About Case Interviews

What is a Case Interview anyway?

Simulation of a business problem. Similar to what our associates encounter every day. Series of open-ended questions. Theyre designed to stimulate your conceptual, quantitative, analytical and most importantly creative abilities.

There are several types of cases. Each designed to assess different skills.

Classic Case o Should an organi!ation add capacity" o #ow should an organi!ation react to a new competitor" o Should an organi!ation enter$e%it a new$old mar&et" o 'easures (our broad functional s&ills (our big-picture perspective (our comfort with detail and analysis

What are we looking for?

)ogical s&ills *nalytical$reasoning s&ills Conceptual problem-solving abilities Critical path thin&ing +le%ibility

What do we mean by

,roblem-solving ability" o Can you identify the &ey issues of the case while accurately and methodically reaching the solution" Critical path thin&ing" o Can you use clues that build on each other while staying on trac& and focusing on whats relevant" +le%ibility" o Can you adapt your answers to a changing situation"

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About Case Interviews

What do yo! need to bring?

(our logical business sense. o . #ow do decreasing marginal costs affect profitability" o . /hat effect will fi%ed costs have on the result" (our mathematical aptitude. o +rom basic mathematics to 0 *lgebra ,robability /eighted averages 1nit conversion (our strategic interpretation s&ills. o Can you ... 2nterpret your answers impact" *ssess alternatives" 3eep a grasp on the 4big picture5 as well as the minor details" (our presentation s&ills. o Can you ... Clearly state your thoughts and synthesi!e information" 6%plain how your answer changes in the face of changing variables" 7efend your answer"

"o! will be solving real#life problems with real#life ob$ectives%

8perational efficiency ma%imi!ation ,roduct profitability 'ar&et e%pansion$product development +inancial decision ma&ing ,rofit ma%imi!ation 9rea&even points Strategic pricing and planning

What Case Interviews &re '(T%

:ot a means of intimidation :ot the only deciding factor :ot easy

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2 Updated 10/2 /2011

About Case Interviews

& )ample Case%

9ac&ground 2nformation o (ou are a manager at a company that mar&ets various products and services and that is loo&ing to diversify. o (ou receive some information that indicates maga!ine publishing may be interesting. o (ou are considering developing a new maga!ine but are not sure how profitable it might be. What are some of the issues you must consider when evaluating the business?

Things to consider o 7efining the target mar&et o Competition ;< of competitors, fragmentation, brand name= o 9uild off of core competencies o 9arriers to entry o 9usiness cycle stage o 'ethod of measuring viability o 8pportunity cost The next step is to understand the economics of the business. What are the profit drivers in the magazine publishing business?

'ain profit drivers of the publishing business include ... Sources of -evenue Subscriptions :ewsstand sales *dvertising Customer lists 2nternet Costs

,rinting 7istribution Content development 'ar&eting$promotions

Through some initial research you have been able to determine the following ... o o o o o o (ou can charge >?@ for an annual subscription of @A issues )ets ignore newsstand sales for now (ou can generate >B in advertising revenue per issue for each subscription ,rinting and distribution costs are >B per copy per issue Content development costs run >B million per year )ets ignore mar&eting e%penses for now

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! Updated 10/2 /2011

About Case Interviews How much profit will you generate a year from one incremental subscription? Subscription revenue per year C >?@ *dvertising revenue per year C >@A >B$issue % @A issues (early production and distribution costs C >@A >B$issue % @A issues Profit from one incremental subscription = $25 $25 + $50 - $50 How many subscriptions do we need to sell to break even? ,rofit ;contribution margin= C >?@ per subscription 'aga!ine content development C >B million per year Breakeven = $1 million/$25 = 40,000 subscriptions What about marketing costs? (our company has e%pertise in direct mail solicitation so you decide to use that method to mar&et your maga!ine. 6ach piece of mail costs >.@A. (ou are able to achieve a ?D response rate. How much does it cost you to sign up a subscriber? Cost per subscriber calculation Cost of mailing$response rate C cost to sign up one subscriber >.@A$?D C >?@ per subscriber *nother way to calculate cost per subscriber *ssume you mail offer to BAA people Costs C >@A ;>A.@A % BAA people= -esponders C ? ;?D of BAA= Cost per responder C >@A$? or >?@ How will this affect your breakeven calculation? :ew brea& even calculation 8ld contribution margin 'ar&eting costs C :ew contribution margin :ew contribution margin C >?@ - >?@ C >A 8uchE

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Updated 10/2 /2011

About Case Interviews What can we do to make this venture better? Some possible considerations -aise subscription prices -aise advertising rates -educe production costs 2ncrease response rate 'a&e each response matter moreF consider renewals and multi-year subscriptions
&dditional Case Interview Tips%

Stay confident stay cool Show enthusiasm not frustration 9e thorough avoid mista&es *s& questions Show your stuff

&dditional Case Interview *eso!rces%

/ebsites o http $$www.Goinbain.com$apply-to-bain$interview-preparation$default.asp has sample cases you can practice. o http $$www.quintcareers.com$caseHinterviewHresources.html has different resources including boo&s on case interviews. o www.casequestions.com is all about case interviews. Credit Card Terms o http $$www.creditcards.com$credit-card-news$credit-card-glossary-termsfirst-credit-card.php 9rea&even analysis o http $$fastIcast.com$brea&-even-calculator.asp% o http $$accountinge%plained.com$managerial$cvp-analysis$brea&-evenpoint-equation-method Capital B Case o http $$www.capitalone.com$careers$interviewprep$analyst$interviewing$cas eHinterview.php"lin&idC///HJHJHJHJH#AHAKHTHC2*2C Consulting Terms

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" Updated 10/2 /2011

About Case Interviews o http $$managementconsulted.com$core-content$dictionary$ 8ther Sites o http $$careercenter.tamu.edu$guides$interviews$case.cfm" snCprospectivestudents o http $$www.acethecase.com$ o http $$www.bcg.com$GoinHbcg$interviewHprep$interactiveHcase$default.asp % o http $$www.imahal.com$careers$management$interviews$interviewsHcaseHt actics.htm o )everage www.youtube.com and search 4case interviews5 9oo&s o

ault !ui"e #o #$e %ase &ntervie' by Mark sher! "ric #hung! and The $taff of %ault o %ase &n Point, %omplete %ase &ntervie' Preparation by Marc &. #osentino

Capital One Confidential/ProprietaryCapital One does not provide, endorse, nor guarantee and is not liable for third party products, services, educational tools, or other information available through this site. -ead additional disclosures.
# Updated 10/2 /2011