SPR & CO Interview Questions and Answers

Q1. Power systems, Electrical Safety
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Q1. Power Systems, Electrical Safety
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Q1. Could you briefly introduce yourself?
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Q2. You have a great wall of paintings behind you, tell me about your interest in art.
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Q3. Since how long have you been playing basketball? Do you play other sports too?
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Q4. Tell me about your internship that you did with KPMG India.
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Q5. Tell me about your interests.
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You are working with the government of India and need to increase the revenue generated from sports in India. How will you do it?
[Please note that I stands for Interviewer and C stands for Candidate]

C: Sure, should I focus on one sport to increase the revenue or should I focus on all sports which have the potential to increase revenues?

I: Your choice.

C: Great. I would like to divide the sports into two categories: Individual sports like badminton, tennis and team sports like basketball, cricket. Then we can look at both the categories and focus on whichever suits us better.

I: Sounds good.

C: I would like to focus on team sports first as cricket and hockey are doing really well in India, so I would explore other such sports. I would like to take up basketball first as I know more about it as compared to others.

I: Yes, you can start with basketball.

C: Since basketball is not a common game in India, I will divide it into the rural and urban segment and think about ways to increase awareness and hence the participation. In rural areas, people do not play this sport due to improper infrastructure and hence as the government of India we could build courts in some parts to increase participation. We could also play sports mandatory as a subject in school. Coming to the urban segment, I would divide the people in two groups: sports and non-sports, then I will look at ways to increase participation in both.

I: Focus on people who play other sports, how will you increase participation from them?

C: For the people who play other sports, it is mostly because they have been taught the same since a very young age. Basketball being uncommon can be made known to people by improving the facilities available in India. Being a player myself, the facilities here are bad and hence there is less scope to do well in this sport. We could also have more events for basketball to improve competition, not just with Indian players but can bring in International players for exposure. Games like NBA should be promoted, similar to FIFA or a cricket world cup.

I: Sounds good. If you were to conduct a basketball event, what all revenue streams would you have?

C: The different revenue streams that I can think of are: Tickets, Food and Drinks, Parking, Media Rights, Advertisements, any other event conducted on the ground when there is no game going on.

Your client is a leading Asian Automaker in the Luxury segment. Should they enter India and if they do, how?
[Please note that I stands for Interviewer and C stands for Candidate]

C: Can I assume our car company to be like other Luxury players in the market like BMW, Mercedes, etc.?

I: Yes, our company is similar.

C: Do we have a time or a budget crunch?

I: Nothing of that sort.

C: Where are we currently operating, why India, why now?

I: America, vast market and felt like expanding now.

C: I would like to divide this case in 4 parts: Explore the India market, explore the luxury car industry (market sizing as well), look at how we will enter (modes of entry), potential risks involved.

I: You can ignore the first bucket and start from the second.

C: Sure. (Looked at all of Porter's forces one by one and did a qualitative level market sizing)

I: How would you make people switch to our car?

C: I would divide it in two parts: First would-be people who do not own a luxury car and the second would be people with a luxury car who can switch to our segment. To bring about a differentiation, I would firstly look at the car features, the pricing, coverage, and reach, lastly at advertising.

I: Why would people want to use a luxury car?

C: Two reasons: Status/Prestige and Credibility.

I: Good, now where all will you advertise?

C: For advertisements we have three channels: Banners and Ads, Social Media, Collaboration with offices, hotels, celebrities, etc. We could also rely on word of mouth to gain credibility.

Q1. What is one unique thing about you which differentiates you from all the other candidates?
Ans. 
I bring a unique blend of analytical thinking and creative problem-solving, allowing me to approach challenges from multiple angles.
• Analytical Skills: I have a strong background in data analysis, demonstrated by my work on a project that improved operational efficiency by 20%.

• Creative Problem-Solving: I once led a team brainstorming session that generated innovative solutions for a client’s marketing strategy, resultin...read more
Answered by AI
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Our client is a packaged tea manufacturer. He has two factories, say Factory 1 and Factory 2 located in Noida with maximum production capacity of 100 tons per month each. Assume earlier the demand was the summation of production capacity of two factories, that is, 200 tons per month. However, client has forecasted that in coming months the demand is going to fall to 150 tons per month. Devise a production allocation strategy for the client.
[Please note that I stands for Interviewer and C stands for Candidate]

C: Where are the two factories located?

I: Assume both factories are in the same industrial park in Noida.

C: Okay. The production allocation decision will depend upon the total cost that will be incurred during the manufacturing process. Are both the factories owned by us?

I: No, only Factory 1 is owned by us. We buy the end product from Factory 2.

C: Do we have any data on what is the total cost or cost per unit incurred in both factories?

I: Yes. (Interviewer then gave the data about fixed and variable cost of both factories.)

Factory 1 - Rs 300 per ton. It can be divided into 3 parts - labor (Rs 100 – 80 fixed, 20 variable); utilities (Rs 100 per ton); fuel (Rs 100 per ton).

Factory 2 – Rs 225 per ton.

C: Okay. From the data given by you, Factory 1 has fixed cost of Rs 80 per ton * 100 tons = Rs 8000 and variable cost of Rs 220 per ton.

Assuming we produce x tons in Factory 1. Then we will be producing 150 – x in Factory 2. Max value of x can be 100 tons. Total cost would come around to be 8000 + 220x + 225(150 – x) => 41000 – 5x. Hence from the cost equation, we can infer that keeping x as 100 that is, running factory 1 at full capacity will give us the minimum cost C: Good. Can you think of why production in our own factory with outdated machinery is preferrable as compared to buying product from factory 2 which employs better production techniques?

I: The variable component of labor cost is the major factor. If the split would have been 60:40 instead of 80:20, we would have come up with a totally different answer.

We have been approached by a global publisher of legal & accounting books. They are planning to expand into India by buying a print & paper based local publisher of similar kind of books. Can you help them size the market? Also, what do you think are the risks of digital disruption?

[Short case -15 to 20 min]

(Started with questions to probe the problem statement.)
[Please note that I stands for Interviewer and C stands for Candidate]

C: Okay, just to reiterate, the client is a legal & accounting books publisher looking to buy a print & paper-based publisher in India.

I: Correct.

C: What is the objective behind buying out this new publisher?

I: They are looking for geographical expansion.

C: What is the timeline that the client is looking forward to?

I: No timeline as such. They just want to know what the potential market size of the industry is.

C: Okay. To start with estimating the market size, can you help me understand where all legal and accounting books are used? From my understanding, educational institutions, and people working in this profession might refer to these as well such as lawyers, accountants.

I: Yes, you are right. Let us consider only educational institutions for the case.

C: In educational institutions, we can have schools as in India, senior secondary education has subjects on accounts, as well as colleges/universities for these domains.

I: Consider only educational institutions for undergraduate & post-graduate studies.

C: Okay, my strategy here would be to estimate the demand of new books in a period of one year. This can be calculated by estimating number of colleges that we have in the country and the books required by students of each year, i.e., freshers, 2nd year students etc.

I: Go on.

C: (followed standard guesstimate procedure starting with Indian population, estimating the number of students opting for accounts and law post their schooling and then estimated the number of students for each year in their undergrad. Assumed the number of books required by each student in a semester and estimated the total number of books required. Took some time here and hence could not move to risks for digital disruption in the sector.)

I – Okay. I think we are running out of time. Can you quickly list down what can be the potential risks that the legal & accountings books publishing industry faces due to digital disruption?

C – Yes, due to the increasing popularity of eBooks, hard copies are not preferred much because they are bulky. Whereas eBooks can be accessed anywhere on phones, laptops. That is a potential risk that the industry faces. Also given the rise in educational tech and coming up of startups in the EdTech domain, the hard copies of textbooks are becoming redundant as most of the information is provided digitally.

I – Sure, makes sense. Thank you Rishabh for your time.

MP Government is facing an all-time low in tourism and entertainment industry due to COVID-19. Suggest some ways in which MP Government can tackle this problem.

[Short case – lasted 10-15 min]
[Please note that I stands for Interviewer and C stands for Candidate]

C: Okay, just to reiterate, MP Government has reached out to us because it is facing a decrease in revenues in tourism & entertainment industry and we have been asked to provide solutions in which it can tackle this issue.

I: Right.

C: Do we have any budgetary constraints?

I: No constraints as such.

C: What is the timeline we are looking at? Is the government looking for solutions in the short term or in the long term?

I: You can go ahead and give solutions for both short term and long term.

C: [After this the discussion was on the lines of what potentially comes under tourism & entertainment – tourist sites, cinema theatres, sports events, fairs (melas), theme parks. After this, discussion shifted to potential sources of revenue for a theatre. Employing how exactly a customer would go about watching a movie in a theatre, I laid down the journey and potential sources of revenue for the theatre such as parking fees, ticket sales and snacks & beverage sales. After this there was a similar discussion on revenues that the government can generate from hosting sporting events in the state.]

I: We can end the case now. So, what do you think how did the case go?

C: Since the case ended soon, I could have jumped quickly and elaborated on the solutions for tackling the issues instead of majorly focusing on what all the problems can be.

I: No issues, I think you listed the sources of problem well. Thank you for your time.

Q1. Tell me something about yourself.
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Your client is a glass manufacturer looking to grow. They need your help.
[Please note that I stands for Interviewer and C stands for Candidate] 

(Firstly, used a CPCC framework to know more about the problem)

C: Okay, I would like to start with knowing a little more about the client. When we say it is a glass manufacturer, what type of glass products do they manufacture. Is it the one used at homes or in cars or buildings or any other use?

I: Yes, so it is a glass used in glass facades in homes for windows and panes.

C: Okay. So, what type of expansion is the company eyeing. Is it looking to expand into new markets or within the same market?

I: The current market in which it operates is pretty saturated, and they are looking to expand into new markets.

C: And by new markets, do they mean new geographies or new product line.

I: They want to operate in the same geographies they have currently been operating in. They are looking to expand their product portfolio. Can you help them decide that?

C: Yes definitely. So new products can be added by either identifying different uses of the existing manufacturing capabilities or adding new ones. Considering that we have less time, the first option seems to be a better one.

I: Yes, that’s correct. Can you help them identify what are the alternate uses of the glass that they sell?

C: I would like to first divide the uses into 2 groups. Stationery uses and Moving objects. Moving objects would be the cars, buses, trucks etc. and stationery would include the buildings.

I: You can look into the building use.

C: Okay, so buildings can be then divided as residential buildings and office spaces. Majority of the office spaces have glass facades and very few residential buildings have it due to privacy concerns, which area should I first focus on?

I: We have primarily been selling our product for office buildings. Can you give some uses of the product in residential buildings?

C: Yes, definitely. (Asked for some time and then came up with a few uses) So, the uses can be of 2 types. One is outside the home use, and another could be inside it.

Outside uses includes the glass railings, windows, staircase railings Inside the house includes indoor windows, dining tables, fixed cabinets, steam room in washrooms.

(Overall, it was a moderate case. The interviewer focused more on idea generation than anything else.)

Q1. Tell me about yourself
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Q2. How interested are you in joining Kearney?
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