718: From a $3,000 investment into nearly $1 billion in lifetime sales (with Brian Gottlieb)

In this series of podcasts we look at each of the typical McKinsey/BCG FIT/PEI questions and provide a typical answer. Note, that while replicating this approach and standard will help you, we caution you that the main test of fit is in handling the cross-examination of your answer. Most candidates tend to be unprepared for that and we urge you to be very aware this will happen and to practice this interrogation style. You can never memorize your way out of these interrogations questions, since you cannot predict the actual question and, therefore, prepare for them. At least 20% of clients ignore this advice at their peril. Why did you go to Arizona state, sample answer

5 Mars 20126min

In this series of podcasts we look at each of the typical McKinsey/BCG FIT/PEI questions and provide a typical answer. Note, that while replicating this approach and standard will help you, we caution you that the main test of fit is in handling the cross-examination of your answer. Most candidates tend to be unprepared for that and we urge you to be very aware this will happen and to practice this interrogation style. You can never memorize your way out of these interrogations questions, since you cannot predict the actual question and, therefore, prepare for them. At least 20% of clients ignore this advice at their peril. Please elaborate on a weakness, sample answer

28 Feb 201212min

In this podcast we outline some simple guidelines to use for McKinsey and BCG FIT/PEI cases. The objective is to know what each firm is for and then design the answer to address each of those points. The objective of FIT is not to deliver your life story. That is largely meaningless but unfortunately a common tactic used by many candidates.

22 Feb 201214min

Written cases, pioneered by Monitor Deloitte, and now used by all firms are very intimidating. Written cases actually test core prioritization skills much better than verbal cases, since written case interviews can dump tonnes of data on a candidate. The trick to written cases is to have a filtering system to find the data you need from the worthless data, and of course, recognizing that not all the data is useful. Written cases mirror cases done in case-method schools like Harvard. Lots of data is provided in those cases, but not all is useful. Your job is to find the useful data and that means having a framework upfront.

16 Feb 201218min

Richard Ivey in Southern Ontario is one of the 4 great case schools in the world - along with Harvard, IESE and Darden - and a school with which we have a deep affiliation given our client history. In recent years we have had much fewer clients, but we still retain a deep understanding of the program and receive many queries from Ivey candidates. This podcast details some of the common questions we receive from Ivey candidates in the hope it answers them all in one location. Much of the advice is counter-intuitive and we hope it helps with your own case interview preparation.

10 Feb 201223min

As a policy, we do not write much about our clients. However, I felt this story was worth sharing. A candidate from an unknown school, from one of the poorest developing countries in the world, lands an offer at BBM. In fact, the first from her country. I have heavily disguised her details to protect her identity. Note, this client was a Firmsconsulting Emerging Fellow, the very first and the reason we started this program, when she was admitted to our program and is part of the scholarship program we run to identify and groom outstanding individuals from the emerging markets and inner cities.

4 Feb 201231min

These are the 4 books we recommend for summer reading. Two, are among the most important books for management consulting that we recommend for all management consultants. "McKinsey's Marvin Bower" is a book we recommend to every single and aspiring consultant and is the foundation of understanding the values of management consulting.

29 Jan 20127min

This podcast discusses one of the most common problems for candidates. When consultants are indifferent, unwilling to give bad news or insufficiently informed, they can provide misleading information which costs time and money. The irony is that candidates place too much emphasis on this feedback and sometimes hurt their chances. We discuss the reasons why this happens, common phrases to be aware off and ignore and how to carefully read between the lines when accepting feedback.

23 Jan 201219min