Case Interview Preparation & Management Consulting | Strategy | Critical Thinking

Welcome to an interview with the author of The Datapreneurs: The Promise of AI and the Creators Building Our Future,  Bob Muglia. In this book, Bob helps us understand how innovation in data and information technology has led us to AI—and how this technology must shape our future.  Bob Muglia  is a data technology investor and business executive, former CEO of Snowflake, and past president of Micr...

Welcome to an interview with the author of Bold Move: A 3-Step Plan to Transform Anxiety into Power. Bold Move  is Dr. Luana Marques' unique, tried and tested method to get you out of your rut and give you the courage to create a more confident and meaningful life. Dr. Luana pinpoints the anxiety at the root of avoidance and shows you how to overcome it and achieve your goals. Dr. Luana Marques is...

Welcome to an interview with the Chairman of the BCG Henderson Institute, BCG's think tank for new ideas in management and strategy. Martin has authored numerous books, including  Your Strategy Needs a Strategy  and  The Imagination Machine , a handbook about how to systematically harness imagination to generate new ideas and transform businesses. Get Martin's book here:  The Imagination Machine:...

Welcome to an interview with the author of Inside the Competitor's Mindset ,  John Horn , where he shares proven techniques to help businesses think like the competition and understand why they act the way they do.  Inside the Competitor's Mindset  presents a systematic approach to competitive intelligence that starts with three frameworks to get inside the competitor's mindset, predict their reac...

Welcome to an interview with Ryan McAnnally-Linz, coauthor of Life Worth Living: A Guide to What Matters Most . This book provides readers with jumping-off points, road maps, and habits of reflection for figuring out where their lives hold meaning and where things need to change. The book draws from major world religions and from impressively truthful and courageous figures such as Jesus, Muhammad...

For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about how to treat your case partner. Your case practice partner is the most important ally you have as you prepare. The problem is that most people completely squander this advantage. They tend to be unclear about their level of preparation and commitment they are willing to make. Many arrive late to p...

Welcome to an interview with Sandeep Chennakeshu, the author of Your Company Is Your Castle: Proven Methods for Building a Resilient Business , where he describes how to assess and systematically build a company's business model, financial health, strategy, culture, products, sales channels, execution, and stakeholder confidence to make the company formidable. Y our Company Is Your Castle  equips...

For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about productivity. In brainstorming the interviewer is looking for your approach to define an objective function, understand the direct drivers of the function, prioritize the drivers and explain how to manipulate them. There is only one definition for productivity and that is formally used in all stud...

For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about BCG and McKinsey approaches. Merging the BCG and McKinsey approach, elegantly. This is a simple discussion on how to merge both approaches so you do not need to worry about learning different techniques. One caveat, as explained in latter podcasts is to assume there is just a simple BCG and simple...

For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about career rotation vs. progression. Candidates always want to show improvement on their resumes in the months leading up to their applications. For those working in industry or rival consulting firms, showing leadership and career development is crucial. This podcast explains that career rotation, a...

For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about the three core technical concepts around cases. We always teach clients estimation technique first, followed by brainstorming technique and finally full case technique. There is a simple reason for this, which is explained in this podcast. Estimations tend to be, but not always, a brainstorm with...

For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about leadership versus teamwork answers. If you are thinking through responses to leadership and teamwork questions, the starting point should be knowing the differences between both. At its core, to McKinsey especially, leadership is about influencing a group people to undertake and complete an initia...

Welcome to an interview with Rishi Dave, a partner in Bain's Commercial Excellence practice with deep expertise in B2B marketing and digital marketing. In this episode, Rishi explains the concept of a "Day 1 List" in B2B sales and marketing and the three things that will get a supplier or seller on the list. Rishi also discussed what a "sales play" is, how to build it, institutionalize the knowled...

Welcome to an interview with Gaia Bernstein, a Law Professor, Director of the Institute for Privacy Protection and Co-Director of the Gibbons Institute for Law Science and Technology at the Seton Hall University School of Law. She writes, teaches and lectures in the intersection of law, technology, health and privacy. Gaia is also the mother of three children who grew up in a world of smartphones,...

Welcome to an interview with the author of How to Listen , Oscar Trimboli. Effective communication is not all about eloquent speaking. The key sits on the ability to listen and how you react and respond to what you hear. As Oscar said in the episode, "The difference between hearing and listening is action". In this episode, we discuss what good listening and communication is. We also highlighted t...

For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we speak about our practice styles. Over the course of the case interview training program, it becomes very important for us to change our coaching style. First, candidates become used to solving cases in just this one style and we need to ensure they can adapt to any style. Second, candidates become adept at re...

Welcome to an interview with the co-author of  The Burnout Challenge ,  Michael P. Leiter, Ph. D. Burnout is one of the major contributors driving people to leave their job. It results from unsuccessfully managed workplace stress and is a combination of exhaustion, psychological distancing, and a low sense of accomplishment. So how do we address burnout and who is responsible for managing this iss...

Welcome to an episode with Christina Maslach, PhD, a professor of psychology (Emerita) and a researcher at the Healthy Workplaces Center at the University of California, Berkeley.  In this episode, we discuss the causes of burnout and the factors contributing to it, and how leaders and organizations can address this issue to provide a sustainable and healthy working environment for their employees...

For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss why candidates fail profit cases. Most candidates would tackle a McKinsey profitability case by presenting a revenue-cost framework and offer options to lower costs and increase revenue. The reality is that such a framework and explanation shows a deep misunderstanding of business and business strateg...

For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we provide a simple set of priority areas that a novice aspiring consultant should focus upon in the building up to the MBA full-time September interviews. It ties together themes from existing podcasts but presents them in the format of a case interview preparation roadmap. Enjoying our podcast? Get access to s...

Welcome to an episode with a Senior Partner and the global leader in the Tech and Telecommunication practice at McKinsey and Company, Venkat Atluri. In this episode, we defined the emerging ecosystem economy and how most successful companies navigate and thrive in this new world.  Venkat Atluri is a thought leader at McKinsey, a prolific author, and a sought-after speaker at industry events. He co...

For this episode, we interviewed the coauthor of Monster: A Tough Love Letter on Taming the Machines that Rule our Jobs, Lives, and Future,  Ben Pring. Who is responsible for regulating and overseeing technology and online platforms? Is it the government? The ITs and developers? Or maybe…the users? In this episode, we deliberated the significance of technology in human lives and the negative conse...

For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss how to capture and use feedback correctly. Candidates good through a lot of trouble finding practice partners and reaching out to current and former consultants. We do, however, find that despite all of this effort, they tend to be very weak at the manner in which they capture valuable lessons. There...

For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss four classic math mistakes in cases. Candidates mess up calculations for 4 primary reasons: missing units, complicated equations, weak visual layout and poor technique. Notice that we ignore speed and arithmetic. There is a reason for that and it is discussed in the podcast. The most surprising one of...

For this episode, we interviewed the author of Wanting: The Power of Mimetic Desire in Everyday Life , Luke Burgis. Why do we want what we want? This topic is rarely presented in conversations, business meetings, or political agendas, but it has a comprehensive impact on our lives and shapes our societies. This episode explores the psychology behind human desires, role modeling, competition, and t...