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CONFIDENTIAL

McKinsey Case Interview

This material was used by McKinsey & Company during an oral

NC-ZZG001-1099Vaugh-RC.ppt presentation; it is not a complete record of the discussion.

– Suggested approach

• Suggested problem-solving process

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important projects/special recognition • Evidence of leadership and


Approach • Genuine interest in solving complex problems • Structured, logical approach• Curiosity, creativity • Logical, probing questions• Synthesis and conclusions

		Responses should demonstrate
		• Big picture perspective • Ability to structure • Broad functional skills • Comfort with details, analysis
consolidation be on company X?”
• “Should company X enter/exit a

• “How should company X react to a

		Responses should demonstrate
		• Comfort with ambiguity• Ability to structure • Facility with numbers• Poise
apartment complex have to be for
everyone on Earth to live there?”
• “What is the size of the skateboard

WHAT TO REMEMBER WHEN APPROACHING A CASE

. . . but there are wrong answers

	does not work

What to do	What not to do

• Organize your thoughts and structure the problem • Pick one branch to probe, develop hypotheses, ask for a few relevant facts, defend/refine hypotheses based on new information, probe further, and describe implications you see

FIVE EASY STEPS TO BULLET-PROOF PROBLEM SOLVING

	Step 2	Step 3
	Disaggregate	Eliminate all
	the issues	non-key issues
?

Conduct critical Synthesize

analyses, findings and

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You are responsible for ensuring the clarity of the problem

Interviewer		Paraphrase the
		problem to make
		problem to make
		sure you have
		sure you have
		it right
		it right
problem	Problem has

			Step 2
	you don’t
	understand it

Issues/hypothesis

1. To break a problem into component parts so that
• Problem-solving work can be divided into intellectually

No. 1

Subissue

			parts
			• Responsibilities can be allocated
	No. 2		• Responsibilities can be allocated
	No. 2

Issues/hypothesis	Subissue	problem solving is maintained
	Subissue

No. 3
No. 3

and collectively exhaustive

Suggestions	(i.e., no overlaps, no gaps)

STEP 3: ELIMINATE ALL NON-KEY ISSUES
Issue 1	Why • First step in constant, interactive

refinement process

		• Focuses your effort on what is
		most important

statement
		• Always ask yourself “so what” . . .
		but also ask yourself what you
		might have missed

• Tell the interviewer what you are
cutting and why

STEP 4: CONDUCT CRITICAL ANALYSIS

• Be hypothesis-driven and end products-

• Do not just “run the numbers”– ask

• Do not chase your tail
• Do you really need to calculate the

you can. Be suspicious of huge linear WACC?

• Don’t miss the forest for the trees• Beware of “polishing dirt”
• Look for breakthrough thinking

NC-ZZG001-1099Vaugh-RC.ppt 11

Main assertion

Lay out possible

Yes

Action 1

Action 2

Question

NC-ZZG001-1099Vaugh-RC.ppt	No	Action 4
NC-ZZG001-1099Vaugh-RC.ppt	No	12

Why?

• Test analytical ability
• Test ability to sort out key facts and

Why?

Indirectly through classes	Directly through practice cases
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	summer experience
Economics/finance

	Consulting Club case prep guide
• Income Statement/Balance Sheet/	Consulting Club case prep guide
Cash Flow Statement thinking



• Customer segmentation• Channel management• Brand management
Operations

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WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR

NC-ZZG001-1099Vaugh-RC.ppt 16

RESUME RELATED QUESTIONS

abilities?”
• “Describe a situation in which you’ve had to

overcome obstacles to reach a desired

Why?

NC-ZZG001-1099Vaugh-RC.ppt 17

CLASS OF 2000 INTERVIEWS

	Round
	1	October 27	On campus
Southeast	2
	2		at the Sienna Hotel
All other	2

Invitations to interview reflect our best initial effort to find the right people for McKinsey. Recognizing the limitations of this process, interviewers will consider students who bid for open slots no differently than those who were invited.

If you have a strong interest in McKinsey and are not included on the closed list, bid for the slot!

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