While this question seems fairly open-ended, don’t let the sincerity of it make you feel as though you can share all your expectations of the firm. Instead, think about your expectations and consider which ones seem reasonable. Share those instead.

A WSO user said the following:

“If McKinsey were to hire me, I would expect that they would support my growth within the firm, providing me with the coaching and tools in order to overachieve and reach my ambitions. If these expectations are met, then I’m sure to perform my best for the company's sake.”

This question calls for your personal opinion. Over the past years, many companies have shifted to online services to keep up with the technological advances happening in society. Given how common this is, you should have an opinion on the matter.

Here is what a WSO user said:

“I believe that most businesses started digitalizing their services to remain relevant. However, this isn’t a bad thing. There are many positives to digitalizing services. Two examples that I can think of are lower staff costs and greater efficiency.”

There are several things you can mention that would assist you in answering this question. You can say you’ll speak to your supervisor for guidance or work independently to find your answer. The choice is yours. This is what a WSO user said:

“At my previous job, I had my own methodology to find out information. The goal was to determine and make a plan for the task at hand. First, I would determine who I could contact or what resources I could reference to find the information. Then, develop an execution plan based on the information. Upon execution, I’d evaluate my results for improvements and lessons learned.”

This is an example of a case study McKinsey gave its incoming consultants. Please note that this is the shortened version of the entire case.

Here is how a WSO user approached it:

“Before giving my full answer, I asked some questions to clarify what the objective was. Ultimately, I learned that the priority was to avoid getting straight to the refinancing to restructure but understand and explore terms and interview employees to understand the case.

Also, I explored the terms of the restructuring to be offered and how to manage the political complications amongst different parties.”

Your answer here is dependent on your thoughts about the firm itself. In a way, this question is asking why you want to work at McKinsey. If you’re unsure of what to say, some topics you can talk about are their corporate culture, focus on professional development, or the role itself.

Here is what a WSO user said:

“McKinsey’s energy innovation progress is the one thing that stands out to me, especially since I want to be a consultant for the energy industry.”

Failure is normal. It all happens to us at some point in our lives. However, if you’re able to overcome your failure, then you’re one step ahead of most people. There are several ways in which you can overcome your failures.

This is what a WSO user said:

“I look for feedback from others. I think that when you hear critiques to your face, you feel it twice as hard, and that motivates me to work on my failures.” 

At any interview, you’re going to encounter questions that require you to share an experience. This is especially true for consulting interviews. The personal experience interview is predominantly questions that require you to share your stories.

A good way to structure an answer to this question is as follows:

1. Begin by outlining a scenario that matches the one posed by the question
2. Dive into details 
3. Conclude with what you learned

This is what a WSO user said:

“During my university days, I was randomly placed for a group assignment in a class where I didn’t know many people. I suppose that was the point, though, to interact with strangers and work together. Nonetheless, everything went smoothly for the majority of the time until I disagreed with another student.

I don’t remember the full extent of the issue, but I do remember that he had an issue with anyone who had something to say about his work. I wasn’t being rude; I was just giving my opinion. So, he and I got into a little bit of an argument, and it resulted in no communication.

I tried to be the bigger person in the situation and just explained myself to him. I didn’t apologize, but I told him that I was only highlighting points that should be worked on so we could get a good grade. I even said that he was welcome to do that for my work.

All in all, I learned that communication is the only way to solve issues.” 

Some important factors to take into consideration when determining the best distribution methods are:

• Demographic characteristics (age, health, wealth, etc.)
• Population density
• Access to medical centers
• Distance from manufacturing
• Supply chain logistics
• Culture toward medicinal solutions

The alternative energy options are solar, wind, geothermal, hydropower, and bioenergy. There are a few others, but there are the most popular ones. Of these mentioned, you have to pick which is the better option. Since this is an opinionated question, you can choose whichever.

However, you need to support your answer with a strong claim. This is how a WSO user answered:

“Between all of the options, I would rank solar energy as being the best option. The investment horizon for all options is roughly the same, but in the long-run solar energy is much more profitable.”

This is another example where you have to describe the experience. The biggest challenge here is structuring your answer, so it is suggested that you divide it into three main parts - outlining the scenario, getting into the details, and then sharing what you learned.

Here is what a WSO user said:

“During one of my classes at university, I was randomly paired with an international student from China to work on a presentation for our class.

He was a great partner, but we had some trouble with the language barrier. I wouldn’t say that this was outside of my comfort zone, but it was the first time that I had to work with someone who spoke another language.

We eventually had to figure something out because our deadline was approaching. What worked for us was working independently on our aspect of the project. However, when we had to review each other’s parts, it required a lot of patience.

So what I learned from this whole experience was that when working with diverse groups, you must be patient and respectful.” 

It’s always important to have stories in the back of your mind that can be applied to questions like this. For this question, you can discuss any challenges that you’ve recently had. The only bit of advice to offer here is to stay away from any controversial topics.

This is how a WSO user answered this question:

“My biggest challenge this past year was debating whether or not to move to a different country or stay where I am.

The motive behind my move would be to pursue my master’s degree, and although I can do this at home, I wouldn’t have the same level of exposure if I were to move away.

And so, I stepped out of my shell and moved away in the hope of a better future. What made this a challenge for me was to move away from home for the first time and leave my family.”

You’ll likely be asked this question during your interview, so you should have an answer prepared well in advance.

Your answer here is dependent on your personal feelings about the company. However, if you’re struggling to figure out your ‘why’, you can do some research about McKinsey to figure out what about the company makes you want to work there.

Here is how a WSO user answered:

“McKinsey has a strong reputation for working on numerous projects in various fields. They have also done significant work in the IT Strategy space, which is the area I’m interested in.

Having said that, I want to work at McKinsey to be more exposed to and work on such projects.”

Similar to the previous question, your answer is dependent on you. One of the most common answers to this question is that consulting is a fast-paced career where you can work on many different projects.

While this is a good reason for wanting to work in consulting, it’s fairly typical. Try to think outside of the box and consider reasons why this career attracted you.

This is what a WSO user said:

“To be frank with you, I want to work in consulting because I believe it provides me with all the necessary skills for a future in the business world. I’m still a bit undecided on what field I’d like to pursue, but I want to work in consulting so that I can grow professionally.”