If you have been begged, bribed, or blackmailed into helping
your friend(s) prepare for case questions, here are some hints.
This is also a great sheet to review right before you go into an interview.
Your Prep
- Read the question and answer all the way through before giving the case.
- Be aware that there are multiple “right” answers.
- It’s all right to give them help if they lose their way.
- Don’t cop a know-it-all attitude.
Things to watch for at the beginning
- Are they writing down the case information?
- Is there a long silence between the end of the question and the beginning of their answer?
- Are they summarizing the question?
- Are they asking about the client’s objective(s)?
- Are they asking clarifying questions about the company, the industry, the competition, and the product?
- Are they laying out a logical structure to their answer?
Things to watch and listen for during the course of the question
- Are they enthusiastic and do they project a positive attitude?
- Listen for the logic of their answer. Is it making good business sense?
- Is their answer well-organized?
- Are they stating their assumptions clearly?
- Are they being creative?
- Are they engaging, bringing you into the question and turning the case into a conversation?
- Are they asking probing questions?
- Are they quantifying their answer?
- Are they asking for help or guidance?
Review list
- Was their answer well-organized? Did they manage their time well?
- Did they get bogged down in details?
- Did they seem to go off on a tangent?
- Did they ask probing questions?
- Did they use business terms and buzzwords correctly?
- Did they have trouble with math, multiplying, and percentage calculation?
- Did they try to get you to answer the question for them?
- Were they coachable? Did they pick up on your hints?
- Did they speak without thinking?
- Did they have a positive attitude?
- Did they summarize their answer?
Final Analysis
- Did they take your criticism well?
- Did they defend themselves without sounding defensive?
Aftermath
- Go out on the town!
