{"id":148,"date":"2026-10-26T12:45:32","date_gmt":"2026-10-26T12:45:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/43.199.144.95\/?page_id=148"},"modified":"2026-11-02T15:06:40","modified_gmt":"2026-11-02T15:06:40","slug":"case-interview","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/offplication.duckdns.org\/resources\/case-interview\/","title":{"rendered":"Case interview basics for consulting graduates"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-pm-slice=\"1 1 []\"><strong>A caf\u00e9 is attracting more customers, but its profits are falling. What would you investigate first?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This is the kind of business problem you might encounter in a consulting case interview. Rather than testing how many business frameworks you can memorise, case interviews often explore how you structure an unfamiliar problem, analyse information and communicate a recommendation.<\/p>\n<p>For graduates applying to consulting and strategy roles in Hong Kong, practising a clear problem-solving process can make challenging questions easier to approach. Below is a practical introduction to consulting case interviews, including a worked example with simple calculations.<\/p>\n<h2>What Is a Consulting Case Interview?<\/h2>\n<p>A consulting case interview is an exercise where you analyse a business problem and explain your reasoning to an interviewer.<\/p>\n<p>Common case topics include profitability, market entry, pricing, business growth and operational efficiency. The format and level of difficulty vary by employer.<\/p>\n<p>You may be asked to interpret data, perform calculations, identify the causes of a problem or recommend a business decision.<\/p>\n<p>A strong response demonstrates structured thinking, sensible assumptions and clear communication rather than relying on a memorised answer.<\/p>\n<h2>Step 1: Understand the Business Objective<\/h2>\n<p>Before building a framework, clarify what the client wants to achieve.<\/p>\n<p>For example, if a company says its profits are falling, you could ask:<\/p>\n<ul data-spread=\"false\">\n<li>Are we investigating profit, profit margin or revenue?<\/li>\n<li>When did the decline begin?<\/li>\n<li>Does the problem affect all products or only some?<\/li>\n<li>Are there geographical, budget or time constraints?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Restate the objective in your own words so the interviewer can follow your approach.<\/p>\n<h2>Step 2: Build a Useful Case Interview Structure<\/h2>\n<p>Break the business problem into smaller questions that you can investigate.<\/p>\n<p>For a profitability case, a useful starting point is:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Profit = Revenue \u2212 Costs<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Revenue can be examined through customer volume and average spending. Costs can be separated into fixed and variable expenses.<\/p>\n<p>This structure gives you a logical starting point, but you should adapt it to the information provided. Not every case requires the same framework.<\/p>\n<h2>Step 3: Work Through a Consulting Case Example<\/h2>\n<p>Imagine a fictional caf\u00e9 in Hong Kong reports the following monthly figures:<\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<th><\/th>\n<th>Previous month<\/th>\n<th>Current month<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Revenue<\/td>\n<td>HK$120,000<\/td>\n<td>HK$110,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Costs<\/td>\n<td>HK$100,000<\/td>\n<td>HK$105,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Profit<\/td>\n<td>HK$20,000<\/td>\n<td>HK$5,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><strong>Interview question:<\/strong> Why has the caf\u00e9&#8217;s monthly profit fallen, and what should the owner investigate?<\/p>\n<p>Start by calculating the change in profit.<\/p>\n<p>Previous profit = HK$120,000 \u2212 HK$100,000 = HK$20,000.<\/p>\n<p>Current profit = HK$110,000 \u2212 HK$105,000 = HK$5,000.<\/p>\n<p>Monthly profit has therefore decreased by HK$15,000, or 75%.<\/p>\n<p>The decline comes from two directions: revenue has fallen by HK$10,000, while costs have increased by HK$5,000.<\/p>\n<p>The next step is to understand why. Has the caf\u00e9 served fewer customers? Has average spending declined? Have ingredient prices or staffing expenses increased?<\/p>\n<p>These figures identify the problem but do not yet establish its underlying causes.<\/p>\n<p><em>All figures are fictional and intended for interview practice only.<\/em><\/p>\n<h2>Step 4: Make a Recommendation Based on Evidence<\/h2>\n<p>A good recommendation directly addresses the business objective.<\/p>\n<p>For the caf\u00e9 example, you might say:<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Profit has fallen by 75%, driven by both lower revenue and higher costs. I would first investigate changes in customer volume, average transaction value and major expense categories. Once the causes are confirmed, I would prioritise actions with the greatest likely impact on profitability.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>This recommendation identifies the main finding, explains the next investigation and avoids claiming that an untested solution will work.<\/p>\n<h2>Common Consulting Case Interview Mistakes<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Using a framework without adapting it:<\/strong> A structure should help you investigate the client&#8217;s actual problem, not become a script.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Rushing into calculations:<\/strong> First establish what the figures represent, then check your units and assumptions.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Giving unsupported recommendations:<\/strong> Separate what the available evidence shows from what still needs investigation.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Forgetting to communicate:<\/strong> Explain important reasoning steps so the interviewer understands how you reached your conclusion.<\/p>\n<h2>How to Practise Case Interviews Effectively<\/h2>\n<p>Choose a straightforward business problem and practise breaking it into logical components. Work through calculations without relying immediately on a calculator, then explain your findings aloud.<\/p>\n<p>With a practice partner, try summarising your recommendation in under one minute. Ask whether your conclusion is clear and supported by the evidence.<\/p>\n<p>As you improve, introduce more complex data, time limits and unexpected follow-up questions.<\/p>\n<section id=\"section-3\">\n<h2>Make a recommendation<\/h2>\n<p>Give a clear answer supported by your strongest findings. Acknowledge the main risk and the next piece of evidence you would collect. Practise explaining this in under a minute with a partner.<\/p>\n<p><label class=\"article-check\"><input type=\"checkbox\" data-check=\"case-interview-0\">Clear headings and contact details<\/label><label class=\"article-check\"><input type=\"checkbox\" data-check=\"case-interview-1\">Examples relevant to the target role<\/label><label class=\"article-check\"><input type=\"checkbox\" data-check=\"case-interview-2\">Accurate dates and working links<\/label><label class=\"article-check\"><input type=\"checkbox\" data-check=\"case-interview-3\">No unsupported claims<\/label><\/p>\n<\/section>\n<section id=\"downloads\">\n<h2>Free templates<\/h2>\n<p>Use these editable examples as a starting point. Replace all placeholder text and check the employer\u2019s instructions.<\/p>\n<div class=\"download-list\"><a class=\"btn secondary-btn\" href=\"\/assets\/downloads\/graduate-cv.docx\">One-page CV \u00b7 DOCX \u2193<\/a><a class=\"btn secondary-btn\" href=\"\/assets\/downloads\/graduate-cv.pdf\">Two-column CV \u00b7 PDF \u2193<\/a><a class=\"btn secondary-btn\" href=\"\/assets\/downloads\/star-worksheet.pdf\">STAR worksheet \u00b7 PDF \u2193<\/a><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<section class=\"article-next\">\n<h2>Put this into practice<\/h2>\n<p>Explore a real employer\u2019s requirements, then bring your draft to a coaching conversation.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"btn primary-btn\" href=\"\/jobs\/\">Explore graduate pathways \u2192<\/a><a class=\"text-link\" href=\"\/coaches\/\">Find a coach \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A caf\u00e9 is attracting more customers, but its profits are falling. What would you investigate first? This is the kind of business problem you might encounter in a consulting case interview. Rather than testing how many business frameworks you can memorise, case interviews often explore how you structure an unfamiliar problem, analyse information and communicate [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":72,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_jetpack_hide_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_featured_image_duplicate_dismissed":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-148","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/offplication.duckdns.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/148","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/offplication.duckdns.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/offplication.duckdns.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offplication.duckdns.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offplication.duckdns.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=148"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/offplication.duckdns.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/148\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":864,"href":"https:\/\/offplication.duckdns.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/148\/revisions\/864"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/offplication.duckdns.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/72"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/offplication.duckdns.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=148"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}