Assessment Centres
I've got a final round assessment centre for JP Morgan London IBD next week. Does anyone know what to expect or how to prepare for these?
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Best readings for Assessment Center prep (Originally Posted: 10/21/2012)
Hey, guys: I am looking to prepare for an upcoming assessment center at a BB. I have read Pearl/Rosenbaum/Perella and a book similar to the Vault guides. But I don't think they contain enough exercises relevant for assessment centers. Any tips will be appreciated! Thanks!
i've searched forever and i'm sorry to say you'll never find these online- ask a friend to hook you up with old ones.
honestly someone should just collect these and start selling them...
assessment center in UK (Originally Posted: 11/20/2007)
"consists of three competency-based interviews, a case study report, a presentation and a group exercise" what does this include? I know most people here are from the US but would be grateful if somebody could explain this UK thing. Thanks
1) Interviews - the three interviews will be centered around probing your motivations for doing the job, why the firm, maybe some team based questions, but largely they will be of the fit variety. Think of what you had in the first round, and expand on it. 2) Case study - given a scenario, you have to answer questions about it. Mine was quite financial based (not overly complex - giving ratios, using funny margin names that you may not have heard) but again, it is not rocket science, just need common sense about the company and industry. Mine was a merger, give reasons why to do this merger, what is your view on the industry (was autos - so view = poor). Keep it short and to the point, dont ramble, write in bullet points not long pararaphs. Remember it's a bank not uni. 3) Presentation - being given some scenario and making a short pres on it. No more than 10 odd mins, have to answer questions re the topic. Again, the scenario is not overly complex, but you should have sound, rational financial reasons for why you are presenting it. Again dont present long boring sentences, short, sharp, to the point, speak to the page, that is what MDs do. 4) Group - this is the worst. dont be the over achiever who wants to dominate the conversation. Try to make pertinent points while steering convo in the right direction. MDs and HR sit around and take notes as you and a group of other candidates battle it out to figure some problem out. Mine was some ridiculous nonsense of a topic. I'm sure you know it isn't the solution but how you find it that matters.
Good luck with it, sorry I couldn't dredge more up but it was a good 3 years since I did mine.
thanks very much dude... If there's something industry related/accounting ratios in FI interviews it'd be better for me to jump from the window...i am a purely FI type of person. I can speak about macro and math for hours but don't know anything about balance sheets, companies etc.
What Are "Assessment Centres"? (Originally Posted: 10/21/2008)
I am just curious, what are assessment centres?
Mainly used abroad. A series of tests that gauge numerical ability, problem-solving skills, etc. I've also heard of case studies (even for ibd interviews), including modeling and presentations. Obviously, every bank differs. Some are completed online before the interview, though I have heard of others taking them (or parts of them) on interview day. I know there are a couple of international bballers on WSO, would love to hear their thoughts.
BB SA Assessment Centre (Originally Posted: 10/31/2014)
Hey guys,
I've been invited to attend a BB assessment centre next week for IBD in London. They advised that the day will consist of a repeat numerical test, group exercise, individual presentation and interview. Can anyone advise/give tips on the following?
1) What the group exercise will be like/what they are looking for; 2) How to prepare for the individual presentation, ie if it's all off the cuff vs an in-depth company pitch; 3) How much technical knowledge is required for the interview - is a broad understanding of accounting and DCF analysis sufficient?
Thanks a lot!
Group exercise is just analyzing some information you'll be handed. Think; where should company X open a new office? or Which target company should Company Y acquire? Not much you can do to prepare for this. Make sure you're heard during the exercise but don't come across as overly eager, it will make you look like someone you don't want to work with. Also, think before you speak, it's crazy how many people say some stupid shit just so they can say something. This makes you look like an idiot.
You can't prepare for the individual presentation. In terms of what you'll have to do it's similar kind of topics like the group exercise.
Broad knowledge of accounting and DCF is often enough. Know you WACC's and financial statements and you should be fine. Also, be able to talk at little bit intelligently about what's going on in the markets (both financial and product specific markets).
Great, thanks! Do you think I'll need to be able to prepare a merger model as well?
Mm, apparently WSO decided to change my name to Abigail-Horn. I guess I can live with that.
Yeah, it happened to me to. We're all Abigail-Horn, brah.
da fuq is going on here
Everyone logged in as this person?!
She is going to get so many banana's...
In b4 we are all unHorned.
I'd give you a banana for this comment, but I can't give it to myself...
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I'm the real Abigail-Horn! Why won't you listen to me?!?!?!?!
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