ZS Consultant Interview Questions, Process, and Tips

Interview preparation tips for other job seekers - Great

Round: Case Study Interview
Experience: So the case started with an exhibit that showed compensation figures for salesmen by geography for a Logistics company (My core domain pre-ISB) and He asked me to draw inferences. First of all he asked me if I see any issue by just looking at the data. I gave a warning that I’m going to make some statements which ideally need to be by further supporting data. I noticed that the compensation was good in states like Massachusetts and New York but not so good in states like Pennsylvania. So he asked me to give probable reasons. I said things like targets vs. geography misalignment, motivation issues, training issues and few other issues that I don’t think I can ever recollect. So he asked me what other data I want. I asked for targets vs. geography data. He showed me some data and I noticed that it was pretty much same everywhere. I said that I can make a broad inference that sales targets were not set properly. To confirm I asked for employee satisfaction data. He didn’t have it. He then gave me a non-standardized balance sheet which had all the information messed up or as ratios etc and asked me to calculate the Net Profit. I very quickly calculated the answer and spurted out a number. The moment I told it I realized that I had messed up the numbers. I announced this myself and asked that I be allowed to do it again. He just smiled and I redid it. At this point I thought that I'm out of the process but I sure did come up with the right answer☺.
Frankly I didn’t get any feeling like I cracked the case etc. But I went with an attitude that ZS would not find me the consulting types (Based on a previously unsuccessful consulting interview). So I was totally chill and nonchalant about the whole thing.
I was trying to do everything fast because somehow I wanted to get done with this. That is not the right way to go about things.
Tips: They were not silly enough to reject me just because I made a calculation error. So the idea is to chill and be aware of what’s going on.

Round: Case Study Interview
Experience: They actually used a timer and ensured that I get just exactly 45 minutes☺. I used the SWOT, 4P’s, 3C’s and some fundae I learnt in the Advertising and Consumer Behavior courses and peppered in some prior knowledge I had on cable TV services in the US.
I was given a white sheet and markers. I drew up a SWOT on one side and then put up a set of recommendations on the other in crisp points. Then I explained how I analyzed the case in a structured fashion. There were lots of questions once I presented but I always went back to the structure used and so it went well.
Tips: After a not so stellar first round I went to the quad and slept. So I was really fresh for this interview. I think a fresh mind really helps. So as far as possible try to get enough rest between interviews.

Skills: Case Solving Ability, Case Analysis
College Name: Indian School Of Business (ISB)

Round: Case Study Interview
Experience: First Case: I said there are three sets of observations that can be made from the data – by looking at the Sales data in isolation, by looking at Incentive plan data alone and by combining the two.Sales Data Analysis - Highlighted a trend (High vs. Low) in sales data across different geographies and rank ordered them - certain geographies were underperforming against the other. He asked me what could be the reason? I said this could be because of varying level of demand (patient profiles) for the drug in different states (targets across states were the same). He then asked me for the solution? I said targets should be set after taking buy-in from sales manager (local knowledge) for particular state. He was not very convinced with this argument (he felt this happens in firms) and then I gave an example of how targets were set by the corporate office in my previous org. Another observation was that out of 15 odd data points, there were only 3 which exceeded the target. Incentive Plan – Bonus payout was split into 4 tiers of performance. Out of this, 2 tiers were giving same % bonus. I highlighted that Combining the two – Made couple of more observations. At the end he asked me what kind of Incentive plan will you suggest for this company. I said that sales data looks normally distributed to me and therefore I will probably recommend a IC plan that is normally distributed. He looked satisfied with this answer ☺Second Case: It took me 5 minutes to just understand what the graph stood for (though I was constantly chatting with the interviewer). But then with Interviewer’s help I made some sense out of it and made a recommendation which offcourse the interviewer didn’t like much ☺. Then he gave me some hints and based on that I changed my recommendation. I think I could have done better here
Tips: ZS interviews are very atypical of what we understand of case interviews. We are use to practicing case interviews in a framework approach. However, in the first case interview, while the emphasis was clearly on testing analytic strength of an individual, the mode was a little different. But if one can apply some framework to it (but don’t force fit please), it’s definitely a plus.

Skills: Case Solving Ability, Case Analysis
College Name: Indian School Of Business (ISB)

Round: Case Study Interview
Experience: Recommended Approach
•Candidate should start with understanding the case completely as a lot of information was given and explained. Any relevant Pharmaceutical words used in the case have to be clarified and no assumptions are to be made.
•As the case had lot of information, it was necessary to isolate useful information from the irrelevant information.
•Since the case included numbers and calculations, the calculations should be done correctly at the first time itself (time can be taken to compute the numbers)
•Interpretation of the graphs is extremely important (and there were only few graphs). Pay close attention to X and Y axes and their units
Tips: Keep calm. Do not make the interviewer think that you are tensed.
heavy importance on numbers and interpretation on numbers

Round: Case Study Interview
Experience: 40 minutes was given to read the case and make presentation templates in A4 sheets.
Reading the case itself took more than 30 mins.It was such a big case and had humongous data.
Recommended Approach
•Read the case as fast as possible and mark relevant data
•Give importance to data and try to interpret some useful inferences from it
•Making some graphs in the A4 sheet can be helpful
Tips: It is not possible for anyone to understand the case fully in such a short time, Even the interviewer told this. They were more interested in how I presented and communicated. Of course, the interpretation of numbers was important

Skills: 1)communication, Presentation Skills
College Name: Indian School Of Business (ISB)

Round: Case Study Interview
Experience: There were 2 case rounds:
1) First was the structured case round (Time : 30 mins) : it was a pharma related case where a company was launching a new drug in the market; The problem had various facets of sales and marketing and basically was a New Product Launch/ Market Entry case. All the information was not revealed at once; more data/charts/numbers were shared at every step with a different task to be done each time. So the case had many parts to it – like to start off with one had to define what all had to be done in order to launch the product/marketing campaign, then in the next step I was asked to compute the market size of the product, its price, which segment to target and the amount of salesforce required (salesforce sizing; this was general data interpretation kind of question). All this was done in a phased manner, where at each step more information was given for the specific question. Involved doing some calculations, interpreting graphs and charts. It wasn’t very hard, all that it required was a logical approach and listing out the possibilities/options to be considered
Tips: Recommended Approach
Round 1: Be hands on. Do the calculations as for market sizing they are looking for a number. For other questions also, listing down your ideas would be a good idea. The questions are not very hard. They want you to think clearly and logically, with some data analysis. Practicing a few market sizing/new product launch/market entry/ pricing cases was helpful. Knowing those frameworks comes a little handy. I went wrong with my calculation a bit, but then corrected myself, so it was okay

Round: Case Study Interview
Experience: 2) Second round was an unstructured case round followed by a presentation:
The case was related to a chain of movie theatres (cineplexes) that wanted to expand or increase its revenue. You are asked to think of yourself to be a consultant who needs to come up with a solution and present to the board of a company. We were given 45 minutes to read all the information and make a presentation (on A4 sheets). There was a lot of information thrown like the financial report of a company, mail from one employee to another, market survey data and so on. It is a little hard to read all the information in the given time so one needs to be really quick. Divide your time in two parts: reading the material and creating the presentation. You are then asked to present your work to a panel. They will ask you several questions related to the case, questioning your recommendations and so on. I missed few important numbers that were provided due to the information overload. They then pointed out that there was related information provided, which I then looked through quickly and did some on the spot analysis. So, basically even if you miss out on some data, but manage to figure out the underlying point (or do the right analysis) after being redirected by them, then that would be okay. You need to provide logical explanation for the points you are making, preferably backed by numbers and data (facts and figures) given in the case.
Tips: Allocate some time to read all the material and the remaining to make the presentation. (It was not like the usual cases we get in class. But a real world scenario with the different reports, survey results and so on.) Create a clear structure for your presentation. During the presentation, defend your point with good logic. I made an incorrect recommendation as I had missed some piece of information, but then corrected myself there. So, I feel its better to course correct rather than sticking to the wrong point

Round: HR Interview
Experience: The interviewer had a checklist and was asking regular PI questions, mostly based on prior professional experiences. Was trying to know about my past experience of working in a team – Team player, team leader, any project management experience. Something situation where you did not succeed?

2 rounds of case interviews : Structured approach while solving the cases (if not the exact solution) ; Will make you do the cases then and there ; Also had a case presentation round Final round will be PI and focus on mainly checking your leadership skills

Skills: Leadership Skills
College Name: Indian School Of Business (ISB)

Round: Case Study Interview
Experience: The focus is more on structured approach and your analytical skills (i.e. the way you interpret the given data).
Tips: Be hands on. Do the calculations as for market sizing they are looking for a number. For other questions also, listing down your ideas would be a good idea. The questions are not very hard. They want you to think clearly and logically, with some data analysis. Practicing a few market sizing/new product launch/market entry/ pricing cases was helpful. Knowing those frameworks comes a little handy. I went wrong with my calculation a bit, but then corrected myself, so it was okay

Round: Case Study Interview
Experience: During the presentation, defend your point with good logic. I made an incorrect recommendation as I had missed some piece of information, but then corrected myself there. So, I feel its better to course correct rather than sticking to the wrong point
Tips: Allocate some time to read all the material and the remaining to make the presentation. (It was not like the usual cases we get in class. But a real world scenario with the different reports, survey results and so on.) Create a clear structure for your presentation.

Round: Other Interview
Experience: Personal Interview was the last round and taken by the Principal/senior person. It is an equally important round and aims to check whether you are the right fit for the role or not. So, questions will be asked to check your situation handling skills and leadership capabilities.
Tips: The interviewer had a checklist and was asking regular PI questions, mostly based on prior professional experiences. Was trying to know about my past experience of working in a team – Team player, team leader, any project management experience.

Skills: Analytical Skills, Logical And Structured Thinking, team leader, Team Player, Leadership Skills
College Name: S.P. Jain Institute Of Management And Research

Round: Case Study Interview
Experience: The focus is more on structured approach and your analytical skills (i.e. the way you interpret the given data). PI was the last round and taken by the Principal/senior person. It is an equally important round and aims to check whether you are the right fit for the role or not. So, questions will be asked to check your situation handling skills and leadership capabilities. .


Tips: Round 1: Be hands on. Do the calculations as for market sizing they are looking for a number. For other questions also, listing down your ideas would be a good idea. The questions are not very hard. They want you to think clearly and logically, with some data analysis.
Practicing a few market sizing/new product launch/market entry/ pricing cases was helpful. Knowing those frameworks comes a little handy.

Round 2: Allocate some time to read all the material and the remaining to make the presentation. (It was not like the usual cases we get in class. But a real world scenario with the different reports, survey results and so on.) Create a clear structure for your presentation. During the presentation, defend your point with good logic. I made an incorrect recommendation as I had missed some piece of information, but then corrected myself there. So, I feel its better to course correct rather than sticking to the wrong point.

Skills: Ability To Handle Situations, Analytical Skills, LOGICAL THINKING ABILITIES, team leader, Team Player
College Name: Indian School Of Business (ISB)