Think practically when answering this question. There are several factors you can list that can assist in ending the pandemic. However, you should prioritize and allocate your resources accordingly. Here is how a WSO user answered:

“I would utilize the necessary resources to benefit the physical and psychological needs of society.”

While this was a good attempt, it is suggested that you go into further detail. With this example, you could mention examples of the physical and psychological needs along with the resources that would help combat these needs. 

There are so many options to pick from, and the choice is up to you. However, it is advised that you stay away from any controversial options. Here is what a user said:

“I would choose to invite Jeff Bezos. I admire his nonstandard approach to leading his company and his focus on customers over pure financial metrics. Additionally, he is self-made, and I respect that more than anything.” 

This is an example of an unorthodox question which Centerview Partners loves to ask. Below are some ways to use a pencil provided by a WSO user.

“The question is designed to see how creative you can be with the pencil. I listed the following as my uses and went into detail for some of them. For example, when I said a weapon, I mentioned the movie ‘John Wick’, which ended up being one of my interviewer's favorites.

• Drumstick replacements
• An eraser
• A skewer to roast marshmallows
• A weapon
• A rolling pin
• To pop balloons
• Use to light a fire
• A bookmark”

Hypothetical questions are often asked by interviewers to get some insight into your thought process. For this question, your answer should reflect your knowledge of equity value and what causes it to increase or decrease. This is what a user said:

“I said that EV goes up because of the decrease in cash, but because the public is informed, the stock price would decrease to offset the initial increase in EV or even cause an overall decrease in it. Just remember that Equity Value is also affected.”

You can find more information on equity value here. 

Be thoughtful with this, and try to show off your creativity. Centerview Partners wants to see how well-rounded you are, and by displaying signs of other skills, such as creativity, you’re going to be on their radar. Also, you will be asked why you chose this name, so be sure to have a valid reason.

Here is a sample answer provided by a user:

“I’d title my autobiography ‘Always Thinking Ahead’ since I’m always trying to consider what my next move would be.” 

This question is meant to test your mental math and how quickly you’re able to find a solution. It could be solved by breaking it down like this:

 (99+1)*(99-1)+(1*1) = 9,801

There are a few different things you can mention to show the differences between the two. A notable one is that EV/EBITDA is used as an Enterprise Multiple, and P/E is the Price Earnings Ratio. Here is what a WSO user said:

“EV/EBITDA is capital structure independent whereas P/E depends on capital structure. And so, that's why companies that are completely identical in all ways, except capital structure, can have very different P/E ratios.”

This is an example of a question you may get if you’re interviewing for the Healthcare sector at Centerview Partners. Depending on the sector you choose to work for, you should always have certain information about it on hand.

For this question, you should know what the differences are. Below is an example of how to answer it:

“I explained that the FCF's start after a drug gains FDA approval and that they are projected out until a patent expires. Also, I said that Terminal Value tends to be close to 0 given the existence of generics and there is a negative terminal growth rate.”

CAPM is the acronym for Capital Asset Pricing Model. The formula for it is:

ERi = Rf + βi (ERM – Rf )

Where: 

• ERi = Expected Return on Investment
• βi = Beta
• ERM - Rf = Market Risk Premium
• Rf = Risk-Free Rate

The answer is entirely up to you, so long as you know how to support your claim. Your reasoning is the most important part of the answer.

This question touches on a controversial topic, and so you should approach it respectfully. Dick’s is known for selling guns, and so that’s a revenue stream for them. By getting rid of the guns, the company is losing out on making more money.

So this question is to determine what your values are. Here is what a user said:

“While a decision may be bad for the bottom line, it is important for companies in the long term to invest in image (hence why they do advertising campaigns on altruism and humanistic things). So I believe that the CEO should make this announcement.”

However, you should note that since this is a controversial topic, there is a chance that your interviewer might disagree with your views. 

Similar to question number 7, break up the multiplications to make it easier to calculate. A WSO user suggests this process:

(60 x 20) + 60 - 21 = 1239

Some of the costs include land, the cost of building roller coasters, wages, advertisement, insurance, maintenance, and government licenses. As for revenues, there are tickets, merchandise, and advertisements to be sold.

The way you answer this question is dependent on your reasons, so there’s no fixed answer. Also, you don't want to sound average because no one has wanted to do M&A since they were a kid.

 Here is what a WSO user said:

“I’ve become interested in M&A due to the technicalities of the division. However, to summarize, my reasons for wanting to work in M&A are:

1. To strategize about takeover situations
2. To help companies grow in a low organic growth era
3. To take advantage of recessionary era low prices”

This is a delicate question because who knows? However, your response will be important to Centerview. Here is an example of how a user answered:

“Ideally, the goal is to continue to work in finance and move up the ranks to become a senior banker. I’m passionate about the field and would like to continuously work in it as the industry advances.

To me, Centerview Partners would play an important role in my long-term goal. The firm has a reputation of working with their junior bankers to help them become the best they can be, and this is extremely important to me as I progress in my profession.”

Also, it’s not recommended to mention an interest in the buy-side, like Private Equity or Hedge Funds. They aren't asking you to make a lifetime commitment to staying in banking, but you are not getting hired unless you are at least open to the possibility.

Here's where you can stand out by showing a knowledge of the industry as a whole, and Centerview in particular. Before answering this question, you should have a fair idea of what a bulge bracket (BB) and a boutique bank are.

When you hear the term, bulge bracket bank, think of the most established investment banks. These are banks that offer other financial services aside from investment banking. However, a boutique bank refers to firms that provide at least one type of investment banking service.

Aside from this being a major difference between the two types of banks, there are a few others. These are noted below.

• BB banks provide full investment banking services and may even offer retail banking services. On the other hand, boutique banks focus on only one or two areas of IB.
• Most BB banks have an international presence with offices on different continents, whereas a boutique bank may just have domestic offices. 
• BB banks tend to have larger deals to work with in comparison to boutique banks. 

Sample answer:

“There were a few different things that I mentioned to show the differences between the two. I mentioned the conflict of interest inherent in providing financing to clients while advising on transactions.

I also talked about the conflicts that come up among banking, research, and trading all the time as well as the conflicts that come up when you also have to serve the interests of public shareholders.”

By asking this, Centerview Partners wants to see how you would function in such a situation. With that being said, there is no right or wrong answer here. The interviewer just wants to know how you would prioritize in this situation.

Here is an example of an answer provided by a WSO user:

“You immediately sound better when you make what you are going to say clear before you say it, and you make your answer sound like it has a structured thought process.

My advice is to deal with it in as calm and rigorous a way as possible. These are never before seen creatures, and by maintaining your composure, there’s a chance that the situation can be dealt with effectively.

The focus should be getting people to a safe location as quickly as possible. With this goal in mind, I’d employ the necessary forces to assist with the relocation.

Since New York City is so large, the task forces would be divided by neighborhoods and boroughs to ensure the process would be efficient.

As people are being evacuated, I’d work with my team to try to encourage negotiations with the aliens to avoid further destruction.” 

Riddles and brainteasers are one of the ways that the interviewers try to pick at your brain. If you feel intimidated, try providing an estimate. But, you should take into consideration factors such as the number of airports in your city, the time, and international airports.

Below is an example of how a user approached this question:

“I chose to start with London since that was where I was interviewing. I worked out the number of planes over London at that specific time, taking into account different airports, airplanes landing/taking off, and airplanes flying over.

Then, I worked out the size of London in square miles compared to the surface area of the world. Worked out the surface area of the world using the formula for surface area of a sphere and depth of the earth's core. After, I multiplied the original figure I had about London to scale to the world.”

You would discount it by Cost of Equity (COE) since you calculate NOL based on EBT, which are earnings only available to equity holders since it already takes into consideration interest.

The choice is yours here. Both options are attractive, but you have to explain why you prefer one over the other. The user who provided this answer chose to receive $10,000 a month, and here is how they supported their answer:

“I talked about calculating the NPV of the $10,000/month cash flow. So I asked for the assumed discount rate, and I was told it was 10%. Therefore I picked the $10,000/month for the rest of my life based on the Gordon Growth formula, as its NPV would be $1.2 million when discounted.”

There are a few different reasons why there is a difference. This includes:

• Competitive advantage
• Stronger management team
• Stronger intellectual property
• Better future growth prospects

The TEV doesn't change because cash is not part of the company's core operational assets.

Non-controlling interest (NCI), also known as minority interest, is when the parent company owns more than 50% of another company. And so, the parent company would have to report 100% of the assets, liabilities, and financial performance of the said company.

Here is how a WSO user explained their answer:

“Whenever a company owns over 50% of another company, it is required to report the financial performance of the other company as part of its performance. So even though it doesn't own 100%, it reports 100% of the majority-owned subsidiary's financial performance.

In keeping with the "apples-to-apples" theme, you must add Minority Interest to get the Enterprise Value so that your numerator and denominator both reflect 100% of the majority-owned subsidiary.”

In most cases, the formula would be sufficient enough. If however, you want to go the extra mile, you can mention the purpose of enterprise value to show your interviewer that you fully understand what it is. But, this question asks for the formula so you have to mention that.

The formula for Enterprise Value is:

EV=Market Capitalization +Total Debt + Minority Interest + Preferred Shares - Cash & Cash Equivalents

Here is a sample answer from a WSO user:

“I explained EV using stakeholders as the basis, then walking through the value of a firm being a combination of what is attributed to equity and debtholders.”

The premise sounds intimidating but if you have a good plan to handle the task, you’ll be fine. That’s all your interviewer wants to hear - what methods you’re going to use to sort through the documents. Be creative with your answer and ask for some time to think.

A WSO user said this:

“I would use a sample size that I can work with within an hour and then use the data I gathered from the sample size to get an approximation.”

To answer this question, you would have to be aware of what’s going on with Uber. Typically, Uber tends to underperform and so you’d have to provide recommendations to assist them in profit.

You can suggest several things such as price increases, additional services, or even getting rid of some services. Here is what a WSO user suggests:

“I answered the Uber CEO question by saying that I would raise prices to become more profitable once it has strong market share and spend less on self driving cars research and development (R&D).”