Interview Resources

Casing Machine

Register and practice casing with Casing Machine, an AI consulting case partner developed by Senior Advisor Ryan Gu with the help of Atlas Consulting Group.

What is consulting?

Consultants help organizations gain insight into some of their toughest problems by giving advice and solving business problems. We work with clients to structure solutions including improving organizational efficiency, increasing profitability, and determining marketing strategies. ACG works with clients ranging from large corporations to start-ups. See Recent Projects for examples of our past projects.

What is a case question and how do I approach it?

A case question is a business problem that you will analyze and solve. The interview will include a case. A typical case question is: "Why has Twisted Taco had decreasing profit the last 3 years?" We are looking for questions and responses that logically drill down to a reasonable answer, not necessarily the most accurate answer. The best responses from candidates have thoughtful questions, good business sense, structured solutions, and creative approaches. We do not expect candidates to have experience in running cases or to follow specific frameworks. If candidates want to gain exposure to case interviews, we recommend looking through example cases from consulting firms such as the Boston Consulting Group.

Case Interview Tips (Vault Career Guide to Consulting)

1. Before jumping into an answer, ask the interviewer a number of questions to gather vital information about the case. Your interviewer will answer you with pieces of information to help you formulate new questions and, ultimately, your case recommendations.

2. One interviewee cautions: “Consulting organizations are looking for people who will think carefully before answering; this is very important in the case interview. Don’t say the first thing that comes to your mind, even if you’re certain about it. If you’re trying to choose between appearing to be slow and appearing to be a cocky idiot, choose the former.”

3. After gathering all the information you think you need, start formulating your recommendations.

4. Voice your analysis – why and how you come to your questions and conclusions is also important.

5. Speak and reason aloud during your case interview. Your thought process is more important than your ultimate conclusions; your interviewer must hear your reasoning and the logical steps you are taking to reach your conclusions.

6. Be scrupulous in your note taking; it is not enough to just listen attentively. Having detailed notes will help you avoid making careless mistakes and keep your thoughts organized.