Hello, I have been invited for Mckinsey Lagos's First round interview in about 4days time.
Any information / tips would be helpful.
Thank you

new here. pls, wen did u do ur problem solving test? cos i also did it, waiting for them to call for the first round of interview. tnx

Dat was abt 3-4 months ago. I hear their recruiting process is quite slow.

oh ok. had my own test in june. anyways, hw did the interview go? wat was it like? wldnt mind if u give my an update dat cud help mi for mine. tnx

pls help! I was asked to submit my university transcript, but i don't i will be able to get it before the deadline that was given. Pls friends, what do u suggest i do? Its urgent. Thanks.

oneblacboi:

Hello, I have been invited for Mckinsey Lagos's First round interview in about 4days time.
Any information / tips would be helpful.
Thank you

From what I know, via a couple of friends that have done the interview before, you'd be asked caracter questions and questions based on your test assessment performance. Question like: Have you ever lead a team before, what motivates you, what were your thought process when you were answering question "one"? how did you derive the answer to question 3? e.t.c. So basically, they wanna assess how you think and all. I guess your test was a case study assessment.
All the best!

Oh well I did the interview on the 27th of August and it was quite tasking. Would share with you the structure and a transcript of my interview soon. Quite busy now.

Can anyone pls tell how soon after you submitted ur additional info u were invited for the PST? Also, what was the test format like?

Pls how much is the salary of a foreign trained fresh graduate in Mckinsey

emyluv:

Pls how much is the salary of a foreign trained fresh graduate in Mckinsey

hahaha. It depends on where you are coming from. A University of Togo graduate is also a foreign trained, no? Foreign get levels, you know. So you may want to be explicit on that.

Meanwhile, they pay a certain amount (33k) if they employ you from the UK to go work in their Nigeria office. Someone just told me he failed their case study test. Another one told me he failed the test last year in London. These people were meant to be sent to MCK naija if they had passed the assessment.

Thank you,

Tnks 4 d reply.By 'foreign trained' I mean completed Bsc in d US with 2yrs experience also there but now based in Nigeria, I need 2 know how much a graduate,to be recruited 4rm Nigeria would earn with the above level of experience in mckinsey

^^^

Okay, nice one. Kay (one very strange dude like that) has not been picking his Skpe calls. I will ask him and get back to you.


T22

@ Tani.tnks I'll appreciate

emyluv:

@ Tani.tnks I'll appreciate

^^^

He says 3-400k naira/month, UK grad. But I imagine no difference.

Okay.tnks a bunch 4 ur assistance

So i had my first round interview some time in August 2011 and i am just posting details (been too busy to type a lengthy post) . Hmnn anyway, lets get to the issue.

I was scheduled for 2 interviews 8am and 9am and i arrived and took my seat in the neat but tiny reception on the 6th Floor Mulliner Towers Ikoyi.
I was interviewed by a guy named Fred.
INTERVIEW PROPER:
Fred: So tell me of a time you managed upwards. Where you had to convince a superior to accept your point of view and what was the process like?
CASE:
Fred: XYZ is airline operator and is currently having problems with their costs. Tell me items that drive the cost for an airline operator
Me: Well broadly, costs can be of two types: Variable and Fixed. For Variable we have - Fuelling Costs for Fixed, we have - maintenance, Staff overhead, licencing & regulatory fees.

Fred: One of our consultants took up research into the cost lines and discovered that fuelling expenditure was excessive. Tell me the factors that drive fuelling cost
Me: Size of engine, Distance travelled, No of trips

Fred: Well, our consultant's analysis showed that none of these factors you mentioned was actually responsible for the excessive fuelling cost. Infact, he concluded that it was the weight of the plane. So tell me the factors that affect the weight of a plane.

Me: These can be categorized into 2: Internal elements and external elements. For the internal, we have the fittings, furniture, luggage, fuel level for the external factors, we have the metal used in constructing the airplane, the engine, the tires, the blades etc

Fred: Our consultant in his analysis, found out that none of these factors you mentioned was responsible for the excessive fuelling cost. it was infact, the PAINT ON THE PLANE!!!

For the rest of the interview, see http://www.davidapaflo.com/2013/09/at-some-point-in-my-life-my-dream-was.html

That is scary.....I have absolutely no idea what you've been talking about!!!! If I happen to be called what are my setting myself up for?!

This is basically more than an interview. They taking you back to class, scary! Only for the uber smart

Kaffs: That is scary.....I have absolutely no idea what you've been talking about!!!! If I happen to be called what are my setting myself up for?!

Just read topics on general finance and business. Their interview questions are somewhat designed to favor those who had US education or something close to that. Many people who have had offers from them (MCkinsey) had their undergraduate or graduate training at a US school.

Just do your best, but don't be too emotionally attached to it.

This is how competitive the world has become.

T22

Kaffs: That is scary.....I have absolutely no idea what you've been talking about!!!! If I happen to be called what are my setting myself up for?!

if you are business/finance student you will understand and if you are business grad, applying to consultanat company and you have no idea what that interview is about then you're on the wrong lane

tanimola22:

Just read topics on general finance and business. Their interview questions are somewhat designed to favor those who had US education or something close to that. Many people who have had offers from them (MCkinsey) had their undergraduate or graduate training at a US school.

Just do your best, but don't be too emotionally attached to it.

This is how competitive the world has become.

T22

^^^ Wondering how this interview is meant to favour US graduate.Could you give me a hint. Thanks in anticipation.

Otuabaroku:
^^^ Wondering how this interview is meant to favour US graduate.Could you give me a hint. Thanks in anticipation.

Please do note that the above claim is my personal view; others may see things differently.

To answer your question, if one studied business or finance or management etc at an above average US school, one is likely to have been trained on how to attack Mckinsey style interview questions. Again, my view.

I know Mckinsey likes case study assessment questions, so you will do very well to adequately prepare for them. Mckinsey naija gives 30-60 minutes additional time to complete the assessment, but Mckinsey UK does not. Use this additional time to your advantage.

On the whole, do your best but don't be too expectant.

T22

tanimola22:

Just read topics on general finance and business. Their interview questions are somewhat designed to favor those who had US education or something close to that. Many people who have had offers from them (MCkinsey) had their undergraduate or graduate training at a US school.

Just do your best, but don't be too emotionally attached to it.

This is how competitive the world has become.

T22

But something gets my attention. How does a person from finance/business generally know that paint used on that plane will add more weight? and gleaning from the interview it shows more of maths/eng.

tanimola22:

Please do note that the above claim is my personal view; others may see things differently.

To answer your question, if one studied business or finance or management etc at an above average US school, one is likely to have been trained on how to attack Mckinsey style interview questions. Again, my view.

I know Mckinsey likes case study assessment questions, so you will do very well to adequately prepare for them. Mckinsey naija gives 30-60 minutes additional time to complete the assessment, but Mckinsey UK does not. Use this additional time to your advantage.

On the whole, do your best but don't be too expectant.

T22

Good to know that it is your personal opinion. Because your initial generalization was a little disturbing to me as i did not see anything too difficult in the interview oneblacboi posted. Even when I'm not going from business background, I think i can scale through when faced with those questions. Thanks for your clarification.

The interviews are not necessarily advantageous towards US graduates. They are just more proactive in preparation, neither does the interview require a math/engineering/business etc background. I have gone through the whole process and can say the most frustrating/hardest part about getting in is successfully getting through the application process.

Nonetheless, if you are called for the test or interview, they will provide you with unlimited resources to prepare. Reading the book "Case in Point" and practicing case interviews is sufficient enough to scale through. Lastly, after reading case in point, you will notice tackling the cases has nothing to do with ones background but following a step by step approach (it is very formulaic) and a bit of creative/out of the box thinking (eg guessing more paint is needed on certain parts of the plane).

Good luck to anyone interviewing or applying

cityofsin: The interviews are not necessarily advantageous towards US graduates. They are just more proactive in preparation, neither does the interview require a math/engineering/business etc background. I have gone through the whole process and can say the most frustrating/hardest part about getting in is successfully getting through the application process.

Nonetheless, if you are called for the test or interview, they will provide you with unlimited resources to prepare. Reading the book "Case in Point" and practicing case interviews is sufficient enough to scale through. Lastly, after reading case in point, you will notice tackling the cases has nothing to do with ones background but following a step by step approach (it is <a class="inlineAdmedialink" href="#"><a class="inlineAdmedialink" href="#">very</a></a> formulaic) and a bit of creative/out of the box thinking (eg guessing more paint is needed on certain parts of the plane).

Good luck to anyone interviewing or applying

It is good to see someone with first hand knowledge of the interview process. This advice makes it more easier for applicants from whatever background.

@cityofsin did you get a final offer?

The interview is basically about STRUCTURE and thinking out of the box. The knowledge i gained in the few weeks of preparing for this interview has remained with me and i find it very useful in my daily life. Case in point by Marc Consentino is also a very good resource. Also holla @ victor cheng - nice guy

@cityofsin, oneblacboi, & others, pls how long does it take to be called for a mckinsey test after application? I applied since like two months ago and still expecting their call. Will be expecting to hear from you guys. Thanks!

oneblacboi: Oh well I did the interview on the 27th of August and it was quite tasking. Would share with you the structure and a transcript of my interview soon. Quite busy now.

Hello,

I have been invited for the PST. How best can one study for it and be assured of success? any particular sites to visit other than the Mckinsey site?

More information on Mckinsey http://www.davidapaflo.com/2013/12/my-mckinsey-story-part-2.html

http://www.davidapaflo.com/2013/12/my-mckinsey-story-part-3.html

I'm also a McKinsey hopeful and I'm preparing hard for my next attempt. Bombed their PST due to poor preparation and lack of exposure to the right materials. Victor Cheng provides quality prep materials just like the OP said. Can we all come together to form a consulting club in Lagos to help in preparation for case interviews? Searched Google for it and couldn't find any

More of a cry for help here actually.

Wrote d PST 5th September last yr, got invited 4 dinterviews about a month later. Got the feedback I didn't make it because in the words of one of the session interviewers, 'yl you were very impressive over the interview sessions, in the first business case interview, there was a little problem with your case structuring, so we will be letting you go.

I woke up the next day with all kinds of ideas on how I could have better handled the defective case structuring. Even got in touch with the HR department to know how soon I could reapply and got told in 2 years. Now the problem is this over the course of preparing for the PST and interviewe, I developed a unique deep fondness for the field of strategy consulting which just won't abate. Everyday, I think of what could have been if things had turned out out differently and I just can't move on to be totally honest. Pursuing jobs in other fields has little or no interest for me these days even 3 months after as I still feel Mckinsey is where I belong for optimal development of my abilities.

Any helpful tips would be most appreciated