埃森哲总部-Case_Workbook案例面试方法∶Accenture_Strategy_Case_Workbook.ppt

2005AccentureAllRightsReserved CaseWorkbook 2 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved 5 14 26 29 16 3 TableofContents WhatisaCaseInterview TheCaseInterviewProcess Soft EvaluativeCriteriaTypesofCaseInterviewsSampleFrameworksandApplicationsPracticeCases 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved WhatisaCaseInterview 4 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved WhatisaCaseInterview Acaseinterviewisatypeofjobinterview usedmostfrequentlybystrategyconsultingfirms thatallowsanapplicanttodemonstratehis herabilitytosolveagivenbusinessproblem Duringacaseinterview aninterviewerpresentsasituationorcaseandthenaskstheapplicanttoexploretheunderlyingcausesoftheproblemandsuggestrecommendationstoremedytheproblem Thecasesgiventendtoberealbusinesssituations oftendrawnfromtheinterviewer sactualprojectexperience Caseinterviewstypicallylastfromthirtytoforty fiveminutesandanapplicantcanexpecttohaveseveralintheinterviewprocessatanygivenfirm Yoursuccessinacaseinterviewwillnotdependonidentifyingthe correct answer butratheronhowclearlyyoudefinetheproblem howlogicallyyoustructureyouranalysis andhowwellyoucommunicateyourthoughtstotheinterviewer Strategicconsultingfirmsarelookingforintelligentpeoplewhocanapproachbusinesssituationsinananalyticalfashion thinkunderpressureandmaintainaprofessionalpresencewithclients Acaseinterviewprovidesexcellentinsightintohowwellyouwouldperforminastrategyconsultingsituation Thepurposeofthisguideistofamiliarizeyouwiththeprocessofacaseinterview introduceyoutosomepotentialmethodologies andprovideyouwithsamplecasestopractice Learningaboutcaseinterviewsisalsoahelpfulmeanstodetermineifstrategicconsultingisrightforyou asthesecasesreflectthetypesofbusinesssituationsandstructuredthinkingstrategyconsultantsencounteronadailybasis 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved TheCaseInterviewProcess 6 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved CommonMisconceptionsaboutCaseInterviews Therearemanymisconceptionsaboutthecaseinterviewandwhattheinterviewerislookingfor MythThereisonerightanswerorapproachtothecaseTheinterviewerexpectsyoutogettherightanswerIndustryknowledgeisrequiredtodowellonthecase FactUsuallythereareseveralcredibleapproachesandsolutionsTheinterviewerexpectsathoughtful structuredresponseTheinterviewerexpectsyoutobeeffectivewiththeknowledgeyouhaveandmakehypothesesbasedonsoundcommonsense 7 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved CaseInterviewSuccessFactors CaseinterviewsuccessdependsonprovidingathoughtfulandstructuredresponsetothecaseproblemUnderstandthecasesituationandwhatisbeingaskedAnalyzethecaseissuesandpotentialsolutionsinastructuredmannerMakecertainyourthoughtprocessesaretransparenttotheinterviewerBecreative yetpractical useyourbusinessjudgmentandgivespecificsListenforsuggestionsandhintsfromtheinterviewerEngagetheinterviewer itisokaytoaskfordirectionandclarificationManagetimeeffectively maintainyourmomentum don tgetboggeddownononepoint 8 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved TheCaseInterviewProcess StructuredProblemSolving Theprocessofacaseinterviewparallelsthatofaconsultingengagement First youwillbegivenadescriptionofacaseproblembytheinterviewer Thisdescriptionmaybeasshortasonesentenceoraslongasapageofdetailedinformation Oncegiventhecasedescription youwillneedtounderstandtheproblembyaskingwell thoughtoutquestionsoftheinterviewer Theanswerstothesequestionsshouldallowyoutodevelopanapproach framework thatyoucanusetoanalyzethesituation Afteryoulayouttheframeworkfortheinterviewer youshoulddiscusstheanalysesyouwouldperformtodeterminepotentialsolutionstothebusinessproblem Theinterviewermayaskyoutoperformsimpleanalysestotestyourhypotheses Finally youshouldsummarizeyourmethodologywithanyrecommendationsyoumayhave ListentoCase ClarifyProblem DecomposeProblem TestHypothesis SummarizeFindings StateHypotheses 9 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved ClarifytheProblemGoal ArticulateKeyCaseProblemActivities AskclarifyingquestionsProbeforadditionalinformationAssesscasefactsPausetostructureyourthinkingSummarizeissuesfordiscussion ClarifytheProblem Inconsulting understandingtheclientsituationisfundamentaltodevelopingsolutionstoimportantproblemsaswellasrecommendationsforhowabusinesscouldberunmoreeffectively Acaseinterviewmodelsthisbypresentingyouwithinformation askingyoutomakesenseofit anddeveloppotentialsolutions Clarifyingthenatureofthebusinessissue e g decliningprofitability lossofmarketshare ornewcompetitivethreats isanimportantstep Basedonyourquestions theinterviewerwilloftenprovideyouwithmoredetailsaboutthecase Bystructuringyourquestions youwillcuetheinterviewertohowyouplantoworkthroughtheproblem Itisimportanttobeflexibleinyourapproachandopentomultiplesolutions Ifthequestionsyouareaskingdonotyieldusefulanswers tryswitchingtoanalternateapproach Remember youarebeingpartiallyevaluatedonyourabilitytoaskinsightfulquestions ListentoCase ClarifyProblem DecomposeProblem TestHypothesis SummarizeFindings StateHypotheses 10 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved Onceyouhavestatedandclarifiedtheproblem youneedtodecomposeitinanexhaustive logicalmanner Byusinganissuetree youcanbreaktheproblemintosmallerpiecesandillustratelogicalrelationshipsamongthecomponentparts Basicissuetreesarestructuredasfollows Todevelopagoodissuetree youshouldensurethatthesub componentsarelinkedinalogicalmanner thatitprioritizestheissues andthatitrevealspossiblesolutions Also eachbranchofthetreemustnotoverlapwithanother mutuallyexclusive andthebranchesshouldthoroughlyrepresentcontributingelements collectivelyexhaustive DecomposeProblemGoal IdentifyRootCausesofProblemActivities Breaktheproblemintoitscomponentpartsinastructuredmanner ListentoCase ClarifyProblem DecomposeProblem TestHypothesis SummarizeFindings DecomposeProblem StateHypotheses 11 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved StateHypothesesGoal StateHypotheses PotentialSolutionsActivities ReviewproblemdecompositionIdentifypotentialhypotheses solutionsStateyourassumptionsChooseappropriateframeworktotesthypotheses see SampleFrameworksandApplications section forexample Porter sFiveForces4P sofMarketingProfitabilityAnalysisThree C s Usesketches Graphicscanbeapowerfultool ListentoCase ClarifyProblem DecomposeProblem StateHypotheses TestHypothesis SummarizeFindings StateHypotheses Onceyouareconfidentyouunderstandtheproblem youshouldlistoutpotentialhypothesesthatmayresolvethecoreproblem Youwillthenneedtochooseaframework oranalysistool tostructureyourhypotheses see SampleFrameworksandApplications section butdonotfeelconstrainedbythesesincemanycaseswillnotfitneatlyintooneofthoseframeworks Theframeworkisakeytostructuredthinking itallowsyoutoapproachaprobleminaholisticmanner whiledirectingyouranalysistoeachofthecomponentswithintheframework 12 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved Onceaframeworkisselected youmustanalyzeeachcomponentoftheframeworkinalogicalmanner Discusstheanalysesyouwouldperformtodetermineifyourinitialhypothesesaretrue Youmayhavetoaskadditionalquestionsoftheinterviewertogettheinformationneededtodeveloptheseanalyses Oftentimes youmaybeaskedtoperformananalysiswithsimpledatasuppliedbytheinterviewer Ifyoufindthatyouranalysesarenotconfirmingyourinitialhypotheses developnewones Ifyouranalysesdonotappeartobeenlightening theinterviewermaydirectyoutowardsanotherpath Takeadvantageofthesehintsiftheyareoffered TestHypotheses TestHypothesesGoal ApplyframeworktoTestHypothesesActivities DescribeanalysestobeappliedBreakproblemintoitscomponentpartsinastructuredmannerApplyframeworkanddiscussfindings implicationstosolutiondefinitionProbeforconcurrence additionalinformationPresenthypothesesforfuturetesting discussion ListentoCase ClarifyProblem DecomposeProblem StateHypotheses TestHypothesis SummarizeFindings 13 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved SummarizeFindingsGoal SummarizeFindings ImplicationsActivities SuccinctlyremindinterviewerofissuescoveredPresentsolutionsPresentalternativescenarios ListentoCase ClarifyProblem DecomposeProblem StateHypotheses TestHypothesis SummarizeFindings SummarizeFindings Finally summarizetheframeworkandanalysesyouutilizedinthecase Suggestrecommendationsfortheclientandpotentialnextstepstheclientshouldtake Theinterviewermaytellyouwhathappenedwiththerealprojectsituationonwhichthecasewasbased However don tworryifyourmethodologyoranswerdidnotmatchtherealprojectsituationbecauseyouarebeingevaluatedonyourthoughtprocessesandnotagainstsomepredeterminedanswer 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved Soft EvaluativeCriteria 15 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved Soft EvaluativeCriteria Inadditiontoyourabilitytoaskprobingquestions createframeworks anddevelopanalysesinthecase youwillalsobeevaluatedonmanyintangiblequalities Whileinterviewerslookatthesecriteriainnon caseinterviewsaswell youwillneedtobeextra consciousoftheminacaseinterview sinceoftentimesyourconcentrationwillbeonsolvingthecase PoiseAreyouconfidentinyouranswer Howdoyouhandleyourselfwhenyoumakeamistake Doyouperformwellunderpressure CommunicationAreyouarticulateincommunicatingyourthoughtprocessesandconclusionswithothers Tobeasuccessfulconsultant youmustbeabletoclearlycommunicateyourrecommendationsandarticulatehowyouwereabletoarriveatyourconclusionsFlexibilityAssituationschangeandnewinformationbecomesavailable areyouabletoadaptyourthinkingtonewdataoranemergingenvironment Friendliness AttitudeWillclientsandcoworkersenjoyspendinglonghourswithyou OtherIntangiblesDoyoudisplayenergyanddrive Doyoushowinitiative Doyoumanagetimeeffectively Doyoudemonstratedecisiveness Doyouconveyagenuineinterestinthecareerandthefirm 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved TypesofCaseInterviews 17 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved The GreatUnknown and BackoftheEnvelope casesarethemostcommontypesofcases However regardlessofthetype besureyouhaveasolidunderstandingofthefactsandwhatisbeingaskedofyoubeforeyoubeginto crack thecase TheGreatUnknown TheParadeofFacts TheBackoftheEnvelope ProvidesverylittleinformationTestscandidate sabilitytoprobeforadditionaldetailsRequiresstructuringframeworkbasedonnewfacts Providesasignificantamountofdetail someunnecessaryTestscandidate sabilitytodistillkeyissuesRequiresdepthofanalysisbasedonrelevantfacts Provideslittleinformation butasksakeyquestionTestsacandidate sanalyticabilitiesRequireslogicalthoughtprocessandeasewithnumbers TypesofCaseInterviews Therearethreegeneraltypesofcases 18 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved TheGreatUnknown Cases Oneofthemostcommontypesofcaseinterviewsposesthesituationinoneortwosentences leavingyouwithlittleinformationorstructureonwhichtobuild Thesecasesareusedoftenbecausetheytestyourabilitytodiscovernecessaryfactsbyposingtherightquestionsandbeingabletodevelopanalyticalframeworkstosolvetheproblem PotentialMethodology CaseDescription Listencarefullyanddeterminethecentralbusinessproblemthatisbeingasked ProblemUnderstanding Pauseforamomentandconsiderthecentralproblem Whatadditionalfactsdoyouneedtofullyclarifythisproblem Whatarethecrucialpiecesofinformationthatwillallowyoutodevelopaframeworkaroundthisproblem Writethosequestionsoutandasktheinterviewer Bepreparedtogoseverallayersdeeperintotheissueastheinterviewer sanswersmayleadyoutoadditionalquestions 19 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved TheGreatUnknown Cases Cont d PotentialMethodology Cont ProblemDecomposition Identifyandprioritizerootcausesoftheproblembybreakingtheproblemdownintoitscomponentparts Anissuetreeisavaluabletooltoensurethatdecompositionisexhaustiveandthatthesub componentsarelinkedtogetherinalogicalmanner HypothesisandFrame workDevelopment Describetotheinterviewerwhatsomeofthepotentialissues hypothesescouldbe Thenchooseaframeworkthatwillstructureyourthinkingandguideyouthroughtestingtheissues hypotheses HypothesisTesting Usingtheframeworkselected exploretheissues hypothesesinitiallylaidout Describethefactorsineachsectionoftheframeworkthatarerelevanttothecentralproblem Alsolistoutanalysestotestthehypothesesineachsectionoftheframework Byaskingadditionalquestions youmaystillyieldmoreinformationaboutthecasefromtheinterviewer CaseSummary Reviewyourinitialissues hypothesesinlightofyourstructuredanalysesandsuggestpossiblerecommendationsfortheclient 20 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved TheGreatUnknown CaseExample InterviewExample Theclient aleadingmanufacturerofprefabricatedkitchenfurnishings hasbeensteadilylosingmarketshareoverthelasttwoyears Theseniorexecutiveteamwouldlikeyoutohelpthemunderstandwhyandwhattheycandotoimprovetheirmarketstanding PotentialMethodology ProblemUnderstanding Hasthesizeofthemarketchangedinthelasttwoyears Hasthecompetitivestructureoftheindustrychanged MergersandAcquisitions NewEntrants Arethereanynewproductsornewtechnologiesthataregainingmarketshare Howarewecurrentlypositioned lowcost highquality etc Whatisourcompetitiveadvantage StructureAnalysis Determinetheframeworkthatisbestsuitedforthiscase seesampleframeworks page22 Basedoninformationreceivedfromaskingquestions explorethedifferentpossibilitiesofwhythecompanymaybelosingmarketshare e g highcoststructurerelativetocompetition substituteproductsthreatenourmarket etc DevelopRecommendations Discusshowthecompanycouldreversethelossofmarketshare e g newmarketpositioning costreductionprograms verticalintegrationstrategy etc 21 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved TheParadeofFacts Cases Thesecasesarerelativelyrarebecauseoftheamountoftimenecessarytopresentthecasedescription butcanalsobeoneofthemorechallengingtypesofquestions Youwillbegivenmoreinformationthanyouneedinthecasedescription andoneofyourkeytasksisdeterminingwhichfactsarerelevanttotheclient sbusinessproblem Consultantsareoftenfacedwithadelugeofdetails andtheabilitytosortoutthecruxofaproblemisakeyskillforwhichfirmsarelooking Whilemostofourprocessstepsaresimilarto TheGreatUnknown howweunderstandthecentralissueandprobeforinsightdiffers PotentialMethodology ProblemUnderstanding Pauseforamomentandconsiderthecentralproblem Whichofthesefactsaretotallyirrelevant Eliminatethemfornow Whichfactsaredefinitelyrelatedtotheproblem Askquestionsaboutfactsthatappearrelevant Probeforadditionalfactsthattheinterviewermayhave 22 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved TheParadeofFacts CaseExample InterviewExample ClientisaleadingfoodcompanythatwantstodevelopafreshpreparedmealbusinessTrendamongconsumersistowardfresherfoodwithnoartificialpreservativesorcoloringConsumersarecurrentlypurchasing 5 0billionoffrozenmeals trendistowardmoreupscaleproductsAfreshmealplatecombiningaprotein vegetableandstarchisdelicatelyarrangedinasealedplasticdomepackageNitrogengasflushingisusedtoextendshelflifeProductiscurrentlyinlimitedconsumertestat 5 50to 8 50permealShelflifeofproductis14days productwillspoilin21dayspotentiallycausingfoodpoisoningClientwantstoknowiftheycanmakemoneyinthisbusinessClientwantstoknowifthemarketisbig howwilltheykeepcompetitionoutClientwantsaconsultanttoassistinbuildingbusinesscase 23 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved TheParadeofFacts CaseExample Cont d PotentialMethodology KeyProblem ProfitabilityofBusinessandSizeofMarketProblemUnderstanding Askaboutconsumertest Whatpricesareconsumersrespondingto Arethereanyitemsspoilingontheshelf Whatisthecompetitivestructureofthismarketcurrently Whatarethecomponentsofthecompany scoststructure StructureAnalysis Whatisthebreak evenpointforthefirm DetermineGrossMarginperUnitDeterminefixedcostsDividetofindbreak evenEstimatethesizeofthemarket acasewithinacase Determinethemarketsharetheywillneedtobreak even DevelopRecommendations Discussthecompetitivestructureofthemarket Canthefirmrealisticallyachievethebreak evenmarketshare 24 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved TheBackoftheEnvelope questionsareverydifferentfromothertypesofcasesinthattheyareprimarilynumericallydriven Youwillbeaskedtoestimatethenumberofsomeeverydayiteminsociety Theinterviewerisnotlookingforarandomguess butratherastructuredthoughtprocesstogettoanumericalanswer Thesetypesofquestionsnotonlytestyourcomfortlevelwithnumbers butalsoforceyoutocreateyourownframeworktodevelopanumericalanswer Thereareoftenseveraldifferentwaystoapproachtheseproblems andallofthemarecorrectaslongastheyareinternallyconsistentandholisticallystructuredtoarriveatalogicalanswer ProblemUnderstanding Ratherthanaskingprobingquestions takeamomenttothinkaboutthestepsyouwouldneedtotaketogettoananswer Whatassumptionswillyouhavetomakealongtheway FrameworkDevelopmentandNumericalAnalysis Walktheinterviewerstep by stepthroughyourframework calculatingthenumbersforhimasyougo Youwillneedtobeginwithsomeassumptionaboutthepopulation ofpeople objects etc andwillneedtomakeotherassumptionsatcertainpointsthroughoutthecase Don tbeafraidtomaketoomanyassumptions butbecertainthattheyareneededandthatyoucanexplainwhyyouaremakingthatassumption Often youwillhita deadend inyourthinking Ifyoufindyourselfinasituationwhereyoudon tknowhowtoproceed youshouldbackupseveralstepsinyouranalysis makesureyoucommunicatethistotheinterviewer andpursueanalternativepath TheBackoftheEnvelope Cases 25 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved TheBackoftheEnvelope CaseExample InterviewExample EstimatethetotalnumberofdrycleanerinPhiladelphiaPotentialMethodology AssumetherearetwomillionpeopleinPhiladelphiaEstimatethesizeofmarketbysegmentingthepopulationAssumethepopulationconsistsof25 adultmen 25 adultwomen and50 childrenAssumechildrenhavenodrycleaningandonly25 ofadultsusedrycleaningEstimatetheaveragenumberof units ofclothingeachmanandwomanbringsweeklytothecleaners Forthiscase assumethat3shirts blousesand1suitarebroughttothecleanerseachweekThusthetotalsizeofthemarket perweek isonemillionunitsofclothing 1millionpeoplex25 x4unitsperperson EstimatetheaveragenumberofunitsadrycleanercanhandleperweekAssumethattheaveragedrycleanerhastwoworkerswhotypicallyhandle20 30customers or80 120unitsofclothing perhourIftheaveragedrycleanerisopeneighthoursaday 5days week theytypicallyhandle3200 4800unitsperweek 80 120unitsx8hoursx5days DividethetotalmarketsizebytheaverageunitshandledperdrycleanertofindthetotalnumberofdrycleanersTherearebetween208and312drycleanersinPhiladelphia 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved SampleFrameworksandApplications 27 2005AccentureAllRightsReserved Profitability MarketExpansion CompetitiveAnalysis OpportunityAssessmentProduct e g newproductlaunch BusinessunitOverallmarketAssetvaluation maximization MarketingStrategy 3C sCustomerCompanyCompetition SWOTStrengthsWe