Cases, also known as case studies, are business problems that a candidate is presented with during a case interview at a management consultancy. The challenge is to solve it under pressure and in a structured way.
Practice With Cases on Various Topics
Digital Lab at LETA Bank (McK/BCG Digital)
Let’s assume our client is LETA Bank, a large Central European bank with around 3M customers and within the top five banks in the mid-sized European country where it is operating. In a recent benchmarking exercise led by the European banking group that owns the bank, LETA Bank appears to be underperforming relative to competitors in terms of its personal loan sales. Our objective is to support LETA Bank in identifying the root cause of its underperformance and to develop a strategy for addressing it.
The bank recently hired a new CTO who is excited about working with us and whose hypothesis is that the bank is currently lagging behind in terms of its digital assets and products, which makes it fall short of customer expectations, thus leading to lower sales across its product groups and especially in its most popular lending product – the personal loans.
Strategic Acquisition Case: Synergies, Valuation and Deal Recommendation
A mid-sized B2B industrial services company is considering the acquisition of a smaller competitor.
The buyer provides technical maintenance, inspection, and operational support services to manufacturing clients across Europe. The target operates in the same market but has a stronger presence in specialized services for automated production lines.
The buyer wants to know whether the acquisition is strategically attractive, whether the valuation is reasonable, and whether the expected synergies justify the purchase price.
Your task is to assess the deal from both a strategic and financial perspective and provide a final recommendation.
Challenging a Client DCF in a Pitch
You are part of a deal team preparing for a pitch to a fast-growing B2B industrial services company.
The company provides specialized technical and operational services to manufacturing clients. It operates in a mature European market, but the client believes it can grow faster than the market through customer wins, cross-selling, and operational efficiency improvements.
The client has shared its own DCF valuation. The valuation implies a significantly higher value than comparable companies in the market. Your task is to review the model, identify the key assumptions driving the valuation, challenge the valuation where appropriate, and prepare a constructive discussion for the pitch.
Practice Cases with Peers That Are Currently Looking for Interview Partners.
Interpreting a DCF for a Stable Industrial Company
You are supporting a senior banker in valuing a mid-sized industrial company using a Discounted Cash Flow analysis.
The company operates in a mature market with stable margins and moderate growth expectations. The DCF model has already been built. Your task is to interpret the result, assess whether the valuation seems reasonable, and identify the key assumptions that should be challenged before using the valuation in a transaction context.
For each question, answer as if you were speaking in an interview. Focus on your reasoning, not on memorized definitions.
LBO Returns Case: Understanding IRR and Value Creation
A private equity firm acquires a company for an Enterprise Value of €1,000m, equivalent to €1.0bn. The transaction is financed with €600m of debt and €400m of sponsor equity.
After 5 years, the PE firm exits the investment and receives €1,800m, equivalent to €1.8bn, in equity proceeds.
Your task is to analyze the return profile, understand what could have driven the return, and assess the quality of the investment.
Private Equity Deal Thinking - LBO Decision Case
You are advising a private equity firm that is evaluating the acquisition of a company with the following profile:
- Stable EBITDA
- Moderate revenue growth
- Solid market position in a mature industry
- Positive free cash flow generation
- Regular CapEx and working capital needs to support growth
The PE firm wants to assess whether the company is a suitable LBO candidate, how the deal should be financed, and whether the investment should be pursued.
For each question, answer as if you were speaking in an interview. Focus on your reasoning, not on memorized definitions.
Working Capital & Cash Flow Interview Questions Set
Working capital and cash flow are core drivers of a company’s liquidity and financial health, and they frequently come up in finance interviews. This case will test your understanding of working capital basics, the cash conversion cycle, links to free cash flow, and practical ways companies manage short-term financing needs.
Energy Sector Valuation Interview Questions Set
Valuing energy and natural resources companies is very different from other industries. Commodity price swings, capital intensity, and the role of reserves make traditional models harder to apply directly.
In interviews, you’ll be expected to show that you can adapt standard finance tools to the specifics of oil & gas, midstream, and renewables. This set covers the most common technical questions so you can demonstrate both solid finance fundamentals and an understanding of sector nuances.
IPO Interview Questions Set
An Initial Public Offering (IPO) is one of the most important events in a company’s lifecycle and a frequent topic in investment banking interviews. This case will test your understanding of IPO basics, process steps, valuation methods, and recent market dynamics.
Restructuring & Distressed M&A Interview Questions Set
This set explores the fundamentals of restructuring and distressed M&A, focusing on valuation, capital structure, financing tools, and practical deal dynamics. It introduces the key differences between healthy-company M&A and distress situations, where speed, liquidity, and creditor negotiations often drive outcomes.
Working through the set should take around 30-35 minutes, making it suitable for interviews in investment banking (restructuring groups), private equity (special situations, distressed investing), or credit advisory.
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M&A & Synergies Interview Questions Set
This question set explores the essentials of Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) with a strong focus on synergies, valuation implications, and deal structuring. The progression starts with a general rationale for M&A, then moves into mechanics like accretion/dilution and synergy valuation, before covering more advanced areas such as goodwill, tax attributes, cross-border deals, and earn-outs.
Working through this set should take around 30–35 minutes, making it well-suited for interviews in investment banking, private equity, and corporate finance.
Cost of Capital Interview Questions Set
This set of questions is designed to help you master the core concepts behind a company’s Cost of Capital. The progression takes you from the mechanics of calculating the Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) to how risk factors like Beta and Size Premiums are incorporated, and finally to the implications for company valuation.
In total, working through this set in an interview would take around 30 minutes. It is well-suited for interviews in corporate finance, investment banking, or private equity. Below, you’ll find model answers for each question, along with interviewer notes on what to look for in candidate responses.
Debt & Credit Analysis
This question set covers the fundamentals of debt instruments, credit metrics, and risk assessment. It mixes definitions, calculations, and case-style questions to prepare you for corporate finance and investment banking interviews.
Derivatives & Hedging Interview
This question set explores how companies use forwards, swaps, and options in practice to manage risk. You’ll cover theory, applications, and calculations. The aim is to test not only technical knowledge but also structured reasoning when applying derivatives to real-world corporate finance situations.
Practical LBO Interview Questions Set
This set of questions helps you apply key LBO concepts in practical, realistic interview scenarios. You'll explore how leveraged buyout logic is used to assess deal structures, compare financing options, and evaluate the impact of working capital changes, covenants, and dividend recapitalizations on investor returns.
In total, walking through this set in an interview would take approximately 35 minutes, making up around 70% of a typical 45-minute interview. Below, you’ll find model answers for each question, along with tips for the interviewer on what to look for in candidate responses.
M&A Interview Case: Should SteelTech Buy BoltWerk?
A mid-sized European industrials company, SteelTech AG, is considering acquiring a smaller competitor, BoltWerk GmbH, to expand its product portfolio and gain market share. You are part of the M&A advisory team. The CEO asks you to do a quick assessment of whether the acquisition makes strategic and financial sense.
Working Capital Forecasting at FreshHarvest AG
You’re advising FreshHarvest AG, a fast-growing food distribution company based in Germany. They operate on tight margins, high volumes, and have recently secured several new retail partners. The CFO wants to better understand how working capital decisions and seasonal dynamics impact their free cash flow profile and ultimately their valuation.
Your task is to assess how working capital evolves over the forecast period, how payment term shifts affect cash flow, and how to reflect seasonality in a dynamic forecasting model.
This case will test your analytical skills, cash flow understanding, and judgment around operational finance levers.
Advanced LBO Interview Questions Set
This question set helps you deepen your understanding of LBO modeling by covering key mechanics such as capital structure, debt repayment flows, purchase price allocation, and return calculations. You'll practice explaining value creation levers, modeling revolvers and PIK debt, and adjusting financial statements post-acquisition.
Expect to spend around 25–35 minutes on the full set. Use the model answers to test your knowledge, and improve your structuring.
Advanced Valuation Interview Questions Set
This question set helps you strengthen your valuation fundamentals by covering core techniques used in public and private company valuation, tax asset treatment, and sector-specific approaches. You'll explore how to estimate acquisition premiums, work with Net Operating Losses, and understand how valuation frameworks shift for financial institutions and resource-based companies like oil & gas firms.
You should expect to spend 25–35 minutes on the full set. Use the model answers to check your understanding, refine your technical explanations, and practice communicating complex valuation topics clearly and confidently in interview settings.
DCF Analysis at CloudCore Inc.
You’re working on a DCF valuation for CloudCore Inc., a publicly traded cloud computing company. You’ve built a standard unlevered DCF model using a WACC of 10% and based on your 5-year forecast, the Enterprise Value (EV) currently comes out to $200 million.
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Frequently Asked Questions
We are happy to answer the most frequently asked questions.
Consulting interviews are among the most competitive and difficult job interviews that exist. Interviewers use cases as an indicator to test whether you have what it takes to become a successful consultant. In order to pass, you need to ace the case interview part. And in order to ace the case interview part, you need to be well-prepared. Thus, practicing cases is one of the most important aspects of interview preparation in consulting. During different rounds of interviews you will have to solve cases again and again to prove your structured and analytical thinking as well as your communication skills.
You can practice cases on your own and go through them to get a first feeling for the structure. Afterwards, you should go into a real interview environment and practice cases with other members on the platform. You will find more than 50 mock-interview requests on the Meeting Board every day, which you can easily accept. If there is nothing suitable on the Meeting Board, you can also use the Candidate Listing. Here you can find active members on the platform and send them a direct meeting request. If you want to take your case practice to the next level, we recommend you to schedule coaching sessions with our coaches who have many years of experience in helping candidates receive their dream job offer.
In an interviewer-led case interview, the interviewer leads through the conversation. This means that the interviewer asks specific questions and also controls the time you have to analyze and answer different questions and therefore the depth of your analysis. In contrast, the candidate-led style (which is more common) is about you taking the initiative as a candidate. The initial problem is given to you by your interviewer. Afterwards, you have the freedom to structure the case according to your ideas and to ask questions proactively in order to find a solution to the problem.
Real cases in the PrepLounge Case Library are cases that were submitted by management consultancies and have been treated as such within the company. They were made available from the real interview process. In this way, you can gain deep insights into the requirements of the case interview with the respective top consultancies (e.g. Bain & Company, Roland Berger, Deloitte, Oliver Wyman). We have marked these cases with the corresponding company logo.
Expert cases were created by our PrepLounge coaches and either contain real problems that the experts have already dealt with in their lives as consultants or cases from actual consulting interviews they took part in. They offer you an optimal preparation through the different subjects, levels of difficulty and styles. And the best thing is: If you have questions about the cases, you can ask them directly to the authors.
Video case solutions are cases in which we provide you with a solution that includes a YouTube video. With this we want to help you to understand case solutions even better.
Every member has the possibility to rate a case and leave feedback on the case. This gives you the opportunity to call up a ranking and solve the cases that are particularly popular in the community. It also gives us the opportunity to continuously improve our cases in order to provide you with the best possible practice material.
Which cases are most interesting for you depends on your personal preference and your level of knowledge. If you are just starting with the case interview preparation, beginner cases are probably the most interesting ones for you. You also have the possibility to filter by different categories, such as personal fit, market analysis or brain teaser and many more, in order to address exactly the topics that are most relevant for your application.
Practice Case Interviews - Browse Our Extensive Case Library
Invite other candidates for a meeting to crack the case interactively or solve it on your own. If you like to check your case approach just have a look at the given sample solution.
A Vast Selection of Management Consulting Cases
Our selection of case studies mirror the wide variety in real case interviews. Thus, you can solve challenging problems around market sizing, market-entry, pricing, or operations strategy. Moreover, all provided cases are marked with a level of difficulty and the respective case style. This will allow you to filter for interviewer-led (as used by McKinsey) and candidate-led cases. In addition, some of our corporate partners granted some great original cases that have been used in real interviews. Check them out to get some authentic insights about the real application process of top firms like Bain, Roland Berger, and many more. These cases are clearly indicated by the firm's logo.