ride-hailing technologyThat we are looking for total taxis NOT taxis at any given time. We would like an estimate of the size of the fleetManhattan is 1 of 5 boroughs in NYC====================NOTE==========================Please make sure to check the video URL solution to get a full explanation and walkthrough of how to solve this market sizing example.This is one of over a half dozen market sizing examples I have created for you to practice.https://www.preplounge.com/en/management-consulting-cases/candidate-led-usual-style/intermediate/market-sizing-with-solution-coffee-shop-revenue-318
Bain + BCG Hot Wheels - Part 2 WITH VIDEO SOLUTION
Our client is Korean Car Parts (KCP), a multi-national original equipment manufacturer (OEM) of car parts based in Korea. They've recently seen a decline in profits and have brought us in to understand how to address this falling profitability.=================================================To get a deep-dive explanation of the case leadership behind this case, please read this article: Candidate-Led Cases: What to Expect With Example CasesThis case is part two of a series. The goal of this series is to demonstrate how an identical case prompt (and corresponding framework) could lead to multiple different outcomes. The goal is to train you to adjust to case information in an agile and adaptable way.The 1st part of the series can be found here: Case - BCG Hot Wheels With Video Solution
BCG - US Supply Chain Crisis
Prompt The United States is currently facing a major supply chain crisis due to long ship queues and wait times at its West Coast ports, particularly at the Port of Los Angeles. Docks are at maximum capacity, and the system is at a breaking point. The government has reached out to you to help find solutions to resolve the supply chain crisis and avoid further economic losses.Clarifying Information The client’s objective is to resolve the supply chain crisis and ensure the smooth operation of the supply chain to avoid further economic lossesThe client’s focus is on the West Coast ports, particularly the Port of Los AngelesThe client is open to exploring various options to resolve the supply chain crisis.
Russell University - Fresh Attacker on the Online Education Market (McKinsey 1st round)
Russell University, located in the United Kingdom, is one of the oldest and most prestigious universities in the world. They have been educating students for more than two centuries and provide a variety of undergraduate and graduate STEM-focused courses. In an effort to increase revenues and expand their reach, the university has recently begun offering three online postgraduate qualifications. Despite the quality of teaching and effort spent in developing these courses, the response from students in terms of sign-up rates has been modest. Russel University executives believe they are acting too slowly since other prestigious universities, particularly in the US, have successfully leveraged their brand to offer short and affordable online courses to a variety of people. Russell University has hired us to determine whether they should acquire Eduline, a well-established platform that offers STEM-related short courses to its subscribers. The university intends to use Eduline to offer courses on a subscription basis and will then issue online certificates to individuals who successfully complete its courses.
MBB Case: JimboTel
Our client is JimboTel, an African mobile telecom company with operations in four West African countries: Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana and Sierra Leone. JimboTel has experienced revenue declines in the last two years.How can JimboTel grow its revenues organically in the next year?
Launching Caskets in North Africa - 1st Round BAIN case
Our client is Easywood, a furniture maker based in North Africa. Easywood serves the local market and sells mainly bedroom furniture. Last year, Easywood had a revenue of around $10m and a profitability of around 20%. Though Easywood is not concerned about the growth and profitability, they are worried about the cyclicity in the business. During the festival time, the business is good, however, at other times, the period is very lean.The CEO is considering entering into the market of caskets. He wants your opinion on whether entering the Casket market would be a good idea for Easywood.
Sprinker
Sprinker is a mid-sized, US-based publishing agency that develops, produces, and sells educational materials. It has come to their attention that some private schools are considering changing their first-grade textbooks, for which they would need a publishing agency.Sprinker is interested in participating in the closed tender and wants to determine whether this would be economically viable.
Music Streaming - Market Sizing
Your friend is an aspiring artist and is asking for your consulting advise on a problem that he has been struggling with. Your friend (the artist) is trying to understand how many hours people listen to the number one music streaming platform (the one with the green logo) in total and on average per year. How would you approach this problem to help your friend answer his question?
Barb's BBQ Booth
One day you are grocery shopping when you are approached by Barb B. Queue, the owner of the supermarket’s deli shop. Facing serious competition from other supermarkets and fast food chains, Barb is worried whether his shop is working alright, as lately profits have been stagnating. He had figured that you work in a renowned consultancy and seeks your advice. Because you are a consultant from the bottom of your heart, you agree and sit together with Barb and have a look into his books.
PiedPaper
You have successfully completed your trainings for your new role as Consultant at a consulting firm from PrepLounge’s FastTrack Application pool. After a briefing done by the CEO of an internationally known, globally operating industry corporation regarding the upcoming examination of the commercial printer paper subdivision of the organization, you are discussing the project with your project manager during lunch. Specifically, the question at hand is, how to get back on the track of growth. The CEO is willing to invest and has asked your team to provide and evaluate opportunities for growth.
Would You Like To Discover More Cases?
Difficulty Levels
More Topics