Winner Software Interview Questions and Answers

Round: HR Interview
Experience: 1. At First, I missed the Credit Suisse GD since I hadn’t brought along a portfolio manager (one who handles your interview schedule and attends to the ever-ringing mobile phone).
2. I proceeded to Credit Suisse, and requested their HR contact to give me a chance since I could not turn up for the GDs.
3. It was here that I handed over my mobile phone to my friend Apratim Tiwari, who was managing the Credit Suisse procedures, and requested him to pursue the HR guy to schedule an interview, and also handle my phone when I was interviewing and he had successfully managed to get me an interview with Credit Suisse.
4. The interview went well. They were apparently quite impressed.
5. Two more rounds of interviews, and the HR guy made me an offer.
6. But, since Deutsche Bank was my dream company, I was also interviewing with them and got selected.
Tips: You would need to focus on three broad areas for a comprehensive preparation:
(a) HR questions: This is the most important part for any interview. In companies like DB, your communication skills coupled with your preparation of such questions account for more than 70% of a candidate’s selection. Answering questions about your career goals, interests, and your career thus far should become second nature by the end of November. You must also know the firms and job profiles inside out. I worked on this specific area, and by the end of the placement session, I had gained a reputation among my wingies for my expertise at answering HR questions.
(b) Puzzles: Since this is a non-core sector, puzzles are the only way to objectively test the ability of candidates with diverse backgrounds. Look up braingle.com and techinterview.org. These two should suffice. Also, whenever you come across a puzzle that you’ve already encountered, pretend as if you’re going through it for the first time. Don’t rush through. This is your opportunity to impress them. Do not squander it away!
(c) Finance and economic affairs: If you have a comprehensive knowledge of the financial markets, national economy, and international affairs, in addition to the above two, it is highly improbable that you won’t be selected. For brushing up these, read the Economist (print or online), and read through the opinion pages of Economic Times or the Business Standard for 2-3 months leading to the Placement season. You must also regularly read a newspaper like the Hindu or Indian Express to keep yourself abreast of the latest events which frequently become a focal point of group discussions (for Credit Suisse). You CANNOT afford to walk into the interview ignorant of terms like European debt crisis, global financial crisis, fiscal cliff, QE, and basic finance like options, hedging etc. Wikipedia, Investopedia and J.C.Hull (first few chapters) are great sources to pick up these.

General Tips: 1. If you are a B.Tech. student, do not be under the wrong impression that you can target all sectors- core as well as non-core. It is really difficult to prepare comprehensively for all companies, especially if you are in the B.Tech. program owing to time constraints.
2. The Dual degree students have an edge over you for precisely two reasons. Firstly, they get more time to prepare for the placements, and have learnt vicariously from their B.Tech. batchmates' experiences. Secondly, they tend to have higher retention rates (good for the companies).
3. Work on your English communication skills which are crucial for performing well in interviews and GDs.
Let neither of these become an obstacle by leaving no stone unturned in the course of your preparations.
4. You can’t appear for more than 4 companies in the first slot. It is not realistic. Hence, decide beforehand. I knew I hadn’t prepared enough for consulting or core, hence I opted out of ITC and Opera.
5. If you are shortlisted in multiple companies, ask a reliable friend to accompany you to the interviews, and handle your mobile phone (“managing one’s portfolio”). You’ll thank me someday for this advice.
6. I was happy that I prepared as much as I did, neglecting my college academics in the process. It is a decision I am proud of.
7. My Morgan Stanley internship distinguished me from scores of other candidates. I had never truly appreciated its importance till then. That also goes to show how important it is to get a good internship.
Skill Tips: 1. I scored a 100 percentile in CAT and the preparation made a huge impact on preparing for any of the interviews.
2. I also interned at Morgan Stanley which was further a plus for me.
3. I had received Honda YES Award, University of Tokyo-IIT Scholarship and my academic background was quite good.
Skills: Problem solving skills, Finance Basics, Basic HR questions, Economic affairs
College Name: IIT KANPUR

Round: Test
Experience: The first round, quite naturally, was the aptitude round. We had to answer questions that were designed to test our quantitative and technical abilities. But this was only the first part. The second part involved finding computational solutions to simulated situations. These questions needed to be solved in a programming language we were asked to choose earlier, during the aforementioned first part. I chose to do it in Java as that is one language I am really thorough with. I understand that C/C++ are more important and versatile, but what matters here is your inherent understanding of the concepts involved

Round: Group Activity
Experience: We had to build model buildings, using LEGO blocks. Other than the fact that I love building things from other smaller things, the supplied material took me back to my childhood days. We were divided into four groups. Two in each room, and each group consisted of 8-10 candidates. We were given a time limit within which we had to design and construct a building. As a surprise, after half time, they asked the two groups in each room to merge their projects. This probably was to see if the candidates were pro-active team players, and could handle unexpected situations like professionals.

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: There was another technical interview after the group activity. I was interviewed by two of their officers, who again asked questions similar to those from the first technical round.  It went quite well, since I was quite confident about the way I was solving the problems they gave me. Thinking out loud is key, as that lets them in your problem-solving abilities. That way, they let you know if you are headed in the right direction. My interviewers were quite pleasant, as they liked discussing possible scenarios to the problems they gave me.

Round: HR Interview
Experience: there was an HR round, where the woman interviewed me about my projects. She needed to know if I had the guts to finish whatever it is that I started. So she asked more on the lines on my role in the projects I had undertaken in the previous years. She also asked me about my working experience from before. That too went well. It was pretty much a standard HR interview – projects, hobbies, traits, etc.

Round: fitness roound
Experience: There was another round in the end, which was to test the candidate’s professional fitness – if they indeed are the right people for the job. I found it to be a blend of technical and HR interviews, more on the lines of HR though. All in all, it was a brilliant experience

General Tips: To my juniors, study hard, be sincere, be yourself, be smart (preferably in that order, but you are free to improvise!)
College Name: IIT MADRAS

Round: Test
Experience: 10 single correct questions, 10 CAT based questions, 5 data sufficiency questions, 2 subjective questions were asked.
Tips: All the objective questions were easy so everyone would have solved. Subjective questions were important for selecting candidates .Final solution for subjective questions are not important ,the way you approach is important.
Duration: 45 minutes

Round: Case Study Interview
Experience: Questioned on Resume points. A case study was given and the student has to analyse it.

Round: Case Study Interview
Experience: Case study question and brain teaser were asked. Brainteaser was an easy question.

Skill Tips: Mock interviews with friends and ready with all resume points of how to explain them each helps. Solved many case studies. Updated myself with latest news. I also read Wiki questions like how to get 3 wolnes, 2 men to other side of river?.
Skills: Soft skills, Case study solving ability
College Name: IIT MADRAS

Round: Test
Experience: Test was conducted by AMCAT at Madras School of Economics. Test was an adaptive test. Accuracy matters along with the speed. Do focus on all the sections. Questions were easy to moderate.
Tips: Prepare well before the test. HSBC was the second company to conduct test. DO NOT IGNORE RETAIL BANKING.

Preparation Material: Arun Sharma
Duration: 55 minutes
Total Questions: 50

Round: Technical + HR Interview
Experience: HSBC had skype interview at MSE. I was waiting from 11am in the morning. And it was already 6pm in the evening. One girl before me took around 45 minutes. As i entered, they were in hurry. They wanted to finish soon. As i started interview, they directly told me that they are getting late so they would finish things quickly. I was not asked even to introduce myself.

They asked me one project i have worked on and which i think was the best. I told them a project on Credit Risk Modelling. Luckily interviewer was also from the Credit Risk Team at HSBC. He started grilling over all the concepts. Why i used the particular model? What is ROC? What was the delinquency period and why ? I had done that project too seriously. I made him clear all the concepts. They focus more on your concepts and understanding. They also asked my few basic questions on Statistics which were related to my project.

I told them everything in just 10 minutes. And right after that the interviewer told me that it would be the last question they will ask me. I started thinking i won't get selected as no one finished in just 10 minutes. Then interview went on for 5 more minutes. I was given a case study on decreasing sales of a particular departmental store's division.

At last there were some HR questions. At last interviewer was really impressed by me. Guys a

College Name: Madras School of Economics

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: I think they were looking for Basic understanding of financial accounting, confidence.
My experience of working on valuation of Oil & Gas projects, financial modelling helped a lot
Tips: My confidence in answering questions related to finance and Read thoroughly two chapters 11 & 12 of “Financial Accounting” book by RNS

Skill Tips: They will give you required training
Skills: Finance
College Name: IIM Bangalore

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: The interviewer asked questions based upon CV. He first made me adjust to the environment and then started the serious questions realted to technical stuff.
Tips: Never lie about any subject you don't really know. Keep a particular topic strong, in my case it was Database Management. Have good problem solving skills, if not efficient but at least a good solution.

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: The round consisted of technical questions based on my analysis of the first round. Consisted of higher levele questions related to my topics of my expertise.
Tips: Be ready for any spontaneous questions. Explain whatever comes to your mind instead of quietly thinking. Be communicative and confident. They don't care about the syntax but rather the logical thinking.

Round: HR Interview
Experience: Just be communicative. Since you've qualified till the HR interview, you are almost confirmed for their position. They checked if I could handle pressure or not. They tried to know if they could give me more responsibilities in the near future or not.
Tips: Be confident and don't hesitate to answer. Express what you feel genuinely. Show that you are a responsible guy.

College Name: IIT Varanasi

Round: Test
Experience: It was basic 12th class maths such as probability, permutation andcombination and things,  and stuff such as data sufficiency where a question is provided with some data and you will be asked whether you will able to solve it or not with the help of given data.
Overall good experience, About 40 students were selected.
Tips: Prepare well the part of quantitative and analytical analysis in CAT's syllabus.

Round: Case Study Interview
Experience: It was a good round with questions mainly focused on probability and statistics, and optimization.
Tips: Basic knowledge of probability and statistics will do.

Round: Technical Interview
Experience: The round was a long one, with questions on data analysis and about current economic affairs in the world.
They also discussed about things mentioned in resume in detail.
Tips: 1. Be through with your resume with explanation for each point in mind.
2. Gather the knowledge about current affairs. Try to read newspapers such as The Economic Times for at least 2 months prior to interview.

Round: HR Interview
Experience: Questions were asked on ourselves to judge the personality and a few random questions as per HR.
Tips: Be prepared with questions such as:
1. Tell me about yourself.
2. Strengths and Weaknesses.
3. Why this company?
4. Why should you be hired?
 
And a few more of typical questions. Keep your mind open for anything.

General Tips: 1. Read newspapers such as The Economic Times for at least two months prior to interview.
2. Prepare well on basic maths especially topics covered in CAT.
3. Be through with points mentioned in resume with a ready explanation for each.
Skill Tips: Basic knowledge will do. Try to practice more.
And read more stuff.
Skills: Knowledge in Probability and Statistics, Basics in Operation Research (Optimization)., Quantitative aptitude.
College Name: IIT MADRAS