Consultancy Interview Questions & Answers

After an initial application, there is a short 15 minute telephone interview clarifying details and assessing interest in the company/ sector/ role. My assessment day was two days later and comprised of two five-minute interviews, a numerical test, a test on set notation, and an aptitude test. The two interviews were standard and friendly, and were focussed mainly on personality and approach.

Would you sacrifice quality to meet a deadline?

Do plenty of prep before hand, the questions aren't hard but it's definitely worth a look over! It is also important to be open, friendly and enthusiastic. The training scheme means you can pick up any technical knowledge you need so their real focus is on hiring those with great inter-personal skills and an ability to learn fast. The technical and business pathways are assessed together but not ranked together meaning there is no need to panic about not knowing all the technology ins and outs.

The numerical test is GCSE maths, the set notation test is given alongside an instruction leaflet and the video provided before the day is very useful. The aptitude test has some basic coding questions, some logic puzzles, and a number of IT questions (inc IP4vIP6, SQL, bits in a byte, etc.). A little Google research was enough to get through this!

I have only had a telephone interview so far but it was quite nice and relaxed. The lady I spoke to was friendly and easy to talk to. We spoke for around 20 minutes.

These are the questions I was asked:

From your CV, Tell us the main skills you have that are relevant to the role?
Why Market Research?
Why Kantar Worldpanel?

Tell us a brand you like and why?
What is this brands main threat?
How could they improve?

Where do you do your grocery shop?
Why do you shop there?
How do you go about shopping there and how do you go about making decisions on what to buy?
How could they improve their store?

Tell us about a news article you have read recently?

What advice would you give clients for surviving the recession?

What advice would you give clients for surviving the recession?

Research business concepts relevant to current market trends. Research ideas and strategies to improve businesses. I was told the interview would be based on knowledge of the company so to research the company well. However it was more like understanding and using their principles and what they do in case studies with the brand or grocery store I chose.

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The telephone interview was the third step in the recruitment process, after application and online tests. It lasted around 25 minutes, although I was told it would last between 40-60 minutes. I was asked a set of basic competency questions. I had prepared using various forums so I was able to answer all of the questions with relative ease.

The scenario questions were difficult as you cannot really prepare for them. I was asked 2 of these types of questions. The interviewer will first describe the scenario both of which were quite long and boring. One was about amending a task and the other a group situation.

Prepare thoroughly using popular forums where participants have usually described in detail what to expect. However there will always be tests you cannot fully prep for, such as role play and e-tray. Which is where I think I struggled - so make sure the preparation is there and then the rest is a bit up to luck!

Report writing, role play and e-tray. I think the e-tray is where I failed. The report writing is straightforward, candidates are given various texts and then asked to write a report with recommendations. Role play involved two situations, one with an unhappy client and another with your manager. E-tray was particularly difficult for me, there were numerical questions, voice mails, video messages.

A very straightforward interview that allowed the interviewer and candiadate to build a relationship from word go. A phone interview that lasted 20 minutes, covering basic university and career desires. We covered Maths exams, diagramatic reasoning and verbal reasoning tests that revealed how numerical we were.

Describe success in three words. This was hard because it was subjective and personal. Therefore, it put you on your back foot. Another question was describe what differentiates you from someone else.

Prepare early, practice Venn Diagrams. Mock interviews and take care to look at your interviewers. Ensure that you dress smartly with a CV with you, this helps to stand you out instantly. Ensure that you know the organisation inside out covering their mission, vision, company values and concepts.

Venn Diagram test, 1 hour test whereby you describe set notations. A Maths test, 1 hour long test that tries to understand your level of basic Mathematics skills. 5 min interviews, times 3. Speed dating in an interview context.

Initially three sets of psychometric test were completed which took around 2 hours. I was then invited to an E-Tray day where two tasks, one including fictitious emails and another including a business case study, were completed.

Next I was invited to an assessment centre which contained a task reviewing a potential client and an interview with a senior manager.

Current thoughts on a specific client undertaking which I hadn't reviewed.

Massive amounts of research on the current clients of the firm.

Presentation and a group task giving pitches on a potential client, followed by an interview with a senior.

The interview consisted of me being asked questions by a recent graduate in the same position and the head of the sector I was intending to get into.

The initial telephone interview was more of a background check on me and what my CV showed about me. This lasted about 20 minutes. No competency based questions and no questions regarding my motives for applying, goals in the future or anything of that variety. This was all left for the later interview in London.

The interview in London included me having to prepare a presentation on something technical I had learned in my previous work experiences or, most applicably, in my degree. My decision was on the Black-Scholes Equation, having recently applied and used this equation vastly in my recent Finance modules.

The presentation was to be 15 minutes long and was to prove I could put over complex ideas to a non-technical audience.

The interview that preceded this presentation was again mostly about myself, into my personal experiences, my work experience, my degree and the two interviewers explained their roles and their histories with the company.

After the presentation and initial interview, competency questions were asked of me. My motive, goals in my career, drive in life and other such things were discussed. (Look at the questions written in the section below for an idea).

Following this, an exercise was put in front of me by the two interviewers to replicate a potential project basis if I were to get the position. The exercise was regarding how individuals are linked via social media and other mediums and how these connections can help in fraud investigations and further investigations into crime etc. This was supposed to test your ability to spot trends and patterns on the spot, with no prior discussion or preparation, and was to see the interviewee's intellectual and analytical skills.

After this exercise, feedback was given about the presentation, my general demeanour, the interview and the exercise. Lastly, I was given a short tour of the offices before being told I would hear back in a number of days.

What do you know of BAE and its clients?

Explain a recent piece of news or a project that BAE have been a part of.

Describe a situation where you had to show your flexibility and adaptability to new surroundings, a new industry or a new subject matter. How did you react? How did you go about it? Why were you successful?

Describe a situation when you had to act with courage to solve a problem or a challenge. What did you do? Who were you working with? What was the conclusion?

Describe a situation where you have had to compromise.

Describe a situation where you have been the leader of a team.

Describe a situation when you have had to use your communication skills to help you get to a goal in a project/piece of work/activity.

Explain what you would do if you were in a team with a troubling individual and the team's goals were being affected. How would you go about the situation? Which skills would you have to use?

What is your greatest strength?

What is your greatest weakness?

If I were to ask a reference individual, what would they say you were like as individual?

Why have you been unsuccessful with previous interviews?

PRESENTATION QUESTION: Where would this equation have been utilised in a business? How would it be used? When has it been used? Any examples of it's use?

Be vastly prepared on your history.

Research into recent company news and events to discuss.

Don't think you can get away with a shoddy presentation style: be bold, be attentive to questions, be heavily prepared on it, prepare answers for questions the interviewers may ask.

Don't be scared about the exercise: it will need no prior knowledge and is about how you adapt to a new situation. Don't panic if no assumptions are easily visible - the interviewers are exceptionally helpful and understand your position.

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After completing both a numerical and psychometric test online, I was invited down to attend an assessment centre. At the assessment centre there was around 12 of us. We started the morning by all presenting on a topic of our choice for 3 minutes. After we had to complete a problem solving task individually and also a numerical and physics based tests. Then you either had to do a business analytics or supply chain test. During these we were called out for a quick interview with a member of the function you would be most suited to. Once these were done, they sent approx 70% of people home just after lunch.

The most difficult part was the physics test as I had not done physics since GCSE level.

Make sure you have solid knowledge of physics because the physics test was particularly hard for me, as I hadn't done any since year 11. You also have to be comfortable with presenting as it was apparent they liked people who could present not from any prompts.

Had to prepare a three minute presentation on anything we wanted. Three tests (physics, numerical and analytics or supply chain). Whilst doing these we had to complete a problem solving task. Ending with an interview.

Overall experience was very good.

The telephone interview was nice and simple. Someone called me after one week of applying and doing the online test. The phone interview involved questions relating to your knowledge of market research and the company (Kantar WP)-- best thing to do is research the company as much as you can. Also do some research on the industry.

There were two people at the final interview (both worked in different parts of Kantar worldpanel. They were very welcoming and kept a relaxed atmosphere. They asked questions that related to my degree (i.e. why did i study English Lit, and what makes me want to apply for a market research company). They asked me about previous experiences e.g. volunteering work, part time work etc. They also asked a lot of competency questions- make sure you have an example to back each answer.

Describe a situation in which you had to deal with a difficult client. How did you handle it and what was the outcome?

Don't be nervous, try to stand out from the crowd. Make sure to be yourself!! (important to be yourself, they even mentioned this a few times during the assessment). Do your research!-- make sure you understand what the job involves and what the company does.

The assessment centre lasted for the whole day (if you pass the first round). There are two rounds, first round involves presentations, logical reasoning test, and a hat game (where you have to discuss a question that is randomly picked out of a hat). IF you pass the first round, the second round involves a one on one interview and also a group exercise. The assessment was based in a lovely location in London and there were many applicants that attended (roughly 80-90 attendees).

The process began with a telephone interview which I was successful in and this was followed by an assessment centre. The assessment centre included tasks such as; group presentation, numerical tests and two on one interviews.

What is your biggest achievement to date?

Brush up on current affairs related to the company/job role.

We were split into 4 groups early on and were told to prepare a presentation. This was followed by two on one interviews which lasted approximately 15 minutes for each candidate. The day ended with a numerical and literacy test.

The final partner interview was very relaxed. The questions were based on the core PwC values, which are posted on their website. Mainly competency based, with some background questions about interests out of the university, opinion on latest business news. You have to be prepared to present what you know about the qualification you will be working towards, if any, and also for your short and long-term plans.

Which piece of latest business news you think will affect PwC's business, how and why?

Prepare very well and read the core values. Read the latest business news, think on them and how they can affect different business and market spheres.

The online tests were done once again, this time more questions for more time. The minimum result for success was lower than of the online tests. At the end there was a group discussion, you have to be able to work under pressure, when the facts change and should be able to communicate well and efficiently in a team to succeed on this one.