Too many candidates do their case interview preparation in August and September. While we certainly think 6 months is far to long to spend preparing, we believe candidates need to create a list of their development area and use this to decide their preparation time. No time candidates are the same and weaknesses should drive the preparation time in its totality. Choosing average based on what your friends are doing is generally a very, very bad idea.
Jun 22, 2012•18 min
PhD candidates face three unique circumstances. First, they have to overcome the lack of available timing or guidelines for internship interviews since most thesis advisers will be unlikely to reschedule experiments and summer plans to accommodate McKinsey internship requests. Two, PhD's have certain stereotypes which they personally believe and exhibit such as they are less analytic than MBAs. Third, PhD's need to address the weaknesses consulting firms think they have like an inability to prio...
Jun 16, 2012•19 min
One of the greatest myths is that entering a case competition will help you prepare for a consulting interview and will impress a consulting firm. Neither is true and this podcast explains why. We specifically encourage our clients to avoid case competitions if they can. If mandatory, we insist they put in the least possible effort.
Jun 10, 2012•20 min
This general podcast describes some of the common misconceptions applicants and even practicing McKinsey/BCG consultants have about their own firms. It will be useful to anyone who wants to understand some of the broad themes and misunderstandings about the profession.
Jun 04, 2012•13 min
This podcast examines the 5 "hard" elements McKinsey looks for in a resume. Yet, the main value of this podcast is in discussing the things McKinsey looks for but is very hard to quantify and describe; what is the best bullet to write, what is an achievement oriented bullet, should education go to the top or bottom, should GMAT scores be included etc. These subtle inclusions all contribute to your resume profile and in our experience, we have never seen a resume that did not have to be substanti...
May 29, 2012•29 min
Networking calls/coffee chats are tricky. You should not be following the advice found for general recruitment. We insist our clients network with partners so most of the advice we provide is for networking with McKinsey and BCG partners. The reality is that partners are best equipped, and most influential, to assess a unique profile and make a judgement call on the spot. The danger is that if you do not impress the partner, you are very unlikely to go anywhere with further networking. The more ...
May 23, 2012•9 min
This podcast unpacks the typical lifestyle of a consultant. It touches on some elements for associates and business analysts, though delves more on the issues and challenges addressed by partners at BCG and McKinsey. Nonetheless, it is a good idea to understand how consulting lifestyle trends change one progresses further and further up the organization. This at the very least will help you decide if you want to stay all the way to partnership. This podcast is largely based on my own experiences...
May 17, 2012•20 min
It is a ridiculous myth to assume the world is fair and females have an even playing field with males. Females, especially in emerging markets, face unique and trying obstacles during the case interview process. Firmsconsulting has always been fairly direct in telling the truth as we see it to ensure female clients have the correct expectations, understand the hurdles they will face, and are armed with the correct training to handle their interviewers. This podcast explores this topic further.
May 11, 2012•28 min
Image management is crucial. A significant part of our approach is around teaching clients to manage, control really, the image they portray. This involves a wide area like dressing, networking, emailing, speaking, hand movements, body language etc. This podcast touches on these elements of image while exploring several in depth. This is one of several detailed podcasts exploring different areas of image management.
May 05, 2012•21 min
In our ongoing series of podcasts, we again introduce new advice about case interviews or sometimes view an old topic in a different manner. The objective of these podcasts is to explain concepts like MECE, 80/20, brainstorming, hypotheses etc in different ways so that as many listeners as possible will understand these concepts. We have seen some listeners obtain McKinsey offers merely by using the podcasts to prepare and we therefore want to increase the amount of material we generate - in the...
Apr 29, 2012•12 min
In this podcast I examine my rapid progression up the ranks of the elite firms all the way from analyst to principal and then director. I offer anecdotes or my own experience and especially the mistakes I made, strategies I followed and the lessons I learned along the way. What you find is that analytic skill is very important early on, but being brilliant at analyses only gets you so far - and not very far at that. To push into the partnership ranks you need to have much more skills, especially...
Apr 23, 2012•1 hr 9 min
You cannot and will not improve your case skills from practicing case alone. "Case skills" refers to a variety of skills including body language, communication and especially business judgement. Business judgement effectively means your ability to make reasonable guesses/inferences in business situations. That largely comes from being well read. This podcast breaks down business judgement further and offers advice to improve this skill.ies.
Apr 17, 2012•10 min
An earlier podcast discussed a fairly labor-intensive case where we needed to literally roll-up our sleeves to find and extract data, and a corporate finance study. This engagement is somewhere in-between. It discusses a study I led to help a major corporation completely redesign their entire R&D strategy and restructure their R&D division, a behemoth of a unit with little direction. I do recall this being one of the friendliest clients I have ever encountered. PhD's usually are this way...
Apr 11, 2012•34 min
In this series of podcasts we look at each of the typical McKinsey/BCG FIT/PEI questions and provide a typical answer. Note, that while replicating this approach and standard will help you, we caution you that the main test of fit is in handling the cross-examination of your answer. Most candidates tend to be unprepared for that and we urge you to be very aware this will happen and to practice this interrogation style. You can never memorize your way out of these interrogations questions, since ...
Apr 05, 2012•10 min
In this series of podcasts we look at each of the typical McKinsey/BCG FIT/PEI questions and provide a typical answer. Note, that while replicating this approach and standard will help you, we caution you that the main test of fit is in handling the cross-examination of your answer. Most candidates tend to be unprepared for that and we urge you to be very aware this will happen and to practice this interrogation style. You can never memorize your way out of these interrogations questions, since ...
Mar 30, 2012•22 min
In this series of podcasts we look at each of the typical McKinsey/BCG FIT/PEI questions and provide a typical answer. Note, that while replicating this approach and standard will help you, we caution you that the main test of fit is in handling the cross-examination of your answer. Most candidates tend to be unprepared for that and we urge you to be very aware this will happen and to practice this interrogation style. You can never memorize your way out of these interrogations questions, since ...
Mar 24, 2012•15 min
In this series of podcasts we look at each of the typical McKinsey/BCG FIT/PEI questions and provide a typical answer. Note, that while replicating this approach and standard will help you, we caution you that the main test of fit is in handling the cross-examination of your answer. Most candidates tend to be unprepared for that and we urge you to be very aware this will happen and to practice this interrogation style. You can never memorize your way out of these interrogations questions, since ...
Mar 18, 2012•11 min
In this series of podcasts we look at each of the typical McKinsey/BCG FIT/PEI questions and provide a typical answer. Note, that while replicating this approach and standard will help you, we caution you that the main test of fit is in handling the cross-examination of your answer. Most candidates tend to be unprepared for that and we urge you to be very aware this will happen and to practice this interrogation style. You can never memorize your way out of these interrogations questions, since ...
Mar 12, 2012•11 min
In this series of podcasts we look at each of the typical McKinsey/BCG FIT/PEI questions and provide a typical answer. Note, that while replicating this approach and standard will help you, we caution you that the main test of fit is in handling the cross-examination of your answer. Most candidates tend to be unprepared for that and we urge you to be very aware this will happen and to practice this interrogation style. You can never memorize your way out of these interrogations questions, since ...
Mar 05, 2012•7 min
In this series of podcasts we look at each of the typical McKinsey/BCG FIT/PEI questions and provide a typical answer. Note, that while replicating this approach and standard will help you, we caution you that the main test of fit is in handling the cross-examination of your answer. Most candidates tend to be unprepared for that and we urge you to be very aware this will happen and to practice this interrogation style. You can never memorize your way out of these interrogations questions, since ...
Feb 28, 2012•13 min
In this podcast we outline some simple guidelines to use for McKinsey and BCG FIT/PEI cases. The objective is to know what each firm is for and then design the answer to address each of those points. The objective of FIT is not to deliver your life story. That is largely meaningless but unfortunately a common tactic used by many candidates.
Feb 22, 2012•15 min
Written cases, pioneered by Monitor Deloitte, and now used by all firms are very intimidating. Written cases actually test core prioritization skills much better than verbal cases, since written case interviews can dump tonnes of data on a candidate. The trick to written cases is to have a filtering system to find the data you need from the worthless data, and of course, recognizing that not all the data is useful. Written cases mirror cases done in case-method schools like Harvard. Lots of data...
Feb 16, 2012•18 min
Richard Ivey in Southern Ontario is one of the 4 great case schools in the world - along with Harvard, IESE and Darden - and a school with which we have a deep affiliation given our client history. In recent years we have had much fewer clients, but we still retain a deep understanding of the program and receive many queries from Ivey candidates. This podcast details some of the common questions we receive from Ivey candidates in the hope it answers them all in one location. Much of the advice i...
Feb 10, 2012•24 min
As a policy, we do not write much about our clients. However, I felt this story was worth sharing. A candidate from an unknown school, from one of the poorest developing countries in the world, lands an offer at BBM. In fact, the first from her country. I have heavily disguised her details to protect her identity. Note, this client was a Firmsconsulting Emerging Fellow, the very first and the reason we started this program, when she was admitted to our program and is part of the scholarship prog...
Feb 04, 2012•32 min
These are the 4 books we recommend for summer reading. Two, are among the most important books for management consulting that we recommend for all management consultants. "McKinsey's Marvin Bower" is a book we recommend to every single and aspiring consultant and is the foundation of understanding the values of management consulting.
Jan 29, 2012•8 min
This podcast discusses one of the most common problems for candidates. When consultants are indifferent, unwilling to give bad news or insufficiently informed, they can provide misleading information which costs time and money. The irony is that candidates place too much emphasis on this feedback and sometimes hurt their chances. We discuss the reasons why this happens, common phrases to be aware off and ignore and how to carefully read between the lines when accepting feedback.
Jan 23, 2012•20 min
Last week we attended a graduation dinner for a candidate, who insisted we prove to her that it is possible to speak authoritatively on any subject and with zero preparation. She introduced us to a doyen of health economics to test this theory. FYI – we were not prepped in advance and do not know anything about the field. We wanted to show her techniques to manage such situations. Listen to what happens.
Jan 17, 2012•19 min
Tackles some the recent problems we have seen with candidates. We have tried to stay away from conventional advice and address issues not commonly discussed. Since this is largely based on the tactics we advise our clients to follow, it is bound to be counter to the plethora of advice you find in many books and on many sites.
Jan 11, 2012•20 min
This long podcast (60 minutes) examines the common mistakes consultants make at each level of their career. I have gone into some detail to explain my own mistakes, and that of former and current colleagues. Some of the advice is counter-intuitive and I have stayed away from generic advice. This will be very useful to aspiring consultants who need to understand what it takes to succeed at each level.
Jan 05, 2012•1 hr
We get this question more times than you can imagine. We also get a chorus of Accenture people telling us we are wrong, and they are “eating McKinsey’s lunch.” I think the question posed is incorrect and the defense of Accenture is incorrect. This podcast explains why. BBM are good at advising decision makers on general management issues. They excel at that. They are pretty much no-where in the implementation space. Accenture, Deloitte SO etc have their areas of strength, but it is not in the ge...
Dec 30, 2011•14 min
