Interview Experiences

by

Abhishek Poddar

Prateek Singhal

V. Bhanu Chandra
 1

A typical McKinsey Interview

A typical McKinsey interview consists of two main parts: the Case Study and the

Experience Interview. The part that most people know about is the case study. It is

a common belief among applicants that the case study is the most important part of

the McKinsey interview, and indeed much time is spent preparing and getting ready

for the case. The case is important, because you need to show that you have the

right problem solving skills to be a McKinsey consultant. However, it is equally

important for you to show the right behavioural skills.

McKinsey consultants work in challenging situations involving stretch goals and

tight deadlines, and they interact with people of all types, from experienced CEOs to

front‐line staff. In hiring you, they will want to be sure that you can effectively

manage these situations, interact with these people, and represent their firm well.

They believe that the best way to understand your behavioural skills is to look in

detail at challenging situations you have experienced in the past – situations that

held challenges similar to those you may experience as a McKinsey consultant.

During your interview, you will be asked to spend a significant amount of time

describing one or more specific, challenging experiences that you have had. Your

interviewer will guide you in choosing the right experience to discuss. Some

preparation for this part of the interview is strongly advised. Remember, this is not

simply a polite chat with the interviewer before you do a case. The interviewer has

a specific job of assessing your behavioural skills. You need to help the interviewer
 2

by having specific things to talk about that illustrate these skills. Here are some tips

for you as you prepare for this part of the interview:

Prepare: Make sure you understand what they mean. Your interviewer will

be interested in looking at one or more of these three areas and will want to

discuss specific situations from your past where you have had to use these

skills. For each of these areas, have some examples in your mind of times

when you have had to use these skills to overcome significant challenges.

Choose examples that you remember well and can discuss in some detail.

Don’t choose situations that were easy for you, as these situations are

unlikely to demonstrate your true range of skills.

Be specific: When describing something to your interviewer, try not to

generalize. For example, when you make general statements like “I talked to

her and managed to get her to change her mind”, that does not tell your

interviewer a great deal about your skills. However, in this situation, if you

can describe to your interviewer, as best as you can remember, exactly what

you said and how you responded to arguments, it will be much easier for

your interviewer to see your skills.

Focus on your own role: They know that many of the things you have done

in the past have involved other people that you worked with. Of course, they

appreciate this – much of the work of a McKinsey consultant involves

working in teams. However, to help them understand your specific skills, try

to focus on your role and your actions in anything you describe. For example,

saying “We presented the work to the committee” does not help your
 3

interviewer understand what you did. Your interviewer wants to hear about

your specific role and the specific things you did during that presentation to

the committee.

Focus on the process: They use cases to assess problem solving, so when

describing something you are proud of, try not to focus too much on the

problem solving challenge or simply the end result. Your interviewer wants

to hear about the process. For example, telling your interviewer that you

won a prestigious academic award does not help them understand your

specific skills. Similarly, if you resolved challenges in a team by avoiding the

team and doing all the work yourself, this will not reassure your interviewer

about your leadership ability, even though it may have helped in getting the

work completed.

We hope these tips will help you prepare and show yourself in the best light when

you interview with us.

 4

Basic Do’s and Don’ts

Arrive a little early. If you arrive about fifteen minutes before the scheduled

interview time, you will have time to collect your thoughts, wipe the

perspiration from your hands, and scan the lobby for current company

information. You will also show your interviewer that you value his or her

time.

Do your homework. Know the interviewerʹs name and how to pronounce it

(including proper title: Mr., Mrs., Dr., etc.). Know the companyʹs major

products or services, the organization of the company (divisions, parent

company, etc.), current business news about the company and the companyʹs

major customers and competitors. You can learn most or all of this

information from the companyʹs website, annual report or company

literature.

Bring a Spare Copy of Your Resume in a Briefcase or Folder. This

demonstrates that you are prepared. It also gives the interviewer something

to take notes on.

Expect to Spend Some Time Developing Rapport. Personal chemistry is a

main ingredient in the hiring process. Try to relax and become comfortable

with the interviewer.

 5

Prepare for basic open‐ended questions. The interview is a process by which

the interviewer gets to know you and judge whether you match the

requirements both academically and as a person. Generally, the interviewer

will throw up some open‐ended question like “Tell me about you”. This is

meant to relax the applicant. This can be used as an opportunity to divert the

interview into your areas of strength. Open‐ended questions like those on

hobbies, achievements, etc reveal a great deal about you as a person. Treat

these questions very seriously.

Listen. Listen to the question before answering it. Understand what the

interviewer is looking for. If you need time to think about the answer,

request for the same. Most interviewers would comply with such a request.

But after you have taken time to think, better come up with a good answer.

Watch Your Non‐Verbal Communication. Maintain an open body posture.

Seat yourself at a reasonable distance from the other person. Smile. Always

maintain eye contact with the interviewer. It shows your confidence. Never

droop in the chair. Sit upright and keep track of your hand movements while

answering questions.

Donʹt Be Embarrassed by Nervousness. Interviewers are human, and they

often become nervous, too. In fact, nervousness is a good sign ‐ it shows that

you are taking the interview seriously. Avoid nervous mannerisms such as

tapping your fingers, feet, playing with pens, etc.

 6

Body language is powerful! Good eye contact, a warm, natural smile and a

firm handshake can help you overcome nervousness, develop a personal

rapport and present a confident image.

Donʹt Play Comedian or Try to Entertain the Interviewer. It is important to

be personable, but do not overdo it.

Donʹt Exaggerate or Lie. You might be tempted to embellish your

achievements in the interview, but it will come back to haunt you on the job!

Follow the Interviewerʹs Lead. Donʹt try to take over the interview. Stick to

the main subject at hand, but do not dwell too long on one point. It is better to

deal with many questions rather than just one or two in‐depth questions,

unless thatʹs where the interviewer leads you.

Be Prepared For Personal Questions, Even Some Inappropriate Ones.

Anticipate how you will handle personal questions without blowing your

cool. Some interviewers may not be aware of what they can and cannot

legally ask you. Be sure you understand the question. It is okay to ask for

clarification.

Emphasize the Positive. Be frank and honest, but never apologize for lack of

experience or weaknesses. You can be self‐confident without being

overconfident or flippant. If you are new to the job market, your lack of

experience has one very positive feature: you do not have to ʺunlearnʺ bad

habits or different practices learned from previous employers. Many

 7

employers like the idea that you can be taught their individual company

procedures without needing to get rid of other training first.

Donʹt be Afraid to Think before You Speak. Use silence and intentional

pause to your advantage. Time is occasionally needed to think and to reflect.

The interviewer will respect you for taking a question seriously enough to

give it a moment or two of consideration before answering.

Emphasize What You Can Do For The Organization. This means

emphasizing your transferable skills. However, be careful not to reveal trade

secrets from a previous employer. Employers are concerned most with what

you can do for them. Focus on your ability to tackle new situations, your

communication skills, interpersonal abilities, analytical thinking talents, and

other skills developed while in college or in previous positions.

Donʹt give ʺPrepared Answersʺ. Most employers know a these stock answers

when they hear them. This is a good reason to use interview question /

answer guide as just that ‐ guides. If your answers are not personalized to

your situation, they will sound forced and unnatural. You might be surprised

to learn how often interviewers hear the phrase, ʺI really like working with

people.ʺ The phrase is used so often that it has lost its meaning!

Watch Your Grammar and Your Manners. Employers are interested in

candidates who can express themselves properly. Even if you have to slow

down to correct yourself ‐‐ do it! Use slang expressions very sparingly. If

 8

your knowledge of rules of etiquette is rusty, take a ʺrefresher courseʺ from a

knowledgeable friend.

Be Prepared to Ask Questions. Almost all interviewers will ask if you have

any questions. You should have some ready and should have at least one that

is related to the conversation you have just completed. This demonstrates

that you are both prepared and interested. Your questions should be related

to details about the company and should be based on the information you

learned from the homework you have done. You should not ask questions

like ʺHow long to I have to wait before I can take a vacation?ʺ Save those

whatʹs‐in‐it‐for‐me questions for later. If you do not ask any questions at this

point, chances are that you may come across as a person who is not keen to

join the company.

Be Careful With the Closing. Do not linger. End quickly and courteously.

Thank your interviewer for the interview. Smile.

Be Yourself! You do not want to get hired on the basis of something you are

not. You want to be hired for who you are! Do not try to be someone you are

not during an interview. Be natural. An interview is a process by which the

candidate and the interviewer get to know each other and the candidate’s

role in the organization is established. Any mask that you may don for the

interview will wear down in no time.

Mock Interviews. It is always a good idea to attend mock interviews and use

the feedback to improve your interview skills.

 9

Standard Resume Format

This section gives you a resume format which we were asked to adhere to. You can
use this to start making your resume. However, feel free to add anything missing
here. But try to restrict your resume to one to two pages. Be very specific and write
only what you adds value to your resume and not space.

<Name>
<Address>
<E Mail>
<Date of Birth>

Education

Year Degree/ Certificate Institute/ School, City CGPA/ % Rank

[Link]. <Branch>

Class XII <Board>

Class X <Board>

• Scholastic achievements, if any; year

• Exchange programs, if any; key achievements; period

• Key academic projects undertaken, if any; key achievements; period

Summer training(s)
 10

Organization: _____________________ Department: ____________________,

City: _____________, Period: ________________

• What you did:

• What you achieved:

Organization: _____________________ Department: ____________________,

City: _____________, Period: ________________

• What you did:

• What you achieved:

Work experience, if any

Organization: _____________________ Department: ____________________,

City: _____________, Period: ________________

• What you did:

• What you achieved:

 11

Extra‐Curricular Activities

• Positions of responsibility

Position, Organisation Period Key achievements

• Key extra‐curricular activities/ interests (cultural activities/ sports/

others)
Please include your accomplishments / awards in these areas

Anything else you would like to mention

 12

Chronicle of our Interviews

This section will provide you the narration of each and every interview we had. This

may not contain the exact question we were asked in the interviews, as this guide

has been written tow to three months after the interviews were actually held. But

these excerpts should provide you a brief picture of the actual interview one would

face.
 13

Name Abhishek Poddar

Name of Interviewer
Jatin Pant, Engagement Manager (EM)
and Designation

Round
Round 1, 1st Interview
(First/Second/Third)

Personal Interview
Questions (With
Indicative Answers
if you choose to
share them)

Narration of the case

interview (please be
as descriptive as
possible)

What do you think

went right for you in
this interview?

What do you think Probably, I was not having an eye to eye contact all the time and also a bit
went wrong in this nervous which was visible through my body language. At the end of the
interview? interview, Jatin asked me to improve on all these.

Any tips for the

future batches based
on this interview
experience?
 14

Name Abhishek Poddar

Name of Interviewer
Rajat Dhawan, Partner
and Designation

Round
Round 1, 2nd Interview
(First/Second/Third)

Personal Interview
Questions (With
Indicative Answers
if you choose to
share them)

Estimate the market of the new 1 lakh car TATA is going to launch in a
short period of time.
I felt this was also a bit of stress interview as he told me not ask him any
questions or for any data. Also, whenever I tried to involve him in the
Narration of the case
procedure, he asked me to give the final answer and said that he is not
interview (please be
concerned about the procedure etc. I did felt a bit awkward at the
as descriptive as
beginning but soon I realized that he is trying to test me how I behave
possible)
under stress conditions. SO at the starting, I tired to get his inputs but
then I started conveying him whatever I was doing without asking his
opinion.

What do you think

went right for you in
this interview?
I made a lot of wrong assumptions (as I was not able to clarify my doubts)
What do you think
and went on to solve the case using them and finally got an a number
went wrong in this
which you can’t even imagine (market of 10crores ☺ ) but I guess he was
interview?
not looking at the numbers but how I behave under stress.

Any tips for the

future batches based
on this interview
experience?
 15

Name Abhishek Poddar

Name of Interviewer
Prashant, Associate Partner
and Designation

Round
Round 2, 1st Interview
(First/Second/Third)

Personal Interview
Questions (With
Indicative Answers
if you choose to
share them)

Narration of the case

interview (please be
as descriptive as
possible)

What do you think

went right for you in
this interview?
What do you think
went wrong in this
interview?

Any tips for the

future batches based
on this interview
experience?
 16

Name Abhishek Poddar

Name of Interviewer
Tilman Ehrbeck, Partner
and Designation

Round
Round 2, 2nd Interview
(First/Second/Third)

Personal Interview
Questions (With
Indicative Answers
if you choose to
share them)

Narration of the case

interview (please be
The case study was more of a descriptive one and a typical business case.
as descriptive as
possible)

What do you think

went right for you in
this interview?
What do you think
went wrong in this
interview?

Any tips for the

future batches based
on this interview
experience?
 17

Name Abhishek Poddar

Name of Interviewer
Shailesh Kekre, Partner and Jatin Pant, Engagement Manager
and Designation

Round
Round 3, 1st Interview (Telephonic Interview)
(First/Second/Third)

Personal Interview
Questions (With What if not McKinsey
Indicative Answers Why consulting
if you choose to Why not MBA right now
share them)

Narration of the case

interview (please be
No case study this time.
as descriptive as
possible)

As this interview was on 2nd of December and till then we knew the names
of our interviewer, I did a bit of research about my interviewer and found
out a good article he had written. I read the complete article on the net
What do you think
and then went on to ask some specific questions related to that. This
went right for you in
creates a very good impression on the interviewer about you because he
this interview?
too will get excited to answer your queries if you asking him a question in
a field in which he has an expertise. You won’t believe but we had spent
more that 80% of our interview time discussing this question.

I wasn’t prepared for the answer to the question “What if not McKinsey.”
They asked about which other companies I will be sitting for and why
What do you think
those companies etc. etc. You should be prepared for such type of
went wrong in this
questions; you should always say that you have some back‐up. You have
interview?
to be realistic, so you can’t just say that McKinsey is the only company I
want to work for and I won’t work at all I don’t get into it.
 18

Name Prateek Singhal

Name of Interviewer
Tilman Ehrbeck, Partner
and Designation

Round
Round 1, 1st Interview
(First/Second/Third)

•What did I like about my internships and if given a chance to redo it,
what will I do to improve it, as a team player. I could inform him about
Personal Interview
my success as a team player by telling him of the B. Tech. project offer
Questions (With
from Max Planck Institute. •Details of .NET Club activities. •Details of
Indicative Answers
business aspects covered in a business plan submitted by me. I could
if you choose to
explain in a way to showcase my familiarity with the business world
share them)
•One weakness and one quality as a leader which I think was
instrumental in my experience. •Why consulting

Your client wants to begin a big cardiac hospital in a small town, say your
city Gwalior. Estimate the market for it, and list some factors that would
affect the revenues of the hospital. The case was asked in such a way that
made it clear that the interviewer did not want a complete solution to the
problem but wanted to see the thinking process and how I broke the
problem into parts and identify which are the working factors and which
are not. I divided the whole population into age groups (<25, 25‐50, >50)
and calculated the population of each group. Group 1 can be ignored for it
has negligible number of heart patients. I assumed that 20% people in
group 2 have heart problems of some sort, and that 30% people in group 3
have heart problems of some sort, and confirmed with the interviewer.
Narration of the case This gave the local market size. Next, I asked if the hospital aims to attract
interview (please be people from outside. The interviewer didn’t want me to calculate the
as descriptive as market size of non‐locals but wanted me to list some factors that would
possible) affect it. I listed out two most important factors •financial condition of the
customer to traveling to another city •brand image of the hospital The
interviewer next asked me to think of factors that will affect the hospital
revenues and that need to be taken into account by management. I
recalled the list various factors which I usually used to solve a business
case and made notes. Now, I excluded factors like location etc. which
would not be a major issue and came up with three major factors •Brand
name or reputation ‐ the common man would not, in general, come to an
expensive hospital unless he has heard of testimonials. The rich section is
not very big in a small town. •Publicity of the hospital, especially in other
 19

Cities, because towns like this are not expected to have a huge number of
heart patients. •Competitive rates, as health care facilities are really cheap
in small town as compared to the rates of a typical big hospital. •Other
factors ‐ ease of the customer, amount of formalities required, good
hospitality etc. The Interviewer wanted something more and asked me to
consider two big hospitals of the same kind in the same town and think of
factors driving the customer to choose one. I thought would be the
reputation, the facilities etc. He was looking for something else and asked
me one factor which would decide the choice, given everything else is the
same. I again missed it, and finally he told me it would be the popularity
and fame of the doctors.

•The interview went in a manner in which I could put forward my

leadership experiences in the best possible manner. •I could showcase
familiarity with business world. •I was clear in identifying my strengths,
What do you think
weaknesses and vision. •I think I could convince him that I was a
went right for you in
hardworking person• In the end I asked him a follow up question on the
this interview?
relevance of the case in real life, which showcased my interest in the case.
He was happy and explained in detail about the practical relevance in
Indian context.

What do you think

•I think I could have structured the case better, in both the parts.
went wrong in this
•Probably my body language wasn’t very good in the first half.
interview?

Know yourself well, do a lot of homework thinking about your

Any tips for the achievements, each of your listed experiences, strengths, weaknesses etc.
future batches based Have a clear vision about yourself, who you are, your life, your plans,
on this interview why are you a fit for the job etc; try to convey it through your answers. Be
experience? interactive in the cases; try to make it a dialogue. Take your time to think
and structure the case. Mind your body language, be energetic.
 20

Name Prateek Singhal

Name of Interviewer
Jatin Pant, Engagement Manager (EM)
and Designation

Round
Round 1, 2nd Interview
(First/Second/Third)

Personal Interview •My departmental rank, and why my CPI was low when compared to my
Questions JEE rank. •My career plans. •Why consulting.

Estimate the monthly electricity bill for this hotel (Taj Palace, Delhi). This
was a typical estimation case, and I solved it using the usual MECE
approach. I identified that the hotel’s electricity expenditure is in three
major places •The rooms •The services (background and foreground)
•The lobby and reception Let us take each of these one by one. For the
rooms, I was asked to assume 500 simple rooms. For each room, I
accounted for lights, AC, miscellaneous supplies like ironing/laptops etc.
In this the interviewer helped me in assigning AC power consumption to
each room, as I was unsure of how to do that. For all the rooms, the power
consumption came out to be 30MWh. I divided the services into 3
restaurants, 1 bar, 1 coffee‐shop, 5 shops, 5 office complexes, 3 conference
halls. Services like swimming pool and parking etc. could be ignored as
they don’t take up much electricity. Next, I calculated the power
consumption of all of these one‐by‐one making appropriate assumptions,
Narration of the case
by estimating the size of each of these in terms of the size of the room. All
interview (please be
of this was after confirming with the interviewer. Finally, this came out to
as descriptive as
be another 500 rooms, hence another 30MWh for the services. A lobby
possible)
was taken to be roughly the size of 50 rooms. And I assumed 5 such
lobbies in the hotel. This gave another 15MWh. Hence, the hotel spends a
total of 75MWh in one day. This means 75000 units of electricity.
Assuming a price of Rs. 10 per unit, this gives us Rs. 7.5 lacs per day, or
about Rs. 2.5 crore per month. The interviewer said it was good answer
and that the actual expenditure is close to this. Next, I was asked to
estimate the revenues earned from hotel rooms, per month, to see if the
hotel at all recovers this cost. I dashed into the solution at once with 500
rooms, Rs. 15000 per room per night, 30 nights ‐around Rs. 25 crore. But
one factor that might change the rate would be that hotels usually reserve
rooms for businesses, at a cheaper rate. The interviewer pointed out that I
missed the point that all the rooms would not be occupied all the time. I
then assumed 70% occupancy rates, and the revenue came out to be
around 17 crores.
 21

•I could justify my unsure future plans, and at the same time sound
What do you think concrete, practical and original. •I could drive the case to the very end
went right for you in and come up with realistic numbers. •I asked him a question on the
this interview? experiences of past business analysts which made me sound serious. The
interviewer explained in great detail, citing particular examples.

What do you think •The interviewer did not think my way of solving the case was the
went wrong in this simplest one, and he suggested a much simpler way. •I missed out on one
interview? crucial point in the second part of the case.

Be realistic and original in your plans, and be able to justify it strongly.

Any tips for the
This works better than cramming up a state‐of‐the‐art career plan and
future batches based
trying to defend it. Think for the case solution method from various
on this interview
perspectives, and decide upon the most suitable method depending upon
experience?
the type/accuracy of answer desired.
 22

Name Prateek Singhal

Name of Interviewer
Raj Kamal
and Designation

Round
Round 2, 1st Interview
(First/Second/Third)

Personal Interview
Questions (With •Asked details about things in my resume. •Questions on personal
Indicative Answers qualities and how they matched with what the firm needed. •Why
if you choose to consulting.
share them)

A bank is worried because the number of ATM users among its customers
is not growing. What could be the possible reasons for this? Also, the bank
wants to open a new ATM. How many customers should serve so that it is
justified by cost concerns? I went to my usual list of possible factors that
could be affecting this case and came up with 3 possible broad reasons for
this: •Product – What is the ATM service design? How the interface is and
what are the facilities provided? How do these compare with the
competitor ATMs? Is the ATM service given at a fee? Is the fee too much?
How does the fee compare with the competitors? •Supply/Sales – Are the
ATM locations in general strategic? Are the competitor ATMs better
Narration of the case located? Is the ATM facility well publicized? •Customers – Who are the
interview (please be customers? Does a major fraction of them fall in classes which don’t
as descriptive as usually use ATMs? I also thought upon other reasons like the bank’s
possible) internal logistics, cost to the bank etc. but they were either irrelevant here
or covered under the above three heads. The interviewer agreed with
most of these. He also suggested one more important reason ‐ do the bank
customers have ATM cards at all? Why? It could so happen that the ATM
card procurement process is expensive/complicated/lengthy and the
costumers do not have ATM cards in the first place. The next part of the
question was a quantitative case. Opening a new ATM will be justified if
the cost to the bank is less than the cost to the bank if all the customers
expected to use the ATM go to the bank and are served by operators. Cost
of ATM = Cost of premises + Salary of Guard + Cost of electricity + Other
Small Costs = Rs. 15000pm + Rs. 10000pm + Rs. 5000 pm = Rs. 30000pm .
 23

Similarly, find the cost, if all the people using ATMs have to be served
manually. I was asked to assume the same fixed costs of the bank in both
cases. Hence, the cost in this case was the sum of salaries paid to
employees for the time they serve customers plus some other costs. The
employee salaries could be calculated by finding out the average time
taken to serve a customer, and dividing the monthly salary into this
proportion. Also, don’t forget that all the bank customers would not come
to the bank daily; assume say once a week. Finally by equating these two
costs, the number of ATM users came out to be around 20 each day.

•I could clearly spell out my qualities and strengths and how they fit well
What do you think
to the firm’s requirements. •I did my homework to build some
went right for you in
knowledge about the firm and showcased it, in my answers and by asking
this interview?
questions in the end.

What do you think • I think I assumed some important points in the case myself, without
went wrong in this even letting the interviewer know, which eventually turned out to be
interview? opposite to the interviewer’s expectations.

Any tips for the Don’t be in a haste to solve the case. Rather try to do correctly and
future batches based comprehensively whatever you do; the rest of the case will be probably a
on this interview follow up on your current performance. Try to understand the
experience? interviewer’s intent during the interview.
 24

Name Prateek Singhal

Name of Interviewer
Rajat Dhawan, Partner
and Designation

Round
Round 2, 2nd Interview
(First/Second/Third)

•Asked about my other interview experiences oI could bring out a few

good points about myself and few things I enjoyed; in general convey that
Personal Interview I enjoyed the process. •One important thing I observed about McKinsey
Questions (With that day. •Why my academics at school were not as good as that at IIT.
Indicative Answers •Why I wanted to do management consulting despite having done good
if you choose to at academics. oI explained how I had developed an interest other than
share them) technical, and what I was doing to pursue it. oI could discuss my plans
with him and steer the interview, while at the same time emphasizing that
I believed I was suited for consulting and technically good, the same time.

Narration of the case

interview (please be
No Case!!
as descriptive as
possible)

•I could clearly spell out my plans and my thoughts on my career and

What do you think
involve the interviewer in it. •I could justify and give reasons for all my
went right for you in
performances in my career. •I could prove that I was serious about
this interview?
consulting, and not just experimenting.

What do you think

went wrong in this • I was confused and a bit uncomfortable.
interview?

Any tips for the Don’t be in a haste to solve the case. Rather try to do correctly and
future batches based comprehensively whatever you do; the rest of the case will be probably a
on this interview follow up on your current performance. Try to understand the
experience? interviewer’s intent during the interview.
 25

Name Prateek Singhal

Name of Interviewer
Shailesh Kekre, Partner and Jatin Pant, Engagement Manager
and Designation

Round
Round 3, 1st Interview (Telephonic Interview)
(First/Second/Third)

Personal Interview
Questions (With Whole of the interview was focused around – Why did I want to do
Indicative Answers consulting, why was I so sure about it, why don’t I want to continue
if you choose to technically/academically.
share them)

Narration of the case

interview (please be
No Case
as descriptive as
possible)

What do you think •I could clearly spell out my plans and my thoughts on my career and
went right for you in involve the interviewer in it. •I could prove that I was serious about
this interview? joining McKinsey and doing consulting.

What do you think

• Stuck a couple of times trying to explain and justify that I love my field,
went wrong in this
as well as confident and enthusiastic about consulting.
interview?

Any tips for the

future batches based Try to be more interactive in a telephonic interview by using appropriate
on this interview phrases and pauses.
experience?
 26

Name V Bhanu Chandra

Name of Interviewer
Jatin Pant, Engagement Manager (EM)
and Designation

Round
Round 1, 1st Interview
(First/Second/Third)

The interview started with “Tell me about you” and then continued along
Personal Interview
the various points that I had mentioned in the above question. In answer
Questions (With
to the above question I had mentioned what I had done in the last few
Indicative Answers
years. What all I had learned not only being in the positions of
if you choose to
responsibility but also as an individual how I have bettered than what I
share them)
was before.

The case that I was given was to estimate the size of the cigarette market
in India. At the outset I had asked for clarification as to whether by size
they meant the number of cigarettes sold or the overall cost of the
Narration of the case cigarettes. At this point I was told that they needed the cost of the
interview (please be cigarettes sold. I had started by saying that this can be obtained by getting
as descriptive as the details from the companies which sell most of the cigarettes, but also
possible) mentioned that another way would be to look at the demand of the
cigarettes. At this point the interviewer said that he wants me to calculate
from the demand side. At this I started breaking down the society into
classes and then based on age, sex calculated the size of the market.

What do you think The informal nature of the interview and the way I could break up the
went right for you in case into first classes and then also coming up with reasonably good
this interview? estimates of the numbers involved.

I had started on a bad note in the case when I said a billion is 100 million.
What do you think
At this point I got a little nervous and beads of sweat started appearing on
went wrong in this
the forehead. But then the interviewer was kind enough not to follow it
interview?
up. He let things cool down.

Do the cases well and be natural when the questions in personal interview
Any tips for the
come up. Chalk out a plan for what you would be the content of the
future batches based
answer which you would give but avoid by‐hearting the exact answer.
on this interview
You might just fumble. But, this is my personal opinion; others need to
experience?
assess it independently.
 27

Name V Bhanu Chandra

Name of Interviewer
Rajat Dhawan, Partner
and Designation

Round
Round 1, 2nd Interview
(First/Second/Third)

The interview started on a very informal note with the interviewer asking
me how was the stay. I just took him through what we did the whole
Personal Interview night and the people we met, also the issues we discussed. After this there
Questions (With was some silence for sometime. The interviewer was not asking any
Indicative Answers questions and I had answered the previous question to its completion.
if you choose to Silence was broken down by the interviewer by starting with the same
share them) kind of interview as the first one. The only thing that differed was that
this time around, I had tried to cover the parts of the resume which I
could not touch upon during the first interview.

Estimate the market of the new 1 lac car TATA is going to launch in a
short period of time. I started with a classification of the population into
Narration of the case
classes based on economic status and then went on to solve the case. This
interview (please be
interview was special since the interviewer kept the pressure going saying
as descriptive as
that time is running out for me. He struck to 30 min slot that was
possible)
scheduled. I was expected to give a final number for the given estimation
case.

The way the interview started and also some good estimates from my side
What do you think
made the interview really good. The body language was paid a lot of
went right for you in
attention to. Stands on certain issues were also appreciated and finally
this interview?
the way in which the interview started and my initial responses did good.

What do you think

went wrong in this This could be overkill but in my opinion nothing went wrong.
interview?

Do not cave in for stress interviews. Be cheerful, energetic and be sure of

Any tips for the what you are saying. When the interviewer explicitly asks you to come to
future batches based a number while estimating, not just the process, be careful with the
on this interview numbers at each stage of the breakup so that you do not end up spending
experience? more than the allotted time just trying to figure out what you had just
estimated.
 28

Name V Bhanu Chandra

Name of Interviewer
Prashant, Associate Partner
and Designation

Round
Round 2, 1st Interview
(First/Second/Third)

This interview also started with “Tell me about you” style question and
Personal Interview then went very similar to what the previous two interviews went. But, the
Questions (With only new and I guess important personal question that was asked was
Indicative Answers “What if not McKinsey”. I had simply mentioned another company,
if you choose to joining which I can accomplish my long term goals. I stressed more on the
share them) long term career goals I want to achieve; starting with McKinsey was one
of the good ways of starting the same.

In the career path I had mentioned the idea of a startup. The interviewer
Narration of the case
asked me to come up with a product and then estimate the market size for
interview (please be
the same. Later I was to ask him for investment in the said startup in a
as descriptive as
stipulated time of 2 minutes. I had to make a small presentation to him of
possible)
the case.

What do you think Showing them the career path that I want to take by joining their
went right for you in company and also sticking to the same even in the case in which they do
this interview? not take me might have worked for me.

What do you think I did not present my case well. I was more involved in giving the numbers
went wrong in this to the investor rather than just the idea of the product and a mention of
interview? the size of the market.

Any tips for the

future batches based Be sure you have thought of a career path and also stick to it in the
on this interview eventuality of the current company turning you down.
experience?
 29

Name V Bhanu Chandra

Name of Interviewer
Tilman Ehrbeck, Partner
and Designation

Round
Round 2, 2nd Interview
(First/Second/Third)

Personal Interview
Questions (With This was a very short interview and the only personal question asked in
Indicative Answers this case was to mention a situation where I had worked in a team of
if you choose to peers. What is needed to make such a team successful?
share them)

Narration of the case

This was more of a strategy case in which a TV dealer, bank and the
interview (please be
customer are involved. I was asked to predict who gains what and who
as descriptive as
has to pay whom and why.
possible)

What do you think

The fact that I started by saying “Let me start with the customer since I
went right for you in
can identify myself with him more easily” worked well. Reason: see tips.
this interview?

What do you think I started mentioning the work that we did in a team of peers rather than
went wrong in this concentrating on the nature of the team itself. The interviewer had to
interview? bring me back to the topic a couple of times.

Any tips for the

I am of the opinion that the interviewer is looking for how well one
future batches based
empathizes with the situation. So my first statement should have been
on this interview
spot on.
experience?
 30

Name V Bhanu Chandra

Name of Interviewer
Shailesh Kekre, Partner and Jatin Pant, Engagement Manager
and Designation

Round
Round 3, 1st Interview (Telephonic Interview)
(First/Second/Third)

Personal Interview
Questions (With What if not McKinsey?
Indicative Answers Why consulting?
if you choose to Why startup?
share them)

Narration of the case

interview (please be
No case study this time.
as descriptive as
possible)

What do you think

went right for you in Again my stand on the career path that I have, worked well for me.
this interview?

What do you think

Being telephonic in nature the interview was less interactive and I did not
went wrong in this
have a chance to gauge the reaction of the interviewers.
interview?

Any tips for the

future batches based Telephonic interviews are weird. Practice for yourself thinking you are
on this interview going to talk to a wall.
experience?