Comprehensive Approach to Brainstorming in Case Ineterviews

Рет қаралды 43,307

10 жыл бұрын

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A detailed brainstorming approach is presented for McKinsey and other interviewer-led cases

Пікірлер: 45

@Kris.Safarova 3 жыл бұрын

We hope you will find this video helpful. Let us know what do you struggle with the most in your career/business. And as you are building your skills with FIRMSconsulting content please also focus on building a skill set that will serve you for the rest of your life, versus only focusing on achieving a short term goal.

@ashishp3954 4 жыл бұрын

Brainstorming is a core thinking process, and this FC episode is one of the best episodes to learn how to brainstorm!

@Samuel-bw6hg 4 жыл бұрын

Allow me to call it the 'Spoke Test': "if your decision tree bears any semblance to a bicycle spoke, you are doing it the wrong way. Every driver cannot directly affect the problem. " It is also interesting to see how one can actually apply prioritization to a decision tree.

@brunofreire5968 5 жыл бұрын

Thanks for posting, it was really helpful to help me be more structured in my brainstormings. When you're focused on a specific subcategory, you can come up with more ideas about that category, so the ideas become exhaustive as well as independent from each other

@ashishp3954 4 жыл бұрын

The approaches and strategies taught by FC are universal and can be used even during internal brainstorming with peers and stakeholders at work!

@firmsconsulting 4 жыл бұрын

Very true

@Samuel-bw6hg 4 жыл бұрын

Absolutely true!

@fluorine121 4 жыл бұрын

very structural and eloquent in thinking. Amazing!

@josemariaperalta7378 4 жыл бұрын

Thanks FC, last week I applied this skill at my internship as a tool to identify the risks from a operation, it helped me to come up with a pair of insights and also to communicate them,

@firmsconsulting 4 жыл бұрын

Glad to hear you are getting results, Jose.

@Samuel-bw6hg 4 жыл бұрын

You know, this comment birthed an idea in me that I am going to check out! Thanks!

@Lucas-go3vu 5 жыл бұрын

Very well structured!

@Mithaerian 5 жыл бұрын

Amazing! It is really easy when you are defining what you are trying to brainstorm. I always did it the old messed way. Throwing out ideas and hoping to get results. Following your approach it is easy to generate more valuable ideas. Thanks!

@firmsconsulting 4 жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful

@SpaghettiToaster 2 жыл бұрын

I don't understand how portfolio mix and price per unit are supposed to be independent from each other. Since we only consider number of cars sold independent of model, to obtain revenue, we must be multiplying by the *average* price of a sold car, which is directly dependent on the portfolio mix. Hence, portfolio mix and cost per unit are not mutually exclusive. Instead, in my opinion, price per unit should be further subdivided into price per model and share in sales of each model, or probably price averages of segments rather than models.

@Jigy58 10 жыл бұрын

By Definition A cost that does not change with an increase or decrease in the amount of goods or services produced. Fixed costs are expenses that have to be paid by a company, independent of any business activity. and how can Lab our and material be put in the same. For this case fixed cost should be plant and machinery..??

@reemfahim1798 8 ай бұрын

interesting video and a clear way in terms of approaching brainstorming, I just couldn't help pausing at the choice of "materials" for fixed cost, it wasn't absorbed; even with the rationale that it could be considered a FC in some circumstances (as long term contracts / volume discount for a fixed volume) but then how can you manipulate it ?

@mohitsingha1809 Жыл бұрын

Excellent presentation Sir.

@firmsconsulting Жыл бұрын

Many thanks

@RuxandaMD 10 жыл бұрын

Thank you for the video! I have only one question: why are you putting labor and materials under fixed costs? Shouldn't they be under variable costs?

@firmsconsulting 4 жыл бұрын

It can be. Imagine if you have to make a commitment to purchase certain quantities to get a discount. You sign a contract and make a commitment to purchase certain quantities. In that situation it becomes a fixed cost. Same for labour. If you have full time employees or contractors where you have a commitment to pay them over a certain period then that portion of labour cost is fixed.

@rajatmishra5049 7 жыл бұрын

In the L1, while explaining MECE, you mentioned you can change product mix while keeping avg.cost and units produced unchanged. How is that possible when product mix has direct implication on Avg cost ? Please explain

@Lightsparks12 5 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the episode!

@firmsconsulting 4 жыл бұрын

You are very welcome, Thao

@chenjustin6747 10 жыл бұрын

Thank you for the excellent video, it is very helpful. One question I'm curious about is what should be written down and shown to the interviewer? As you mentioned we probably don't have the time to write all the branches and sub-branches within the acceptable time frame (1 min), to what layer of the decision tree would you write down? Thank you in advance.

@Samuel-bw6hg 4 жыл бұрын

This is where prioritizing branches helps. Another thing you should do is sketch a rough tree to the second layer and then talk your way through what you have and build the rest as you go. If you are a subscriber, you would have heard about the "blind navigator" concept that emphasizes the importance of constantly communicating your thinking with your client (interviewer), that way, you stop yourself from going down a path only to be told you are wrong at the end. The goal at the end of the day is to brainstorm in your head. Tasking but possible.

@nanabinnana2241 4 жыл бұрын

Very informative. Will check out the site for online training coz am.in Africa

@firmsconsulting 4 жыл бұрын

Hi Sham, Thank you for your comment and kind words.

@cesareborgia6431 Жыл бұрын

13:00 you can increase demand by lowering the price... but price is on another line. So is it really MECE?

@Lightsparks12 4 жыл бұрын

👍👍👍

@firmsconsulting 4 жыл бұрын

Glad you found it helpful

@mohitsingha1809 Жыл бұрын

I guess labor is a fixed cost but are materials part of a fixed cost?

@ognjenmladenovic9960 7 жыл бұрын

But, the output is just a number of units produced? Why would the price be output?

@hashaamjaved2669 4 жыл бұрын

it says value of output not just output

@joeomahoney1277 5 жыл бұрын

Surely materials are a variable cost?

@firmsconsulting 4 жыл бұрын

@SpaghettiToaster 2 жыл бұрын

@@firmsconsulting But by that logic, it should be impossible to improve productivity by reducing unit costs of production, since all cost components of making a car are fixed in your framework.

@BobbyMully 10 жыл бұрын

Does a typical consulting interviewee use a pen & paper in the interview?

@firmsconsulting 9 жыл бұрын

Bobby Mulligan Yes, you can do that. I personally prefer a pencil since ink can smudge.

@bcbsmamarketing136 9 жыл бұрын

Can you take 3-5 minutes to gather your thoughts, interpret and sketch out a starting frame work before you start addressing the case with the interviewer ? Instead of taking just 1-2 minutes ? The more upfront thinking and planning you do, the more you can think through a collectively exhaustive framework.

@firmsconsulting 9 жыл бұрын

Bcbsma Marketing Generally, you want to think out aloud versus taking to long pauses. We can statistically prove you have a lower probability of being wrong with your answers when you think out aloud. Hope that helps.

@bcbsmamarketing136 9 жыл бұрын

Thanks, I agree, but you still want those few minutes to decide your rough approach, framework and decision tree and brainstorm your way through particularly on a out of the blue case. Otherwise, if you start talking too soon you also risk talking irrelevant details till you finally get down the right road. Is silence not golden for those initial few minutes ? You have to talk through the deatils in rest 40 minutes anyways.

@firmsconsulting 9 жыл бұрын

Bcbsma Marketing Why can you not think out aloud as you are preparing your rough approach? Why do you need to do that silently?

@firmsconsulting 9 жыл бұрын

***** Not saying this is easy to do. But that is what you should aim to do.