The 7 types of consulting case studies

The case study is a classic in strategy consulting interviews. If it is so popular with the various strategy consulting firms, it is because it is very useful in the context of their ultra-drastic selection for interviews. Indeed, the case study is the most faithful repetition of real situations in the daily life of a consultant, who collaborates with his manager (in this case the interviewer), on the problem of a given client. The purpose of this test is to check if you have the various qualities required for the job, namely analytical intelligence, human intelligence (relationship management, humility, curiosity, eloquence, common sense), the ability to drive the case and to elevate the subject or even the Business Sense (economic and financial culture). Moreover, the majority of the case studies you will be confronted with are directly inspired by real projects of the firm. Continue reading this article to find out more about 7 types of case studies that fall under maintenance.

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7 types of cases for different customer issues
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We don't think you have to learn frameworks by heart and do a magic number of training cases to succeed in your interviews. The combination of the significant increase in preparation resources available to candidates and the evolution of the recruitment processes of the largest firms favors less “academic” methodologies such as ours. While you will necessarily have to go through some preparation, keep in mind that there is no single right answer for a given case. As long as you know how to argue your point factually and that it is clear, logical and intelligible, you will have no worries. We count at least 7 types of case studies to master to brilliantly succeed in your interviews.

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1) Market-sizings (market studies)
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These types of are often mandatory. They can be the main interview case, most often during the initial recruitment rounds. They can also be integrated as an integral part of one of the following 8 types of cases. For example, for a global pharmaceutical company that wants to double its turnover in 5 years, you may well be asked to calculate the size of the market in value when you try to determine it as part of the first part of your analysis. Here, more than the numerical answer itself, it is your logical mind and your ability to pose the right hypotheses, to break down your thinking to propose an equation and to vocalize your approach that will be observed. Depending on the market or the value to be estimated, you will have to choose the Proxy adequate to obtain a result. The choice of this proxy will depend on the nature of what you need to estimate (individual consumption property or consumption per household, financial concept such as turnover, etc.)

Discover our complete market-sizing example to get an idea of what to expect.

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2) Profitability cases
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Here, the objective will very often be twofold: first - and if it is not already clearly indicated by your interviewer - you will have to identify the causes of the decline in your customer's profitability. To do this, you will have to put on your investigator hat and Problem solver to study the various possible causes, whether external to the company or internal. Once identified, you can propose appropriate levers to raise the bar in accordance with the Deadline specific to the customer.

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3) Growth cases
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This type of case describes a company that wants to increase its turnover within a specified period or not (it is up to you to specify it if it is not clearly stated). Your objective - once quantified if possible - will have to be translated into a prioritized and relevant action plan. Generally, you will first have to study the possibilities of growth by the simple effect of the market (projection of market growth, evolution of the customer's market shares) before studying the levers of growth at a constant scope and on new perimeters (geographies, products, external growth, etc.)

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4) Pricing case studies
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Pricing case studies invite you to propose a logical approach to set the best possible price for a product that has not yet been launched on the market, whether it is an existing product or a completely innovative product. For example, some candidates had to price a cloned dinosaur during an interview (yes...). Here, you will have to take into account the characteristics of the product itself, of the company that launches it as well as the potential reactions of its environment, in order to propose the best approach.

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5) Market-entry cases (Go/Nogo)
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Entering a new market can correspond to the launch of an existing activity in a new geography or a completely innovative activity or product. Again, it is up to you to take into account all the factors impacting the customer's decision, which often meets a growth and/or profitability objective within a given time (to be clarified), in order to propose the most convincing approach. These types of cases are quite complete and among those preferred by StratMachina.

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6) Competition response cases
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This type of exciting case offers you the opportunity to help a company adopt the best strategic reaction to a change in its competitive environment (entry of one or more new players, new substitute product (s), price wars, etc.). This type of case is quite satisfying intellectually in the sense that you are really doing strategy, applied to very recurring situations in real life. Knowing how to understand them methodically will be a source of baggage for the rest of your career, regardless of the path you take.

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7) Private Equity and M&A cases
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M&A typical cases (Mergers & Acquisitions, for mergers and acquisitions) and Private Equity (Private Capital) are exciting cases where you will find yourself immersed in the shoes of a project consultant for a large fund or a large bank. Here, it will be imperative to start from the client's objective (for example to reach 25% IRR (internal rate of return) on his investment) and to combine a quantitative analysis with a qualitative analysis (competition, synergies, etc.) in order to decide on an investment opportunity submitted by your client. Most often, you will also have to propose one or more targets to acquire and detail the outlines of this acquisition. For those of you who would be impressed by these notions of finance, know that the firms have your background in mind at the time of your interview. They will never require advanced financial knowledge from you. In addition, MBB interviewers are most often very kind and you will not lose any “point” in asking your interviewer for explanations by admitting that you are less familiar with this or that field. In fact, it is often interpreted as a positive sign of honesty and humility. So don't let yourself be impressed.

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Conclusion
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Having the logic behind the case study exercise in mind and knowing the different types of case studies is a good first step. It is absolutely necessary to train in order to master them all. Note that these 7 types of case studies are the main ones. However, you may also be confronted with “operational” cases where it will be a question of improving the efficiency of the company on a given process (procurement, delivery, storage or other), in order to improve profitability. Do not ignore any type of case so that your success does not depend on chance. Our case study training method, based on more than 6 years of experience and the support of more than 750 candidates, will allow you to see much more clearly and to succeed 99% of your interviews.

Book a 1-hour coaching with an MBB consultant or accelerate your results by subscribing to one of our training packs.