In vivo measurement of root FCR activity in tomato 52

interview The first case was about a pharmaceutical company which had come out with a new eyedrop which cures myopia, and I had to price the product. Here we had to look at

alternatives, such as cost of wearing glasses all your life, and

The Consulting & Strategy Club, IIM Lucknow Page 66

the amount you would be spending, and discounting the amount you spend each year. I mentioned the cost of glasses, doctor visits, contacts, also laser surgery etc, to finally compute the price.

The second case which I got in the 3^rd round, was also about a medical company which was facing a problem of falling profits. Here there were several problems, low productivity, and falling sales as well. Here the sales force was required to convince the doctors about its products, as they would then prescribe the medicines. Important thing here was whether they were targeting the right doctors who had a lot of patients, whether doctors were already loyal to some other company etc.

What do you think went right in this interview?

What worked in all the interviews is that I was quite calm, and the interview was more of a discussion, rather than a question answer interaction. I think it’s best to be frank and just treat the interviewer as someone who is actually

interested in hearing about your experiences.

As for the case interviews, it is very important to ask questions if you have any queries, and to always let him know why you are making whichever choices and assumptions in the course of the case.

What do you think went wrong in this interview

I don’t think anything went wrong.

Any tips for future batches on the basis of your experience

Practicing a lot of cases not only with others, but also going through solutions on your own helps a lot. It is important to keep analyzing your mistakes rather than doing a lot of cases. HR answers are probably even more important than the case themselves, so it is important to prepare them well in advance.

Interview Experience 7

Name: Swati Sengar

Company: McKinsey & Co.

Name of interviewer

and designation Deepak, Partner

The Consulting & Strategy Club, IIM Lucknow Page 67

Brief Profile B.Com (Hons) from Shri Ram College of Commerce 23 months work experience with KPMG

Interview questions Since it was Deepak’s first interview of the day, he didn’t want to do a case. It was a 20-30 minutes HR interview. The broad questions were:

- About work experience ( I focussed on achievements and initiatives)

- About dance (my spike as per my CV: I focussed on leadership skills, handling failures and motivation skills adopted)

- Biggest failure in life

- Conflict management techniques used in teams - Academic performance at IIML (he was referring to

my CGP of term 1)

- Life at IIML ( I focussed on my learnings, positive and negative aspects)

Narration of the case

interview No case

What do you think went right in this interview?

Since it was my first interview of the day, I was quite enthusiastic and had a big smile on my face (appearance is very important). I was relieved when Deepak told me that he didn’t want to do a case. I tried to answer in a story-telling format (its important that the interviewer understands the flow of the answer).

I believe my energy level was good and I was quite

confident while conversing with Deepak (important to note that its a conversation and not a question-answer session).

Before entering the room, a senior had told me that Deepak was in Australia for 2 years so I brought it up in the

conversation.

Also, Deepak was among the first batch of students who were recruited by McKinsey. I asked him about his experience and he seemed quite emotional about it.

What do you think went wrong in this interview?

For a few questions like biggest failure in life, I first gave an answer which he thought was an achievement and not a failure. Later, I substantiated the answer with another instance which seemed to satisfy him.

The Consulting & Strategy Club, IIM Lucknow Page 68

I was using my hands a little too much and I think Deepak was getting distracted by the movement.

Any tips for future batches on the basis of your experience

- Its very important to keep energy level high

- Engage the interviewer in a conversation and don’t stop yourself from saying something by virtue of being the interviewee. Give yourself importance and talk proudly about your past experiences

- Pick up hints thrown by the interviewer - A firm handshake always works and exudes

confidence

- Don’t freak out and have fun A T Kearney

Interview Experience 8

Name: Nidhi Mehta

Company: A.T Kearney

Name of interviewer

and designation 1^st Round : Sidharth Jain , 2^nd round : Praveen (Principal), 3^rd round Manish(Partner)

Round 3 rounds

Brief Profile Shri Ram College of Commerce ( Eco Hons), 13 months work-ex with Tata Capital Ltd. (Senior Credit Officer) Interview questions Round 1:Tell me about yourself ; post the case I was asked

to give my view on the recent reduction in CRR rates Round 2: Why Consulting ?

Round 3: No HR questions were asked. However,The