Hourglass Research Associate Interview Questions and Answers

Round: Manager + Lead round (not sure what kind of round is this)
Experience: details about the work profile, most of which never happened post joining.

General Tips: If you come from technical background, please do not join PwC SDC and jeopardize our career. There is no technical setup, neither any infrastructure, technical work wont just happen except for few bits n pieces UI work here n there. This is not a company for technical people.
Skills: Communication
Duration: 1-4 weeks

Round: Test
Experience: The candidate's hold over the english language was tested by asking him to write about his ambition over the course and some technical topic
Duration: 45 minutes
Total Questions: 2

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: The confidence of answering and the courage of admitting that i dont know the answer was tested

College Name: BMCC

Skills: Communication, Technical Skills, Personality, Personnel Management, Conversation Skills, Connect With The Interviewer
College Name: Keshav Mahavidyalaya

Round: Behavioural Interview
Experience: The behavioral interview for PwC UK is usually conducted by telephone and then the final interview which includes a behavioral component happens in the last stage. The interview was a great experience and I enjoyed speaking to the interviews on both occasions. I spent sometime getting familiar with PwC's core competencies and prepared examples from my life that reflected these competencies. It was also useful to practice these questions in front of the mirror as it helped me to restructure my answers well. All in all, it was a friendly experience and the interviewers are looking to know you better. Just be confident, smile and be yourself. A "rattofied-textbook" answer will surely get you rejected, instead speak what you really believe in and let it be authentic!
Tips: Use the STAR technique to answer behavioral interview questions :-
S (Situation) - What was the situation? Give the context in approx 1-2 lines for the interviewer to understand the situation.
T (Task) - What was the task that you were required to do? Eg. Group project, team task etc.
A (Action) - What did YOU do? Focus on your actions NOT that of the team. Eg. I managed my time by prioritizing my responsibilities. Or, I spoke to my team leader about the problem. Or, I researched the current market trends in XYZ.
R (Result) - What was the end result? Eg: I completed the task in time. Or, The group increased the productivity by x%.




Round: Assessment day
Experience: After being successful in the telephone interview I was invited to attend an Assessment Day at the PwC office in London. We had a series of tasks throughout the day which included a case study, group task and client interview. It is quite rigorous and the day was quite exhausting.
Tips: Complete all the tasks in the given time. You will be marked down if you fail to finish.
Try to be inclusive in the group discussions. Use names of participants while talking to them.

General Tips: The recruitment process is designed if you are a right fit in the company, It's equally important for you to judge if the company is the right fit for you. Talk to people in the company, explore company resources, search news articles about the company, and most important - follow your instinct!
Skills:
College Name: London School of Economics

Round: Resume Shortlist
Experience: I first created a master resume and got it reviewed by others.
Tips: Spend enough time in preparing your master resume. Have a resume ready for all the sectors you are targeting. Start as early as possible and get your one page resume ready well in time before the deadline.

Round: Test
Tips: Practice a lot. Prefer practicing in a group and attempt timed tests. Also try out puzzles.

Round: Interview
Experience: There were two rounds, each with a single member panel.
They asked a few HR questions initially followed by a case study. The HR questions were diverse, like how would you handle different scenarios in work and about books I read. I was grilled with these questions.
The case was easy but I presented it in an unstructured manner, but I was able to give a decent solution in the end.

Round: Interview
Experience: The second round started off with a case in which I performed relatively better. The interviewer then asked me if I had any questions for him, and that's when I started talking about the analytics industry. This went on for 15 minutes, and I think this sealed the deal for me.

General Tips: Identify the companies you want to target. Be pragmatic in your choice and prepare accordingly. n
Prepare in a group.
Remember that Resume is one important aspect.
College Name: IIT KANPUR

Round: Test
Experience: CAT type questions were asked.
Duration: 60 minutes

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: As it was open for all departments, questions of a general kind about project and internship were asked. Favourite area and basic questions on it.

Round: HR Interview
Tips: Looking for people with good communication skills.

General Tips: If performance is good, chance to move to the consulting arm from the accounting arm, which handles financial advisory, etc.
College Name: IIT KANPUR

Round: Test
Experience: General ability test. People studying for CAT can easily clear it.

Round: HR Interview
Experience: Asked some HR stuff such as why I want to join PWC, what according to me is a leader etc. In technical, they asked me from DSP which was my field of specialization so I did well in that. So overall it was a cool interview.

College Name: IIT KANPUR

Interview preparation tips for other job seekers - Be clear of what you know, and if you don't know anything politely say you don't know the answer