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McKinsey Case Interview Guide 2024 (by former Interviewers)

Last Updated on March 27, 2024

The McKinsey case interview, also called the Problem-Solving Interview by the firm, is a crucial and defining element of the consulting recruitment process for one of the world’s most prestigious management consulting firms. This unique type of interview assesses a candidate’s analytical, problem-solving, and communication skills, as well as their ability to think critically under pressure.

With a reputation for being challenging and rigorous, the McKinsey case interview is often seen as a significant hurdle for aspiring consultants to overcome. Forbes ranked McKinsey’s interview process as the most difficult across all firms globally and the case plays a crucial role in that evaluation, besides the Personal Experience Interview .

Recognizing the importance of thorough preparation, this article aims to become the go-to resource for candidates worldwide who are seeking to excel in the McKinsey case interview and want to kickstart their McKinsey careers. By providing comprehensive insights, practical tips, and concrete examples, our goal is to equip you with the knowledge and confidence required to stand out in the competitive world of management consulting.

As former McKinsey consultants and interview experts, we have specialized in helping our candidates to effectively tackle this part of the McKinsey assessment. We found that the information on the McKinsey application process and specifically the case interviews is often wrong, outdated, or assumed to be the same as for every other consulting firm, and written by ‘experts’, who have never conducted an interview at McKinsey or even seen a McKinsey office from the inside.

As a consequence, the advice given can be detrimental to your recruiting success with the firm.

In this article, we want to shed some light on this mysterious, often-talked-about, even more often misunderstood interview. For those overcoming McKinsey case interview challenges, our article serves as a comprehensive guide, infused with McKinsey interview tips and tailored strategies that resonate with interviewers.

McKinsey’s Interview Process

Overview of the recruitment process.

Discover advanced techniques for McKinsey case studies and understand the McKinsey interview process, setting a solid foundation for your case interview preparation. The McKinsey recruitment process typically consists of the following stages:

• Application submission: Candidates submit their resume , cover letter , and academic transcripts online.
• Online assessments: Selected candidates may be invited to complete an online assessment, the McKinsey Solve Game (previously known as the Imbellus test, or Problem Solving Game/PSG)
• First-round interviews: Successful candidates progress to first-round interviews, which typically involve two separate interviews, each consisting of a Personal Experience Interview (PEI) and a case interview.
• Final-round interviews: Candidates who excel in the first round are invited to final-round interviews, which usually consist of two to three separate interviews with more senior McKinsey consultants or partners, again featuring a PEI and a case interview in each session.
• Offer decision: Following the final round, the interviewers of the firm decide on whether to extend an offer to the candidate.

The Personal Experience Interview (PEI)

The Personal Experience Interview (PEI) is a critical component of McKinsey’s interview process. During the PEI, the interviewer will ask the candidate to share a specific example from their past experiences that demonstrates one of McKinsey’s core values, such as leadership, personal impact, or the ability to deal with change. Candidates should prepare concise and compelling stories that highlight their achievements, challenges faced, and the lessons learned. The PEI aims to assess the candidate’s interpersonal skills, self-awareness, and overall fit with McKinsey’s culture.

To read more on this part of the interview, follow these links:

McKinsey Personal Experience Interview

McKinsey PEI: Courageous Change

McKinsey PEI: Inclusive Leadership

McKinsey PEI: Personal Impact

The Case Interview (Problem-Solving Interview)

The case interview is the centerpiece of McKinsey’s interview process. In this interview, the candidate is presented with a real-life or hypothetical business problem, which they must analyze and solve. The interviewer will assess the candidate’s ability to structure the problem, analyze data, generate insights, and communicate recommendations effectively.

During the case interview, candidates should exhibit strong problem-solving, analytical, and communication skills, as well as the ability to think critically under pressure. Preparing for the case interview involves practicing a variety of cases, developing essential skills, and understanding the McKinsey case interview framework (more on that below).

How to prepare for McKinsey case interviews encompasses more than just understanding consulting case frameworks; it involves a deep dive into McKinsey case interview examples and solutions.

McKinsey Interview Video Academy

Look behind the curtains and understand how to ace McKinsey Case and Personal Experience Interviews with our 40-part video academy. Curated by former McKinsey consultants and interviewers with the best track record in the industry.

Understanding the McKinsey Case Interview

What is a case interview.

A case interview is a unique type of job interview that tests a candidate’s ability to analyze, solve, and communicate complex business problems. During a case interview, the interviewer presents a real-life or hypothetical business scenario, and the candidate is expected to analyze the situation, identify the key issues, and propose a strategic solution. The case interview format allows the interviewer to evaluate a candidate’s problem-solving, analytical, and interpersonal skills, which are essential for a successful career in management consulting.

Why does McKinsey use case interviews?

McKinsey & Company uses case interviews as a key component of its recruitment process for several reasons. First, the case interview format closely simulates the work environment and tasks that consultants face daily, providing the firm with a more accurate assessment of a candidate’s potential performance. Second, case interviews allow McKinsey to evaluate a candidate’s ability to think critically, structure complex problems, and communicate effectively under pressure – skills that are crucial for consultants who must deliver high-quality solutions to clients. Lastly, case interviews serve as a consistent and objective measure of a candidate’s capabilities, enabling the firm to compare candidates from diverse backgrounds fairly and accurately.

Regarding the last point, McKinsey invests significantly into creating an objective recruitment procedure with the cases. Interviewers are selected from the top performers of the firm, go through rigorous interviewer training, and shadow other interviewers in live interviews before being allowed to conduct interviews themselves.

Cases are created in a thorough training seminar based on stringent criteria that standardize difficulty levels across the globe. Also, the interviewer-led format allows for a more objective evaluation compared to the candidate-led format employed by most other firms. More on that next.

What is different in McKinsey’s interview format?

The McKinsey Problem Solving Interview is a typical case interview as it is employed by most consulting firms to test the analytical capabilities and communication skills of applicants. However, it comes with a twist. The interview simulates a client situation, where you are tasked to solve a specific business problem that they are facing.

You will have to answer a succession of several questions rather than driving the case yourself as would be the case in other consulting firms. Within the interview, which is a dialogue between you and the interviewer, you need to structure problems, propose concrete ideas, gather information, spot insights in data and charts, solve quantitative problems, and communicate professionally and calmly.

The case is the hardest part for most candidates since it involves several different skills that need to be demonstrated consistently across all questions and multiple cases in succession. Depending on the office, applicants need to go through four to six case interviews before receiving an offer. They need to convince the interviewers in all cases to start their McKinsey careers.

Types of cases you may encounter

During a McKinsey case interview, candidates may encounter a variety of case types that cover different industries, functions, and challenges. The following is just a selection of potential case problems that you would need to solve.

• Market entry: Evaluating the attractiveness of entering a new market or launching a new product or service.
• Growth strategy: Identifying opportunities for a company to grow its revenue, market share, or profitability.
• Mergers and acquisitions: Assessing the feasibility and potential value of merging with or acquiring another company.
• Cost reduction: Identifying areas for cost savings and efficiency improvements in a company’s operations or supply chain.
• Pricing strategy: Determining the optimal pricing structure for a product or service to maximize revenue or profit.
• Organizational restructuring: Evaluating changes to a company’s organizational structure or management processes to improve performance.
• Operational improvements: Figure out and improve operational issues.

While the specifics of each case may differ, the core skills required to tackle these cases – such as structuring, data analysis, and problem-solving – remain consistent across all case types.

On top of that, McKinsey cases have become much more creative over the last couple of years, hence, using memorized and established frameworks will never serve you well . Rather it is important to approach every McKinsey case from a first-principles approach. While you might expect a case in a market entry context, it is almost guaranteed that you will have to create a non-standard case framework.

Consider as a case context an EV manufacturer that wants to enter the Chinese market.

What most candidates expect the framework question to look like: What factors would you look at when deciding whether to enter the Chinese EV market?

How an actual McKinsey framework question could look like: What key product characteristics would you consider and analyze when looking at the Chinese EV market?

No standardized framework would help you in this situation.

For instance, consider another real McKinsey case example.

You are working with an operator of a specific type of machines. They break down at different rates at different locations. What factors can you think of why that would happen? Example of a McKinsey Case Interview Structure Questions

There is not a single memorized framework bucket that would work here.

Let us look at an example answer for this prompt.

Less than 1% of candidates make it through the recruiting filters of McKinsey. You want to provide insights that the interviewer has not heard before and not be just like the other 99% that fail to impress.

Learning how to deconstruct problems is the key to success, not memorizing outdated approaches and frameworks of yesteryear.

What is the Format of the McKinsey Case?

A typical McKinsey case follows the PEI in a one-hour interview session. It lasts for 25 to 30 minutes in an interviewer-led format , meaning that the interviewer takes the lead and guides you through the case. Your role as the interviewee is to answer the questions asked by the interviewer before they move on to the next question. While it is the interviewer’s responsibility to provide hints and move you through the different questions, you should take the lead with each question.

Depending on your performance and speed, you will be asked three to six questions . Question types are:

• Structuring / Initial Case Framework
• Data and Chart Analysis
• Structuring / Brainstorming

Recommendations are usually not part of the evaluation, though they might come up now and then.

Only receiving three questions is a positive sign since the interviewer was happy with your answers to each question. Going above three questions usually happens when the interviewer wants to dig deeper into a specific question type to see if the quality of a previous answer to a similar question was just an outlier or can be confirmed with a second question.

Most candidates need more than three questions to convince the interviewer, so don’t be scared when your case gets a little bit longer and consists of more than three questions.

Some offices also offer a McKinsey phone case interview as a first screening device, which follows the same structure as an in-person interview.

Is the McKinsey Case Interview Different From a BCG or Bain Interview?

While there are many similarities between McKinsey interviews and interviews with other firms, McKinsey interviews are interviewer-led, while other firms employ a candidate-led format .

McKinsey, BCG, and Bain cases have certain things in common:

• The elements of the cases are the same. You will have to structure problems, interpret exhibits, and work through some calculations, come up with recommendations or implications, etc.
• The skills that are assessed are the same. You need to exhibit strong problem-solving skills, creativity, ability to work under pressure, top-down communication, etc.

However, there is one key difference:

• In interviewer-led cases, you take ownership of every question and go into greater detail here, while the interviewer guides you from question to question. In the interviewee-led case, you drive the whole case and have to move along, get the correct information to work with by asking the right questions, and analyze the problem to then deduct a recommendation

In a McKinsey case, the interviewer will guide you through a series of connected questions that you need to answer, synthesize, and develop recommendations from. There are clear directions and a flow of questions, which you need to answer with a hypothesis-driven mindset . These are arguably easier to prepare for and to go through since the flow and types of questions will always be the same.

For McKinsey case interview examples, check the available interviewer-led cases  here .

In a candidate-led BCG case interview or Bain case interview, due to the nature of your role as an investigator, it is much easier to get lost, walk down the wrong branch of the issue tree, and waste a ton of time. While the interviewers will try to influence you to move in the right direction (pay attention to their hints), it is still up to you what elements of the problem you would like to analyze. Each answer should lead to a new question (hypothesis-driven) on your quest to find the root cause of the problem to come up with a recommendation on how to overcome it.

Nonetheless, it is not necessarily easier to convince a McKinsey interviewer, since your answers need to stand out in terms of breadth, depth, and insightfulness. You have more time to develop and discuss each answer but expectations about the quality of your answers are also heightened significantly.

For instance, in an interviewer-led case, candidates are afforded more time to elaborate on their frameworks. This demands not only a comprehensive framework but also one that delves deeper, aiming for three levels of insightful analysis. This depth showcases the candidate’s ability to think critically and provide nuanced insights. The discussion of this framework typically spans 5 to 8 minutes.

Conversely, in candidate-led cases, the strategy shifts. Here, the emphasis is on swiftly identifying and articulating the most critical areas for examination. Candidates must quickly prioritize these areas and then delve into a detailed analysis of the selected issues. This requires a concise yet targeted approach, with the initial framework discussion taking about 2 to 3 minutes. This format tests the candidate’s ability to quickly discern key areas and efficiently manage their analysis under tighter time constraints.

Questions of a McKinsey Case Interview

In the McKinsey interview you will have to answer  three different questions types  – broadly speaking:

• Structuring (includes creating frameworks and brainstorming questions)
• Exhibit Interpretation

Structuring

Structuring includes both the framework creation at the beginning of a case as well as answering brainstorming questions (usually at a later stage of the case).

A case interview structure is used to break the problem you are trying to solve for the client down into smaller problems or components. It is the roadmap you establish at the beginning of the interview that will guide your problem-solving approach throughout the case. A strong initial structure should cover all elements of the situation AND allow you to understand where the problem is coming from. Read more about case interview structure and frameworks here .

A common question would be:

What factors would you look at to understand the problem better? McKinsey framework question

Brainstorming has you come up with specific ideas around a certain topic (in a structured manner). Read more about brainstorming here .

What ideas can you think of that could decrease customer check-out time? McKinsey brainstorming question

Data interpretation

For chart or data interpretation , you are tasked to find the key insights of 1-2 PowerPoint slides and relate them to the case question and the client situation at hand. Read more about exhibit interpretation here .

Case math questions have you analyze a problem mathematically before qualitatively investigating the particular reason for the numerical result or deriving specific recommendations from the outcome. Read more on how to ace case math here .

How to Think About McKinsey Case Questions

Now for  structure and exhibit interpretation , there is no right or wrong answer in a McKinsey interview. Some answers are better than others because they are

• hypothesis-driven
• follow strong communication (MECE, top-down, signposted)

That being said, there is no 100% that you can reach or a one-and-only solution/ answer. Your answers must display the characteristics specified above and are supported well with arguments.

Though numerous strategies exist for tackling a problem, it’s crucial to understand that while there aren’t strictly right or wrong answers, not all approaches are equally effective. The misconception often lies in the belief that there’s a singular correct method, especially when constructing a framework.

In reality, you could employ over ten different strategies to analyze a case or break down a problem, potentially leading to the same analytical results. This versatility and ability to think through various lenses are precisely what McKinsey interviews aim to evaluate.

However, it’s also important to recognize that there are countless ways to miss the mark. This typically happens when your framework is either too narrow or excessively broad, lacks depth, or fails to offer meaningful insights.

As for  math questions , usually, some answers are correct (not always 100% the same since some candidates simplify or round differently – which is ok), and others are wrong, either due to the

• calculation approach
• calculation itself

Now, for the interviewer, the overall picture counts. Mistakes in one area need to be balanced by a strong performance in other areas. McKinsey wants to see spikes in performance in certain areas and a good enough performance in other areas.

The most common example we see almost every day: You can be strong in structure and exhibit, yet make a small mistake in the math section – overall as you might consider 80% – and still pass on to the next round.

Be aware that in 99% of cases, there is no recommendation question in the end. The case just ends with the last case question. This is something many candidates are surprised by when they get out of their McKinsey interviews.

Mastering the McKinsey Case Interview Framework

In the sequence of questions that you receive, you need to demonstrate that you can

• identify the ask;
• structure the problem to investigate it;
• analyze data related to it;
• generate insight and recommendations;
• communicate effectively.

Problem identification

The first step in tackling a McKinsey case interview is to identify the core problem or question that needs to be addressed. Carefully listen to the case prompt and take notes, ensuring that you understand the client’s objectives, the scope of the problem, and any constraints. Clarify any uncertainties with the interviewer before moving forward.

Structuring the problem

Once you have identified the problem, develop a structured approach to address it. Break down the problem into smaller, more manageable components using logical frameworks. Tailor the chosen framework to the specific case, incorporating any unique factors or considerations. Present your structure to the interviewer, explaining your rationale and seeking their input or approval.

Data analysis and interpretation

As you proceed with your structured approach, you may be provided with additional data or information by the interviewer. Analyze the data, using quantitative techniques, such as calculating growth rates, market shares, or breakeven points, to draw meaningful insights. Be prepared to make assumptions or estimates if necessary but ensure they are reasonable and well-justified.

Generating insights and recommendations

Based on your data analysis, develop actionable insights and recommendations that address the client’s objectives. Consider the potential impact, feasibility, and risks associated with each recommendation. Think creatively and strategically, incorporating both qualitative and quantitative factors into your decision-making process.

Synthesis and communication

Finally, synthesize your findings and recommendations into a clear and concise conclusion. Use the “top-down” communication style, starting with your main recommendation, followed by the supporting evidence and insights. Demonstrate strong communication skills by articulating your thought process and recommendations persuasively and confidently. Be prepared to answer any follow-up questions from the interviewer and engage in a discussion to defend or refine your conclusions.

• Pyramid principle communication
• How to communicate in a case interview

In this format, McKinsey assesses in a case interview six skills that you need to demonstrate consistently in every case interview.

Skills Assessed by McKinsey

• Problem-solving: Are you able to derive a MECE (mutually exclusive, collectively exhaustive) framework, breaking a problem down into smaller problems, and accurately covering all aspects of the problem?
• Analytical rigor and logical thinking: Can you link the structure to creative thinking? Are you using a hypothesis-driven approach to your problem solving, i.e. have a clear picture of where you think the solution of the case is buried most likely? Do you qualify your thinking, follow your structure, tackle (likely) high-impact issues first, lead the interviewer, and ask the right questions?
• Mental math and basic calculus : Are you able to structure quantitative problems and comfortably perform calculations? Can you derive the correct approach to calculate the desired outcome variable? Can you plug in the numbers and perform the calculations, relying on basic pen-and-paper math, shortcuts, and mental math?
• Creativity: Do you think about a problem holistically, offering broad, deep, and insightful perspectives? Are you able to come up with different angles to the problem (breadth) and draft rich descriptions that qualify why these areas are important to investigate (depth)?
• Communication: Are you able to communicate like a consultant? Are you following a top-down communication approach similar to the Pyramid Principle taught by Minto? Do all of your statements add value and do you guide the interviewer through your thinking?
• Maturity and presence: Are you leading the conversation or are merely getting dragged along by the interviewer? Are you confident and mature? Are you comfortable with silence while taking time to structure your thinking?
• Business sense and intuition : Are you able to quickly understand the business and the situation of the client? Can you swiftly interpret data, charts, exhibits, and statements made by the interview? Are you asking the right questions? Are you able to make sense of new information quickly and interpret it properly in the context of the case?

Now, these skills are assessed in a very specific interviewing format, which is not natural for most applicants and needs significant practice to become second nature.

You can download this scoring sheet for your case practice here .

Key Strategies to Excel in a McKinsey Case Interview

Using the mece principle.

MECE (Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive) is a problem-solving principle that helps ensure your analysis is both comprehensive and well-organized. Apply the MECE principle when structuring your approach to a case by breaking down the problem into distinct, non-overlapping components while ensuring that all relevant aspects are covered. This method allows you to maintain a clear and logical structure throughout the case and reduces the likelihood of overlooking critical factors.

Applying the 80/20 rule

The 80/20 rule, also known as the Pareto Principle , suggests that 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. In the context of a case interview, this means focusing on the most critical issues or factors that will have the most significant impact on the client’s objectives. By prioritizing your analysis and recommendations, you can work more efficiently and effectively, demonstrating your ability to identify and address the most pressing concerns for the client.

Hypothesis-driven approach

Using a hypothesis-driven approach means forming an initial hypothesis or educated guess about the potential solution to the problem and then testing it using data and analysis. By starting with a hypothesis, you can guide your problem-solving process more efficiently, focusing your efforts on collecting evidence that supports or refutes your hypothesis. Throughout the case, be prepared to revise or refine your hypothesis as new information emerges.

Incorporating creativity and business intuition

While frameworks and structured approaches are essential, it’s also crucial to demonstrate creativity and business intuition during a McKinsey case interview. This means thinking beyond the standard frameworks and considering innovative solutions or unique factors that may be relevant to the specific case. Use your knowledge of industry trends, best practices, and real-world business challenges to inform your analysis and recommendations. By combining structured thinking with creative problem-solving, you can showcase your ability to deliver well-rounded, impactful solutions for clients.

Preparing for the McKinsey Case Interview

Most candidates prepare using generic frameworks. Alternatively, they are looking for a McKinsey case book PDF or a case study interview questions and answers PDF with the hope that the cases will be the same across interviewers and interviews.

Do not learn case-specific frameworks by heart , expecting them to work for every case you encounter. There is no specific McKinsey case study framework or McKinsey case study book. It is much more important to learn the right approach that will help you tackle all types of cases. This is even more relevant for McKinsey interviews.

What you need to do is to study each question type and the associated skills in a case interview and learn how to approach it, regardless of the client situation, the context of the case, the industry, or the function. Your goal should be to learn how to build issue trees, interpret charts, and perform math no matter the context, industry, or function of the case, and follow our McKinsey case interview tips.

Similarly to the case types and frameworks, many candidates ask if there is a specific McKinsey implementation case interview, McKinsey operation case interview, or McKinsey digital case interview. In fact, the cases are usually a mix of cases in a domain-relevant context as well as cases set in a completely different context to the role you are applying for.

Be aware that frameworks were applicable in the 2000 years, the era of Victor Cheng and Case in Point. McKinsey has long caught up on this and the cases you will get during the interviews are tailored in a way to test your creativity and ability to generate insights on the spot, not remember specific frameworks.

In fact, it will hurt you when you try to use a framework on a case that calls for a completely different approach. Also, it gives a false sense of security that will translate to stress once you figure out how your approach won’t work during the real interview – We have seen this way too often…

Rather, focus on the following:

Developing the right mindset

Success in the McKinsey case interview starts with cultivating the right mindset. Being mentally prepared involves:

• Embracing a growth mindset: Recognize that your skills can improve with consistent practice and effort. Stay open to feedback from coaches and peers and learn from your mistakes.
• Building resilience: Understand that case interviews are challenging, and you may face setbacks during your preparation. Stay persistent and maintain a positive attitude. Use a proper case interview preparation plan .
• Adopting a client-first perspective: Approach each case as if you were a consultant working on a real client engagement, focusing on delivering value and actionable insights.

Learning the essential skills

To excel in the McKinsey case interview, it’s crucial to develop the following skills:

• Problem structuring: Break down complex problems into smaller, more manageable components using frameworks and logical structures.
• Qualitative and quantitative analysis: Interpret and analyze data to draw meaningful insights and make informed decisions.
• Hypothesis-driven thinking: Develop and test hypotheses to guide your problem-solving approach efficiently.
• Communication: Clearly articulate your thought process, insights, and recommendations concisely and persuasively.

Our courses and drills are designed to provide you with the precise knowledge you need. Drawing on our experience as former McKinsey interviewers, we understand what matters most and how to ensure you can leverage that to your advantage.

More on that next.

Studying relevant materials and resources

Leverage various resources to enhance your understanding of case interviews and management consulting:

• Books: The most effective and exhaustive case interview preparation book is The 1%: Conquer Your Consulting Case Interview (shameless plug). It goes much deeper than the usual suspects which are outdated and provide faulty advice on case interviews.
• Websites and blogs : Websites like StrategyCase.com offer the latest case interview tips, practice cases, and industry insights. You can check out more free articles covering consulting applications and interviews here .
• Online courses: Enroll in case interview preparation courses to gain structured guidance and access to a wealth of practice materials. We have created several high-quality courses for all elements of the McKinsey interview (see below)

We are the highest ranked and most successful case coaches on the web and have helped 100s of candidates break into McKinsey. As former McKinsey consultants and interview experts, we have specialized in getting our candidates into the firm. We can help you by

• tailoring your resume and cover letter to meet McKinsey’s standards
• showing you how to pass the McKinsey Imbellus Solve Game
• showing you how to ace McKinsey interviews and the PEI with our video academy
• coaching you in our 1-on-1 sessions to become an excellent case solver and impress with your fit answers (90% success rate after 5 sessions)
• preparing your math to be bulletproof for every McKinsey case interview
• helping you structure creative and complex McKinsey cases
• teaching you how to interpret McKinsey charts and exhibits
• providing you with cheat sheets and overviews for 27 industries .

Reach out to us if you have any questions! We are happy to help and offer a tailored program.

Practicing with case partners

Regular practice with case partners is essential for honing your case interview skills:

• Find practice partners: Connect with fellow candidates through online forums, social media groups, or local consulting clubs.
• Set a practice schedule: Aim to practice at least a few cases per week, gradually increasing the difficulty and variety of cases.
• Seek feedback: After each practice case, discuss your performance with your partner, and identify areas for improvement.
• Alternate roles: Take turns playing the role of the interviewer and the interviewee to develop a deeper understanding of the case interview process.

Common Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them

Common mistakes.

• Insufficient structure: Failing to break down the problem into manageable components can lead to a disorganized analysis and an inability to identify key issues.
• Overlooking the big picture: Becoming too focused on the details and losing sight of the overall objective or client’s needs can hinder the development of effective recommendations.
• Ignoring qualitative factors: Relying solely on quantitative data without considering qualitative aspects may result in an incomplete understanding of the problem.
• Ineffective communication: Struggling to articulate your thought process, insights, or recommendations clearly and persuasively can undermine the value of your analysis.
• Failing to adapt: Sticking to a preconceived framework or hypothesis despite conflicting evidence may indicate a lack of flexibility and critical thinking.

Tips to prevent these mistakes

• Practice structuring: Develop your ability to structure problems effectively by practicing with a wide range of cases and familiarizing yourself with common frameworks.
• Stay focused on the objective: Periodically remind yourself of the client’s goals and priorities, ensuring that your analysis remains aligned with their needs.
• Balance quantitative and qualitative factors: Recognize the importance of both quantitative data and qualitative insights in forming a well-rounded understanding of the problem.
• Hone your communication skills: Practice speaking clearly, concisely, and persuasively, ensuring that your message is easily understood and well-received.
• Embrace adaptability: Be open to revising your approach, framework, or hypothesis in response to new information or feedback, demonstrating your ability to think critically and flexibly.

McKinsey Interview Course

Unlock the Secrets to Acing McKinsey Interviews with Our Comprehensive Training Program

Are you eager to dive deep into mastering the McKinsey interviews? Look no further than our extensive 40-part Ready-for-McKinsey Interview Academy . This exceptional video program features simulated McKinsey-specific case studies and in-depth coverage of all Personal Experience Interview (PEI) dimensions and stories. Our Interview Academy is the ultimate resource to prepare you for success in your McKinsey case interviews.

We take pride in our results: an impressive 9 out of 10 candidates who complete our one-on-one Ready-for-McKinsey Interview Coaching program receive an offer. This track record has earned us consistent recognition as the best McKinsey and MBB coaches on several platforms.

Frequently Asked Questions McKinsey Case Interview

How can candidates best manage their time during the case interview to ensure they cover all necessary aspects of the case without running out of time? Candidates can manage their time effectively by quickly understanding the case prompt, structuring their approach clearly, prioritizing key analyses, staying focused on the most critical issues, and keeping an eye on the time to ensure they cover all necessary aspects without running out of time​ ​. However, keep in mind that it is also the McKinsey interviewer’s responsibility to go through all necessary elements of the case within the allotted time. If you are too slow (problematic) or too exhaustive yet add value to the question (not problematic), they might move the case forward on their own.

What are the most common reasons candidates fail in McKinsey case interviews, and how can these pitfalls be avoided? Common reasons for failure include lack of structure in problem-solving, missing key insights by not delving deep enough into the data, poor communication of thought process, and inability to adapt to new information. These pitfalls can be avoided by practicing structured problem-solving, actively engaging with the data, clearly articulating thought processes, and being flexible to pivot as needed​ ​.

Can you provide examples of unexpected or unconventional case types that have appeared in McKinsey interviews in recent years? Recent McKinsey interviews have featured cases beyond traditional business scenarios, such as identifying the right stakeholders to talk to in a situation or identifying reasons why an app has a low customer retention rate.

How does McKinsey adjust its case interview process for candidates with non-business backgrounds, such as those from engineering or humanities? McKinsey’s case interview process for candidates with non-business backgrounds is the same as for candidates with a business background. All cases focus on problem-solving skills and potential rather than specific business knowledge. Candidates are evaluated on their ability to structure problems, analyze data, and think critically, with the understanding that business-specific knowledge can be learned​ ​. This article not only outlines tips for passing McKinsey consulting interviews but also addresses preparing for McKinsey interviews without a business background, ensuring a holistic approach to your consulting journey.

What specific aspects of a candidate’s performance are McKinsey interviewers most focused on during the case interview? McKinsey interviewers focus on problem-solving skills, the ability to structure and analyze complex issues, creativity in developing solutions, clear and concise communication, and the potential for leadership and impact​ ​. They are looking for candidates with a well-rounded profile that have performance spikes in some areas and a robust performance in others (without clear weaknesses).

How does the difficulty level of McKinsey’s case interviews compare to real consulting projects at McKinsey? The difficulty level of McKinsey’s case interviews is designed to be comparable to the challenges faced in real consulting projects. They simulate the complex, ambiguous problems consultants tackle, testing candidates’ ability to navigate similar challenges effectively​ ​. The main difference is that they are simplified to the extent that it is feasible to go through them in 25 minutes.

Are there any particular industries or business functions that McKinsey is focusing on in its current case interviews due to market trends or strategic priorities of the firm? While McKinsey’s case interviews cover a wide range of industries and functions, there may be a focus on emerging areas of strategic importance such as digital transformation, sustainability, healthcare innovation, and analytics, reflecting broader market trends and the firm’s current priorities​ ​.

How has the transition to more virtual interviews affected the case interview process and candidates’ performance from McKinsey’s perspective? The transition to more virtual interviews has required adjustments in how cases are presented and how candidates engage with the material. While the core evaluation criteria remain unchanged, McKinsey has adapted to ensure a fair assessment, paying close attention to communication and problem-solving skills in a virtual format​ ​.

What advice do former candidates who successfully passed the McKinsey case interview have for future applicants? Former candidates advise practicing as much as possible, understanding the case interview format, focusing on structured problem-solving, developing clear and concise communication skills, being prepared to think on one’s feet, and demonstrating leadership potential and personal impact​ ​.

How can candidates incorporate feedback from practice sessions into improving their performance for the actual McKinsey case interview? Candidates can improve their performance by actively seeking feedback from practice sessions, identifying areas for improvement, working on specific skills such as structuring or analysis, practicing under realistic conditions (e.g., timed), and continuously refining their approach based on feedback​ ​.

In summary, acing the McKinsey case interview requires a deep understanding of the interview process, mastery of essential skills, and the ability to apply effective problem-solving strategies. In this article, we highlighted the key strategies for McKinsey problem-solving interviews, ensuring your preparation aligns with the best practices for McKinsey interview preparation. By embracing the MECE principle, applying the 80/20 rule, adopting a hypothesis-driven approach, and incorporating creativity and business intuition, you will be well-equipped to tackle any case interview challenge.

Remember to invest time in preparing for both the Personal Experience Interview and the case interview itself, using the wealth of resources and practice materials available. Focus on developing a structured approach, honing your analytical and communication skills, and staying adaptable throughout the interview process.

As you embark on your McKinsey case interview journey, stay confident and persistent in your efforts. By applying the tips and strategies shared in this article, you will be one step closer to achieving your consulting career aspirations. We wish you the best of luck in your journey toward success at McKinsey.

We Want to Hear from You!

Your journey to mastering the McKinsey case interview is unique, and you might have lingering questions or insights you’d like to share. Whether you’re curious about specific parts of the McKinsey interview process, seeking further clarification on case interview preparation strategies, or have your own tips for navigating the challenges of consulting interviews, we’re here to engage and assist.

Drop your questions, experiences, or advice in the comments below.

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Florian spent 5 years with McKinsey as a senior consultant. He is an experienced consulting interviewer and problem-solving coach, having interviewed 100s of candidates in real and mock interviews. He started StrategyCase.com to make top-tier consulting firms more accessible for top talent, using tailored and up-to-date know-how about their recruiting. He ranks as the most successful consulting case and fit interview coach, generating more than 500 offers with MBB, tier-2 firms, Big 4 consulting divisions, in-house consultancies, and boutique firms through direct coaching of his clients over the last 3.5 years. His books “The 1%: Conquer Your Consulting Case Interview” and “Consulting Career Secrets” are available via Amazon.

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McKinsey PST: a comprehensive guide

Six question types, skills tested, optimal pst prep: plan and test strategy, practice material, the next level, take our test for free.

• Our PST preparation programmes

McKinsey PST: an adaptive learning approach to pass the test

The McKinsey Problem Solving Test (McKinsey PST) is a data interpretation and critical number reasoning test used by McKinsey to select candidates to be admitted to the first round of case interviews . The use of the PST is the main difference between the McKinsey recruiting process and those of its main competitors. The other distinct element is the PEI, or Personal Experience Interview. However, with this set of questions on personal impact McKinsey closely approximates the fit interviews of other firms.

The McKinsey PST is so notoriously difficult because it tests a very diverse skillset and requires you to work under the tightest of time constraints . Of those candidates good enough to be considered and given the PST McKinsey only pass one in three - where failure means immediate rejection . However, we are proud to say that despite the average PST pass rate being so low, 85% of candidates who use our course pass their own PST . For anyone who doesn't pass, we return half of their money .

This article serves as a guide to help you prepare for your McKinsey PST. We begin with an overview of what the PST is all about - this gives you a five minute briefing on all the essential information and the context of the PST.

Next, we spend some time going through each kind of PST question in turn, providing structured approaches to tackling them, complete with fully-worked PST example questions and specific PST tips and tricks which might come in useful.

Finally, we put everything together, with step-by-step guidelines on how to prepare for McKinsey PST success using our adaptive learning methodology .

Practice tests developed by McKinsey consultants

There are seven key facts which you will need to know about the McKinsey PST:

1. Who Has to Do the PST?

Not everyone has to do the McKinsey Problem Solving Test . Experienced hires and those recruited from top-tier business schools are often spared. However, in general, anyone applying to an entry-level business analyst role will be expected to pass the McKinsey PST to be considered.

If you are not sure whether you will be required to do the PST, your default assumption should be that you will , but you should ask with the HR team at the office you are applying to so as to be certain - this is a perfectly reasonable enquiry to make.

2. Format: 26 Questions, Pen and Paper

The PST is a multiple choice test completed on paper. 26 questions are divided between three business cases . These cases test how you would perform in the different phases of a consulting project: client interaction, problem definition, problem solving, analytical work and implementation. The cases are on the kinds of issues that real consultants will encounter in the field, including problems on market entry, profitability and operational improvement.

3. 60 Minutes

Quite simply, if you had three hours to work on an individual McKinsey PST, you could pass easily without any help. Time is the single major constraint in the PST. You are not allowed to use a calculator , computer or any other time saving device beyond your own brain, you need to make sure you have developed and practiced the required skillset - especially time saving skills - and approach the test as a whole with the most effective possible strategy .

60 minutes equates to just over two minutes per question , with a few minutes at the end to enter answers onto the answer sheet and quickly check everything is in order. Many candidates actually fail simply as they do not allow enough time at the end for this basic task. You have to be ready to work fast!

4. Make or Break

No matter how good your resume is , if you fail the PST McKinsey will not consider you any further and you will not be invited to interview. Remember, there will be hundreds of candidates with comparable resumes and the Problem Solving Test is given precisely to thin down this field. Passing is mandatory. Even after you pass and interview, your PST score will be considered alongside your interview performance to determine whether you are given an offer.

5. 70% Cut-Off

Success in the PST is an absolute function of your score rather than how it compares relative to other candidates - there is no "curve" . As such, performing better than the next candidate will be meaningless in itself. If all the candidates are sub-standard, all will fail.

Whilst McKinsey does not publish the exact cutoff for the PST, the best estimates (based on surveys of successful candidates) place it at around 70% .

One important point to remember is that you should give an answer for every question even if you are not entirely sure . The PST is not scored negatively - that is, for the PST McKinsey will not penalise for incorrect guesses (as per the system many medical students will be familiar with). As such, you should always give your best guess , just in case you get lucky.

6. 1-in-3 Success Rate

Whilst scoring is absolute, unofficial surveys have indicated that a fairly regular PST pass rate at around 33% . Most of those candidates who fail do so because they didn't work efficiently enough and/or failed to manage their time correctly , rather than because they lacked any cognitive capacity. One of the major causes of failure is actually candidates not allocating sufficient time at the end of the test to fill in the PST answer sheet!

The takeaway here is that the McKinsey Problem Solving Test should be treated more as a skill-test to be practiced for , rather than as some assessment of raw intelligence you can simply walk in and expect to pass if you are clever enough. You need to understand the relevant time saving methods and strategies to approach the test as a whole if you want to pass and eventually land your job at McKinsey.

7. McKinsey PST vs GMAT

If you have never sat the GMAT, you can skip this point. Many candidates who have previously prepped for and sat the GMAT suffer from a false assumption that the PST will be the same test by a different name - that there are very few diffences in the McKinsey PST vs GMAT. However, despite the similar format, this is not the case.

There is some overlap - for instance, you will need to have strong math for both. However, the PST requires a totally different, less academic style of math , where you need to be able to estimate, prioritise calculations and know how to take the right shortcuts (our mental math article is relevant on the differences here). Generally, the PST and GMAT serve different purposes and are tailored to those purposes in different ways. As such, you need to treat the PST as its own beast and prep for it accordingly.

An AI-based, bespoke preparation plan

As we have noted, the McKinsey PST is partitioned into three business cases, with eight to ten questions for each case. As with a real project, or indeed a case interview, you will be presented with data in charts or tables as well as with descriptive text . Typically, each individual piece of information will be followed by two to three questions referring to that information specifically.

PST questions can be split into six groups which can be expected to account for different fractions of the test. Let's take an in-depth look at each:

1. ~35% - Reading Facts

Reading facts PST questions test your ability to extract and elaborate data from graphs and tables. These are the most common question type, and you can expect them to make up around 35% of your PST.

Typical Formats

• Which of the following values is the best estimate of ...?
• Which of the following statements is valid, based on the data ...?
• What is the current ranking of options 1 to 5?
• Which of the following values is the best estimate of ABC revenue in Year 4?
• To the nearest tenth percentage point, what is the difference between Italy’s and Spain’s respective average annual agriculture sector growths due to fertilizing over the last 10 years?

Worked Example

The table below shows the sales development of the Topstar business unit across the main markets.

Which of these markets showed the fastest sales development (in percentage terms) from 2009-2012?

As you can see, two minutes is not a lot of time to solve this! Let's have a look at an efficient method to let you get to the answer as quickly as possible. The steps identified here generalise to other reading facts questions.

Read the question - pretty straightforward in this case, as you are asked to identify the country with the highest growth rate.

Read the answers - there are four countries to be compared.

Go back to the table - compare the growth rate, between only 2009 and 2012, for those four countries. Simplify figures as much as possible and run precise calculations only if you find out that the difference between two countries growth rates is not large enough to guarantee a reliable result through simplification.

Define the calculation - you need to work out the form of the equation you would need to solve in order to calculate market growth. This will be:

Now you can put the equation to work. Start with the first option - the US. Approximately, US growth will be:

From simple inspection, this is obviously much higher than 50% - it is around 70%.

You can then move on to other countries using this US value as a benchmark and comparing them solely to that value. Germany's growth will be:

This is very close to 50% - so obviously less that the ~70% of the US. You can cross out Germany as an incorrect answer. Note that, if the value for Germany had been higher than the US one, you would have crossed out the US and gone forward using the German growth value as your benchmark.

For Italy, the calculation will be:

1/3 is (roughly) 33%, so obviously lower than 50% and certainly lower than the US. Cross out Italy!

For Japan, growth was from 50 to 58, so there is no need to make any calculations in order to rule it out.

This leaves he US (option A) as the correct answer.

Tips and Tricks

There are a couple of tricks you can employ to get through Reading Facts questions more efficiently:

1. Begin with an end in mind

Before performing any calculations, be clear on which formula/equation you need to use. This is crucial as there is no time for trial and error in the PST. Spending just a few more seconds nailing down the exact formula you need at the beginning will pay dividends by saving you much more time in the calculation phase.

2. Minimise the number of calculations

When going through your solutions, you will be surprised by how many calculations can be avoided or approximated mentally. The fundamental question you should ask yourself before performing any calculation is "does this affect the answer?". This might sound a little odd, but it is a habit which you must form to become quick enough to pass the McKinsey PST. Here are a couple of examples where you can "work clever" to avoid redundant calculations:

The Anchoring Technique

This the technique we used in the example above. When looking for the highest value amongst several possible answers, run calculations for the first answer and use that value as a threshold value as you work through the others. If other answers look immediately wrong, do not perform any further calculations - just as we did with Japan, above. (Generally, you can almost think of this as a less probabilistic version of the solution to the secretary problem .)

The Selection Technique

Here, you pre-select only the calculations which are essential to identifying the answer. For example, the question below asks you to rank the effectiveness of 5 solutions:

• 1, 2, 4, 3, 5
• 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
• 1, 3, 2, 4, 5
• 1, 3, 2, 5, 4

Calculating whether solution A is the most effective is a complete waste of your time – it is the least answer-changing analysis. Instead, calculate which is the most effective between solutions B and C, working from there.

3. Master quick percentage calculations

Growth rates and percentages are ubiquitous in the McKinsey Problem Solving Test. In particular, it is pretty much a certainty that you will be asked to calculate growth rates over multiple time periods. This is theoretically feasible by hand, but extremely time-consuming. For example, say the revenues of a given company are growing at 5% per year for four years. In order to get a precise result, you would need to calculate the four year compound growth rate as follows:

Quite simply, regardless of how quick you are at math, you absolutely do not have the time to go through this whole calculation. It would almost certainly take more than two minutes just for this step, which might not actually be enough to answer the whole question (usually, calculating such a percentage will only be a subset of a question).

Instead, you can arrive at an approximate but good-enough value for this growth rate by using a straightforward shortcut. To do this, we simply multiply the growth rate by the number of years it will apply for, estimating the compound growth rate. Here, this will be 5% x 4 years = 20%.

There are a couple of caveats here which will already be obvious to more mathematically inclined readers:

• With positive growth rates, the compound rate will be underestimated. Above, we estimate 20%, but the real figure is actually 21%. Conversely, with negative growth rates, this method will overestimate the compound value.
• The greater the magnitude of the annual growth rate and the greater the number of years for which it is applied, the less precise this technique becomes. For instance, five years of compound growth at 5% per annum yields a 27% compound growth rate, whilst this shortcut would give us a value of 25%.

2. ~18% - Root-Cause Reasons

Root-Cause Reason PST questions test your ability to identify the causes underlying business problems. These questions begin from some fact about a business, which must be explained. The candidate is then given a list of putative explanations for this fact. However, only one of this list of suggestions is actually a logically valid explanation of the phenomenon in question. The candidate must identify which this is.

• Which of the following reasons, if TRUE, is most likely to be the reason for the drop in house prices in year two?
• Which of the following, if true, LEAST explains the data for Slovenia and the Czech Republic in Exhibit 2?
• Which of the following reasons, if TRUE, best explains the reason why the CEO wants to proceed to ...?
• Which of the following does NOT help to explain why ...?
• Which of the following, if TRUE, would best challenge the sales manager's decision?

Zapclothing is a global fashion retailer, traditionally catering primarily to teenage girls and with shops across Europe. Five years ago, the senior management at Zapclothing decided to embark up an move upmarket, with the aim of catering to a slightly older and more affluent customer base.

Leading French and Italian designers were hired to create unique and exclusive lines for Zapclothing, whilst prices were raised across the entire product line by 20-30%. A series of events were held in all major global cities in order to launch the new incarnation of Zapclothing as a brand with a more sophisticated, upscale image.

Initially, this mid-market transition boosted profit margins without altering sales volumes. However, one year later, the company has found itself with plummeting revenues and a decreased profit margin. In order to return profits to their previous higher levels, the marketing manager has proposed a permanent price reduction of 10% across all lines.

Which of the following facts, if true, would best challenge the sales manager's price reduction proposal?

• Over the last year, due to higher commodity costs, prices increased by 15% on average for the whole fashion industry
• Consumers consistently quoted price among the top three quality attributes for mid and high-level fashion brands in surveys over the last 5 years
• In a recent survey, over 80% of the existing customer base claimed that they would still buy more than 50% of their clothes from Zapclothing, regardless of price
• Females aged 20-30 consider price among the top three criteria for deciding whether to make a purchase
• Read the question carefully, making sure that you understand what is being asked.
• Scan the answers and underline the key words in the text. Don't spend any more than 10 seconds on this step - the intention is simply to make you quicker in finding the relevant parts of the introductory paragraph.
• Think carefully about how this proposal can be challenged. The most effective challenge is necessarily that acting based on this proposal would not help to solve the company's problems - in our example, restoring high revenues. If this is the case, then the proposal does not correctly identify the cause of the focal issue.
• Go back to the answers, crossing out the incorrect ones. Let's see how we assess the four answers in our example:
• Not relevant . The fact that prices increases increased on average by 15% for the whole industry does not tell us whether a decision to reduce prices would bring in additional revenue from existing and/or new customers. FALSE
• If consumers consider a higher price to be a signal for superior for mid and high-level fashion brands (where Zapclothing hs positioned itself), reducing prices could have a neutral or even counterproductive effect on revenue growth. TRUE
• Not relevant . This statement is only relevant to revenue derived from existing customers. Even if the behaviour of current customers was entirely unchanged, revenues could still be grown by tapping the pool of potential new customers. The information provided is incomplete and would not be sufficient to challenge the sales manager's proposal. FALSE
• Opposite Direction. This fact would not challenge the sales manager's idea, but reinforce it. FALSE

Practice makes perfect

Correct answers in Root-Cause Reason questions will always have two elements in common:

• Relevance - they have a significant effect on the target stated in the introductory paragraph
• Correct Directionality - their effect on the target should be going in the direction required by the question

As we have already observed in the example above, there are generally three kinds of answer in Root Cause Reasons:

1. Not Relevant

These are answers which have no, or only limited, effect on the proposal in question (as with answers A and C in the example above). By identifying the kind of fact which would have some bearing on the proposal, you will be able to quickly pick out answers which simply have no influence on the relevant issue.

Note here that you should always be careful not to assume anything which is not explicitly stated. Often, there can be a temptation to think beyond what is actually on the page. For example, when you are assessing C above, some candidates might assume that the preferences of existing customers will also be representative of potential new customers as well, or perhaps that the focus on existing customers indicates their particular importance to the problem. This would make C seem more relevant to the sales manager's proposal and would thus then ultimately lead you into error. PST questions are a test of your ability to read closely and think logically - not of your imagination!

2. Relevant, But With the Wrong Directionality

These answers affect the proposal in question, but with the effect going in the opposite direction to what you are looking for. For example, D above actually reinforces the sales manager's proposal rather than challenging it.

One of the most common errors in Root-Cause Reason questions is selecting answers which are relevant, but with the opposite directionality to what the questions is asking for. As such, you must always keep in mind what the question has actually requested and the kind of answer which fulfils that request.

3. Relevant and With the Correct Directionality

These are answers which significantly affect the proposal in the correct direction, according to the parameters set by the question.

3. ~17% - Fact-Based Conclusions

Fact-Based Conclusion PST questions test your ability to draw logical conclusions from a collection of facts. These questions can manifest the greatest degree of variation of all types, and can range from something relatively similar to a Reading Facts question to a requirement for you to make some very tough inferences from rather vague introductory text.

• Which of the following statements can be concluded from ...?
• Based on the data on table ..., which of the following statements is a valid conclusion?

Pharcom is a global pharmaceutical company engaged in the development of small molecule drugs. Your team has been called by the Head of R&D to help him pre-select the drugs that are most likely to reach patenting and commercialization. He claims that, on average, 12% of researched drugs are cleared to be marketed, while the remainder are dismissed either during the R&D process or at final certification. Currently the average total expense for every drug in development is £12m and the full trial and certification lasts for 10 years for the drugs going through the full process. The research and development process of the drugs is constituted by the following steps:

• Trial 1 : Laboratory trial to test the effect of the active ingredients. The trial costs £3.5m and lasts for 2 years.
• Trial 2 : Laboratory trial to test the impact of side effects. The trial costs £4m and lasts for 1.5 years.
• Trial 3 : Animal testing to evaluate bacteria resistance. The trial costs £4.5m and lasts for 4.5 years.
• Final certification by Food and Drug Administration . Filing costs £4.5m. Certification lasts for 2.5 years.

Which of the following statements can be concluded based on the information above?

• Most drugs complete the entire research, development and certification process.
• Before being either approved or dismissed, drugs remain in the development and certification process for an average of 7.5 years.
• Reducing by 50% the length of Trial 2 and Trial 3 would reduce the total cost of the Pharcom research and development process by £4.25m.
• Over 50% of the drugs reach Trial 3 stage in the research and development process.
• Read the question carefully and make sure you understand what is being asked.
• Read the answers and underline key words in the introductory text . Identify the specific graph or portion of the introductory paragraph each answer refers to.
• Start with the numerical answers . These are often the clearest and most straightforward to solve. Generally, go back and forth between the answers and the introductory text and any figures. To identify the correct answers, it helps to consider whether the opposite of the statement would be true.
• Since the average cost per drug is £12m, we can quickly establish that the average time in the pipeline is 8 years - at the end of Trial 3 - as this is the point where £12m of expenses have been accrued (£3.5m from Trail 1, £1.5m from Trial 2 and £4.5m from Trial 3). Let's take the hypothetical case where 50% of drugs stay in the pipeline for 7.5 years and 50% for 8.5 years. In this case, no drugs at all complete the pipeline, but the mean time spent in that pipeline would be 8 years. Since cases where no drugs at all are approved are compatible with the information we have been given, we certainly can't safely infer that most drugs are approved. As such, we can rule out A. FALSE

As we have just established, the average time drugs are in the process before being dismissed or certified is 8 years (as the average cost of £12m is accrued by the end of Trial 3). Obviously, then, the value here of 7.5 years in wrong. FALSE

We simply don't have the information which would be required to know if this statement is true or not. It might be tempting to imagine here that if we halve the time for a trial, we halve the duration of a trial, then we halve its cost - this would indeed yield a value of £4.25m. However, we have no justification for the assumption here that cost varies with time in a purely linear fashion. In more usual business terminology, we cannot assume that the costs associated with trials are purely variable, so that halving the trial's magnitude halves costs. There might be fixed costs which are incurred regardless of trial length - perhaps administrative costs in setting up the trial or the cost of buying equipment, recruiting staff etc. Clearly we cannot state C to be true based on the information we have. FALSE

Trial 3 is reached after 3.5 years - that is, the total duration of Trials 1 and 2. As above, the average time each drug spends in the pipeline is 8 years. Now, mathematically, it is entirely possible for mean and modal values to diverge significantly. This is to say, it is possible for more than half of drugs to be in the pipeline for much less than our 8 year average value as long as there are some drugs staying in the pipleline for much longer so as to balance them out.

Let's take another hypothetical extreme case. We could keep a mean of 8 years but approach the case where the majority of drugs did not make it to Trial 3 by assuming that 50% of drugs are rejected just slightly before the 3.5 year mark. To keep a mean of 8 years, then, the other 50% of drugs would need to remain in the pipleine for 12.5 years. However, the maximum length of the process before certification is 10 years. As such, we know that more than 50% of drugs must be in the pipeline for more than 3.5 years - and thus make it into Trial 3. TRUE

In dealing with Fact-Based Conclusion PST questions, there are three types of answer which you might encounter:

1. False Conclusions

Some answers might simply be false or wrong. Even if they seem logically sound, the outcome might be reversed or otherwise wrong.

2. True Conclusions

Answers which both have sound logic and draw the correct conclusion.

3. Unproven Conclusions

The logic here might be correct and the conclusion might well seem reasonable. However, they cannot be fully supported by the facts which have been presented to you in the introductory text and/or graph.

How to discern false answers from true ones

Telling apart true and false answers can be both challenging and time consuming. In particular, some answers will require to mentally estimate a whole set of values for which statements or relationships might hold. Here are two steps which might prove useful in assessing a statement:

Can the opposite also be true?

Always consider whether the opposite of what has been stated can actually be disputed. Candidates typically fail to ask themselves this question, but it can be highly revealing. You will be surprised at how much of a difference asking this simple question can make.

Consider the extremes

Answers should always hold true - not just most of the time. If an answer is not always true, it is not valid. A variant of this method we used above to verify answer D above - we considered the extreme values which would could notionally maintain the average of 8 years, but then ruled these out as impossible within the bounds of the question.

4. ~15% - Word Problems

Word Problem PST questions require you to solve business problems by combining information across sources. In other kinds of question in the Problem Solving Test, you will find all the relevant data from exhibits or introductory paragraphs. However, in Word Problems, part of the challenge is that the relevant data is spread between the question itself as well as the introductory text or exhibits. If you have taken the GMAT, you will find that word problems are the closest of the PST question types to what you will find in the GMAT.

• Assuming that a machine costs $2m, how many years will it take for the firm to break even from its investment?
• If an average employee is paid 12 hours per month, which of the following formulae accurately calculates the average number of items handled per employee, per month?
• If employees’ salaries are increased by 20%, what is the increase in productivity required to break even?
• Assuming that the economy keeps on growing at 2% per year for the upcoming 10 years, which of the following equations best approximates the decrease in the debt/GDP ratio?

Ardito, a leading fast fashion retailer, has 79,000 employees spread over 3,350 branches. Maison operates on approximately 25 FTE employees per retail branch. Approximately, how many more branches than Ardito should Maison have to sell as many items in menswear as Ardito?

• Carefully read and understand the Word Problem
• Go through the answers to assess the level of precision which you are going to need in your calculations. Here, since the answers are quite far apart, you will be able to estimate rather than calculated precisely.

First, consider what has to be kept constant

This yields:

At this point, we have two possible solutions. The first is as follows:

The final answer will be between 1000 and 2000. Thus, we know the answer is B. However, note how many steps and how many calculations were involved here - you almost certainly won't be able to get this done in under two minutes!

The second solution takes care of this problem and is as follows:

Here, you simply plug numbers from the answer options into the equation and see which would make that equation work. This method is by far the more efficient way to solve this kind of problem.

Quickly, we can see that 1,700 is the only result fitting the equation. Thus, the answer is B. Note how much faster this was than the first solution.

5. ~10% - Client Interpretation

Client Interpretation questions focus on understanding project requirements and the analyses which will be necessary to tackle the client's concerns. In consulting projects, you will engage every day with various stakeholders from the client company . Fundamentally, client interpretation questions are about understanding:

• What the client says that can have an impact on defining the scope of your project
• What the client implies about given choice or strategy
• Which are the best analysis decisions to take in order to fit the client’s needs
• Which of the following best summarizes the CEO’s concerns?
• Which of the following statements best describes the thoughts of the CEO regarding...?
• Based on the opinion of the Head of Department, which of the following statements is/are valid?
• Which of the following statements best describes the CEO’s aims for the McKinsey study?
• Which of the following analyses would be LEAST useful to address the CEO’s concerns?
• Given the aims of the CEO, what would be the LEAST relevant question for the team to answer?

Soul is a leading fashion retailer, selling clothing, shoes, make-up and accessories. It has around 400 shops worldwide, of which 200 are in the UK. Soul operates through a franchising model, where shops are run by private independent companies who pay a royalty fee to Soul. In exchange, Soul designs the shops and supplies them with new clothing lines, manages branding and advertising, sets promotions and provides shop-owners with guidance on all standard operating procedures for running the shops. This strategy enabled Soul to dramatically grow in scale, boosting shop opening and customer base. However, customer numbers have recently plateaued, resulting in slower sales and profit growth.

The CEO of Soul has engaged your team to help understand whether the recent changes in revenue and profitability trends are related to unsatisfactory shopping experience. He is convinced that the recent growth in scale came at the expense of a consistent shopping experience across all locations. He tells the team “I am sure that the responsibility of the current slowdown lies in poor delivery by the shop owners. I recently visited five shops in different countries and three of them did not fully apply our policies ensuring consistency in shop layout and pricing policies. This is disorienting our customers and pushing them to seek out our increasingly aggressive competitors”.

Which one of the following answers BEST describes why the CEO has engaged your team?

• He wants help in implementing a coherent and consistent brand image and shopping experience across all shops.
• He wants to identify the causes of the inconsistent shopping experience across shops in different countries.
• He wants to validate his hypothesis that an inconsistent shopping experience in different stores led to declining revenues and profitability.
• He wants to overhaul the set of policies and standard operating procedures imposed to shops in order to guarantee a consistent shopping experience.

Here, two aspect of the established method from above take on increased significance over the others:

• Read the question . This is generally pretty straightforward, and simply enquires as to the client's reason for engaging McKinsey.
• Scan the answers and underline key words. Do not spend any more than 10 seconds on this step. As before, the purpose is simply to facilitate finding relevant pieces of information later.
• Go back to the text and quickly jump to the relevant part . More than 50% if the paragraph is of little or no use. Precisely reading the essential sentence will be enough to answer the question.
• This answer may be true, but it does not capture the purpose behind engaging your team. The CEO did not call your team to advise him on branding or design, but because he wants to understand the causes of his company's downturn. FALSE
• The reason for engaging your team is not to understand the causes of the poor shopping experience, but the causes of the downturn - these are not necessarily going to be the same thing. FALSE
• The purpose of this engagement is finding out whether inconsistent shopping experiences across stores led to the current downturn. TRUE
• Again, this answer could be true, but it is not the reason for engaging your team. The CEO did not bring you in to redesign policies, but to understand the causes of the downturn. FALSE
• Highlight the keywords in all answers . Prioritising the right words and sentences will save you a great deal of time.
• Cross out incorrect answers . Often, one or more answers will be clearly incorrect, whilst two or more will appear to be correct or almost correct. Cross out the obviously wrong answers before returning to the introductory text to pick out which of the "almost right" answers is actually correct.
• Beware of the "sensible answer trap" . Sometimes, answers contain implications which look rational and sensible. However, be very careful about making assumptions beyond the information you have been supplied. No matter how reasonable a statement might seem, if the client has not actually said something to that effect, that statement is simply not valid.

6. ~5% - Formulae

Formulae PST questions ask you to express a quantitative word problem as a symbolic formula. This will test you capacity for abstraction by challenging your abilities to extrapolate from data, break down problems and identify drivers and directions of causality.

Which of the following formulae calculates the share of non-performing loans out of total loans?

Typical format

Which of the following formulae best approximates ...?

Forman Fisheries is engaged in packaging shrimp and other fish. Shrimp are graded from A to D depending upon their size and taste. Below are some key productivity indicators for Forman Fisheries' shrimp packaging activities:

Assuming that all boxes contain the same quantity of shrimps, which of the following formulae best approximates how many boxes of non-grade A shrimps were packed in the last month?

• Homogenise your units of measurement . Since we are looking at a number over one month, wherever we will need the quantity of total boxes c, we will divide it 12, since it is an annual indicator.

Break down the problem into smaller steps . This should help you get to the relevant ratio more quickly. In this case:

Identify how to solve for each of the elements of this equation:

Simplifying:

And thus the correct answer is answer D.

All you need to pass the McKinsey PST

Sometimes, answer formulae are presented with various simplifications which can make it time consuming to figure out whether they are correct. However, formula questions are about extrapolating a formula which should work with any value for each variable.

A trick to double check your results is to replace some of the values in the table with simpler ones, come up with a solution and then plugging these simple values into the formulae to see if they produce that same solution.

For example, in this case, assume that:

Grade A shrimp share of total shrimp (b) = 10%

Total boxes per year (c) = 1200

Therefore, boxes per month = c / 12 = 100 per month

Since all boxes are the same size, non-grade A boxes will be:

Now that you know that a correct equation will generate a result of 9, you can plug the numbers above into each of the options and check which produces 9 as an answer. This trick works especially well when the formulae involve high degrees of simplification.

Each PST question type tests a subset of the skills that are useful in consulting. It is worth remembering that there is only so far practicing PST example questions alone will get you if you have not taken the time to develop these skills. Think about a kid trying to learn math - they can spend hours looking at all the sums they want, but they won't get very far if they haven't learnt to add yet!

Since these are the exact same skills that are assessed in your case interview and via your resume and cover letter , it makes sense to learn exactly what they are and what is required of you. It is worth noting that this is the same overall consulting skillset is the same one we teach in our Case Academy - our approach is consistent across the whole recruiting process.

So, what are these skills?

Just like doctors, consultants focus on identifying and treating the underlying causes of a problem. When you address a problem, you shouldn't ever stop at the superficial level of observable symptoms, but must dig deeper and find the real issue underlying what you are dealing with.

For example, imagine a doctor who has a patient complaining of persistent headaches. A good doctor is not just going to keep dishing out painkillers, but are going to want to establish what is causing the pain. It might be, say, that the headaches are caused by poor eyesight. If so, the patient will be dispatched to the optician to get some glasses to solve the problem more permanently.

Consultants always anchor their diagnoses and recommendations on data and analysis - never on opinions or hunches! This is called a fact-based approach.

In order to be able to correctly answer all the PST questions (and fill in that answer sheet!) within the time limit, you will need to be able to prioritise important data and calculations, effectively deal with uncertainly and generally find a good compromise between accuracy and speed. This includes the ability to select salient information from large volumes of text and to deal with ambiguity within that text. Once they are on top of the raw facts of what is happening, consultants will always then extract the salient implications - or the "so-what" - of the situation, rather than just re-describing the same data.

Most PST questions will require you to perform some kind of calculation. Since you are not permitted to use a calculator or similar, you are going to have to be very comfortable with mental math. In particular, you will have to be able to make estimates very quickly. We have an article on mental math for consulting , as well as a free practice tool , which will be a great starting point to sharpening up your skills and learning the various shortcuts to make your calculations faster.

To pass the McKinsey PST as well as to get through your case interview , you are going to need to be able to quickly and reliably infer relevant information from complex graphs and tables. This information will be used to find root causes, draw fact-based conclusions or as the starting point for mental math problems.

The McKinsey PST doesn't require super-complex math, and certainly nothing beyond high school level. McKinsey PST formulas will always be realtively simple ones and you will not have to muster any complex algebra. However, what will be different from a high school math question is that it will be much less clear as to how you should be approaching problems. You will often have to set up equations by extracting one or two salient relationships from a large amount of otherwise irrelevant information. Identifying what is relevant will be the real challenge rather than the relatively simple math. Subsequently manipulating these formulae will come relatively easily to many of you. However, the time constraints and lack of a calculator in the PST will necessitate even the most mathematically gifted to be somewhat strategic in terms of how they chose to solve problems. You will need to avoid analyses that will take too long and which you cannot complete without a calculating aid.

Each of the skills above will be tested in different kinds of question. Be sure to keep a note of which skill in particular has let you down each time you have a problem with a PST question. After a few questions, you should have an idea of where your systematic weak points are and thus where you should focus your efforts to improve via building stronger skills. If your mental math is constantly an issue, go to our mental math article . If you are struggling with identifying root causes, our article on identifying the problem in case studies would be a great place to start.

The important point is that you won't get really good at PST questions simply by doing PST questions - you need to build the right skills! It is worth noting here that our Case Academy teaches precisely the consulting skillset as the McKinsey PST requires (usually case prep systems just teach question-specific frameworks, but we focus on fundamental skills). As such, working through the Academy will not just prep you for case interviews, but also build the full skillset required for the PST. If you are intent on going all the way through the selection process with McKinsey math prep and other aspects of skill building only need to be done once. Two birds with one stone - an efficient use of time!

By now, you will have a good idea of what the McKinsey Problem Solving Test is, what the questions look like and the skills it is assessing. The categorisation of different question types and the methods and tips we have discussed for each already give you the building blocks for a solid prep. However, to make your preparation both as effective and time efficient as possible, you should really begin by making a plan to provide some structure. This will make sure that you don't miss out any key elements and also that you distribute your time sensibly.

As you will have realised by now, the PST is difficult - especially because of the acute time constraints. Having made a plan and diligently practiced all your skills might not actually be enough to pass. You also need to consider your strategy for tackling the test optimally. We have already given a few tips on this, peppered throughout the sections above, but there are also several points on general test management which you will need to know about.

Let's look in more depth both at how you should plan your prep and at your strategy for approaching the McKinsey Problem Solving Test:

Preparation plan

Don't be fooled by those who repeat the old mantra "practice, practice, practice". While practicing is very useful, relying entirely on "brute force" practice with PST sample questions can be remarkably ineffective and a way to set yourself up for failure.

A more sophisticated, more effective prep plan will be made up of the following elements:

1. Skill Building

You need to build your general consulting skillset to be able to reliably perform well on real PST questions. This will never be wasted time, as you will need exactly the same skills in your case interview - and indeed for when you (hopefully) start the job! In particular, given nobody will be starting entirely from scratch on these skills, you need to identify and work on your areas for improvement. As mentioned above, you should take note of where you are underperforming and address your attention there. In particular, you will want to focus on the following:

Numerical Agility

Being able to perform mental math quickly is arguably the single most essential skill required to pass the McKinsey Problem Solving Test. In particular, you will find that the need to make rapid estimates will recur constantly in PST questions. This includes understanding the appropriate degree of approximation as well as getting through calculations quickly. The mental math video in the Efficiency Tools section of the MCC Academy will provide you with all the fundamentals and all the tricks and methods you need to be genuinely quick with numbers and is a great way to get to grips with everything quickly and without missing anything out.

Reading Charts and Solving Problems

Again, the ability to extract information from diagrams and set up and solve mathematical problems are critical to being able to deal with many PST problems. Indeed, the numbers and equations for your mental math must come from somewhere! You will have to read charts in the McKinsey PST and will have to do so under severe time pressure. Similarly, various types of PST question will test your ability to work through problems in an efficient fashion. Our mental math article deals with reading charts. We also cover this whole area in great detail in the MCC Academy course and also include extensive drills in our Beyond Test Ready package.

Identify root causes and draw fact-based conclusions:

Being able to wade through information and identify fundamental causal drivers and synthesise findings into takeaways fully supported by the data are key consulting skills and one which your PST will test across multiple questions. To help you prepare as thoroughly as possible for these, we provide 10 specific sample questions on these areas in each of our Test Ready and Beyond Test Ready packages.

2. Refining

To optimise your performance on the PST, your prep should always include a blend of practice and skill building. Your first step should be to try a practice PST to see where exactly your weak spots are. You should then work on these particular skills using other resources, (such as the articles on this site and the lessons in MCC Academy). You can then return to another practice PST to see how you have progressed and where you should then focus on your next bout of skill building. You should then iterate this process until you are ready to take the PST for real.

It is worth noting that this method also makes sense at a more pragmatic level, as there is only a limited supply of sample PST test papers available to practice with online. This iterative approach, then, has the added benefit of letting you make best possible use of the scarce resource that is PST examples. The skill-specific questions provided in our Beyond Test Ready package also help deal with this lack of practice material and are invaluable in the skill building process.

3. Simulation

Once you have practiced enough, it will be time to step up to simulating the real PST more fully. There is a temptation to skip what might seem like the "theatrics" of a full simulation. However, you cannot just assume that it will all be fine on the day! This is the same rationale for why your high school most likely had you sit full mock exams before important assessments, rather than just rely on class tests etc.

You should replicate the PST test environment as closely as possible. Print out your sample PST test paper, staple it and print out your answer sheet. Find a quiet room and do the test strictly in the allotted time and without a calculator or any other such "contraband". You might feel a bit silly doing all of this, but it really is worth it. Sticking exactly to the rules is the only way to really practice your PST test strategy. Even relatively small things like becoming accustomed to keeping your notes entirely in the booklet and actually filling in the answer sheet at the end will save you precious time in the real PST.

4. Keeping an Error Log

When you run through a practice test with a mark scheme, everything will seem very easy. "Oh, of course, that's exactly what I should have done..." Fast-forward couple of weeks later, though, and you will find yourself staring at a PST question with precisely the same structure, but with no idea of how to solve it.

This is precisely why you need to keep an error log. You might already be familiar with error logs from GMAT prep, but we recommend you extend the practice here. For the uninitiated, an error log is a continuous method of analysing practice problems to identify WHY you answered them incorrectly. In your error log, you should be keeping track of your mistakes and of what you found hardest (even if you got there in the end). As well as using this information to inform where your energy is focussed in skill building, you should also be running through your log frequently to ingrain the lessons you have learnt and generally consolidate your technique.

There is no single correct format for your error log. Some will prefer very organised, detailed logs, whereas others will prefer a more old-fashioned paper record. Really, you should chose whichever method you personally find most convenient, as what is most important is that you actually make consistent use of the log over time.

Whichever way you chose to set out your error log, though, we recommend that each entry should contain the following information.

• Question type - as per our categorisation above.
• Reason why you found the question difficult - you might have taken too long to answer or not been able
• Question and answer choices - record what the question actually was
• Proposed solution - work out the method which you should ideally have used to solve the question - that is, whichever solution you find quickest and most effective given your own abilities.
• Key takeaways - what you should learn in order to answer this kind of question more efficiently. For example, you might need to learn how to simplify fractions more rapidly or to improve your quick reading skills.

The "key takeaways" in your error log are what will guide the direction of your prep for the next few days, before you test your abilities again in the iterative manner we described above.

Whilst error logs help to marry skill building and practice - just as any optimised PST prep absolutely must - in forming part of the iterative method we describe above, error logs also take on a more pragmatic function. Whilst the McKinsey problem solving test sample itself is excellent and we at MyConsultingCoach have invested significant time and money into creating and perfecting additional content, this still ultimately adds up to a finite amount of practice material. This unavoidable constraint means that you must work sensibly to squeeze the greatest amount of utility out of what is available.

The amount of practice you are able to do will always be the ultimate bottleneck in any PST prep. Experiencing different questions will both let you take the iterative process of identifying and working on problems areas further, but will also make you less likely to be surprised by something entirely new in the real PST. Access to extra practice material is thus a major driver of increased performance on test day and - ultimately - landing a job. You will find practice tests at the bottom of this page.

PST guide and practice test

Test strategy.

Most McKinsey PST questions are not actually all that conceptually demanding. The real difficulty derives from the extreme time constraint. As we noted above, given three hours with the same PST test paper, everyone would pass. In practice, then, the successful candidates - who go on to get interviews and jobs - might not actually be the most clever or able, but will often simply be those who have been able to manage their time most effectively.

Obviously, we have already explained a whole host of time saving methods for use in different kinds of questions above. Building up your skills will also help get through questions faster - improving your mental math in particular will see significant reductions in your time taken per question.

However, to pass you must also consider your time usage not just individual questions, but for the problems solving test as a whole. In this section, then, we will go over both an overall test time strategy and a consistent strategy to answer PST questions:

1. Test Time Strategy

PST question difficulty varies quite significantly. Some questions are really quite straightforward to the point of being "easy". Others are seemingly impossible. Unfortunately, you can't expect to get a paper with only the easy ones (if only, eh!), but will have a mix of different difficulties across your 26 questions.

To start to optimise your approach, you should combine this realisation as to varying question difficultly with the following two facts we alluded to near the beginning of this article:

• All questions are worth the same
• There is no penalty for wrong answers (there is no "negative marking")

Now (as we keep mentioning), you will need to leave at least five minutes at the end to fill in the answer sheet. Of the remaining time, you can allocate two minutes to each of your 26 questions (the maths geniuses amongst you will note that that leaves 3 minutes spare, but you can be assured that they will disappear whether you like it or not).

Given that all the questions are worth the same marks, you simply cannot allow yourself to become bogged down on one particularly tough PST question and leave yourself without time to answer two easy ones. To avoid this, you should keep track of how far through the test you are relative to how much time has elapsed - that is, make sure you are actually getting through questions at a rate of one every two minutes. For instance, if you are 10 minutes in, you should at least be just finishing question five.

If you realise that you've fallen behind because you are stuck on a very hard question, you should not devote more time to it. Simply circle that question and what seem like the two or three most likely answers from your analysis so far.

If you get to the end of the test and have some time left besides that required to fill in the answer sheet, you can go back and look at the question again. Often, coming back and looking with fresh eyes will break you out of an analytic rut. However, if you still simply can't make head nor tail of the question, or if you end up without any more time to devote to it, you should simply pick one of your circled likely-answers at random and put that down on the answer sheet.

Don't feel too bad about this - the PST cuttoff pass mark is around 70%, so you don't need to have gotten everything right. Who knows, your best guess might end up to be the right one anyway! Even if you picked an answer at random it has a 25% chance of being right. An educated guess should have somewhat better odds than that.

2. Question Strategy

We have already said quite a bit above about how you should approach individual kinds of question. However, we can also make some helpful remarks about how you should be approaching each question more generally.

The first fact to note is that whenever you first sit down to a practice test, you will realise that a minimum of 20% of your mistakes are simply due to mis-read questions. Indeed, a great deal of excellent candidates will fail their PST ultimately because they failed to read a critical number of questions properly. It seems absurd when one considers how accomplished the average McKinsey applicant is, that they are effectively let down by their literacy! However, it is true nonetheless and you can see why we so consistently instructed you to carefully read all the different kinds of questions as we ran through them!

One of the main things the McKinsey PST assesses is your ability to deal with "information overload". This happens when you are presented with large volumes of text and/or quantitative data, where only some of it is relevant to the question you have been asked and you must work out which.

This actually simulates a some of the real demands placed on McKinsey's consultants, who will be confronted with all the complexity of the client firm's operation as well as the market it operates in and how it relates to firms up and downstream in its value chain. From here, the consultant must work out which aspects of the operation - and thus which portions of information - are actually salient to the client's question.

How you should proceeds next depends upon whether you have to chose between qualitative or quantitative answers:

Qualitative

Here, you should pursue an iterative method of going back and forth between the questions and the text, eliminating (and then physically crossing out to prevent any future confusion) incorrect answers one-by-one. This is fundamentally a test of your linguistic reasoning, though we have provided various hints and helpful techniques for different kinds of question above. Of course, the most fundamental advice we can give is to read PST questions carefully, but you can also do things like considering what would be true if the exact opposite of the focal statement were true.

Quantitative

You have a couple of options when dealing with quantitative answers, depending upon the specific nature of the question you have been asked. As such, you can chose to do either of the following:

The "Conventional" approach

Here, you simply identify the relevant data and solve the problem directly. Run through all the calculations on paper and then see which of the multiple choice answers matches the solution you generate. This is how you are probably accustomed to tackling problems from your education and will also be the best way to approach many of the questions in your PST

Working "Backwards"

Often, though, you will not have enough time to work through all the calculations required to answer a particular question via the conventional approach. In such cases, you will need to take a more strategic approach. We can do this by effectively working backwards from the answers. This is not as strange a method as it might sound - you simply need to build a framework of the relevant calculation and plug in the suggested answers until you find one that works.

Using this method can save time on multiple counts as, usually once you have found an answer that works, you don't have to take the time out to work through the other options (of course, in an ideal world you would indeed work through the other answers as a means to check for any mistakes on your own part, but time is precious in the PST and "done is better than perfect").

Having read this far, you should be well equipped to start preparing to take the McKinsey Problem Solving Test. The first step is to take one or two practice PST test papers . This will let you get a feel for what the tests are actually like generally, but - crucially - will also allow you to start your prep off with an idea of which skills you need to work on, as per our iterative method above.

You can find everything you need on this website or on the McKinsey website. Specifically, here are some PST samples to get you started:

• MyConsultingCoach McKinsey PST (free)
• McKinsey PST A (by McKinsey)
• McKinsey PST B (by McKinsey)
• McKinsey PST C (by McKinsey)
• McKinsey PST 2011 version (by McKinsey)
• McKinsey PST 2001 version (by McKinsey)

Beyond the free Mckinsey PST practice test linked above, MyConsultingCoach offers fully comprehensive PST packages to take your PST prep to the next level. Of course, you might pass the PST on your own. However, as we have noted, the average candidate only has a 33% chance of passing.

For those using an MCC package, though, that PST pass rate jumps right up to 85%. Given that you must pass the PST to get an interview and be considered for a job, this is a potentially enormous driver of whether you will work for McKinsey or not - that is the overall offer rate.

Whilst this is a premium service and won't ever be for everyone, if you really have a consulting mindset, then you can appreciate that - given the substantively increased likelihood of entry into McKinsey - the investment is more than worth it when balanced even just against the additional pay earned in year one versus a second tier consultancy. This is before we even consider the differences across your whole career and the prestige difference for your resume even if you move into other industries later.

We also stand by our service to the point that, if you don't pass your PST, we will give you half of your money back!

So, what are you waiting for? Start your prep today and take a step closer to that your dream job with McKinsey!

Following our advice and making use of MyConsultingCoach resources will give you your best chance of success in the PST . Assuming you pass your PST, then, you will have to prep for your interview . As you probably know already, interviews at McKinsey and consultancy firms in general are not like a "normal" interview. The most notable difference is that you will have to solve a case study . This is a business problem which simulates the kind of project a real life consultant would called in to deal with.

As well as a case study, each interview will also have a McKInsey PEI or " fit " component , where your interviewer tests your motivation to succeed as a consultant and establishes whether your character is a good fit for the company. This is closer to the format of more familiar interviews. However, many candidates are ruled out based on their performance in this section, as they either don't prepare for it at all, or treat it too much like a "normal" interview. The demands even in the fit section of a consulting interview are significantly more rigorous than for interviews elsewhere.

In practice, one of the main differences in interviews in consulting and on other industries is the amount of preparation that is required . If you thought McKinsey PST prep was demanding, that was unfortunately just the tip of the iceberg. The stiff competition for McKinsey and other consulting jobs means firms can demand a degree specific preparation from candidates which is not really equalled elsewhere.

This might all sound daunting (frankly, if it doesn't, it should...). Don't worry though - MyConsultingCoach has you covered! This website is packed with articles which will give you solid overview of all the various topics you will need to understand (you can start with our articles on the case and fit interview and work your way out from there) as well as guidance on how to approach your prep in general.

For a more in-depth experience, we have also developed MCC Academy - a fully comprehensive case interview course . MCC Academy teaches the same consulting skillset as you will need for the PST, but in much more depth and applied to the business of cracking case studies. Other case systems simply teach a few formulaic "frameworks", with methods to approach a few common question types. However, this risks leaving you high and dry when the interviewer (as they likely will) gives you a questions that differs from the kinds you have learnt. By focussing on fundamental skills and teaching you to tackle cases in the same way a working consultant would, MyConsultingCoach equips you to cope with whatever your interviewer throws at you . Beyond this, the Academy also includes a set of lessons on how to perform in the fit component of your interview.

If you are serious about consulting in general, it makes sense to start MCC Academy alongside your PST prep , as the shared skillset makes for significant synergy generally and you will be able to use the Academy lessons to brush up your skills for the PST in particular. You will also then have plenty of time for case interview prep and not have to pack it all in after the PST.

Good luck with your prep!

A level of preparation you won't find anywhere else

Reason #1: beat the time pressure.

We developed techniques for each of the six question types in the McKinsey PST that will help you save time and boost your score. From practice, practice, practice to smart practice.

Reason #2: Focus your efforts

Our Performance Radar helps you pinpoint the question types where you need more preparation , enabling you to tailor your training and track your progress. No more random practice.

Reason #3: stretch your potential

Our tests were developed by a team of ex-McKinsey consultants and are constantly reviewed to provide you with the most comprehensive toolkit to succeed. Unlike many resources on the internet , our tests are realistic in their format (26-questions long, like the real PST) and challenging in their content .

We developed a sample, 10-questions free test. We suggest you print out the test and do it on paper to replicate the real test environment

“ The Performance Radar changed the way I prepared for the McKinsey Problem Solving Test: I moved from a random 360-degrees practice to a structured preparation focused on the areas where I was weakest. And those same areas quickly became the ones where I was getting the highest scores. ”

Our pst preparation programmes

30 days money back guarantee on pst material.

• 3 full 26-questions PSTs (78 questions)
• Performance Radar
• 30 days money back guarantee*
• Straight to your inbox

Beyond PST Ready

• 6 sets of 10 PST questions by type (60 questions)
• PST Performance Radar
• All Consulting Math Material

Single PST #1

• Full length, 26-questions PST

Single PST #2

Single pst #3, frequently asked questions.

When you do not have much time left we suggest you to:

• Understand how the test is structured : many people fail the PST simply because they don't know it well. You can find all the details about the PST on our PST Guide. You may want to double check the total time, since most offices will give you 60 minutes but some others 70.
• Develop a solid answering technique : It is essential for you to acquire an answering technique allowing you to make the best use of the very limited time in the test. Our video and the PST Guide will help you a great deal.
• Practice smart : We advise you to try the official tests on the McKinsey website ( Test A , Test B , and Test C ). If you want to boost your chances our best pick is the Test Ready Package above. You will have the chance to practice on three 26-questions full-length sample PSTs. Then, our Performance Radar will help you identify your weaknesses by translating results in your performance across the 6 PST question types. The PST Guide will teach you useful methods on how to tackle each question type and the 60 additional questions will help you master a sound technique for each of them. In other words nothing will be left off the checklist!

P.S. Do check whether the first round of interviews is immediately after the PST or on a different day. In the former case, we strongly advice you to prepare for case interviews . The Beyond Test Ready package also includes 1 hour of case interviews with our Mentors.

Passing the PST is hard mainly because of the time constraint. If you had 2 hours, you could easily score more than 90% - but you only have 1 hour. It is therefore essential for you to be able to manage time. Please use the video that's on the page.

Sure. You can ALWAYS upgrade from a smaller to a more comprehensive package.

Upgrading is easy:

• Purchase the new package
• Email us at [email protected] within 30 days – we’ll refund your original purchase within 24 hours.

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McKinsey Interview 2024 – Get Useful Advices from an Ex Consultant

The McKinsey Case Interview , called the 'Problem Solving Interview' by the firm, is arguable the hardest challenge for candidates in their recruiting process. Among all consulting firms, it is the most feared since McKinsey eliminates a significant proportion of candidates during the case interview .

The case plays a crucial role in the evaluation of candidates, besides the  Personal Experience Interview (PEI) . In fact, performing well in the case interview does not guarantee an offer. Rather candidates need to show clear and consistent spikes in performance across all interviews . That is the reason why only a minute percentage of interviewees will receive their desired offer and Forbes has ranked McKinsey as the toughest firm to interview for .

Unfortunately, our coach  Florian  found that the information on the McKinsey application process and specifically the case interviews is often wrong, outdated, or assumed to be the same as for every other consulting firm.

Consequently, the advice given is detrimental to your recruiting success with the firm.         

In this article, I want to shed some light on this mysterious, often-talked about, even more often misunderstood McKinsey interview by answering the following questions:

• What is the McKinsey Problem Solving Interview?
• What skills are assessed in a case interview?
• What is the format of a McKinsey case?
• What questions are typical in a McKinsey case interview?
• How is the McKinsey case interview different from other consulting firms?
• How should you prepare for a McKinsey interview?

Table of Contents

• What Is the McKinsey Problem Solving Interview?
• What Skills Are Assessed by McKinsey?
• What Is the Format of the McKinsey Case Study?
• What Are the Main McKinsey Interview Questions?
• Structuring/Exhibit Interpretation
• Importance of the Overall Picture
• McKinsey Case Examples
• How Is the McKinsey Case Interview Different from Other Consulting Case Interviews?
• Interviewer-led vs. Candidate-led Case Interview
• Structuring the Case
• How Should I Prepare for a McKinsey Case Interview?
• Tailored Case Frameworks
• Math And Chart Reading
• About the Author

At the core, the McKinsey Problem Solving Interview is a case interview as it is employed by most consulting firms to  test the analytical capabilities and communication skills of applicants . The interview simulates a client situation, where you are tasked to solve a specific problem that they are facing.

However, it comes with a twist. You will have to  answer a succession of several questions  rather than driving the case yourself as would be the case in other consulting firms. Within the interview, which is a dialogue between you and the interviewer, you need to iteratively

• structure problems
• propose concrete ideas
• gather information
• spot insights in data tables and charts
• solve quantitative problems
• deliver insights, implications, and test hypotheses
• communicate in a professional and calm manner

The case is the hardest part for most candidates since it involves a number of different  skills that need to be demonstrated consistently across all questions and multiple cases  in succession. Depending on the office, applicants need to go through four to six case interviews before receiving an offer.

You need to convince the interviewers about your performance in all cases.

Let’s have a brief look at the different skills and the format of the interview.

Broadly, there are six skills that are assessed in a case interview and that you need to demonstrate consistently:

• Structure:  Are you able to derive a MECE (mutually exclusive, collectively exhaustive) framework, breaking a problem down into smaller problems, accurately covering all aspects of the problem?
• Creativity:  Do you think about a problem holistically, offering broad, deep, and insightful perspectives. Are you able to come up with different angles to the problem (breadth) and draft rich descriptions that qualify why these areas are important to investigate (depth)?
• Analytical rigor and logical thinking : Can you link the structure to creative thinking? Are you using a hypothesis-driven approach to your problem solving , i.e. have a clear picture of where you think the solution of the case is buried most likely or where you want to go next? Do you qualify your thinking, follow your structure, tackle (likely) high-impact issues first and lead the interviewer?
• Mental math and basic calculus : Are you able to structure quantitative problems and comfortably perform calculations ? Can you derive the correct approach to calculate the desired outcome variable? Can you plug in the numbers and perform the calculations, relying on basic pen-and-paper math, shortcuts, and mental math ?
• Business sense and intuition : Are you able to quickly understand the business and the situation of the client? Can you swiftly interpret data, charts, exhibits, and statements made by the interview? Are you asking the right questions? Are you able to make sense of new information quickly and interpret it properly in the context of the case?
• Communication and maturity.  Are you able to communicate like a consultant ? Are you following a top-down communication approach similar to the Pyramid Principle taught by Minto? Do all of your statements add value, and do you guide the interviewer through your thinking with numbering and signposting? Are you leading the conversation or are merely getting dragged along by the interviewer? Are you confident and mature? Are you comfortable with silence while taking time to structure your thinking?

Now, these skills are assessed in a very specific interviewing format , which is not natural for most applicants and needs significant practice to become second nature.

A typical McKinsey case follows the PEI in a one-hour interview session. It lasts for  25 to 30 minutes in an interviewer-led format , meaning that the interviewer takes the lead and guides you through the case. Your role as the interviewee is to answer the questions asked by the interviewer before they will move on to the next question.

That means that you should not be worried if the interviewer asks a question that goes in a different direction than what you recommended or proposed.

While it is the interviewer’s responsibility to provide hints and move you through the different questions, you should take the lead within each question and almost treat every question like a mini case within itself.  

Depending on your performance and speed,  you will be asked three or more questions . Only receiving three questions is actually a positive sign since the interviewer was happy with your answers to each question. Going above three questions usually happens when the interviewer wants to dig deeper into a specific question type to see if your performance is consistent or was just an outlier.

Most candidates need more than three questions to convince the interviewer, so don’t be scared when your case gets a little bit longer and consists of more than three questions.

Some offices also offer a phone case interview as a first screening device, which follows the same structure as the in-person interview.

What questions are asked in a McKinsey interview? Let’s have a look!

In a McKinsey case interview, you will have to answer  three different question types  – broadly speaking:

• Structuring/ idea generation
• Exhibit Interpretation

A  case interview structure  is used to break the problem you are trying to solve for the client down into smaller problems or components. It is the roadmap you establish at the beginning of the interview that will guide your problem-solving approach throughout the case.  Idea generation on the other hand is a structured brainstorming exercise that should generate a variety of concrete ideas with a specific goal in mind.

For  chart or data interpretation , you are tasked to find the key insights of 1-2 Powerpoint slides and relate them back to the case question and the client situation at hand. 

Case math  questions have you analyze a problem mathematically before qualitatively investigating the particular reason for the numerical result or deriving specific recommendations from the outcome.

Now for  structure and exhibit interpretation , there is no right or wrong. Some answers are better than others because they are

• hypothesis-driven, implications-oriented, and forward-thinking
• well communicated (top-down, numbered & signposted)

That being said, there is no 100% that you can reach or single correct answers. It is important that your answers display the characteristics specified above and are supported well with strong arguments.

As for  math questions , usually, there are answers which are objectively correct (not always 100% the same since some candidates simplify or round differently – which is ok), and others that are wrong, due to issues with the

• calculation approach
• calculation itself

Now, for the interviewer, the overall picture counts. Small mistakes or ‘just-good’ performance in one area need to be balanced by a strong performance in other areas . Bigger mistakes must be avoided at all costs (e.g., answering the wrong question, completely wrong calculation approach, several calculation errors, or taking 3x longer than needed in math).

McKinsey wants to see spikes in performance in certain areas and a good enough performance in other areas. Just performing well in all questions is not enough .

Be aware that  in 99% of McKinsey cases, there is no recommendation question in the end.  The case just ends with the last case question. This is something many candidates are surprised by when they get out of their McKinsey interviews since they specifically practice for this.

If you answer each case question properly, you could almost say that the recommendation is included in each individually.

Lastly, be aware that for generalist consulting roles you do not have to expect any technical interview questions and you are not expected to have any relevant domain knowledge.

Have a look at some of our interviewer-led cases from our Case Library !

Baby Clothing Market Entry

While there are many similarities in McKinsey interviews and interviews with other firms, McKinsey interviews are interviewer-led, while  other firms employ a candidate-led format .

McKinsey, BCG, Bain, and others’ cases have certain things in common:

• The individual elements of the cases are the same . You will have to structure problems, interpret exhibits, and work through some calculations, come up with hypotheses, recommendations, implications, next steps, etc.
• The skills that are assessed are the same . You need to exhibit strong problem-solving skills, creativity, ability to work under pressure, top-down communication, etc.

However, there is one key difference:

• In interviewer-led cases, you take ownership of every question and go into greater detail here, while the interviewer guides you from question to question. In the interviewee-led case, you drive the whole case to ask for the correct information to work with, analyze the problem to then deduct a recommendation in the end

In a McKinsey case , the interviewer will guide you through a series of connected questions that you need to answer, synthesize, and develop recommendations from, within each individual question. There are clear directions and a flow of questions, which you need to  answer with a hypothesis-driven mindset (prioritization, implications, next steps) . These are arguably easier to prepare for and to go through since the flow and types of questions will always be the same.

In a candidate-led case interview, due to the nature of your role as an investigator, it is much easier to get lost , walk down the wrong branch of the issue tree , and waste a ton of time. While the interviewers will try to influence you to move in the right direction (pay attention to their hints), it is still up to you what elements of the problem you would like to analyze first . Each answer should lead to a new question (hypothesis-driven) on your quest to find the root cause of the problem to come up with a recommendation on how to overcome it.

Another common misconception between McKinsey and other interviews relates to the structuring part of the case. The framework derived for McKinsey vs. a framework created for other consulting firms is usually quite different.

At the core, McKinsey wants to see creative ideas communicated in a structured manner, the more exhaustive the better.

Your goal should be to come up with a tailored and creative answer that fits the question. The framework should - broadly speaking - follow these three characteristics:

• insightful / creative

At the lowest level of your structure, you need to showcase concrete ideas , qualify your answer with practical examples and more details.

While for BCG, Bain , etc. you need to present your framework relatively swiftly within 1-3 minutes, to then dive deeper into the buckets where you think the solution of the case is buried, for McKinsey, there is no single solution (as discussed above).

In a McKinsey interview, you can take up to 5-8 minutes to present your structure , your qualification, and hypotheses. This is due to the interviewer-led format that McKinsey employs. The interviewer will only ask 'what else' if you

• haven't gone broad or deep enough
• did not explain your ideas well enough for them to stand out (again, you have time here)

The firm wants to see exhaustive and creative approaches to specific problems, which more often than not do not fit into the classic case interview frameworks that were en vogue 10 years ago...

Again, this only applies if everything you say

• adds value to the problem analysis
• is well qualified
• includes a detailed discussion of your hypotheses at the end

The difference in format and way of answering a question is the reason why I recommend preparing very differently for McKinsey interviews vs. other consultancies , which brings us to the last point.

Most candidates prepare by learning generic frameworks.

Do not learn case-specific frameworks by heart , expecting them to work for every case you will encounter. There are no specific frameworks that will always work in a McKinsey Problem Solving Interview.

It is much more important to learn the right approach that will help you tackle all types of cases. While in 2024 this applies to all consulting firms, this is even more relevant for McKinsey interviews and the interviewer-led format.

What you need to do is to study each individual question type , the associated skills in a case interview and learn how to approach it , regardless of the client situation, the context of the case, the industry, or function.

Many candidates ask if there are specific cases for specific practices (e.g., operations) and then tailor their preparation for that practice, i.e. just practicing operations cases and learning operations frameworks by heart. The reality is that you will usually face a mix of cases in a domain-relevant context as well as cases set in a completely different context from the role you are applying for.

Be aware that frameworks were applicable in the 2000 years , the era of Victor Cheng. McKinsey has long caught up on this and the cases you will get during the interviews are tailored in a way to test your creativity and ability to generate insights on the spot, not remember specific frameworks.

In fact, it will hurt you when you try to use a framework on a case that calls for a completely different approach and fail to come up with creative and concrete ideas that are relevant, tailored, and actionable. Also, it gives a false sense of security that will translate to stress once you figure out how your approach won’t work during the real interview – I have seen this way too often…

Similarly, there is no math problem or type of chart that is typical for a McKinsey interview. As with the structure, learn to deal with any math or chart problem that is thrown at you.

Your goal should be - no matter the context, industry, or function of the case - to learn how to

• build issue trees for structure and idea generation
• interpret charts, derive the key insights, implications and relate them back to the case
• set-up approaches for quantitative problems, swiftly and accurately calculate with pen and paper, and interpret the results, derive implications, and relate it back to the case

That is all there is, really.

Once you have learned an approach that works from a coach that is experienced with McKinsey interviews, internalize the habits by practicing drills and live interviews with case partners  and your chances of belonging to the minute percentage of candidates that receive an offer will significantly increase.

Now that you have reached the end of this article and have collected a lot of valuable information on how to  crack  the  McKinsey Interview which allows you to further tackle your case interview preparation.

As Florian explained in his article, it is important to internalize the habits that are needed to ace the McKinsey interview process by practicing with peers. On PrepLounge, you have the opportunity to schedule meetings with peers and coaches at any time! Just accept a meeting on our Meeting Board  or propose one yourself! Alternatively, you can browse through the vast Candidate Listing to find a suitable meeting partner according to your needs and wishes! If you feel like you need some more support during your case interview preparation, there are a lot of ex-management consultants in our Coach Listing who are happy to share their knowledge with you.  So, make sure to schedule your meetings as soon as possible!

Of course, your preparation for mathematical tasks should not be neglected! Use our Mental Math Tool to train your case interview math with respect to all basic operations. You can even compare yourself to the performance of the whole PrepLounge community. This will help you to be prepared for any calculation in your consulting interview. Lastly, make sure to practice your chart-reading skills by solving our Quizzes! The sooner you develop this useful skill, the better! 

If you still have questions after that, feel free to ask them in our  Consulting Q&A . Our experienced coaches are happy to share their personal experiences and have valuable tips for you at hand!

#1 rated McKinsey Case and PEI Coach | 5 years at McKinsey | Interviewer Experience | Imbellus Expert

• Professional Experience: Bitpanda, StrategyCase, McKinsey & Company, Kearney, Lufthansa
• Languages: English, German
• Location: Austria

Florian became the #1 McKinsey coach (based on recommendation rate) within the first month of starting on PrepLounge. With  5 years at McKinsey , he knows the recruiting process inside out. He can help you ace the case interview and the PEI exactly like McKinsey wants you to succeed. His coachees continuously receive feedback from McKinsey interviewers that they seem to be much better prepared than other candidates . Interviewing and coaching 100s of candidates, he has developed a system to tackle every McKinsey case and question type successfully, regardless of the context, industry, or functional expertise. You will learn how to think like a McKinsey consultant and not rely on pre-learned frameworks that would only hurt your performance in the real case.

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McKinsey PST: Question Types, Study Plan & Mock Tests

The McKinsey Problem Solving Test (McKinsey PST) is a very crucial part of the McKinsey recruitment process. It is where most of the applicant pool is eliminated, and yet there are so few resources to help you prepare for it. Fortunately, you’ve found the ultimate guide to nail the test with an unbelievable level of detail!

Table of Contents

McKinsey PST overview

What is the mckinsey pst.

The McKinsey Problem Solving Test (or PST) is a paper-based test used at McKinsey & Company to select candidates for the case interviews. The PST is conducted after resume screening; it has 6 types of question, testing the candidate on 3 crucial problem-solving skills – data interpretation, mental calculations and logical reasoning.

McKinsey PST passing score / Acceptance rate

McKinsey has never officially stated the passing score or acceptance rate for the PST. However, these numbers can be estimated using reports from test-takers, with passing score being around 70%, and acceptance rate at roughly 30-35% (1 in every 3 candidates will pass).

Does McKinsey still use the PST?

Currently, the McKinsey PST is being replaced by the new Problem-Solving Game. However, the transition is not complete globally. In addition, the new Problem-Solving Game still retains the core principles from the old test, so preparing for the PST is still relevant.

Why do they need PST?

It’s very similar to what we have here! McKinsey believes that the gap between CV screening and in-person case interviews is too big. The firm may miss many good candidates with bad resumes or may interview too many candidates who don’t live up to their resumes.

At the end of the day, in-person interviews are expensive, and the Problem Solving Test provides a cost-effective solution.

Who has to take the McKinsey PST?

Every candidate who passes the resume screening round has to take the McKinsey PST – if they apply for the management consulting track. Some report indicates that MBA applicants might be waived from the test – however, this is rare and you should confirm with the target office HR.

What does PST look like?

26 questions, 1 hour, paper-based, and no calculator! The test has 26 multiple choice questions set within the context of 3 business cases. A candidate has exactly 60 minutes to finish the test. He will be provided with a watch, pencils, scratch paper, and the test is in a paper-based format. No calculator is allowed. No personal assistant is allowed. Just you and the test!

As the business landscape is changing, candidate recruitment has become increasingly complex. This requires another way of presenting PST content for McKinsey. They have changed the format into gamification and planned to implement this method to all McKinsey offices within 2020. Visit the mock game designed exclusively for MConsultingPrep followers!

PST vs. GMAT vs. SAT?

If you are new to PST, you may hear the myth that PST is similar to the Math section in GMAT or SAT. In fact, being excellent in SAT Math does help with quantitative calculation in PST, however, the context is different. The SAT Math section includes only simple calculations in simple context; meanwhile, logic in business problems is highly emphasized in PST.

Why is this test so challenging?

• You will not have enough time to properly think through each question.

If you are going to read every single word in the case background and do every calculation “asked”, you will not be able to finish the test. You will need to know how to work through stress and pressure, how to give out “high-probability” answers instead of “exactly-right” ones, and how to painlessly skip questions.

• You will be judged by a machine (or if by a person, they will try to be like a machine).

I myself feel much more comfortable in an in-person case interview, where I will be fine as long as I have the right tactics. The interviewers generally allow candidates to make a few mistakes here and there, to slow down the process if needed, and to ask for help when necessary. In the PST, the result is all that matters. There will be no mercy granted. If you don’t get enough correct answers, you are out.

• On top of those, the questions themselves are hard!

A huge amount of logical and analytical reasoning is required. You will need to really grasp the logical fundamentals of how management consultants solve problems, e.g: the difference between a conclusion vs a hypothesis; etc.

How to prepare for the McKinsey PST?

Step 1 : Seek confirmation from the target office if you must take the PST

Step 2: Get familiar with official sample tests from McKinsey

Step 3 : Learn the logic of each question type, common mistakes, and how to answer correctly

Step 4: Practice mental math to improve calculation speed and accuracy

Step 5 : Practice speed reading and data selection

Step 6 : Practice answering individual question type under time pressure

Step 7 : Do one mock test with simulated test conditions

Step 8 : Review the test and your performance

Step 9 : Return to step 3, 4, 5, 6 to for further practice on weakness

Step 10 : Do mock test again, repeat until you can confidently hit 90% or more

McKinsey PST question types

Some emailed me and asked what they should do if there were 3 days left until the PST. I would still suggest you follow our spirit of learning. When you have little time, choose which question you want to prioritize, tackle it carefully and decide how deep you will go into it. If I were in your shoes, I would use this prioritization table

In addition to the above, I would suggest you practice your math in these last days. The learning curve at the beginning is usually high for anything, including  Mental Math . Doing better math can significantly improve your test score. It reduces simple mistakes (which can still cost you points) and allows you to have more time for other questions.

McKinsey PST study plan

These are the same steps I took to pass the PST years ago, and the basis for my product – the PST Comprehensive Package which has helped countless candidates pass this notoriously difficult consulting test.

Step 1. Answer the questions correctly

You are recommended to first answer all the test questions correctly without time pressure. Before, you need to break down all the questions into 6 question types as below. Besides, it is necessary to understand how these questions are constructed, what are their logical foundation, and even how the wrong choices are made.

Step 2. Answer the questions quickly

There will be no turning point that indicates you it is about time to move to the second step, but you should gradually try to answer the questions both correctly and quickly. Once getting all the correct answers without clocking, you should put yourself under time constraint. If you don’t know how to increase your speed, you have better to start with 3 tips below:

#1. Increase your reading speed.

The PST contains 3 business cases with various number and case context, which requires you to read as fast as possible (of course correctly). Many candidates cannot finish their PST because of being overwhelmed in text. The Princeton intensive program is helpfulto increase your speed by 2 times faster without difficulties.

#2. Increase your calculator speed.

Half of the test involves math, which have no way to improve but practice rigorously. The more you practice, the better you gain. If you haven’t found any efficient tips, try our method to score well with Mental Math!

#3. Embrace test-hacking tips.

After years of coaching students to MBB, I have collected wonderful tips and tricks to nail your test with less effort! Find out some of those tricks as below or check out the McKinsey PST Comprehensive for more detail!

Reading facts

Reading-facts is the most common question type in the McKinsey PST (38%) and the BCG Potential Test (up to 100%). These questions test your ability to understand the facts/data itself. There will be no inferring, logic, hypothesizing, or creativity needed. Instead, proficiency in chart reading and calculations will be handy here. See the picture below for an illustration.

QUESTION FORMAT

The following are a few examples of typical question formats:

• Which of the following values is the best estimate of…?
• Which of the following statements is valid based on the data…?
• Which of the following can be concluded from Exhibit…?

Sometimes even though the word “conclude” is used, questions don’t require any logical reasoning, just your ability to read facts and perform basic calculations. In these cases, I still classify these questions into the reading-facts category.

SAMPLE QUESTION

This question is written based on an official McKinsey practice PST.

Which of the following statements is valid based on the data in Table 1?

A) Soccer revenue was more than $325 thousand five years ago

B) Tennis revenue grew by no less than 1.2% in each of the last five years

C) The total revenue of Saigon League did not grow at all in the last five years

D) If the growth rate in the last 5 years is maintained, Soccer revenue will be more than $420K 5 years from now.

You will see that no tricky logical reasoning is needed here. All you need in order to answer these questions is the ability to read the table and perform calculations correctly.

COMMON MISTAKES

A good way to determine the correct option is to investigate if the other three are wrong. Now there are two ways you can be wrong in this type of PST question: (1) Incorrect calculation and (2) Misread the facts/ data

Type #2 is harder to understand, so I will dive deeper into that here. Let’s look at the sample question above. Hope you got D, the correct choice.

Example 1: How you can misread the data – Why A is wrong

If you overlook the phrase “Average annual” on column 3′s title, then Soccer revenue 5 years ago would be: $342.8 k / (100% + 4.5%) = $328 k, which is more than $325 thousand. Revenue grew at an average rate of 4.5% in EACH of the last 5 years. It is NOT 4.5% over the whole period of 5 years.

Example 2: How you can misread the data – Why B is wrong

If you overlook the phrase “Average” in column 3′s title, then it seems like the growth rate for each of the last 5 years is exactly 1.2%, no more, no less. B, therefore, seems correct. However, as indicated in the table, 1.2% is just an average figure, which means there are years with a lower or higher growth rate.

Example 3: How you can misread the data – Why C is wrong

If you overlook the second column of the table (Revenue this year column), then it seems like the average overall growth rate for Saigon League is 0% (4.5% + 3.3% + 1.2% – 9% = 0%), which makes C correct. However, different lines have different sizes. Even though Golf had negative growth of 9%, it is a relatively small line so its impact on the overall rate is small as well.

Hope that you will not make this mistake in your real PST. Again, PST is a simple test… when you have enough time!

PREPARATION GUIDE

Skill #1: Calculation

We have a detailed article on Consulting Math and how to strengthen your quantitative proficiency.

Skill #2: Chart/exhibit/table reading

Always take a moment to read and understand every single chart or graph you encounter in your everyday life.After all, practice makes perfect.

You can also improve your reading speed through an amazing speed reading program by Princeton University .

Skill #3: Attention to details

The devil is in the details. It’s the little things that can make or break a project, and no true consultants would let themselves be caught unaware.

Develop a habit in daily life. Have the mindset that I am not going to miss any stupid details.

For every practice question you get in this type, make sure you understand not only why an answer is right, but also why an answer is wrong, exactly like what I did above.

PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Which of the following statements is valid based on the data provided on Graph 3 above?

A) The Service-to-Agriculture ratio increased by more than 3 times between 1995 and 2007

B) Service GDP in 1995 is more than Industry GDP in 2007

C) Agriculture is where GDP value dropped the most between 1995 and 2007

D) In 2007, Service GDP is no less than 6 times Agriculture GDP

Correct answer: D

If you want to practice more, check out my PST Comprehensive Package for questions and answers!

Fact-based conclusion

Once you get into consulting, you will probably hear the term “fact-based” a million times a day. Consulting is the business of making conclusions based on facts. Consultants face tons of different problems throughout the course of any project: from the top to the granular level, from function to function, from industry to industry, etc. Fact-based conclusion is such a fundamental aspect of consulting that it weighs in heavily on the PST.

Fact-based conclusion questions test your ability to draw and recognize sound and logical conclusions based on a set of data/facts provided. See the picture below for an illustration.

• Which of the following statements is a valid conclusion based on …?
• Which of the following statements can be concluded from …?

The McKinsey team has an interview with the Chief Operating Officer of the New Bingham Mine, Salt Lake City. During the interview, the following facts have been gathered:

• The factory must have at least one safety inspector 24 hours a day, seven days a week, in accordance with Federal and State labor regulations.
• To maximize operational efficiency, there must be exactly 10 line workers operating the mine.
• The mine operates from 8 am until 5 pm, Monday to Sunday.
• The mine employs 4 safety inspectors and 16 line workers to make 20 workers in total.
• The total weekly labor cost for the Bingham Mine is $16,000.

Which of the following statements is a valid conclusion?

A. One-fifth of the total labor cost for the mine is for safety inspectors.

B. At least one safety inspector must work more than 40 hours per week.

C. Line workers do not work more than 40 hours per week.

D. The majority of the mine’s labor cost is for line workers.

A – Fit-well but not fact-based

There are 4 inspectors out of 20 employees so it seems like the cost of the inspectors can very well be 1/5 of total labor cost. But a missing piece of data to conclude that is: does each person get a similar total income?

C – Fit well but not fact-based

The mine opens for 9 hours per day, 7 days per week, and there must be 10 line workers at a time, so it is 630 man-hours per week at the line positions. There are 16 line workers, so on average each of them only needs to work 39 hours per week. This seems to fit very well with the proposed conclusion: line workers do not work more than 40 hours per week. However, a missing piece of data to conclude is: does every line worker work the same amount of time (if not, there can be some who work over 40 hours while others work less)?

D – Fit well but not fact-based

Similar to A, there are more line workers, so it seems like the total cost for line workers is more than the total cost for safety inspectors. But a missing piece of data needed to conclude is: does each worker get paid the same amount?

=> Only B is proven true by the provided facts

There are 24 * 7 = 168 inspector hours needed in a week, equaling 42 hours per week per inspector. So there must be one who works more than 40 hours.

Identifying proven true conclusions is an important foundation to master all conclusion-related questions. However, most conclusion-related questions in the McKinsey Problem Solving Test will be given in other formats. In this section, we will learn about the two types of twists: (1) False conclusions and (2) Conclusions reversed . Let’s start with the first one.

TWIST TYPE 1: FALSE CONCLUSION

Any proposed conclusion must fall into one of the following three groups: Proven True, Proven False, and Unproven. This twist is when a question asks you to identify the False Conclusion instead of the True Conclusion.

• Which of the following statements is FALSE based on …?
• Which of the following statements is FALSE based on … ?

METHODOLOGY

A proposed conclusion is proven false when you can point out at least one instance where the conclusion is wrong. Similarly, with true conclusion questions, unproven conclusions should also not be selected.

Notice that proven FALSE conclusions are NOT conclusions not proven TRUE. A conclusion will stay unproven until it is proved to be TRUE or FALSE.

Which of the following statements is FALSE based on Table 1?

A. A, Inc. had lower average economic growth in the last five years than D, LTD.

B. A, Inc. had higher average economic growth in the last five years than D, LTD.

C. Investment risk rating is based on the difference between maximum and minimum revenue growth in the past five years.

D. Potential rating is based on the maximum recent revenue.

Of A and B, A seems to be false and B seems to be true. However, both of them are unproven. The maximum and minimum figures are not enough to conclude the average.

We don’t know if C is right or not, but we know that it is not proven false. In the provided data, there is no instance where the larger difference between maximum and minimum recent revenue growth indicates smaller risk (and vice versa).

With D, we know for sure that it is proven false because we can point out an instance where the assertion conflicts with the data (B Corp. vs. D, LTD.).

TWIST TYPE 2: CONCLUSIONS REVERSED

Very often, conclusion questions in the McKinsey Problem Solving Test are given in a reversed format. You will be given the conclusion first and asked to pick what facts/ data would be enough to come up with that conclusion.

The key to answering this type of question is to recognize which proposed fact makes the stated conclusion proven or unproven.

This question is written based on an official McKinsey practice PST:

FOCUS Travel is a premium Russian tourism company, offering tours to South East Asian countries. Facing the economic downturn, FOCUS revenue has been hurt badly. While the CFO (Chief Finance Officer) proposed an overall price cut to stay competitive, the CMO (Chief Marketing Officer) is concerned that a price reduction would negatively impact the premium perception of the brand, which drives a lot of sales.

Which of the following statements, if TRUE, would best support the CMO’s assertion?

A. In a recent survey, FOCUS’s customers quoted “price” as the most important indicator in choosing travel agencies in a list of ten factors.

B. In a recent survey, FOCUS’s customers quoted “price” as the most important indicator of quality in a list of ten factors.

C. In a recent survey, there were customers who said they would not buy FOCUS’s services if there was a 10% price increase.

D. In a recent survey, there were customers who said they would not buy FOCUS’s services if there was a 10% price decrease.

In this question, the “conclusion” has been given to us: Price reduction will negatively impact the premium perception, which will in turn negatively impact sales.

Of the four proposed answers, which facts are enough to prove the provided “conclusion” above?

A: This fact is only enough to conclude that price will impact sales. Not enough to prove that price reduction will negatively impact sales.

C: This fact is irrelevant.

D: This fact is not enough to conclude that price reduction will negatively impact sales because not all customers say so. The word “there were” can be understood as either a minority or a majority. It is only enough to conclude the proposed conclusions when “there were” is replaced with “the majority of” or “all“ .

With B, we can logically infer that price reduction will negatively impact the quality perception, which in turn will hurt to sales.

3.3. Root-cause reason

This question gives you a particular set of facts/data and asks you to identify what could be the cause for them. When doing a real consulting project, we consultants have to find out the root-cause reason. There may be various reasons that can cause the current situation, but the root-cause reason will help us tackle and solve it more efficiently. You can see the picture below for an illustration.

The following are a few examples of typical root-cause reason question format:

• Which of the following reasons, if TRUE, will help explain the Facts …?
• Which of the following does NOT explain the Facts …?
• Which of the following points is NOT a valid reason for the Facts …?

Only B is proven true by the provided facts

Facts provided: Visits to the website MConsultingPrep were relatively low last month.

Root-cause Reason Question: What reasons, if TRUE, would help explain the low traffic to MConsultingPrep last month?

The correct answers can be any of the following:

1. The quality of contents has been bad

2. Because of technical issues, some visitors could not access the website

3. Last month was December when the overall demand for job prep materials is lowest in the year

4. Other new consulting prep blogs opened recently

Fact-based Conclusion Question: What can be concluded from the data provided?

All of the statements above can be the reason for the stated fact, but NONE of them can be concluded from it.

An example of a statement that can be concluded: Because the conversion rate stayed constant over the years, revenue last month was relatively low.

What makes a statement NOT a potential reason for a particular fact?

There are two ways a statement cannot be the potential reason: (1) Wrong Subject and (2) Wrong Trend.

• A statement is (1) Wrong on Subject when the subject is irrelevant, which means the statement has zero effect on the phenomenon mentioned in the stated fact.
• A statement is (2) Wrong on Trend when the direction is reversed, which usually means the statement has a reversed effect on the phenomenon mentioned in the stated fact

Illustrative example Let’s continue with the simple example above. The Stated Fact: Visits to the MConsultingPrep blog were relatively low last month. (1) Example of a “Wrong Subject” statement: “Some new Investment Banking Prep blogs opened recently” Here the subject “Investment Banking Prep blogs” is irrelevant to the stated fact. The statement (1) will have zero effect on the stated fact. (2) Example of a “Wrong Trend” statement: “Some other existing Consulting Prep blogs closed recently” Here, even though the subject “Consulting Prep blogs” is relevant, the trend is reversed. The exit of Consulting Blogs will increase visits to MConsultingPrep. Therefore, statement (2) will have an opposite effect on the stated fact.

PRACTICE QUESTION

Fletcher is a major Steel producer in the Pacific continent. It has markets in New Zealand, Australia and other South East Asia countries. Of many types of steels, re-bar (reinforced bar) is typically used in high-rises and big construction projects.

There are three main groups of steel consumers in New Zealand:

• Homeowners purchase steel at retail sizes for purposes of self-constructing and self-renovating their homes
• Scaled private construction companies, who often contracts large construction projects and steel orders
• State-owned Enterprises (SOE), who build government’s projects such as roads, bridges, schools, hospitals, etc. (SOEs usually have bargaining power since steel providers need governments’ permissions in order to be legally used in particular countries.)

Table 1 below shows the size of re-bar steel market (in billions of $US)

Which of the following statements, if TRUE, best explains why future trends for South East Asia sales differ from sales in the other two markets?

A) South East Asia population is expected to grow strongest, which lead to high steel demand from individual homeowners.

B) South East Asia economy will be heavily based on SOE, so will the construction market.

C) South East Asia economy will shift toward privatization, so will the construction market.

D) Developed markets of New Zealand and Australia will have the most advanced steel production technology and facilities.

Correct answer: C

Word Problem

Word Problem is a quantitative question where the answer cannot be calculated directly from the data provided. Usually, we have to set up one or more equations in order to solve this kind of question. Word Problem questions in the McKinsey PST and Case Interviews are just the word problems we usually see in schools, GMAT… but put into business contexts. The method to solve them, therefore, is the same.

Table 1: Data on the Washing Room of Jean Valjean Restaurant

Suppose the restaurant opens 350 days a year. There are 3 meal shifts per day, 1 shift lasts 3 hours, 1 customer uses an average of 5 dishes per visit, and currently the restaurant hosts 530 customers on average daily.

What percentage of increase in the number of daily visits would be required in order to make purchasing the machines financially beneficial?

Step 1 . Convert data/facts into manageable and standardized format and units (only needed for complex questions).

Step 2 . Set up an equation with one (or more) unknown variables, i.e. X, Y, Z, etc.

Tips: Don’t worry about having to make the variable as the question asked. Just set up the equation in a way that makes the most sense to you as long as the variables can be easily converted to the asked variable. It will save much more time and helps you avoid silly mistakes.

Step 3 . Solve the equation and get the answer.

METHODOLOGY ILLUSTRATION

Let’s solve the sample question above together.

Step 1: This is a very complex question with many non-standardized and not ready-to-use data. If I am going to tackle this question on my PST, I would convert the provided figures and write them out on a table as follows.

Notice that I have converted all the necessary data points into the same unit of “Franc per day”.

The only data point not fully converted is the Labor cost in Manual Process (measured by the “per dish” variable), yet I want to make sure that I go as far as I can.

See how simple the problem is now!

Step 2: Now that we have very manageable data, let’s go ahead and set up an equation that will help us find the answer. The asked variable here is: what percent increase in current daily visits does Jean Valjean need?

As mentioned above, it is NOT necessary to put the variable question is looking for in the equation. In this case, doing so will result in a very awkward and complicated equation.

Instead, I set up the equation that makes the most sense to me (do note that there is more than one way to set up equations). Let Y be the “break-even size” (measured by people). I can easily calculate the percentage asked for after getting the break-even size.

Cost per day of Manual Process = Cost per day of Machine Process

Washing cost + Set up cost = Washing cost + Set up cost + other cost

Y x 5 dishes x 0.1 Franc + 30 Franc = 270 Franc + 90 Franc + 200 Franc

After executing step 1 and step 2, the problem becomes a lot easier. Now we have:

0.5 Y = 530

Y = 2 x 530

Once we have Y (the new “break-even” visit volume) of 2 * 530, we can quickly convert Y into the asked variable: What percent increase of 530 customers/day does Jean Valjean need?

The final answer is C.

Client Interpretation

In every consulting project, communication with the clients’ top-level (usually the Chairman or CEO) is always important. During my time with McKinsey, we usually hear an update every one or two weeks from our Project Director (usually a partner) on his meeting with the clients’ top level. Messages from those meetings are important on-going steers for the project. No surprise it makes up an entire question category in the Problem Solving Test.

Client Interpretation questions test your ability to read, understand, and interpret the messages the client is trying to convey in the case question or description. To some extent, this is very similar to GMAT verbal questions.

• Which of the following best summarizes the CEO’s concerns?
• Which of the following statements best describes the thoughts of the CEO regarding…?
• Based on the opinion of the head of the Department, which of the following statements is valid?
• Which of the following statements best describes the CEO’s aims for the McKinsey research?

Case context:

Mommy said she saw some dirty clothes on the dining table. She is also quite shocked to see Kevin’s toys in every room throughout the house. She even complains about how much time it takes her every night to clean up Kevin’s mess. “I will have to have a very straightforward conversation with Kevin tonight!”, said mom

Which of the following statements best describes the Mom’s concern?

A. Mom is not happy about too many of Kevin’s toys sitting on the dining table

B. Mom does not expect to see that many of Kevin’s toys in the house

C. Mom does not like to be responsible for anyone’s mess

D. Mom is too busy these days

E. Mom wants to talk to Kevin

F. Mom wants Kevin to be tidier

In this example, we continuously get small data points, all leading to one bottom-line, not explicitly mentioned but can be reasonably interpreted:

Kevin is too messy and mom doesn’t like that!

Notice that, the bottom-line here is not explicitly stated but it IS the bottom-line. All 4 sentences in the case context are small pieces of data leading to that final “so-what”. Having this “so-what” in mind, you can just skim through the answer and quickly pick F without concern about other choices.

In case you are curious about how other choices are “wrong-choice” …

Choices B and E are in fact right according to the case context, but not the bottom-line.

Choices A is simple wrong according to the case context (Tip #2)

Choices C and D are neither right or wrong according to the case context. There are not enough “evidence” to be reasonably interpreted using common sense.

TIPS AND TRICKS

Tip #1: Read the case description before going to multiple choices!

Normally the strategy of scanning through the answers first before going back to the case description works when you have a very long case description and don’t know where to look for the right information. Scanning through the answers helps you get a more focused read on the case description. However, the client’s assertion is typically found in a very short and specific part of the case description. So once you realize it’s a Client Interpretation question, go back to the case description and find that very specific part of the client’s assertion. Make sure you understand it very well. Then the rest of the work is just determining which of the four choices has the same meaning as the original assertion.

Tip #2: Cross out some obviously wrong choices …

… by recognizing a few words or short phrases that make a choice incorrectly reflect the client’s assertion. Sometimes, you can do this very quickly and effectively. If not, please see tips #3.

Tip #3: Catch the bottom-line, the “so-what” of client’s assertion

Client’s expression as quoted in the case context is always a bit blur and confusing. That is very realistic of what you may encounter in the real consulting work. It also makes these question types challenging. But in almost every situation, there is always one “so-what”, stated explicitly or implicitly. The trick here is to catch that so-what, ignore the noise, and go straight for the answer choice. Most of the time, the wrong choices DO contain a part of the client’s assertion, but either not the whole idea or the main, the bottom-line, the most important one!

Using this method, you can fly and land straight to the correct choice, not having to care too much about how wrong choices are made of. But if you are curious, some of the most common wrong-choice types:

• Choice that is simply wrong according to the client’s assertion (Tip #2 above).
• Choice that is in fact right, but is a minor point, NOT the bottom-line of the client’s assertion.
• Choice that seems to be right, but cannot be reasonably interpreted by common sense (not by scientifically supporting logic like in other question types).

Gangnam Market is a convenience-stores chain mainly in the Gangnam district, Seoul, Korea. Though it has been losing money almost every year since 2000, Gangnam Market secures a good deal of strategic locations in the highly populated Gangnam district. Recently, Gangnam Market was acquired by Lotte Mart in its aspiration to expand to the mini-market market. Lotte right away sets up a transformation project to get Gangnam Market back on track. The CEO of Gangnam Market states that aggressive transformation targets are fine for newly acquired stores with a similar operation model with Lotte’s big stores, but he hopes that the parent company is realistic about the convenience-stores model Gangnam has been operating with.

Which of the following statements best reflect the concerns of Gangnam Market’s CEO?

A) He is concerned that Gangnam Market will never be able to transform itself into Lotte system because Gangnam Market only presents in a specific geographic location

B) He is concerned that Lotte Mart sets transformation milestones that are too aggressive and not realistic for newly acquired companies like Gangnam Market

C) He is concerned that Lotte Mart’s transformation milestones are not realistic for companies with different operational model from Lotte Mart like Gangnam Market

D) He is concerned that Lotte Mart’s transformation targets are too high for Gangnam Market because it has been losing money for a while

Formulae questions are generally like word problems in PST where you don’t have to provide the actual numerical results, just the formulae containing letters representing input variables. Normally, the question will provide input variables in letter format and you will be asked to provide the right formulae in letter format (e.g. it takes the process center T hours to process each file. If the speed is doubled, it takes T/2 hours to process each file). This is one of the easiest PST question types on the McKinsey PST. Let’s make sure you don’t lose points on any question of this type in your exam!

Table 3.6.1: Labor Cost and Processing Data – Holcim Missouri plant

Which of the following formulae accurately calculates the annual cement output per worker?

A. (c x p) / (b + w)

B. (c x p) / [(b + w) x 12]

C. 144 x (c x p) / (b + w)

D. 12 x (c x p) / (b + w)

FORMULAE FOR SUCCESS IN FORMULAE QUESTIONS

Formula 1: Calculate first before looking at the given option

A popular technique for multiple-choice questions is to read the answers first before coming back to the facts. However, that technique would not help you with Formulae Questions. The reason for this is that, often, the end-result formula has already been simplified (e.g. canceling out the same variable on both numerator and denominator) as much as possible. It gives you neither the path to get there nor any hints on how to solve the problem. For instance, when you look at the four options in the example above, does any of them give you a sense of what it represents or how to get there? What does (c x p) represent? What do you get by multiplying Cement output by Monthly labor income?

Formula 2: Divide the problem into smaller pieces (take one step at a time)

This is the universal tip for everybody in the consulting industry, and it also works great here! Often, the result cannot be directly calculated from the provided variables. However, if you take an extra step in-between, the problem becomes a lot easier. Let’s solve the sample question above together to illustrate this point. I broke the problem into smaller steps as below:

• Step 1: Annual cement output per worker = Total annual cement output / Total number of workers
• Step 2: Since we already have Total annual cement output of (c), the next step is to calculate the total number of workers. Total number of workers = Total labor cost / Salary of 1 worker Both Total labor cost and salary are provided. Bingo!
• Step 3: Simplify the final formulae

Formula 3: Get the reading-facts tools right

In some aspects, the formulae question is also a tweaked version of reading-facts questions. You still need to read some facts and perform some calculations (with letters instead of real numbers). Therefore, it is important to master those reading-facts tools and apply them here.

Illustration of a usual mistake: Now come back to Step 2 above and explicitly solve it.

Step 2: Total number of workers = Total labor cost / Salary of 1 worker = (b + w) / p

Step 3: Annual cement output per worker = c / [(b + w) / p] = (c x p) / (b + w)]

Chosen choice: A

Unfortunately, A is NOT the correct answer, because the above calculation doesn’t take into account the difference in units – the salary is on a monthly basis whereas the total labor cost is on an annual basis. If you convert the unit, the final choice should be D.

No matter how beautifully you have tackled the problem, you will not get any credit if small mistakes like this slip through the crack. Make sure you don’t get blindsided by this kind of pitfall!

VICEM is a leading cement company in South East Asia. The following data regarding its business and production has been gathered.

Table 3.6.2: VICEM Business and Production data

Clinker factor is defined as the amount of clinker needed to produce 100 units of cement.

Which of the following formulas calculates the amount of clinker (in tons) needed to purchase in a year?

A) [(s x f) / 100] – c

B) [(p – s) / 100] – c

C) (p x f) – c

D) [(p x f) / 100] – c

 ANSWER KEY

McKinsey PST sample test

Download McKinsey PST practice test (PDF): TOYO case .

More free materials like this can be found in our Prospective Starter Pack - A-Z MBB Application – a collection of beginner’s materials to consulting resume, screening tests and case interviews. 

Scoring in the McKinsey PSG/Digital Assessment

The scoring mechanism in the McKinsey Digital Assessment

Related product

McKinsey Solve Simulation (All-in-One)

The one and only existing platform to practice three mini-games of McKinsey Solve in a simulated setting

This article will give a detailed explanation of failing the test and practical advice to minimize the chance of poor performance in the McKinsey game.

The McKinsey Solve (other names: PSG, Problem Solving Game, Digital Assessment, Imbellus) is a two-piece gamified test designed by Imbellus for McKinsey.

There are 2 techniques to boost your reading speed. Learn how to practice them effectively & overcome 3 common loopholes that limit your reading performance.

McKinsey Problem Solving Game: the ultimate guide

McKinsey's Problem Solving Game (PSG), also known as the Imbellus test or Digital Assessment, is a virtual "test" used to evaluate McKinsey candidates during the application process.

McKinsey says that no specific preparation is needed for the new assessment. However, in our experience you can (and should) prepare for the test. In the guide below we've compiled key information about the McKinsey Problem Solving Game and some tips to help you get ready. Let's get started!

Click here to practise 1-on-1 with McKinsey ex-interviewers

1. background, 1.1 what is the mckinsey problem solving game (psg).

Let's start high-level. The McKinsey Problem Solving Game is an assessment that the firm is using in order to evaluate their applicants during the early stages of the interview process. 

If you're familiar with the McKinsey PST (Problem Solving Test), then it will be helpful to know that the Problem Solving Game is intended to serve a similar function (i.e. screen candidates early in the process) but in a very different way.

McKinsey's Problem Solving Game is really the first assessment of it's kind in the consulting industry. For a brief overview of the assessment that comes straight from McKinsey, check out this video .

1.2 Purpose

At the end of the day, McKinsey's business is dependent on hiring exceptional problem-solvers to serve their clients. The purpose of the Problem Solving Game is to help McKinsey do a better job of finding the best talent among their vast pool of annual applicants. 

Now, to be more specific, the Problem Solving Game is intended to help the firm do a few things in particular:

• Hire the candidates who will perform best on-the-job, not just the candidates who can do well on a test
• Evaluate the thought process of candidates, rather than just their final answers
• Increase diversity by reducing the biases of other methods of standardised testing (like the McKinsey PST)

McKinsey's global director of people analytics and measurement, Keith McNulty , alluded to the above priorities when he made this comment about standardised multiple-choice tests: " [T] here’s a large amount of strategy, preparation, and luck involved in multiple-choice tests, and if you use them in the selection process, it reinforces the status quo—at a time when you are looking to widen the scope of candidates you’re hiring.”

1.3 Imbellus (acquired by Roblox)

The McKinsey Problem Solving Game was not built in-house by the firm. Instead, they worked directly with a start-up called Imbellus, in order to develop the assessment. In 2020 Imbellus was acquired by Roblox but McKinsey has continued using the digital assessment.

The core idea of the Problem Solving Game is to evaluate how people think, not just what they know. McKinsey believes that standardised testing is a poor predictor of real-world performance, and so they aim to evaluate candidates in a more robust and less biased way with this test.

1.4 Pilot and roll-out

The Problem Solving Game was tested with an initial group of 527 McKinsey candidates  at the London office in November of 2017. Then in late 2018 , the test was given to additional candidates from additional McKinsey offices. During these tests, the assessment could only be given on McKinsey-owned computers at a local McKinsey office. 

But then, a new version of the assessment was developed that allowed it to be taken online. The online version of the assessment was rolled out in late 2019, and as of the writing of this article, the Problem Solving Game has been played by over 15,000 people in at least 30 countries. 

Today McKinsey uses the PSG as its default initial assessment in the interview process.

2. Game structure

Now let's dig into more details about the Problem Solving Game and what you can expect on the assessment. Let's start with an overview.

2.1  Overview

Here is a brief summary of the way the PSG is structured:

• A computer-based assessment
• An experience similar to a video game
• About 70 minutes of total run time
• 2 scenarios
• 2-4 tasks within each scenario

Although the above elements are fairly consistent, the game is actually different for every candidate.

2.2 Different for every player

When you are invited to take the PSG, you will be given a unique link which will allow you to do three things:

• Run a tech diagnostic programme to ensure your computer and network meet the requirements needed to complete the assessment
• Schedule a specific time slot for you to take the assessment
• Take the assessment during your scheduled time slot

Here's where it gets interesting. When you begin the assessment during your scheduled time slot, the system will load a unique version of the game just for you. That means that the iteration of the game that you face will be different than every past or future iteration of the game.

With that said, all versions of the game contain something called "scenarios". 

2.3 Scenarios

The assessment is divided into two primary components: scenarios and tasks. A scenario is the digital world and situation where you find yourself. Each scenario has an over-arching objective and contains several tasks, which are smaller "bite-sized" objectives. When you take the Problem Solving Game, you should expect to face 2 different scenarios .

One is called Ecosystem, and the other Redrock. These are the only two scenarios currently being used. There are other scenarios which you might have heard of (Plant protection, Disaster management, Disease management, Migration management) but these aren't used anymore.

So to summarize, as of writing this article, here is what you need to know about the scenarios:

• Ecosystem creation - Currently used
• Redrock study - Currently used
• Plant protection - Not used anymore
• Disater management - Not used anymore
• Disease management - Not used anymore
• Migration management - Not used anymore

Let's dig deeper into the two scenarios currently being used.

Ecosystem management

The McKinsey Ecosystem game is a crucial part of McKinsey's recruitment process. In this game, candidates are tasked with creating a sustainable ecosystem on an island and selecting an appropriate location for it, all within a strict 35-minute time limit. To succeed, candidates must choose 8 species out of a pool of 13, considering factors such as whether they are producers or animals and their environmental requirements.

The game challenges candidates to create a balanced food chain within the chosen environment, ensuring that each species receives enough calories from its food source. To simplify the process, an Excel Solver tool is available to quickly identify if a selection can lead to a sustainable chain. This tool can be a valuable resource during the game.

Ultimately, the Ecosystem game assesses candidates' ability to make rapid and strategic decisions under pressure, demonstrating their problem-solving skills in creating a sustainable ecosystem.

Redrock study

The Redrock is a new addition to the McKinsey game, introduced in 2022 in the United States and replacing the previous second game, Imbellus – Plant Defense, as of February '23. This change brought a different format to the Problem Solving Game (PSG), focusing more on calculations, especially percentages, similar to the older McKinsey PSTs.

In the Redrock game, players are sent to an island to analyze the population of animals, specifically wolves and elks, and make predictions based on the data. The game consists of four phases: Investigation, Analysis, Report, and Cases, with a total time limit of 35 minutes, including short breaks before each phase.

The Investigation Phase involves gathering information from provided text, graphs, and tables, which can be used in later phases. The Analysis Phase requires answering math questions related to different animal groups, with access to a calculator and the Research Journal. The Report Phase includes both written and visual components, where you answer questions and choose a graph to represent analysis results. Lastly, the Cases Phase, introduced in 2023, involves answering up to 10 unrelated questions, typically taking around 2 minutes each.

Overall, the Redrock game represents a significant shift in the McKinsey recruitment process, focusing on analytical skills and calculations, and it may be challenging for candidates to complete within the time limit.

3. Skills tested

McKinsey is using the Problem Solving Game for a reason. They want to make sure that the candidates they hire, have what it takes to succeed on the job as consultants. 

So, what exactly is McKinsey evaluating when you play the game? You could call them skills, but skills isn't quite the right term to use here.  This abstract describes the areas upon which candidates are assessed during the PSG as "cognitive constructs".

This makes it sound complicated, but you can simply think of these "cognitive constructs" as the areas of your thinking that McKinsey wants to measure. There are 5 of these areas, and we've covered them in more detail below:

3.1 Critical thinking

As you may be aware, consultancies (and other employers) place a high value on their candidates' critical thinking abilities. Just so we're working off of the same definition, here is how Stanford defines critical thinking: "critical thinking is careful goal-directed thinking".

When a consultant begins on a project, they will typically have (or form) a set of objectives that the client wants to accomplish. At the same time, they will likely encounter competing priorities and a combination of relevant and irrelevant data.

The best consultants will have a knack for focusing on objectives, and systematically identifying the most relevant information to form an approach and recommendation. That's why critical thinking is one of the primary areas that McKinsey wants to evaluate with the assessment.

3.2 Decision making

The Problem Solving Game also evaluates your decision making. And one of the elements of the test that distinguishes it from more traditional standardised tests is that it evaluates both your end result and HOW you came to that decision. Whereas a multiple-choice test (like the McKinsey PST) is only capable of assessing candidates based on their end results.

For example, as you progress through a scenario within the Problem Solving Game, you'll gather information, do some analysis, and then take action to implement your approach. During each interaction you have with the game, the software is gathering data. It's measuring details like the amount of time you spend on each task, what information you are looking at onscreen, as well as the actions you ultimately take.

In the real world, McKinsey would rather have candidates who can make decisions strategically, even if they are wrong occasionally, rather than candidates who are good at guessing on standardised tests. Some people can do both, but you get the point.

3.3 Metacognition

Candidates are also evaluated on their metacognition. As described by Nancy Chick of Vanderbilt University , metacognition can be summarised as "thinking about one's thinking". 

You could also characterise metacognition as a person's ability to take a step back and recognise their own understanding and knowledge gaps for a particular topic. 

Having strong metacognition can make a significant difference in a person's ability to learn and adapt to new situations. McKinsey consultants often work on complex projects, and it's important for the firm to hire people that can learn quickly and excel in changing circumstances.

3.4 Situational awareness

When a candidate interacts with the scenarios within the PSG, their  situational awareness  is also put to the test. Situational awareness is a person's ability to understand their environment as well as it's likely future outcomes. To illustrate this point, situational awareness is an important ability for firefighters.

Imagine a home catches on fire and the fire department is called. When they arrive on the scene, the firefighters need to quickly assess the situation and understand key pieces of information (e.g. are any people inside? Where are the nearest fire hydrants? Etc.). At the same time, the firefighters will also understand the likely future outcomes of a particular fire, and they can use this insight to help them prepare their approach for extinguishing the flames.

In a similar way, McKinsey wants to hire candidates who are able to understand the key elements of a new situation, anticipate the likely outcomes, and use their situational awareness to prepare a strategic approach.

3.5 Systems thinking

Finally, the Problem Solving Game is meant to test candidates' systems thinking . Systems thinking is a person's ability to understand and work with the complexities of an interconnected system. To test this ability, the Imbellus test uses the natural world, which provides some excellent examples of complex systems. 

For example, a coral reef is a system with a variety of interdependent parts, including plants, animals, water, the water temperature, and more. If you change one element of the system, it can impact the system as a whole.

Likewise, the clients that McKinsey serves are deeply impacted by systems (e.g. the global economy, data processing, and more). As a result, hiring candidates that can understand and work within a systems-context, will be an advantage for McKinsey.

4. How to prepare

Now let's talk about beating the game. 

First, we want to remind you that every candidate who plays the Problem Solving Game is encountering a completely unique game. You can't memorise a set pattern or sequence that will consistently get you a high score.

Also, remember that the game is measuring HOW you approach the problem and not just your outcomes. So, even if you have good results, if you got there using a strange or illogical approach, that could pull down your overall score.

Due to these factors, you can't prepare for McKinsey's Problem Solving Game in the same way that you would prepare for other tests (like the PST). In fact, according to McKinsey you DON'T even need the following for the Problem Solving Game:

• Any specific preparation
• Experience with video games
• Specific business knowledge

That's what they say, but if you have the opportunity to interview with McKinsey, we know that you'll want to be as prepared as possible! So, we've compiled the below tips, which we recommend you use to get ready for the assessment.

 4.1 Play video games, seriously

Even though no video game experience is required to play the Problem Solving Game, it was designed (at least in part) by game designers. And if you play the right kind of video games, there are elements of the strategy and mechanics that will be similar to what you may encounter on McKinsey's assessment.

We recommend that you specifically play two types of video games to help you prepare: 

• A "world builder" simulation game like SimCity
• A "tower defense" game like Kingdom Rush

To be clear, the graphics and experience of the games above will likely look quite different than what you'll find within the Problem Solving Game. BUT, by playing games like these, you'll pick up helpful strategies and a better understanding of the game mechanics and flow. 

We would also recommend that you practise these video games on the same device that you would use to take the Problem Solving Game (likely your primary laptop or desktop computer). That way you will be replicating the style of play as closely as possible.

The two games we've mentioned above are most closely aligned with the ecosystem creation and plant protection scenarios of the Problem Solving Game that we mentioned in section two of this article.

Similar to the ecosystem creation scenario on the Problem Solving Game, in SimCity you have to build a system (in this case a city) with a variety of interdependent parts. And in both games, you have to achieve a level of balance between different parts of the system. 

Similar to the plant protection scenario on the Problem Solving Game, in Kingdom Rush, you have a variety of elements that you can build to slow or stop invaders. And although the elements that you'll have will be different (e.g. predators vs. archers) the basic strategies involved in most tower defense games are similar.

Now, as you may have already noticed, these games are useful for two of the scenarios we mentioned in section two above. For the other scenarios, we have not found any video game that is clearly relevant. So, for those scenarios, you'll need to rely more on the other preparation steps below.

4.2 Study the known scenarios

As we mentioned previously, there are four publicly known scenarios that have been used on the Problem Solving Game. As a recap, here's what they are:

• Ecosystem creation
• Plant protection
• Disease management
• Disaster management

We'd encourage you to carefully review the information that we've summarised for each scenario in section two of this article. This will help you to start getting comfortable with the situations you'll encounter (note: McKinsey could add new scenarios not listed above).

As you learn the basic details of each scenario, you could also outline potential strategies for each one, as a mental exercise.

For example, in disease management, you'll need to identify the disease you're dealing with, and then take action to contain and treat it. Until you play the PSG, you won't have all the data, but you do know the basic objective of the game. So, make-up a hypothetical disease situation, and then outline a few potential strategies that you could take to help local wildlife.

A mental exercise like this obviously won't match the exact way the Problem Solving Game operates. However, it will get you to start thinking strategically, within the context of the specific scenarios that you will face. This alone will likely make you feel more confident when you take the assessment, and you may find that some of your ideas will come in handy on game day.

4.3 Prepare your workstation

This is a bit more logistical, but it's very important.

The McKinsey Problem Solving Game is somewhat demanding from a hardware perspective. You'll need a computer that runs pretty quickly and has at least 8GB of RAM. If you have an old or slow computer, then we would recommend that you either borrow or purchase a new one prior to taking the test. 

You'll also want to make sure you have a fast and stable internet connection before taking the assessment. If your wifi is spotty, you could try connecting to the internet through a direct ethernet connection. Or, you could ask a friend or relative with a good connection if you can take the assessment at their place.

Prior to taking the test, you will need to run McKinsey's "tech diagnostic" to ensure you have the processing power to run the Problem Solving Game. When McKinsey invites you to take the assessment, they'll send you more details on how to access this tech test. 

As much as possible, you'll also want to carve out a time and space to take the assessment with no distractions. It's important to plan this in advance, and it also helps if you can do your preparation in the same environment.

4.4 Start practicing case interviews

The McKinsey Problem Solving Game is very different than a case interview. However, if you get good at solving case interviews, some of those skills will also be helpful on the Problem Solving Game. 

For example, in the game, you'll need to develop a strategy with incomplete or inconclusive information. You also have to do this when you're solving a case interview. 

This is also a great strategy because it will help you get a head start on your preparation for the case interviews that you'll encounter later in the McKinsey interview process.

After getting some practice on your own, you should find someone who can do a mock interview with you, such as a friend or family member.

We’d also recommend that you do mock interviews with ex-interviewers from McKinsey. This is the best way to replicate the conditions of a real interview, and to get feedback from someone who understands the process extremely well. You may not have the connections to do this on your own, but we’ve made the connections for you. Book your McKinsey mock interview now .

Related articles:

Career in Consulting

How to ace the McKinsey case interview: step-by-step guide

Today, I will show you how to master the McKinsey case interview.

McKinsey is one of the most prestigious consulting firms.

And case interviews are a core component of McKinsey’s rigorous hiring process.

Therefore, this comprehensive guide will address the following:

What you can expect in a McKinsey case interview

Which criteria McKinsey uses to assess your case interview performance

The secrets for cracking any problems like a McKinsey consultant

And lots more to help you get a job offer at McKinsey.

Let’s dive right in.

Table of Contents

Understanding mckinsey case interviews.

If you have just started your journey to a career in consulting or want to make sure you’re on the right track, you’ll love this chapter.

We’ll cover what a McKinsey case interview is (with examples) and how McKinsey interviewers assess candidates’ performance.

Let’s start with the definition of the McKinsey case interview.

What is a McKinsey Case Interview?

A McKinsey case interview is a job interview used to evaluate prospective consultants.

In this interview, candidates are presented with a problem to solve.

These problems reflect realistic projects McKinsey does for its clients.

This interview simulates the dynamics of real consulting work and allows the interviewer to gauge the candidate’s interpersonal skills and ability to collaborate in solving business problems.

8 McKinsey case interview questions examples

Here are 8 McKinsey sample cases from the McKinsey website:

Electro-light

GlobaPharma

National Education

Talbot trucks

Shops corporation

Conservation forever

Need more case interview examples?

Check out this page , where I’ve compiled over 280 free case interview examples.

Skills assessed during McKinsey case interviews

Your interviewers will assess if you possess the following soft skills and capabilities:

Case structuring

Case structuring involves organizing and outlining an approach to analyzing the problem methodically.

This skill is demonstrated by a candidate’s capability to break down complex problems into manageable parts, establish a logical framework for tackling each part, and systematically address the key issues.

Effective case structuring helps ensure that all critical aspects of the problem are considered and that the analysis proceeds in an organized manner.

Related article : the MECE principle .

Case leadership

Case leadership refers to the candidate’s ability to effectively prioritize tasks and apply the 80/20 rule (focusing on the 20% of efforts that will yield 80% of the results).

This skill is crucial for efficiently navigating the vast amount of information and potential analyses in a case interview to focus on the most impactful elements that will drive the most significant insights and value.

Case analytics

Case analytics is the ability to sift through data, interpret it correctly, and draw meaningful insights relevant to the case objectives.

In a case interview, this means handling numerical data accurately and understanding what the data implies for the business problem.

The skill lies in connecting analytical findings to the case question and informing strategic decisions or recommendations.

Related article : case interview math practice guide .

Communication skills

Communication encompasses the ability to articulate thoughts clearly, concisely, and persuasively.

It involves presenting ideas in a structured manner, ensuring the reasoning is easy to follow, and engaging effectively with the interviewer.

Coachability

Coachability refers to a candidate’s ability to apply feedback to improve performance.

It indicates flexibility in adapting their approach as needed.

In case interviews, coachability is assessed by observing how candidates respond to hints or corrections from the interviewer.

It’s crucial because consultants often work in rapidly evolving environments where they must continually learn and adjust strategies based on client needs or project dynamics.

Curiosity in case interviews is demonstrated by a candidate’s eagerness to explore deeper insights into the problem.

It involves asking thoughtful questions, seeking to understand the broader business context, and not just solving the problem mechanically.

Curiosity shows that a candidate is genuinely interested in the underlying issues of a case, which is critical to developing practical, innovative solutions beyond surface-level analysis.

Comfort with ambiguity

This term refers to a candidate’s ability to remain confident and decisive even when faced with incomplete information or uncertain situations.

This is a critical skill in consulting case interviews, as business problems often do not have clear-cut answers or may involve conflicting data.

Assessing comfort with ambiguity involves evaluating how well candidates handle unknowns without becoming overly stressed or indecisive.

Confidence and maturity

Confidence refers to the candidate’s ability to present their ideas assertively and clearly while demonstrating an understanding of the complexities involved in business issues.

Maturity is reflected in how candidates handle feedback, manage stress, and interact professionally during discussions, indicating their readiness to handle client-facing roles effectively.

The Importance of Case Interviews in McKinsey's Hiring Process

Here’s why case interviews are central to McKinsey’s hiring process:

Case interviews provide a direct simulation of the daily job of McKinsey consultants.

They require candidates to engage with complex business scenarios, analyze data, and develop actionable solutions that closely mirror the work they would do as consultants.

Communication is paramount in consulting, given the client-facing nature of the work.

Case interviews assess candidates’ abilities to communicate their thoughts clearly and persuasively and respond to feedback dynamically.

Additionally, this indicates how they will interact with clients and colleagues on real projects.

Through the interactive nature of case interviews, McKinsey interviewers can evaluate candidates’ adaptability and cultural fit within the firm.

How candidates handle pressure, ambiguity, and teamwork during these interviews provides insights into their potential to thrive in McKinsey’s high-stakes, collaborative environment.

Finally, case interviews are a litmus test for client readiness.

McKinsey looks for candidates who can solve complex problems and present their solutions in a client-ready manner, demonstrating professionalism and the ability to effectively engage stakeholders.

Step-by-Step Guide to Solving McKinsey Cases

Now that you understand what a McKinsey case interview is, it’s time to learn to solve it.

Specifically, we’ll discuss the 5-step process you must follow in all your case interviews:

Let’s start with how to open a McKinsey case interview.

Open: Listening and taking notes

The case interview starts with your interviewer presenting a business problem.

Listening and taking notes.

To do so, identify critical information such as:

unfamiliar terms.

And don’t worry: you can ask your interviewer to repeat a word or number you’ve missed.

After all, even McKinsey consultants are humans (I believe so)!

Clarify: Understanding the Problem Statement

In McKinsey case interviews, clarifying the problem statement is the first step toward solving the case.

It involves asking the right questions to understand what the interviewer expects fully.

Understanding the context

First, it’s essential to grasp the overall context in which the client operates.

This involves understanding the client’s product, business model, and the geography in which they operate.

Questions you might ask include:

Can you describe our client’s business model?

How does our client make money today?

Where does our client operate?

Understanding the objectives

Next, it’s vital to understand how the client defines success.

Specifically, you must unambiguously understand the following:

Problem metric: the KPI the client wants to optimize

Objective: the quantified objective the client wants to achieve

Relevant questions might be:

What are the specific goals the client aims to achieve?

Are we focusing on increasing profitability, or is there another objective?

Related article : how to ask the right clarifying questions .

Structure: Crafting a Structured Approach

Next, you must develop a framework.

A framework is the list of all the mini problems that must be solved to resolve the main problem.

But this list of mini problems can NOT be a random list of issues.

You must follow a logical approach and organize your ideas in a MECE manner.

To do so, you must understand the concept of problem archetypes:

Diagnosis problems (or fix-something-bad problems)

Take-a-strategic-decision problems

Improve-a-metric problems

Next, let’s explore how to develop a case structure for each problem archetype.

Problem archetype 1: diagnosis problems

For this problem archetype, you must answer two questions:

Where: break down the problem metric into an equation to ISOLATE the problem. The goal? Understand what is numerically driving the problem metric in the wrong direction. How? By benchmarking actual and historical values for each variable in this equation.

Why: List all the potential root causes that could explain the situation. Often, you must explore internal (e.g., an underperforming offer) and external (e.g., a sluggish market) potential root causes.

Problem archetype 2: take-a-decision problems

For this problem archetype, you must first identify all the conditions that must be true to take the condition.

For instance, a condition can be “this is economically viable” or “we’ll generate $1M of annual profits”.

Second, list the information you need to check if each condition is met.

For instance, you can explore the expected revenues and costs to estimate the profits generated by this decision.

Problem archetype 3: improve-a-metric problems

For this problem archetype, you must first list the opportunities a client has to improve a metric.

To do so, like any brainstorming exercise, start by breaking down the metric you need to improve.

Next, brainstorm ideas to improve each variable of this equation.

But you’re not done yet.

You want to give your client a prioritized list of opportunities.

To do so, you must perform a cost-benefit analysis.

A complete (and free) case interview training

I’ve created a free case interview training to go deeper into the above concepts.

In this training, we’ll explore the different problem archetypes in detail and use many examples to illustrate some key concepts.

So, if you want a job offer, sign up today for this free training .

Also, you can watch the following video:

Solve: Finding a solution

It’s time to solve the mini-problems in your framework.

To do so, you’ll have to perform two types of analysis:

Quantitative analysis

Qualitative analysis (aka brainstorming questions)

Answering quantitative questions

These questions test a candidate’s ability to solve numerical problems commonly encountered in consulting work.

Quantitative questions can vary widely, but they typically fall into three categories:

Market Sizing : These questions ask candidates to estimate the size of a market. For example, “Estimate the market size for mobile phones in the United States.”

Interpret a chart : This type of question tests a candidate’s ability to extract and interpret data from graphical representations such as bar charts, pie charts, line graphs, or scatter plots.

Solve a math problem : These questions ask candidates to calculate something, often using a business formula. For example, a question might be, “Determine the break-even point for a company launching a new eco-friendly water bottle, given the fixed costs, variable costs per unit, and expected selling price per unit.”

Finally, here is how to approach quantitative questions:

Understanding the Question:

Begin by carefully listening to the quantitative question presented. Ensure you understand what is asked, identifying key variables and the desired outcome.

Planning the Approach:

Decide which mathematical operations, formulas, or analytical methods are most appropriate for addressing the question.

Executing Calculations:

Perform the calculations using a systematic approach. Use rough paper to keep track of your calculations and ensure accuracy. In case interviews, while speed is essential, correctness is crucial.

Validating Results:

Once the calculations are complete, please take a moment to review them. Check your arithmetic and ensure that your answer makes sense in the problem’s context.

Presenting Your Findings:

Highlight insights from the analysis and how they could impact the client’s decision-making process. Based on your results, suggest further areas of investigation.

Answering brainstorming questions

Brainstorming questions in consulting case interviews serves a unique purpose:

They assess candidates’ ability to think creatively and generate ideas under pressure.

For instance:

“How can Company X increase its market share?” or

“What new revenue streams can Company Y explore to offset declining sales?”

Answering brainstorming questions effectively in a consulting case interview involves a systematic approach that showcases your creativity and structured thinking.

Here’s how you can handle these questions:

Step 1: Listing Ideas

This phase is about quantity as much as quality, aiming to explore as many avenues as possible without immediate judgment or analysis.

Step 2: Organizing Your Ideas into MECE Categories

Once you have a comprehensive list, the next step is to refine and organize these ideas to ensure they are presented clearly and structured.

Close: Giving a recommendation

Finally, it’s time to share your recommendation.

This is where interviewers test your communication skills and whether you are client-ready.

And trust me:

This is where most candidates struggle with presenting their solutions clearly and concisely.

To structure your communication, start with your main findings, followed by supporting data, and conclude with your recommendations.

Want to learn how to do it?

Read the book “The Pyramid Principle” by Barbara Minto.

This is a must-read book if you want to have a career in consulting.

Differences between a McKinsey case interview and case interviews at other firms

All consulting firms use case interviews as part of their hiring process.

However, this chapter will address what makes McKinsey interviews different.

Let’s start with the case interview format.

Interviewer led vs. Candidate led case interviews

In consulting interviews, candidates will encounter two primary case interview formats:

candidate-led, or

interviewer-led case interviews.

Mckinsey use interviewer led case interview.

Conversely, other firms such as BCG or Bain use the candidate-led format.

So, let’s define each format and the implications for you.

Candidate-Led Case Interviews

In candidate-led interviews, the candidate takes the initiative to drive the problem-solving process.

Here, the interviewer presents the case problem and lets the candidate guide the discussion.

The candidate must propose a structured approach to solving the problem, identify the key issues to analyze, and ask relevant questions to obtain and analyze the data.

Interviewer-Led Case Interviews

In contrast, interviewer-led case interviews involve the McKinsey interviewer guiding the candidate through the case with targeted questions.

Each question is designed to evaluate specific skills and problem-solving abilities.

For instance, McKinsey interviewers can ask questions like:

“What are the key cost areas that impact the client’s profitability?”

“Can you calculate the impact of increased production costs on overall profit margins?”

Interviewer led cases: implications for your case interview prep

Short answer: none.

I always recommend that my clients know how to lead the case.

Even in a McKinsey case interview, you want to demonstrate your leadership skills and drive the case discussions by talking about the following analysis to perform.

That’s precisely what I teach in this free training .

Expectations from interviewers

McKinsey places an exceptionally high emphasis on the MECE principle and strategic thinking, even more so than its competitors.

McKinsey's Emphasis on the MECE Principle

While other firms also value structured thinking, McKinsey’s approach to problem-solving through the MECE lens is incredibly rigorous.

Candidates must demonstrate a highly structured thought process that systematically breaks down complex problems into neatly organized parts.

This meticulous attention to structure facilitates more precise insights and more effective solutions.

Related article : the complete guide on MECE principle .

Strategic Thinking

While other firms like BCG and Bain require strategic thinking, the depth and detail expected by McKinsey in articulating these strategic insights are often more demanding.

McKinsey interviewers expect candidates to provide solutions and articulate how these solutions fit into a larger strategic framework.

The competitiveness of McKinsey's recruiting process

McKinsey is the most prestigious consulting firm worldwide.

This makes the McKinsey interview process one of the most competitive.

It’s generally admitted that only 1% of applicants receive an offer, which the McKinsey CEO has confirmed many times.

Hence, tolerance to mistakes is lower (if not zero) than with other top consulting firms.

In other words, your case interview performance must be perfect!

Get 4 Complete Case Interview Courses For Free

You need 4 skills to be successful in all case interviews: Case Structuring, Case Leadership, Case Analytics, and Communication. Join this free training and learn how to ace ANY case questions.

First round interviews vs. second round interviews

To begin with, do not overthink the differences between first-round and later-round interviews.

From your preparation’s perspective, it should not change anything.

However, keep in mind the following differences between the first round interview and the final round interviews:

The seniority of the McKinsey interviewer (usually engagement managers, associate partners, or partners)

Competitiveness

Weight of assessment criteria

Focus on your weaknesses

Common Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them

A top consulting firm like McKinsey has a ban policy:

If rejected, you can’t reapply for 18-24 months.

But I have good news.

In this chapter, I’ll show you the mistakes candidates make before, during, and after a case interview so you can avoid making the same!

Let’s dive in.

Insufficient preparation

Many candidates underestimate the complexity and intensity of McKinsey’s case interviews.

Successful preparation extends beyond familiarizing yourself with common case types.

Conversely, it involves rigorous practice and constantly seeking constructive feedback.

Therefore, adequate preparation includes:

Diverse Case Practice : Engage in various case types to build versatility.

Regular Mock Interviews : Simulate interview settings with peers or mentors and get feedback.

Lack of framework flexibility

Frameworks – like these ones – provide a structured way of approaching business problems.

But top consulting firms like McKinsey expect candidates to tweak or combine frameworks based on the specifics of the case question and the client’s unique situation.

Therefore, you must learn how to build tailored frameworks.

Check this free training to learn how to develop tailored frameworks.

Neglecting the fit interview (PEI or Personal Experience Interview) component

McKinsey evaluates not only problem-solving skills but also cultural fit.

Actually, your performance during McKinsey PEI interviews counts for 50%.

To better prepare, candidates should:

Research Firm Culture : Understand and reflect McKinsey’s core values and mission.

Prepare Personal Stories : Develop stories highlighting qualities aligning with these values.

Mock Fit Interviews : Practice behavioral questions with peers or mentors to refine your personal experience interview answers.

Related article : how to answer McKinsey PEI questions .

Failure to clarify the objectives

A common pitfall is jumping into solving the case without clearly understanding the objectives.

At the start of the case, candidates should ask Clarifying Questions to frame the problem.

This article explains how to start a McKisney case interview correctly.

Overlooking key details

Candidates often miss key details that are critical to developing an effective solution.

Instead, candidates should:

Active Listening : Pay careful attention to all the information the interviewer provides.

Note-Taking : Develop efficient note-taking habits to capture all relevant details.

Review Notes : Review your notes during the interview to ensure all critical elements are considered.

Communication breakdown

The ability to articulate your thought process clearly and concisely is crucial.

However, many candidates get lost in details and are unstructured or unclear.

Structure Responses : Organize your thoughts and present them in a logical sequence.

Practice Clear Speaking : Focus on clarity and pace during mock interviews.

McKinsey case interview: final words

I hope you enjoyed this guide to the McKinsey case interview.

As a former consultant, I know how challenging and overwhelming the preparation can be.

But follow this guide’s strategies, and you’ll get your consulting offer!

Leave a comment below now if you have any questions.

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You need 4 skills to be successful in all case interviews: Case Structuring, Case Leadership, Case Analytics, and Communication. Enroll in our 4 free courses and discover the proven systems +300 candidates used to learn these 4 skills and land offers in consulting.

McKinsey has more than 500 open positions and some pay $192,000 in starting salaries. A senior recruiter explains how to stand out in the firm's rigorous interview process.

• McKinsey is looking for candidates who want to create positive change and solve complex problems.
• Candidates should prepare for a case or technical interview and a personal experience interview.
• Interviewers like candidates who ask questions and share what's on their minds during the interview.

While other industries like tech and finance have pulled back on hiring, some consulting firms are still going strong with recruiting.

McKinsey, one of the prestigious Big Three consulting companies, has more than 500 positions open on its website . MBA and Ph.D. grads who get a job at McKinsey can expect  $30,000 signing bonuses, according to Management Consulted's 2022 data. Additionally, the firm just increased the base pay for MBA graduates — raising the salary from $175,000 to between $190,000 and $192,000,  according to the Financial Times .

Top performers can earn more than $250,000 in their first year when performance-related and signing bonuses are added. What's more, interns  who return  to McKinsey get a 50% reimbursement of their second-year tuition.

Kristen Altenberg, associate director of US campus recruiting at McKinsey, said the firm is looking for a wide variety of experiences, including internships, research, volunteer work, part-time jobs, and military service. She said the firm is hiring from more than 400 schools globally to build diverse teams globally. 

"We continually look for people who want to dig into intricate challenges, continuously learn, and collaborate with others," Altenberg told Insider. 

Amy Ross, a senior expert on the firm's global assessment team, said candidates, regardless of their desired role, should prepare to prove their problem-solving skills in a case interview and a personal experience interview. Candidates for technical roles may do a technical or expertise interview instead of a case interview. 

Ross walked Insider through each interview and shared how candidates can stand out during the rigorous process.

Amy Ross. Amy Ross The case interview

The case interview at McKinsey revolves around a client-like problem that makes candidates think the way consultants do at McKinsey.

Ross said the topic of the case interview can range from how to reduce carbon footprint, how to make a workforce more diverse, or how to make better use of technology in the workplace. 

Each scenario is different, Ross says, but candidates can expect three questions: First, they will be asked to evaluate a problem. Then, they should perform basic calculations and analyses. Finally, the candidate should come up with a solution to the problem.

Related stories

"Think of the interview as a two-way discussion," she said, "meaning you are encouraged to ask clarifying questions if you're unsure about something, and to share ideas that may need to be tested."

The case interview takes 20 to 30 minutes, and Ross says it's a good chance for a candidate to discover whether they would like the type of problem-solving consultants do at McKinsey. 

In terms of preparation, Ross' advice is to practice former interview cases with a friend. She also recommends candidates listen to the company's recruiting podcast to get even more familiar with the process. 

The personal experience interview

After the company's had a chance to gauge your problem solving skills, Ross says McKinsey likes to learn a bit more about your background. The personal interview is your chance to share your accomplishments and challenges.

"Come prepared to discuss some important experiences in a detailed way, focusing on your specific role, and describing the actions you took that were critical to success," Ross said. 

For example, you may be given a prompt like, "Explain a challenging situation you encountered when working with someone who had an opposing opinion." To prepare, Ross said to think of an example that most resonates with the prompt, and then spend time reflecting on the experience in detail. 

Candidates should also prepare two personal examples that demonstrate their problem solving, personal impact, leadership, and entrepreneurship skills. 

"You should be able to speak at length about these examples and don't be afraid to say 'I' instead of 'we,' Ross said. "We do want to know what you did, how you led, and the actions you took to create change."

Preparing for the technical interview

For roles at McKinsey in data science, programming, cloud engineering, software development, and design, Ross said the assessment process for these roles may include an expertise interview or technical interview, instead of a case interview.

Each role involves its own expertise, so interviews are tailored to best evaluate a candidate's mastery of their expertise.

The interview for these roles could include coding tests and project discussions with product engineers, portfolio reviews with other designers, or discussions about coaching and agile methodologies with McKinsey's agile coaches, Ross said. 

Online assessment game

At the end of 2018, McKinsey started using an online assessment game, Solve , that puts candidates in a simulated world where they can demonstrate problem-solving skills.

The assessment is 60 minutes long, and candidates complete tasks where they make choices that inform interviewers of the way they think.

What makes a candidate stand out?

Ross said interviewers are grateful when candidates let them know when they need more clarity, or need something repeated.

Many of McKinsey's interviews are still being conducted virtually, which can make it more challenging to pick up on a candidate's non-verbal cues. Ross said it's really helpful when candidates speak up. 

Interviewers also try to reserve time at the end of the interview for candidates to ask questions about McKinsey, the role, and the interviewer, which every candidate should take advantage of.

"We love hearing what's on our candidates' minds — what they're interested in, what concerns they have, what they'd like to understand better about the role or McKinsey," Ross said. "That is what matters most."

This article has been updated from an original piece on February 10, 2022. 

Watch: The CMO of $30 billion financial giant State Street says to be successful, you have to be the CEO of your own brand

• Main content

Hacking the Case Interview

Want to work at McKinsey? We're about to cover the entire McKinsey interview process in detail. You’ll learn all the different steps it takes to get a job at McKinsey, including networking , applying, and interviewing.

McKinsey is known as the “gold standard” in consulting. They work with the biggest name clients and charge the highest billing rates. Due to McKinsey’s brand name and prestige, McKinsey’s consultants have access to the most attractive and lucrative exit opportunities .

Because of everything that McKinsey has to offer, McKinsey attracts the smartest people with the most impressive backgrounds. This makes McKinsey one of the most competitive consulting firms to get into. Less than 1% of people that apply to McKinsey will receive a job offer.

What do you need to do to put yourself in the 1% of applicants that land a McKinsey job offer?

This article will cover the McKinsey interview process and give you strategies and tips to give yourself the best chance of landing a McKinsey job offer.

The Five Steps in the McKinsey Interview Process

The timeline and dates in the McKinsey interview process may slightly differ depending on whether you are applying as an undergraduate student, MBA student, advanced degree student, or working professional.

However, the overall components in the process are roughly the same.

The McKinsey interview process has five major steps:

• Attend McKinsey networking events
• Submit your McKinsey application
• Pass your first round McKinsey interview
• Pass your second or final round McKinsey interview
• Receive your McKinsey Offer

We’ll go through each step of the McKinsey interview process so you know exactly what to expect.

McKinsey Interview Process Step 1: Attend Networking Events

McKinsey typically hosts several networking events before the McKinsey application is due.

There are two goals you should focus on in these networking events:

1. Learn more about McKinsey : You’ll be better able to answer interview questions that ask why you are interested in consulting and why you want to work for McKinsey if you get a chance to hear McKinsey consultants talk about their work experience.

2. Make a positive and memorable impression : By chatting with McKinsey representatives that attend these networking events, you will get the opportunity to get your name in front of recruiters and potential resume reviewers. If you connect or bond with someone from McKinsey, they may try to push strongly for you to get an interview.

Attending these events is not required. If you have a strong resume and background, you can still receive a McKinsey interview even if you did not attend any events.

If you attend a top-tier undergraduate or MBA school, these networking events are less important. McKinsey has relationships with these schools and consistently hires students from these schools every year for consulting internship and full-time opportunities. Your resume will get reviewed regardless of whether you attend a networking event or not.

If you do not attend a top-tier undergraduate or MBA school, these networking events will be much more important. Since your school is not a school that McKinsey targets, McKinsey recruiters spend much less time looking at applications from your school. Networking is crucial to giving your resume an opportunity to be reviewed.

Similarly, if you are applying to McKinsey as a working professional, networking events are much more important. Although McKinsey hires people from nontraditional backgrounds, you will need to do the work needed to get your name and resume in front of recruiters through networking or referrals.

There are three different types of networking events:

You do not need to attend every event, but some events will be more effective for networking than others.

McKinsey Information sessions

If you attend a top-tier undergraduate or MBA school, McKinsey typically hosts one large information session in which they bring 20 – 30 consultants to give a presentation. Afterwards, there will be time to mingle and ask these consultants questions.

You can find the dates of the information session through McKinsey’s website, your school’s career services center, or through your school’s consulting club.

If you are applying as a working professional, McKinsey may host an information session through an online webinar or at a hotel in major cities.

Given that hundreds of people attend these information sessions, finding opportunities to network with McKinsey consultants at this event can be difficult.

What typically happens during these events is that 10 – 15 people will swarm around each McKinsey consultant at the end of the presentation to chat and ask questions.

The best strategy for networking during information sessions is to show up early.

McKinsey recruiters and consultants will already be there to greet you. Since much fewer people tend to show up to these events early, there will be fewer people around. This gives you a better opportunity to chat and ask questions with a McKinsey representative one-on-one.

McKinsey Coffee chats

If you attend a top-tier undergraduate or MBA school, McKinsey typically hosts coffee chats to give students an opportunity to ask individual, specific questions. These coffee chats are usually one-on-one or done in small groups.

These coffee chats are more informational than evaluative. During these chats, you want to ask intelligent questions that have answers that can’t be easily found online.

Asking questions that have answers that can be found on Google shows a lack of preparation and may leave a negative impression.

If you are applying to McKinsey as a working professional, you’ll need to set up coffee chats yourself. Use your LinkedIn network to identify former colleagues or school alumni that would be open to chatting with you.

You can use this opportunity to learn more about McKinsey and to ask to be put in contact with a McKinsey recruiter.

McKinsey Invitational Lunches and Dinners

If you attend a top-tier undergraduate or MBA school, McKinsey will also invite high-potential candidates to join them for a nice lunch or dinner.

McKinsey identifies high potential candidates by looking through the resume book or by asking current employees for names of high potential individuals.

Receiving an invite to these events is a great sign that you have a high chance of receiving an interview.

However, just because you do not receive an invite does not mean that you will not get an interview. Many people that don’t receive invites for these exclusive events still receive McKinsey interviews and offers.

If you are applying as a working professional, you likely won’t have the opportunity to attend a McKinsey lunch or dinner event.

For a complete guide on networking, check out our ultimate guide to management consulting networking .

McKinsey Interview Process Step 2: Submit  your Application

After all of the networking events are over, McKinsey will have a deadline for submitting your application, which typically consists of four components.

McKinsey Application Questions

The McKinsey application will ask for several basic pieces of information, such as your name, demographics, and background. The application will also ask for what languages you speak and what your top office choices are.

McKinsey will ask for your top three office preferences. Although they ask for three, you will usually only be considered for your top office choice. This will most likely be the office that you will be interviewing for.

When listing your top three office choices, make sure that you meet the language requirements to work at these offices.

McKinsey Resume

Keep your McKinsey resume to one page and quantify the impact of your accomplishments in your work experiences and extracurricular activities. That is the single biggest piece of advice that most candidates do not follow.

McKinsey likes to see:

• High grades (if you are an undergraduate)
• Prestigious schools that you’ve attended
• Brand name companies that you’ve worked for
• Significant impact in your work experiences
• Leadership roles at work and in your extracurricular activities

Read our comprehensive consulting resume guide to understand what McKinsey resume reviewers look for when screening resumes and how to optimize your resume to give yourself the best chance of receiving an interview.

McKinsey Cover Letter

The McKinsey cover letter is usually optional. During information sessions, McKinsey will often tell candidates that they do not need to submit a cover letter because they will not read it.

However, you should always confirm with the recruiter whether or not you will need a cover letter.

Your cover letter should be concise and straight to the point. Introduce yourself, explain why you are interested in consulting and McKinsey, and then explain why you would be a great fit for the role and company.

To avoid having a generic consulting cover letter , include specific reasons why you are interested in McKinsey. Mention the McKinsey representatives that you have spoken to and what aspects of McKinsey you find most attractive.

Your resume is far more important in determining whether or not you will get an interview, so make sure to focus the majority of your time on optimizing your resume.

To make sure you have a strong cover letter, check out our step-by-step consulting cover letter guide .

McKinsey Referrals

Referrals are not part of the official McKinsey application process, but are a quick way to make your application stand out from the crowd.

If you have a friend or colleague that works or used to work at McKinsey, ask if they would be comfortable giving you a referral. If you really hit it off with someone you met during the McKinsey networking events, you can also ask them.

Getting a McKinsey referral basically means that someone at McKinsey will send your name and resume to the McKinsey recruiter that is in charge of the resume reviews. Your application will get a closer look and be viewed a bit more favorably.

This is not required to get a McKinsey interview. Many people get McKinsey interviews without getting any referrals.

Getting a McKinsey referral also does not guarantee that you will receive an interview. It only guarantees that your application will be reviewed more closely.

McKinsey Interview Process Step 3: Pass  Initial Interviews

A few weeks after the application deadline, you will receive an invitation from McKinsey for the first of two rounds of interviews.

If you are applying as a student, interviews will take place on your school’s campus. If you are applying as a working professional, interviews will take place at the McKinsey office that you are applying for.

Your McKinsey first round interview consists of two separate 40- to 60-minute interviews. The majority of the time will be focused on case interviews, but you will also get a few other types of questions.

There are four types of McKinsey interview questions.

We’ll go through each of these types of questions and give you strategies and tips on how to best answer them.

• McKinsey case interview

Case interviews are a special type of interview question that consulting firms, such as McKinsey, use to assess a candidate’s potential to be a great consultant.

A case interview or “case” is a 30- to 60-minute exercise in which you and the interviewer work together to develop a recommendation to answer or solve a business problem. These business problems can be anything that real companies face.

Here are four examples of McKinsey cases from their website:

• Should a beverage company launch a new sports drink product?
• Should a large pharmaceutical company acquire a smaller startup?
• Should the Mexican government leverage a chain of convenience stores to deliver basic financial services to inhabitants of rural Mexico?
• How can an Eastern European country’s Department of Education improve their school system?

In short, the case interview will begin with the interviewer reading you the case background information. You’ll have the opportunity to ask clarifying questions to ensure that you understand the business situation and the objective of the case.

You’ll then create a framework, which is a tool that helps you structure and break down complex problems into simpler, smaller components.

McKinsey case interviews are interviewer-led, which means that the interviewer will be steering the direction of the case. They’ll ask you several questions including quantitative questions that require you to make calculations and qualitative questions that require you to use your own business judgment.

At the end of the McKinsey case interview, the interviewer will ask you for a recommendation to solve the business problem.

You can watch the video below for a 30-minute primer on how to solve case interviews.

• McKinsey Personal Experience Interview (PEI)

McKinsey also conducts a Personal Experience Interview , or PEI for short. This takes the place of traditional behavioral questions that companies ask in interviews.

The interviewer will ask you to give an example or story of a time when you displayed a particular quality, such as leadership, problem solving, personal impact, and resilience.

Examples of potential questions include:  

• Tell me about a time when you went above and beyond what was required
• Give me an example of a time when you had to persuade someone
• Describe a situation in which you handled conflict while working on a team
• Give me an example of a time when you tried to accomplish something but failed
• Describe a difficult or complicated problem that you faced

The interviewer will then ask follow-up questions to probe deeper into your example or story. They will want to know exactly what you did, how you thought about the situation, why you did the things that you did, and what you learned from the situation.

The entire McKinsey Personal Experience Interview takes about 10 to 15 minutes to complete.

To prepare for the McKinsey Personal Experience Interview, you’ll want to develop a list of five different stories or examples that cover leadership, problem solving, personal impact, and resilience.

You should focus on selecting stories that are the most impressive and most impactful.

When given the PEI, select the story that is most relevant. You’ll want to tell your story or give your example using the STAR method.

Situation : Provide a brief overview of the situation and any context that is needed to understand the story better. Keep this section as concise as possible to make more room for the Action and Result sections, which is where you want to spend most of your time.

Task : Describe what you were asked or required to deliver or achieve. Again, try to keep this section concise to spend more time on the Action and Results section.

Action : Explain what steps you took to handle the task or to meet the goal or objective. Make sure that the actions center around what you specifically did. Do not focus too much on speaking to what your team did because it takes away from your accomplishment.

Result : Describe the outcome that your actions had, quantifying the impact and effect you had on the organization. Additionally, you can describe your key takeaways from this experience and how it impacted or influenced you as a person.

This strategy ensures that you give your answer in a clear and structured way. It also ensures that you spend most of the time talking about the specific actions that you took and the impact that you had.

Check out our detailed article on the McKinsey Personal Experience Interview for more strategies on how to nail them.

• “Why Consulting?” question

You’ll likely be asked why you are interested in consulting at some point during your interview.

In short, there are many reasons you can give for why you are interested in consulting:  

• You want to make a significant impact by working with billion-dollar companies on their most challenging business problems
• You enjoy solving business problems across multiple different industries and functions
• You see consulting as the quickest way to develop the skills to be a business executive
• You enjoy working closely with teams on tough, challenging business problems
• You value the mentorship and personal development that consulting provides
• You find fulfillment in working with and servicing clients
• You are excited to travel around the world for work

Select three compelling reasons why you are interested in consulting.

You can use the following simple, but effective structure while answering the “why consulting” question:  

• State that consulting is your top career choice
• Provide three reasons to support this
• Reiterate that consulting best fits your professional needs and goals

Read our comprehensive “why consulting?” article for more ideas on how to answer this question.

• “Why McKinsey?” question

In addition to being asked why you are interested in consulting, one of your interviewers may also ask why you are interested in working at McKinsey. This is known as the " Why McKinsey " question.

There are many different reasons you can give:

• You’ve really loved the people that you’ve met from McKinsey and would enjoy working with them
• McKinsey has an empowering work culture where you would grow and thrive
• McKinsey has deep expertise in a particular industry or function that you are passionate about
• McKinsey has a strong presence in a particular country, which you are interested in working in later in your career
• McKinsey places a heavy investment in mentorship and personal development, which you value tremendously
• McKinsey has a global staffing model and you appreciate the opportunity to work in different countries
• Several of your mentors that you respect and look up to have worked at McKinsey and they have highly recommended working there

Again, try to structure your answer in a clear way:

• State that McKinsey is your top choice consulting firm
• Reiterate that McKinsey best fits your professional needs and goals

McKinsey Interview Process Step 4: Pass  Final Interviews

Your  McKinsey final round interview will typically consist of two to three separate 40- to 60-minute interviews. You’ll see the same four types of McKinsey interview questions that you saw in your first round interviews.

There are three important distinctions between your first round McKinsey interview and your final round McKinsey interview.

One, your interviewers will likely be more senior people at McKinsey. This means that the case interviews you receive may be a bit less structured and more qualitative in nature. The case interview may feel more like a discussion where you and the interviewer are discussing your opinions and ideas on a business problem.

Two, there will be more of an emphasis on assessing your fit with the firm. The first round interview is primarily used as a screener to determine whether or not you can solve case interviews effectively and whether or not you have the potential to be a great consultant.

Final round interviews will also continue to assess this, but interviewers will also be determining whether or not you would be a great fit with the office. Are you coachable and easy to work with? Are you collaborative? These are a few of the qualities that interviewers want to see.

Three, your interviewers may read the notes that your interviewers wrote during your McKinsey first round interview. If there was a particular area of the case interview that you struggled with, interviewers may want to test you again on it to make sure that it is not a significant weakness.

Besides these three distinctions, you should use the same strategies that you used in your McKinsey first round interview for your McKinsey final round interview.

McKinsey Interview Process Step 5: Receive  Job Offer

After finishing your final round interview, all you have left to do is to wait for your McKinsey offer. McKinsey typically calls candidates to tell them that they are being extended a job offer before emailing them.

Some candidates receive a phone call with good news on the same day of their final round interview. Most candidates receive their call within a few days.

If you have not heard back from McKinsey after a few days, that does not necessarily mean that you did not receive a McKinsey offer. Sometimes, you may be on the borderline of receiving an offer and McKinsey would like to finish interviewing other people before deciding whether or not to give you an offer.

Be patient on waiting for McKinsey to get back to you. If you have not heard back in a week, you can send a follow-up email with the recruiter to ask if there are any updates.

When you finally get your call and offer letter, all that is left to do is sign to secure your job at McKinsey!

Recommended McKinsey Interview Resources

Here are the resources we recommend to land a McKinsey consulting offer:

For help landing consulting interviews

• Resume Review & Editing : Transform your resume into one that will get you multiple consulting interviews

For help passing case interviews

• Comprehensive Case Interview Course (our #1 recommendation): The only resource you need. Whether you have no business background, rusty math skills, or are short on time, this step-by-step course will transform you into a top 1% caser that lands multiple consulting offers.
• Case Interview Coaching : Personalized, one-on-one coaching with a former Bain interviewer.
• Hacking the Case Interview Book   (available on Amazon): Perfect for beginners that are short on time. Transform yourself from a stressed-out case interview newbie to a confident intermediate in under a week. Some readers finish this book in a day and can already tackle tough cases.
• The Ultimate Case Interview Workbook (available on Amazon): Perfect for intermediates struggling with frameworks, case math, or generating business insights. No need to find a case partner – these drills, practice problems, and full-length cases can all be done by yourself.

For help passing consulting behavioral & fit interviews

• Behavioral & Fit Interview Course : Be prepared for 98% of behavioral and fit questions in just a few hours. We'll teach you exactly how to draft answers that will impress your interviewer.

Land Multiple Consulting Offers

Complete, step-by-step case interview course. 30,000+ happy customers.

A Comprehensive Guide to McKinsey Case Interview Preparation

Looking to ace your McKinsey case interview? Our comprehensive guide has got you covered! From understanding the interview process to mastering case frameworks, we provide expert tips and strategies to help you prepare and succeed.

Posted June 8, 2023

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Table of Contents

Preparing for a McKinsey case interview can be a daunting task, especially if you’re not sure where to start. As one of the most prestigious consulting firms in the world, McKinsey & Company is known for its rigorous interview process, which involves a unique problem-solving approach and an emphasis on communication skills. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll take you through all the steps you need to take to prepare for the McKinsey case interview and give you the best chance of success.

Understanding the McKinsey Case Interview Process

The McKinsey case interview is a simulation of a real-world business problem. The interviewer will present you with a hypothetical scenario based on a real-life company, and ask you to analyze the situation, identify the key issues, and provide a recommendation for how the company should proceed. The objective of the case interview is to test your analytical and problem-solving skills, as well as your ability to communicate your ideas in a clear and concise manner.

It is important to note that the McKinsey case interview is not just about getting the right answer. The interviewer is also evaluating your thought process, creativity, and ability to think on your feet. Therefore, it is important to approach the case interview with an open mind and be willing to explore different solutions and perspectives.

One way to prepare for the McKinsey case interview is to practice with case studies. There are many resources available online, including sample cases and practice questions. It is also helpful to work with a partner or mentor who can provide feedback on your approach and communication skills.

Key Skills Required for a Successful McKinsey Case Interview

To succeed in a McKinsey case interview, you need to possess several key skills. First and foremost, you need to be able to think critically and strategically. You must also be able to communicate your ideas in a clear and concise manner, and be comfortable with numbers and data analysis. Additionally, you need to demonstrate the ability to manage your time effectively, remain calm under pressure, and work collaboratively with others.

Another important skill to have for a successful McKinsey case interview is the ability to ask insightful questions. You should be able to identify the key issues and ask relevant questions that will help you understand the problem at hand. This will also demonstrate your curiosity and eagerness to learn.

Lastly, it is important to have a strong business acumen. You should have a good understanding of the industry and market trends, as well as the company's goals and objectives. This will help you provide relevant and practical solutions to the case problem, and showcase your ability to think like a business leader.

For more tips on how to maximize your chances of landing a management consulting position that's right for you, check out these resources:

• Mastering Case Interview Math: Essential Formulas
• Writing a Winning Consulting Cover Letter: A Comprehensive Guide
• Understanding the Salary Structure in Management Consulting

Mastering Consulting Case Frameworks: A Comprehensive Guide

• Five Tips for Breaking Into Management Consulting

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Example resumes.

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Casing Drills

Mock Interviews

Tips to Ace McKinsey Case Interview

Preparation is key when it comes to acing a McKinsey case interview. Here are some tips to help you succeed:

• Be well-prepared: Research the firm and the industry you are interested in and practice case studies.
• Be analytical: Use a structured framework to analyze the case and identify the key issues.
• Be confident: Always articulate your thoughts and recommendations with clarity and confidence.
• Be concise: Communication is key, so make sure you get to the point and avoid unnecessary information.
• Practice: Mock interviews are essential to improving your skills and getting used to the interview process.

It's also important to remember that the interviewer is not looking for a perfect solution, but rather how you approach the problem and your ability to think critically. Don't be afraid to ask clarifying questions and take time to gather your thoughts before answering. Additionally, be sure to listen actively to the interviewer and incorporate their feedback into your analysis. By following these tips and staying calm under pressure, you can increase your chances of acing the McKinsey case interview.

The Importance of Researching the Company and Industry before the Interview

Before the interview, it’s crucial to research the company and the industry you are interested in. Knowing the company's history, values, and key clients will help you demonstrate your interest and knowledge during the interview. Additionally, understanding the industry trends, challenges, and opportunities can help you come up with more insightful and strategic recommendations.

Another reason why researching the company and industry is important is that it can help you tailor your responses to the interviewer's questions. By understanding the company's goals and challenges, you can highlight your skills and experiences that align with their needs. Moreover, knowing the industry trends and best practices can help you provide relevant examples and insights that showcase your expertise.

Furthermore, researching the company and industry can also help you assess whether the company is a good fit for you. By learning about the company culture, work environment, and values, you can determine whether they align with your own goals and values. This can help you make an informed decision about whether to accept a job offer if one is extended to you.

How to Structure Your Responses in a McKinsey Case Interview

Structuring your responses is essential to communicating your ideas effectively and showing your analytical skills. Use a structured framework such as MECE (Mutually Exclusive and Collectively Exhaustive) to break down the problem and identify the key issues. Once you have identified the issues, prioritize them and develop recommendations based on your analysis. Make sure to articulate your thought process clearly and concisely throughout the exercise.

It is also important to actively listen to the interviewer and ask clarifying questions to ensure you fully understand the problem at hand. This will help you tailor your response to the specific needs of the client and demonstrate your ability to work collaboratively. Additionally, be prepared to adapt your approach if new information is presented during the interview. Flexibility and agility are highly valued qualities in a consultant and can set you apart from other candidates.

Common Mistakes to Avoid in a McKinsey Case Interview

Common mistakes that applicants make in McKinsey case interviews include:

• Jumping to conclusions without sufficient analysis.
• Overcomplicating the problem.
• Providing vague or incomplete recommendations.
• Getting frazzled under pressure.

Avoiding these pitfalls can help you stand out and demonstrate your problem-solving skills effectively.

Another common mistake that applicants make in McKinsey case interviews is not asking enough clarifying questions. It is important to fully understand the problem and the context before jumping into analysis and recommendations. Additionally, not asking questions can make it seem like you are not engaged or interested in the problem at hand. Therefore, make sure to ask thoughtful and relevant questions throughout the interview to demonstrate your curiosity and analytical skills.

Sample McKinsey Case Interview Questions and Answers

Sample McKinsey case interview questions can range from market sizing to competitive strategies. Here are some examples:

• How would you estimate the size of the global coffee market?
• How would you advise a chain of retail stores facing declining sales?
• How would you help a software company develop a new product?
• How would you advise a hospital facing budget constraints?

Answers to these questions require a structured approach, including the identification of key issues, relevant analysis, and well-supported recommendations.

It is important to note that McKinsey case interviews are not just about finding the right answer, but also about demonstrating strong problem-solving skills and the ability to communicate effectively. Candidates are expected to ask clarifying questions, think critically, and present their ideas in a clear and concise manner.

In addition to the case interview questions, candidates may also be asked behavioral questions to assess their fit with the company culture and values. These questions may focus on leadership, teamwork, and communication skills, among others.

The Role of Creativity in Solving McKinsey Case Study Problems

Creativity is just as important as analytical skills in the McKinsey case interview. You must demonstrate creativity in identifying potential solutions and making recommendations that are both innovative and realistic. Creative problem-solvers are valued in the consulting industry, as they can offer fresh ideas and perspectives that can benefit their clients.

How to Develop a Personalized Strategy for McKinsey Case Interviews

Developing a personalized strategy for McKinsey case interviews is crucial to success. Understand your strengths and weaknesses and focus on improving your weaknesses. You should also participate in mock interviews and receive feedback from others to help you improve your performance. Consider working with a coach or mentor who can provide you with additional guidance and advice.

The Benefits of Mock Interviews in Preparing for a McKinsey Case Interview

Mock interviews are an essential tool in preparing for a McKinsey case interview. Mock interviews help you get used to the format of the interview, identify your strengths and weaknesses, and receive feedback on your performance. Practicing with different problems and cases also helps you become more comfortable with the analytical process and develop creative problem-solving skills.

The Importance of Confidence and Communication Skills in a McKinsey Case Interview

Confidence and communication skills are equally essential in a McKinsey case interview as analytical skills. You must be able to articulate your ideas in a clear and concise manner and demonstrate your confidence in your recommendations. Additionally, being comfortable with numbers and data analysis is essential in communicating your insights effectively. Practice your communication skills and prepare accordingly to increase your confidence and show your potential.

How to Follow Up After a Successful McKinsey Case Interview

Following up after a successful McKinsey case interview is an essential step that many candidates overlook. Send a thank-you note or email expressing your appreciation for the opportunity, and reiterate your interest in the position. Keep the communication positive, professional, and timely. This follow-up can help set you apart from other candidates and demonstrate your attention to detail and enthusiasm for the company.

Resources for Further Practice and Preparation for a McKinsey Case Interview

There are plenty of resources available online and offline to help you prepare for a McKinsey case interview. Some of the popular ones include:

• Case in Point: Complete Case Interview Preparation by Marc P. Cosentino
• McKinsey & Company interview preparation resources
• Victor Cheng’s Case Interview Videos

Make use of these resources, attend networking events, and seek out advice from professionals in the consulting industry to help you prepare for the interview.

Preparing for a McKinsey case interview can be challenging, but with practice and preparation, you can increase your chances of success. Keep in mind the key skills required for success and practice your communication skills, and make use of the resources available to you. Follow the tips mentioned in this guide, and put in the effort required to succeed. With hard work and dedication, you can ace your McKinsey case interview and start your career in consulting.

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McKinsey & Company, a global management consulting firm founded in 1926, has consistently been ranked as one of the most prestigious consulting firms in the world. With a clientele that includes 80% of the world’s largest corporations, as well as governments and non-profit organizations, McKinsey is renowned for its rigorous problem-solving approach and commitment to developing leaders. As a powerhouse in the consulting industry, securing a position at McKinsey is no easy feat, and the interview process is known to be highly competitive and challenging. In this article, we will delve into the intricacies of McKinsey’s interview questions, providing insights and tips to help you stand out and make a lasting impression.

McKinsey & Company Hiring Process

The McKinsey & Company hiring process typically involves multiple stages, including an initial application, online assessments or games, and several rounds of interviews. The interviews often consist of behavioral questions and case studies, with interviewers ranging from junior to senior-level employees. The process can be lengthy, with some candidates reporting a wait time of several weeks between stages. Overall, the experience is described as rigorous, structured, and demanding, with a focus on evaluating candidates’ problem-solving abilities, technical expertise, and cultural fit.

Common McKinsey & Company Interview Questions

1. how would you approach identifying and prioritizing client needs to develop a strategic plan for their business.

Firms like this one are looking for strategic thinkers who can adapt to changing circumstances and client needs. This question is designed to assess your ability to understand a client’s business, identify their key challenges, and develop a strategic plan to address these needs. It also tests your ability to prioritize tasks based on their strategic importance, which is a critical skill in consulting where resources may be limited and time is of the essence.

How to Answer:

To answer this question, focus on your analytical and strategic thinking skills. Explain how you would first conduct a thorough needs assessment through client meetings and data analysis. Discuss how you’d use these insights to identify critical business issues. Then highlight the importance of balancing urgency and impact in prioritizing these needs. You might also want to mention your collaboration skills in aligning stakeholders around this strategic plan. Remember to include specific examples from past experiences where you’ve successfully done this.

Example: To identify and prioritize client needs, I would start by conducting a comprehensive analysis of their business. This includes understanding the industry landscape, market trends, competitive positioning, and internal capabilities. I would then engage in deep-dive discussions with key stakeholders to understand their vision, goals, pain points, and expectations.

Once we have identified the needs, prioritization becomes crucial. For this, I would use a framework like the MoSCoW method (Must-have, Should-have, Could-have, Won’t-have), which allows us to categorize needs based on their impact on business objectives and urgency. The strategic plan is then developed around these priorities, ensuring it aligns with the overall business strategy and adds value.

In execution, for instance, if a client is looking to improve its market share, our ‘must-haves’ might include strengthening core products or services and improving customer service. ‘Should-haves’ could focus on expanding into new markets or segments. ‘Could-haves’ might be exploring innovative solutions, while ‘won’t haves’ are areas that do not align with the current strategic direction. By identifying and prioritizing needs in such a structured manner, we can develop a robust, actionable strategic plan that drives growth and success.

2. Describe an instance where you had to analyze complex data to extract insights that led to a successful strategy implementation.

Every successful strategy hinges on the ability to interpret and analyze complex data. It’s not just about crunching numbers, but about uncovering insights and translating those into actionable plans. In a management consulting role, your skill in doing this can directly impact the success of client projects. That’s why decision-makers want to know how you’ve used data analysis to derive strategies in the past—your past performance often predicts your future success.

Reflect on your past experiences where you’ve dealt with complex data analysis. Discuss the tools and methodologies you used, how you approached the problem, and the resulting insights that led to a successful strategy. Be sure to highlight your analytical skills and strategic thinking. Also, underscore how your insights were pivotal in achieving successful outcomes. If there’s an instance demonstrating your ability to work under pressure or within tight deadlines, bring it up as well.

Example: In my previous experience, I was tasked with identifying key growth areas for a client in the retail sector. The first step involved analyzing five years’ worth of sales data – this included transactional data, customer demographics, and product information. This dataset was massive and complex due to its multi-dimensional nature.

I used advanced analytics tools such as Python and Tableau to clean, process, and visualize this data. Through segmentation analysis, I identified that while our overall sales were growing, there were certain demographic groups and product categories where sales were stagnating or even declining.

Based on these insights, we developed a strategy focused on improving our offerings and marketing efforts towards those specific segments. We also revamped some of our underperforming product lines based on trends observed in the data. Post-implementation, we saw an 8% increase in sales from the targeted demographic and a significant improvement in the performance of the previously underperforming product lines within six months. This project underscored the importance of leveraging data to inform strategic decisions.

3. Can you provide an example of how you have helped a client improve their operational efficiency or effectiveness?

Diving into the heart of your previous accomplishments, this question seeks to uncover your problem-solving abilities and your impact on past clients. In a field like consulting, where your primary role is to provide solutions and improvements to your clients’ operations, it’s vital to show that you have a track record of success. This question helps interviewers gauge your strategic thinking, your ability to implement change, and your skills in delivering tangible results.

Reflect on your past experiences where you’ve assisted clients in enhancing their operations. Consider examples that show strategic thinking, problem-solving skills and the ability to implement changes effectively. Highlight how you identified inefficiencies, proposed solutions and the impact of those changes. If new to the field, describe a hypothetical scenario demonstrating these abilities. Always tie back to how your approaches led to improved efficiency or effectiveness.

Example: In a recent project, I worked with a client in the manufacturing sector who was struggling with inefficiencies in their production line. After conducting an initial analysis, it became clear that there were bottlenecks at certain points of the process and some tasks were being duplicated unnecessarily.

I suggested implementing Lean Six Sigma principles to streamline processes and eliminate waste. We formed a cross-functional team to identify non-value adding activities and potential areas for improvement. Through this collaborative approach, we managed to reduce cycle time by 30% and increase throughput by 20%. This not only improved operational efficiency but also resulted in significant cost savings for the client.

4. How do you ensure effective communication with clients throughout the duration of a project?

Your potential employer wants to see that you understand the importance of clear, concise, and regular communication in managing client relationships. Whether it’s a progress update, a change in scope, or a hurdle in the project, they want to be assured that you’re capable of keeping clients informed and satisfied. Regular and effective communication can strengthen client trust, ensure that everyone is on the same page, and even lead to more business opportunities in the future.

Start by highlighting your commitment to transparency and regular updates. Discuss any tools or strategies you’ve used, like project management software or weekly status meetings. Share examples of navigating communication challenges, ensuring client satisfaction, and maintaining relationships post-project. If new, outline the steps you’d take, emphasizing active listening and adapting to each clients’ preferred communication style.

Example: Effective communication with clients is paramount to the success of any project. I believe in establishing clear lines of communication from the outset, setting expectations for regular updates and feedback sessions. For instance, this could involve weekly or bi-weekly status update meetings, depending on the size and complexity of the project.

Additionally, it’s important to use a variety of communication methods tailored to the client’s preferences – some may prefer email updates while others might appreciate phone calls or video conferences. Transparency is key; if there are challenges or delays, these should be communicated proactively along with potential solutions. This approach not only keeps the client informed but also builds trust, fostering a collaborative relationship that can lead to successful project outcomes.

5. Describe your experience managing cross-functional teams and collaborating with stakeholders to achieve project goals.

This question is posed to evaluate your leadership, teamwork, and communication skills, which are all critical in a management consulting role. Consulting projects often involve diverse teams with various expertise and backgrounds. Hence, your ability to effectively manage cross-functional teams and collaborate with stakeholders is essential to drive project success and deliver value to the client.

Consider your past experiences where you’ve successfully managed cross-functional teams and coordinated with stakeholders. Discuss a specific project, detailing your role, the challenges faced, and how you overcame them to achieve the end goal. Emphasize your ability to foster effective communication, delegate tasks, and create a cohesive team environment. If you’re less experienced, describe steps you’d take to ensure successful collaboration and meeting of project goals.

Example: In my previous experience, I led a cross-functional team of 10 members to develop and implement a new customer relationship management system. This project required close collaboration with key stakeholders including the sales, marketing, IT, and customer service departments. My role was not only to manage the team but also to ensure that all perspectives were considered in order to create a solution that met everyone’s needs.

I established regular communication channels such as weekly meetings and progress reports, which helped keep everyone informed about the project status and fostered an environment of transparency. I found that this approach significantly improved our ability to identify potential issues early on and adjust our strategy accordingly.

The project was successfully completed within the stipulated timeline and budget, resulting in a 20% increase in customer satisfaction scores and a 15% improvement in sales productivity. This experience underscored for me the importance of effective cross-functional team management and stakeholder collaboration in achieving project goals.

6. Explain your process for conducting market research and analyzing competitive landscapes to inform business strategy.

A key part of consulting is understanding industries, markets, and competition to make informed recommendations to clients. A candidate’s ability to conduct thorough and insightful market research, and to analyze and interpret competitive landscapes, is vital to their success in the role. This question helps to ascertain whether the candidate possesses these skills and can apply them strategically to help businesses make informed decisions and remain competitive.

Highlight your systematic approach to market research, emphasizing steps such as identifying a target market, gathering and analyzing data. Share examples of tools or methodologies you’ve used for analysis, like SWOT or PESTEL. Relay how you translated these insights into practical business strategies. Also note your adaptability in different markets or industries, showing your ability to tailor research methods accordingly. If possible, share an instance where your research significantly informed a successful business strategy.

Example: My process for conducting market research and analyzing competitive landscapes begins with defining the objectives of the research. This could be identifying potential new markets, understanding customer behavior or assessing the competition. Next, I gather data from a variety of sources such as industry reports, online databases, social media, and consumer surveys to gain an in-depth understanding of the market.

The analysis phase involves interpreting this raw data into meaningful insights. For example, if we’re looking at competitors, I’d perform a SWOT analysis to understand their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Additionally, Porter’s Five Forces framework helps me assess the competitiveness and attractiveness of the market.

To inform business strategy, these insights are then translated into actionable recommendations. For instance, if our competitor’s weakness is poor customer service, we might strategize on enhancing our own service to differentiate ourselves. The key here is not just gathering information but transforming it into strategies that drive growth and competitive advantage.

7. How do you balance short-term gains with long-term growth objectives when advising clients on strategic decisions?

Strategic consulting is all about striking the perfect balance between short-term wins and long-term success. Ensuring a company’s present stability without compromising future growth is a delicate dance. By asking this question, the interviewer is looking for evidence of your strategic thinking, your ability to identify and manage trade-offs, and your understanding of the business landscape – all essential skills for a consultant. They want to see that you can think beyond immediate results and have the foresight to plan for a client’s future success.

Start your response by acknowledging the importance of both short-term wins and long-term sustainability. Share examples from your experience where you had to make such strategic decisions. Emphasize how you ensured immediate profitability without compromising on future growth prospects. If applicable, mention any risk assessment or forecasting tools you used in the process. Explain that when advising clients, you always strive for a balanced approach, keeping their specific circumstances and goals in mind.

Example: Balancing short-term gains with long-term growth objectives requires a holistic understanding of the client’s business, industry trends, and market dynamics. For instance, if a client is considering an investment that promises significant immediate returns but could potentially disrupt their core business in the long run, I would advise them to consider alternative strategies. This might involve exploring other investments that align better with their long-term goals or restructuring the proposed investment to mitigate potential risks.

The key here is to ensure that short-term decisions do not compromise the sustainability of the business in the future. It involves constant re-evaluation and adjustment of strategies based on changing circumstances. Ultimately, it’s about striking a balance between capitalizing on immediate opportunities and building a robust foundation for sustained growth.

8. Tell us about a time when you faced resistance from a client while implementing a proposed solution, and how you handled it.

Navigating resistance is a critical part of any consulting role. Regardless of the project, there will always be individuals or groups who resist change, especially when it comes to implementing new strategies or systems. This question helps to assess your interpersonal skills, problem-solving abilities, and resilience in the face of challenges. It’s an opportunity for you to demonstrate your ability to maintain client relationships while effectively driving forward with implementation.

Consider a situation where you faced resistance from a client and how you handled it. Discuss your ability to maintain composure, understand the client’s perspective, and find a win-win solution. Highlight your communication skills, problem-solving abilities, and capacity for empathy. If possible, show how you turned a challenging situation into an opportunity for growth or improvement.

Example: During a project with a major retail client, my team and I proposed a data-driven inventory management system to optimize their supply chain. However, the client was resistant due to concerns about the complexity of implementation and potential disruption to existing operations.

I addressed this by first empathizing with their concerns and then explaining the long-term benefits in detail. We offered to conduct a pilot test in one of their smaller branches to demonstrate the effectiveness of our solution without risking large-scale operational disruption. The successful outcome of the pilot convinced them of the value of our proposal, and we were able to move forward with full-scale implementation. This experience taught me the importance of patience, effective communication, and flexibility when managing resistance to change.

9. What strategies do you employ to stay up-to-date with industry trends and best practices in management consulting?

Staying updated with industry trends and best practices is a critical component of being a successful management consultant. This question seeks to gauge your commitment to continuous learning and professional development. It highlights your ability to remain relevant in a rapidly evolving field, ensuring you can provide clients with the most current and effective solutions.

Highlight your commitment to continuous learning and professional development. Share about the specific industry journals, thought leaders, trade shows or seminars you follow or attend regularly. Also mention any active participation in forums or professional networks where latest trends are discussed. If applicable, talk about courses or certifications undertaken to stay abreast with evolving best practices. Be sure to link how these strategies have helped you deliver effective solutions in past roles or projects.

Example: I make it a priority to stay informed about industry trends and best practices in management consulting. One strategy I use is subscribing to relevant publications such as the Harvard Business Review, McKinsey Quarterly, and other thought leadership resources. These provide insights into the latest research, case studies, and innovative strategies being used in the field.

In addition, I also participate in professional networking groups and online forums where consultants share their experiences and discuss emerging trends. Attending conferences and webinars also helps me gain firsthand knowledge from industry leaders. Lastly, I believe in continuous learning and often take up courses on platforms like Coursera or edX to deepen my understanding of specific areas.

For instance, when data analytics started gaining prominence in decision-making processes, I took up a course on Data Science for Business Leaders. This not only helped me understand the trend better but also allowed me to advise clients more effectively on leveraging data for strategic decisions.

10. Describe a scenario where you effectively managed resources and timelines to deliver a project on schedule.

As a potential member of a fast-paced consulting firm, your ability to handle resources and meet deadlines is vital. This question gives you the opportunity to showcase your project management skills, resource allocation, and time management abilities. It’s also a chance to demonstrate your knack for overcoming obstacles and delivering results, which are all key qualities in a successful consultant.

Reflect on a situation where you demonstrated effective management of resources and timelines. It could be a project where you had to juggle multiple tasks, manage team members or work with limited resources. Highlight your ability in planning, prioritizing, problem-solving and decision making. Also, emphasize how you mitigated any risks or roadblocks that arose during the process. If possible, quantify the success of the project to demonstrate the impact of your resource and time management skills.

Example: In a previous project, I was responsible for the launch of a new software product. We had a tight deadline due to market competition and contractual obligations with our clients. To effectively manage resources, I first conducted a detailed work breakdown structure to identify all necessary tasks and their interdependencies. This helped me allocate resources optimally based on each team member’s skills and availability.

To ensure we stayed on schedule, I implemented an agile methodology, allowing us to work in sprints and adapt quickly to any changes or challenges that arose. I also established key performance indicators (KPIs) to monitor progress and held regular meetings to update the entire team on our status, fostering transparency and accountability.

Despite several unforeseen obstacles such as technical glitches and staff turnover, my proactive risk management strategies and constant communication ensured we launched successfully within the stipulated timeline. The experience taught me the importance of flexibility, resilience, and effective resource allocation in project management.

11. How do you evaluate the success of a consulting engagement, both in terms of client satisfaction and financial performance?

Consulting is about more than just providing advice—it’s about providing advice that helps clients achieve their goals in a sustainable and profitable way. Evaluating the success of a consulting engagement means looking at both whether the client is satisfied with the results and whether those results have led to a more financially successful business. This question is designed to see if you understand the dual nature of success in consulting and can balance the needs of the client with the financial realities of running a business.

To tackle this question, consider past experiences where you’ve evaluated the success of a project. Discuss how you used both qualitative feedback from clients and quantitative financial metrics to gauge success. Demonstrate your ability to balance client satisfaction with fiscal performance, as both are essential in consulting. If you’re new to the field, outline an approach that prioritizes clear communication, regular check-ins, and thorough data analysis.

Example: Evaluating the success of a consulting engagement involves both quantitative and qualitative measures. On the financial side, key metrics like revenue growth, cost savings, or return on investment can be used to gauge how well our advice has helped improve the client’s bottom line. But it’s also critical to assess non-financial outcomes such as improvements in operational efficiency, strategic positioning, or risk management.

On the client satisfaction front, direct feedback is invaluable. Regular check-ins throughout the project help ensure we’re meeting expectations and allow us to adjust course if necessary. Post-engagement surveys provide more structured feedback. However, the ultimate measure of client satisfaction may be their willingness to engage us for future projects or refer us to others. This repeat business not only speaks to their belief in the value we’ve delivered but also contributes directly to our own financial performance.

12. Can you share an example of a creative problem-solving technique you’ve used to address a client’s challenge?

Ah, the art of creative problem-solving – a skill that is absolutely vital in strategy consulting. This question is designed to assess your ability to think outside the box, develop innovative solutions, and adapt to unique situations. It’s not just about diagnosing problems, but also about crafting solutions that are both effective and imaginative. The ability to do this demonstrates that you can bring fresh perspectives and valuable insights to the client’s table, which is a critical asset in this line of work.

Highlight a situation where you had to think outside the box to solve a client issue. Focus on your thought process, how you identified the problem and came up with a unique solution. Show how this approach benefited your client. If you’re new in consulting, discuss hypothetical scenarios demonstrating creative logic and resourcefulness. Remember, they are interested in your problem-solving skills and creativity.

Example: In one of my previous projects, our client was a leading retail company that was struggling with inventory management. They were either overstocking certain items or running out of stock frequently, which led to lost sales and customer dissatisfaction.

I initiated a creative problem-solving approach called the ‘Design Thinking’ technique. This method emphasizes empathy, experimentation, and iteration. We started by understanding the needs and behaviors of their customers through surveys and interviews. Using this data, we then created customer personas and mapped out their buying journey.

This helped us identify the pain points in the inventory management process. For instance, we found that there was a seasonal pattern to the demand for certain products, but the client’s existing system did not account for this variability. To address this, I proposed an AI-based predictive analytics solution that could forecast demand more accurately based on historical sales data, current market trends, and seasonality factors.

The implementation of this solution significantly improved the client’s inventory management, reducing both overstocking and stockouts. The client also reported increased customer satisfaction due to better product availability.

13. What is your approach to building trust and rapport with new clients during initial meetings?

Trust and rapport are the cornerstones of any successful client-consultant relationship. As a consultant, you’re expected to quickly build strong connections with a diverse array of clients. This question is designed to assess your interpersonal skills and your ability to quickly establish trust and rapport with new clients, which is essential for understanding their needs, meeting their expectations, and delivering high-quality outcomes.

To answer this question, highlight your interpersonal and communication skills. Discuss how you invest time in understanding the client’s needs, challenges, and goals. You could mention an example where you’ve actively listened to a client’s concerns, empathizing with their situation, and proposed tailored solutions accordingly. Also, talk about maintaining professionalism while being approachable and reliable, as these traits foster trust with clients.

Example: Building trust and rapport with new clients starts with active listening. It’s crucial to understand their needs, concerns, and goals right from the outset. I believe in asking open-ended questions that encourage them to share more about their business and challenges they are facing. This not only helps me gather valuable information but also demonstrates my genuine interest in their success.

Transparency is another key aspect of building trust. I ensure that I communicate clearly about our process, timelines, potential challenges, and how we plan to address them. Furthermore, I make it a point to under-promise and over-deliver, ensuring that expectations are managed realistically from the start.

Finally, consistency plays an important role in maintaining this trust over time. By consistently delivering high-quality work and demonstrating reliability, clients feel confident in the partnership, fostering long-term relationships.

14. Discuss a situation where you had to adapt your leadership style to fit the needs of a particular team or project.

Leadership is not a one-size-fits-all skill. Each team, project, and situation may require a different approach. This question is designed to assess your flexibility and adaptability as a leader. It’s also a chance for you to demonstrate your understanding of different leadership styles and your ability to assess and respond to the unique dynamics of a team or project.

Reflect on instances where you’ve adjusted your approach to better suit a team’s dynamics or project requirements. Highlight your aptitude for recognizing others’ strengths and weaknesses, your flexibility in adapting your leadership style accordingly, and the positive outcomes these actions led to. Showcase your capability to be both authoritative when necessary, and collaborative during other times, emphasizing that effective leadership is not one-size-fits-all but requires constant adaptation.

Example: In my previous experience leading a project team, I had to adapt my leadership style due to the diverse backgrounds and skill sets of the team members. The team consisted of experienced professionals and fresh graduates who were eager but lacked industry knowledge. Initially, I employed a more directive approach, providing clear instructions and guidance to ensure that everyone was on the same page and understood their roles.

However, as we progressed, I noticed that while this approach worked well with the less experienced members, it seemed to stifle the creativity and initiative of the seasoned professionals. Recognizing this, I shifted towards a more participative leadership style for them, encouraging open dialogue, collaboration, and empowering them to take charge of sub-tasks within the project. This adjustment not only improved overall team morale but also enhanced productivity and the quality of our output. It taught me the importance of flexibility in leadership and being attuned to the needs of individual team members for successful project execution.

15. Explain the importance of change management in a consulting engagement and how you’ve successfully led clients through a major organizational transition.

Change management is a critical part of any consulting engagement as it deals with the human side of change. When a consultant recommends a new direction or strategy, it’s not just systems and processes that are affected, but people too. Successful change management ensures that the people impacted by the change are guided through the transition smoothly, minimizing resistance and maximizing buy-in. This is why hiring managers want to know that you, as a potential consultant, have the skills and experience to lead clients through this often challenging process.

Showcase your understanding of change management as a process that aids clients in adopting new ideas or systems. Highlight your skills in communication, leadership and problem-solving through specific examples where you’ve steered clients during organizational changes. Discuss how you managed resistance, maintained morale, ensured smooth transitions while achieving project goals. Don’t forget to stress on your readiness to adapt to new situations, demonstrating your value as a consultant.

Example: Change management is crucial in a consulting engagement as it ensures the smooth transition of an organization from its current state to a desired future state. It minimizes resistance, enhances employee buy-in, and ultimately increases the likelihood of project success. Without effective change management, even the most strategic initiatives can fail due to lack of acceptance or understanding among those affected.

In one instance, I led a client through a significant digital transformation initiative which involved changing their traditional business model to incorporate more technology-driven processes. Recognizing that this would be a major shift for employees, we implemented a comprehensive change management strategy. This included clear communication about the reasons for the change and benefits, training programs to equip staff with necessary skills, and mechanisms for feedback and support. As a result, not only was the transition successful, but there was also increased morale and productivity among employees who felt valued and equipped for the new direction.

16. How do you handle situations where the scope of a project changes significantly mid-engagement?

This question dives into your ability to manage unexpected changes in a professional environment, a key skill in any consulting role. It’s not uncommon for the scope of a project to change as it evolves, and how you react and adapt to these changes can greatly impact the success of the project. Additionally, it helps assess your problem-solving skills, flexibility, and communication style under pressure, all of which are critical in a fast-paced consulting environment.

To answer this question effectively, reflect on your experiences where you had to adapt to changing circumstances. Speak about how you maintained open communication with all parties involved and reassessed priorities to manage the new scope. Highlight your problem-solving skills and ability to remain calm under pressure. If you’re a novice, discuss the strategies you’d use in such situations like flexibility, clear communication, and strategic planning.

Example: In a situation where the scope of a project changes significantly mid-engagement, it’s crucial to remain flexible and adaptable. I would first ensure that all stakeholders are aware of the change and its potential impact on timelines, resources, and deliverables. For instance, during a recent consulting engagement, our team was tasked with developing a new marketing strategy for a client. Midway through, they decided to pivot their business model which necessitated an overhaul of our approach.

Rather than viewing this as a setback, we saw it as an opportunity to demonstrate our adaptability and problem-solving skills. We quickly regrouped, reassessed our plan based on the new direction, and communicated these changes transparently with the client. By maintaining open lines of communication and demonstrating flexibility in our approach, we were able to successfully navigate this significant shift in scope and ultimately delivered a robust strategy that met the client’s evolving needs.

17. Describe an instance where you had to quickly learn about a new industry or sector to effectively serve a client.

Consulting is all about jumping into unknown territory, making sense of it quickly, and providing actionable insights. It’s about being a quick study and being comfortable with ambiguity. This question is designed to assess your ability to learn fast, adapt, and deliver results in unfamiliar environments or industries. It’s a key skill for any consultant, who often needs to switch gears from one project to the next, dealing with vastly different industries, challenges, and client expectations.

Start your response by highlighting a situation where you rapidly assimilated new industry knowledge. Discuss the methods you employed, such as extensive research or tapping into expert networks. Emphasize how this led to successful client outcomes. If you lack direct experience, outline strategies you’d use to gain quick understanding of a new sector. Demonstrate adaptability, curiosity and strong research skills.

Example: In a previous consulting project, I was assigned to work with a client in the renewable energy sector. This was an industry that I had limited experience with at the time. To quickly get up to speed, I immersed myself in extensive research on the sector – from understanding the latest technologies, regulatory environment, key players, market trends, and challenges. I also reached out to subject matter experts within my network for insights and attended several webinars related to this field.

This deep-dive enabled me to gain a comprehensive understanding of the industry in a short period. As a result, I was able to provide strategic advice to the client on their expansion plans, identifying potential markets based on growth trends and regulatory support for renewable energy. The recommendations were well-received by the client and they have since successfully entered two new markets. This experience demonstrated my ability to quickly learn about new industries or sectors to effectively serve clients.

18. How do you determine which analytical tools or frameworks to use when tackling a specific client problem?

The inquirer is digging to find out if you have the ability to adapt and choose the right method for problem-solving. As a consultant, you’ll be faced with a wide variety of challenges and there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. You’re expected to analyze the problem at hand, understand the client’s needs, and then select the most appropriate tool or framework that will lead to the most effective solution.

Highlight your problem-solving skills, analytical thinking and understanding of different tools or frameworks. Discuss how you assess the client’s needs, the nature of the problem, and then decide on an appropriate tool or framework to use. Mention any experience where choosing a specific method led to successful results. Remember, it’s about finding the best solution for each unique situation.

Example: The choice of analytical tools or frameworks largely depends on the nature of the problem at hand, the client’s specific needs and the data available. For instance, if we’re dealing with a strategic issue such as market entry, I would consider using Porter’s Five Forces or Ansoff Matrix to understand competitive dynamics and potential growth opportunities. If it’s an operational efficiency question, Lean Six Sigma methodologies might be more appropriate.

However, it’s also critical to consider the client’s context – their industry, company size, culture, and existing systems. We need to ensure that our chosen approach is not only rigorous but also practical for them to implement. Furthermore, the quality and type of data available can dictate which quantitative models or statistical techniques are feasible. It’s always about finding the right balance between robustness of analysis and pragmatism in implementation.

19. What strategies do you employ to ensure your team remains motivated and engaged throughout a long-term consulting project?

This question explores your leadership style and your understanding of the factors that contribute to team motivation and engagement. Consulting projects can be intense and demanding, often spanning several months or even years, and maintaining team morale is critical for success. Your answer will demonstrate your ability to keep a team focused, motivated, and productive, all of which are key qualities in a consultant.

Start your response by stating that you understand the importance of maintaining team motivation and engagement in long-term projects. Discuss specific strategies you’ve employed, such as regular check-ins, setting clear objectives, celebrating milestones, or providing constructive feedback. You could mention a time when these strategies resulted in successful project completion. If you’re new to leading teams, suggest theoretical approaches grounded in motivation theories like Maslow’s hierarchy of needs or Herzberg’s two-factor theory.

Example: One strategy I employ is setting clear, achievable goals and regularly revisiting them. This helps to ensure everyone understands their role in the project and how it contributes to the overall objective. Regular check-ins are crucial for maintaining engagement; they provide an opportunity to address any issues or concerns, discuss progress, and recalibrate if needed.

Another important aspect is fostering a positive team culture that values open communication, collaboration, and mutual respect. Encouraging team members to share ideas and feedback can lead to innovative solutions and keeps everyone invested in the project’s success.

Lastly, recognizing individual contributions and celebrating small wins along the way can have a significant impact on motivation. It’s essential to acknowledge hard work and dedication, as this not only boosts morale but also reinforces the importance of each team member’s role within the project.

20. Explain how you’ve utilized quantitative and qualitative analysis methods to inform decision-making for a client.

When it comes to high-level consulting, the ability to analyze and interpret data effectively is paramount. By asking this question, the interviewer wants to gauge your analytical skills and understand how you’ve used them to drive strategic decisions. They’re interested in your ability to use both numerical data (quantitative) and non-numerical data (qualitative) to provide comprehensive solutions that lead to client success.

Start by recalling a significant project where you used both quantitative and qualitative analysis methods. Discuss how these analyses informed your decision-making process, highlighting the balance between data-driven insights and subjective inputs. Demonstrate how this blend resulted in successful outcomes for your client. If you’re new to such tasks, explain your understanding of the importance of both types of analysis and how you would apply them in future projects.

Example: In a recent project, I was tasked with helping a client in the retail sector optimize their supply chain operations. The first step involved quantitative analysis where we used statistical methods to analyze historical sales data and inventory levels across different regions and seasons. This helped us identify patterns and trends that could inform future demand forecasting.

However, understanding that numbers don’t always tell the full story, we complemented this with qualitative analysis. We conducted interviews with key stakeholders including store managers, suppliers, and customers to understand their perspectives on the existing supply chain processes. This gave us insights into operational bottlenecks, customer preferences, and supplier reliability which weren’t evident from the numerical data.

The combination of both these analyses allowed us to provide a comprehensive set of recommendations to our client. These included adjusting inventory levels based on seasonality, improving communication channels with suppliers, and implementing a more responsive demand planning process. As a result, the client saw a significant reduction in stockouts and overstock situations leading to improved profitability.

21. Describe a time when you had to present complex information or recommendations to a non-expert audience, and how you ensured their understanding.

This question is designed to assess your ability to communicate complex ideas clearly and effectively. As a consultant, you will often be required to explain intricate data, models, or strategies to clients who may not have a background in your field. Your success hinges on your ability to make these complex subjects understandable and actionable for your audience. This question helps interviewers gauge your communication skills and your ability to tailor your message to different audiences.

Start by sharing a specific instance when you had to present complex data to people who weren’t experts in the field. Detail how you broke down the information, using simple language and visual aids, to ensure it was easily understandable. Highlight your ability to empathize with your audience’s knowledge level and adjust accordingly. Also, mention any feedback received that affirmed their understanding of your presentation.

Example: During my time at a previous consulting firm, I led a project to optimize the supply chain for a manufacturing client. The challenge was that the client’s leadership team had limited understanding of advanced analytics and machine learning techniques we planned to use. To ensure their understanding and buy-in, I broke down the complex concepts into simpler terms during our presentations. For instance, instead of talking about “neural networks” or “random forests,” I used analogies like “it’s like having thousands of mini-decision trees working together to make an accurate prediction.”

Additionally, I focused on visualizing data and results in an intuitive way. We used graphs and charts to show potential cost savings and efficiency improvements. In one-on-one meetings, I walked them through the process step by step, explaining how each change could impact their bottom line. This approach not only ensured their understanding but also made them feel more comfortable with the changes we were proposing. As a result, they fully supported the implementation of our recommendations which led to significant improvements in their supply chain operations.

22. How do you manage competing priorities and deadlines across multiple projects or engagements?

Hiring managers are keen to understand how you juggle various tasks and projects. The core of consulting is managing multiple engagements, each with its unique requirements, deadlines, and stakeholders. Demonstrating your ability to prioritize tasks, manage your time effectively, and maintain a high standard of work across various projects is essential in showing that you can thrive in a fast-paced, demanding environment.

Begin your response by highlighting your organizational skills and strategies. Discuss the methods you use to manage multiple tasks, such as task management tools or prioritization techniques. Detail real-life instances where you successfully managed competing priorities, emphasizing your ability to maintain a high-quality work standard under pressure. Lastly, don’t forget to mention your capability to adapt when unforeseen changes occur.

Example: Managing competing priorities and deadlines across multiple projects requires a strategic approach. I typically start by understanding the scope, objectives, and deliverables of each project, then prioritize according to urgency and importance. This involves close communication with stakeholders to align on expectations and potential bottlenecks.

I also utilize project management tools to keep track of tasks, timelines, and progress, which helps in maintaining visibility and ensuring that nothing falls through the cracks. Additionally, it’s crucial to maintain flexibility as changes or unforeseen challenges arise. By regularly reviewing and adjusting my plans based on new information or changes in circumstances, I ensure that all projects remain on track for successful completion.

23. What role does digital transformation play in your approach to advising clients on business strategy?

The essence of this question lies in your ability to understand and articulate the impact of digital transformation on business strategy. As a potential advisor, your understanding of how to leverage digital tools and technologies for strategic growth is critical. This shows that you are not only current with technological trends, but also that you can effectively integrate these digital resources into strategic planning to drive business growth and efficiency.

Start by expressing your understanding of the importance of digital transformation in today’s business climate. Discuss how you incorporate it into your approach, possibly through data analysis or leveraging tech advancements for strategy optimization. Share examples where you’ve advised on strategies that embrace digital change. If you lack direct experience, outline steps you’d take to ensure you are up-to-date with latest technological trends impacting businesses. Highlight your adaptability and continual learning attitude.

Example: Digital transformation is integral to my approach when advising clients on business strategy. It’s not just about implementing new technologies, but rather reimagining existing business models and processes to create more value for the company and its customers. For instance, I might advise a client in retail to leverage data analytics and AI to personalize customer experiences and streamline supply chain operations. This could significantly improve their operational efficiency and competitive edge.

Moreover, digital transformation often necessitates a cultural shift within an organization. Therefore, my advice typically includes strategies for managing change effectively, fostering a culture of innovation, and upskilling employees to thrive in a digitally-driven environment. Ultimately, it’s about ensuring that the digital transformation aligns with the client’s overall strategic objectives and equips them to adapt to the evolving business landscape.

24. Tell us about a particularly challenging problem you encountered during a past consulting engagement, and the steps you took to resolve it.

Navigating challenging situations and finding effective solutions is a fundamental part of consulting. By asking about a difficult problem you’ve encountered, the interviewer seeks to understand your problem-solving skills, critical thinking abilities, and how you handle pressure. They want to learn about your decision-making process, your creativity in finding solutions, and your resilience in overcoming obstacles. It’s a way to understand your practical experience in dealing with real-world problems.

Reflect on your past consulting engagements and identify a situation that was particularly challenging. When explaining the problem, focus on specifics like what made it complex and how it impacted the project or client. Detail the steps you took to resolve it, emphasizing critical thinking and strategic planning skills. Highlight any innovative solutions used, demonstrating an ability to think outside the box. Lastly, share the outcome and how it positively influenced the project or improved your approach to similar problems in future.

Example: In one of my previous consulting engagements, I was tasked with helping a client in the retail sector who was struggling to maintain profitability due to declining sales and increasing operational costs. The challenge lay in identifying the root cause of these issues and developing an actionable strategy to address them.

I started by conducting a thorough analysis of the company’s financial statements, operations, and market position. Through this research, it became clear that the company had not adapted its business model to the changing consumer preferences and emerging e-commerce trends. Their product offerings were outdated, and their online presence was minimal.

To resolve this issue, I proposed a two-pronged approach: revamping the product portfolio based on current market trends and investing in building a robust e-commerce platform. This recommendation was backed up by detailed cost-benefit analyses and implementation plans. It took some convincing, but eventually, the management agreed to proceed. Over the next year, we implemented the changes, resulting in a significant increase in online sales and overall profitability for the client.

25. How do you maintain confidentiality and protect sensitive client information while working on high-stakes engagements?

Trust, integrity and confidentiality form the bedrock of a successful consultancy practice. Clients entrust consultants with sensitive and proprietary information to help solve their most pressing issues. Therefore, the ability to maintain confidentiality and protect sensitive client information is not just an added advantage, but a necessity. This question is designed to understand your awareness of the importance of confidentiality and your strategies for preserving it.

Approach this question by highlighting your understanding of the importance of confidentiality and data protection. Share specific strategies you use, such as limiting access to sensitive information, using secure communication channels or following company policies strictly. Give examples from past experiences where you ensured client confidentiality successfully. If you’re new, explain proactive steps you would take like learning about related laws, regulations and best practices.

Example: Maintaining confidentiality and protecting sensitive client information is crucial in high-stakes engagements. I adhere strictly to the principle of ‘need-to-know’ basis when it comes to sharing information within the team. This means that only those directly involved in a project have access to its specific data, thus minimizing potential leaks or misuse.

In addition, I utilize secure platforms for communication and data storage, ensuring all digital interactions are encrypted and protected from unauthorized access. Regularly updating systems and software also helps prevent security breaches.

Furthermore, I believe in fostering a culture of confidentiality among colleagues. It’s not just about policies and procedures but also about emphasizing respect for our clients’ privacy as an integral part of our professional ethics. By setting this expectation, we can collectively ensure that sensitive information remains confidential.

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McKinsey Case Interview & PEI - 6 Things You Need to Know

• Last Updated January, 2024

Rebecca Smith-Allen

Former McKinsey Engagement Manager

If you’re interested in a career in management consulting, McKinsey & Company is probably on your list of firms to apply to. It’s the oldest consulting firm, established in 1926 by James McKinsey, a University of Chicago professor and expert in management accounting.

Today, the firm employs 30 thousand professionals working in 130 cities around the world. McKinsey regularly ranks at the top of lists of strategy consulting firms and is hired by businesses, governments, and non-profit organizations to help solve their toughest problems.

It’s difficult to get a job offer from McKinsey.

Like its top management consulting competitors, Bain and BCG, McKinsey typically hires only 1% of candidates who apply. In particular, McKinsey case interviews are tough to crack…but not impossible.

If you’re interested in trying to beat the odds, this article will tell you what you need to know to succeed. We’ll tell you:

What’s different about McKinsey,

6 things candidates recruiting with McKinsey should know,

We’ll provide a mock McKinsey case interview video, and

Provide tips on acing your McKinsey interview.

Let’s get started!

What’s Different About McKinsey? 6 Things Candidates Should Know

1. consultants are hired for either the generalist track or a specialist track.

Generalists at McKinsey are consultants who could be staffed to help clients in any industry and dealing with any type of business problem. Specialists are consultants with a particular area of expertise.

Areas of specialization within McKinsey  include digital and advanced analytics, marketing and sales, business turn around, operations,  software development and design, and implementation.

2. Consultants Work On-Site At The Client 4 Days A Week.

Most consultants travel a lot and at McKinsey, this is definitely the case. Consider whether regular plane flights and hotel stays are right for you.

3. McKinsey Cases Are Interviewer-Led Rather Than Candidate-Led.

Candidates are still expected to identify key issues to be addressed to solve the business problem presented by their interviewer and outline a plan to explore these issues. After they do that, their McKinsey interviewer is likely to tell the candidate which issue they’d like to discuss first. Other management consulting firms, like Bain and BCG typically let candidates steer their case interview.

4. Interviewers Assess Fit As Part Of Every Interview With Personal Experience Interview (PEI) Questions.

While all strategy firms ask candidates Consulting Behavioral Interview Questions  to assess their fit with their firm, many have one interviewer focus entirely on fit while others focus entirely on a case study question. 

McKinsey interviewers split their interview time between the case and PEI in every interview.

5. McKinsey Looks For Personal Impact And Entrepreneurial Drive In Candidates.

This is in addition to the structured problem solving and leadership skills that McKinsey, as well as other top consulting firms, look for in candidates.

6. Mckinsey Recruiting Uses Solve - a Gamified Digital Assessment.

McKinsey’s Solve Game was launched to broaden the firm’s reach to find the best talent regardless of geography as well as provide deeper insight into candidates’ problem-solving skills.

Keep reading for a deeper dive into these topics.

Generalist versus Specialist Track Roles

When the management consulting industry was first founded, simply having an MBA and expertise in solving business problems was enough to set a consultant apart. Consultants hired by McKinsey could expect to be staffed on a case in any industry and solving any type of problem.

To help clients solve these types of business problems effectively, McKinsey hires people with years of experience in functional specialties. These include advanced analytics, marketing and sales, business turn around, operations, software development and design, and implementation.

Specialists work alongside generalists on projects to leverage their functional expertise across the work of the team. The specialist practices are growing faster than generalist roles and get fewer applications, so if you have the right kind of expertise and apply to the practice, you may have a better chance of landing an interview.

How McKinsey Interviews Differ from Bain and BC

There are two main ways that McKinsey’s interviews differ from those of other top management consulting firms. McKinsey uses interviewer-led case interviews while other firms use candidate-led case interviews.

In the “fit” portion of the interview, McKinsey uses the personal experience interview and each interviewer you meet with in all rounds will assess fit.

Interviewer-led Cases

At the start of any McKinsey case study, candidates need to go through 4 phases to solve the business problem the interviewer has given them in a structured manner: the opening, structure, analysis, and closing. 

In a candidate-led case interview, candidates will pick which part of the problem they want to dive into first and proceed with it. In McKinsey’s interviewer-led cases, the interviewer will pick the first part of the business problem they want the candidate to address.

Is the interviewer-led case interview easier or harder than the candidate-led one?

If you’ve structured the business problem well, breaking the problem down into the MECE  issues that require further analysis, it should not matter who picks which aspect of the problem to address first. What is helpful is knowing what to expect in your case interview so that you don’t start down one path just to be redirected by your McKinsey interviewer.  You don’t want anything to throw you in the middle of your case!

For more information on these 4 phases of answering a case interview question, see  Case Interview Prep .

Behavioral Interview Questions - The McKinsey PEI

As mentioned above, fit or personal experience interview (PEI) questions are part of every McKinsey interview. 

How else is the PEI different?

While other top management consulting firms focus on bringing the best creative problem-solving to their clients’ problems (BCG is notable here), McKinsey is interested in candidates’ personal impact and entrepreneurial spirit.

McKinsey interviewers look for these characteristics in answers to PEI questions. Because of this, it’s good to have some insight into why the firm thinks these characteristics are important.

Personal Impact

McKinsey says this about personal impact on its career website:

McKinsey does not want to create PowerPoint presentations with elegant solutions that sit on an executive’s shelf, not implemented.

Personal impact means that McKinsey consultants work shoulder-to-shoulder, on-site with client executives, developing solutions that don’t just solve a business problem in theory but also do it in practice. This can require facing resistance to change in the client’s organization head-on and persuading people to reassess long-held beliefs.

During the PEI, questions like the following will be asked to assess personal impact:

•   Tell me about a team you worked on when you needed to change someone’s mind on a topic that was important to them, or
•   Tell me about a time when you needed to rely on your communication skills to solve a difficult interpersonal situation.

This belief that personal impact is key to developing an implementable solution is what drives McKinsey consultants to spend 4 days a week on client site.

Entrepreneurial Drive

McKinsey says this about entrepreneurial drive on its career website:

McKinsey doesn’t hire consultants who can only implement solutions they’ve seen in previous businesses. They want people who are willing to try new things, take solutions to new industries or new types of problems.

The McKinsey problem solving approach treats each client problem as unique. Each solution should push thinking about best-practices.

In addition to personal impact and entrepreneurial drive, McKinsey also assesses leadership using the PEI. We won’t address this in detail because this is similar to other consulting firms, but you can find more about how McKinsey assesses leadership in our page on  McKinsey PEI Questions.

It also includes What McKinsey Is Looking For and provides a list of 11 Common PEI Questions.

Nail the case & fit interview with strategies from former MBB Interviewers that have helped 89.6% of our clients pass the case interview.

The McKinsey Interview Process - Traditional and Recent Changes

The traditional recruiting process.

For years, McKinsey focused on a group of core schools to find new analyst (undergraduate hires) and associate (MBA hires) candidates. 

While the firm now recruits from a broader set of schools as well as more diverse candidates, recruiting at these core schools still starts in much the same way. McKinsey consultants conduct on-campus presentations and coffee chats to talk to potential candidates about what it’s like to work in the management consulting industry and at McKinsey, in particular.

If the firm hosts an event at your campus, you should attend to make personal connections and to find out first-hand if a career at McKinsey is right for you. If there are no events at your school or if you’re already employed, check out the company’s career site for articles and videos that will tell you what it’s like to work at McKinsey and what it takes to get an offer.

Candidates submit their resumes (and optional cover letters) to the firm’s recruiting department via their school’s department of career services and on the firm website. Candidates who are invited to interview typically have their first round interviews on campus.

During first round interviews, candidates meet with 2 interviewers back-to-back. Candidates who pass first round interviews are invited to a McKinsey office for second round interviews.

In second round interviews, candidates meet with 3 interviewers. Unless a candidate’s interviewers are split in their decision, second round interviews are also final round interviews.

In each round of interviews, McKinsey interviewers walk candidates through a business problem and asks a series of  McKinsey PEI Questions , aimed at evaluating their potential fit with the organization. 

The Recruiting Process for Candidates at Non-core School and Experienced Hires

Candidates from non-core schools submit their resumes (and optional cover letters) directly to the recruiting department of the 3 offices they’d like to work in.

If they are invited to interview, candidates who live relatively close to a McKinsey office will be invited for in-person first round interviews. Others will be asked to do their first round McKinsey interviews via video conference.

Candidates already working in another industry or those working at another consulting firm submit their resumes (and optional cover letters) directly to the recruiting department of the three offices they’d like to work in. They will typically have a phone interview before the “first round” of in-person interviews.

In both cases, once candidates are passed to second round interviews the recruiting process is the same as for core school candidates.

Solve, The McKinsey Problem Solving Game

McKinsey is reaching out to more candidates outside of their traditional core schools to diversify its recruiting. As part of that, it’s launched  Solve , an online game  that assesses candidates’ problem-solving skills.  Solve is both more fun and gives candidates from non-core schools a better shot at getting a McKinsey interview than they’ve had in the past.

Example McKinsey Case Interview - Video

Below, we have 4 videos in which My Consulting Offer founder, Davis Nguyen, walks you  through each segment of a McKinsey case interview from beginning to end. 

Mock McKinsey Case Interview - Opening the Case

The key thing to do in the opening of a McKinsey case study is to repeat back the question so you’re sure you understand the problem you are solving. Then, ask questions to begin to get more information.

Mock McKinsey Case Interview - Structuring the Case

In the structure section of McKinsey Case Interviews, create a MECE list of important issues you will analyze to solve the client’s problem.

Mock McKinsey Case Interview - The Case Analysis

In the analysis section of a McKinsey case study, you’ll need to do analysis to evaluate the best option for your client. This may require interpreting data from charts or graphs provided by your interviewer or doing calculations based on numbers you’re given.

Mock McKinsey Case Interview - Concluding the Case

In the conclusion of McKinsey case interviews, you’ll need to pull your analysis together into a persuasive recommendation for the client. Restate the question you were asked to solve, lay out key findings from each section of your case structure, and show how your analysis points to the course of action the client should take.

Now that you’ve watched our sample McKinsey case interview, you should be ready to start practicing for your own interviews. 

Here are 5 tips on making the most of your preparation time:

5 Tips on Acing Your McKinsey Interview

• Practice casing with another person. Answering case interview questions does not come naturally and it is not enough to practice on your own since casing requires having a dialogue. Give yourself as much time to practice mock interviews as possible by starting early.
• Record yourself during mock interviews  using your computer or phone. Study these videos to see how you can improve your performance in each phase of the case interview. Aim to make your answers more fluent and conversational.
• Practice sample McKinsey interview-led case interviews. Use  McKinsey-specific case interview examples  below to make sure you’re not just familiar with cases, but with McKinsey cases. Make sure you are comfortable with being redirected at times. 
• Brainstorm several  stories to answer common personal experience interview questions. You can find a list of these common questions here .
• Find out more about the  McKinsey Solve Game  before you take it. 

After reading this article, you should have a good understanding of what McKinsey’s recruiting process looks like and how McKinsey case interviews are different from other management consulting firms. 

Still have questions?

If you have more questions about McKinsey case interviews, the PEI, or working at McKinsey, leave them in the comments below. One of My Consulting Offer’s case coaches will answer them.

People interested in this topic have also found the following pages helpful:

• Why McKinsey?
• McKinsey PEI Questions
• McKinsey Problem Solving Game
• Case Interview Examples

Help with Consulting Interview Prep

Thanks for turning to My Consulting Offer for advice on case study interview prep. 

My Consulting Offer has helped almost 89.6% of the people we’ve worked with get a job in management consulting.  

We want you to be successful in your consulting case interviews too.

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S15E1: McKinsey Solve Complete Guide (Updated 2024)

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McKinsey Solve - the consulting firm's video game-like digital assessment - stands in the way of all McKinsey hopefuls.  Solve - or the McKinsey Problem Solving Game as it's often known as - is a difficult test for most candidates. In addition, McKinsey's use of AI ensures the game continues to evolve over time and that no two assessments are exactly the same.  However, McKinsey Solve is NOT impossible to... solve (pun intended). In this episode, Namaan explains: 

• What Solve is 
• What makes Solve difficult 
• How to prepare 
• Tips for success

Relevant Links Work with a coach to prepare for McKinsey interviews - 1-hour, 4-hour, and 8-hour packages available Join Black Belt for end-to-end mentorship through consulting recruiting - from networking to resumes to interviews More info on McKinsey Solve

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• Show Strategy Simplified
• Frequency Updated Semiweekly
• Published August 28, 2024 at 3:00 PM UTC
• Length 5 min
• Rating Clean

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