Case Interviews
How do I stop running out of time in case interviews?
In mock cases, I usually get good feedback on my structure and business sense, but I often take too long and don't finish. Some cases seem to reward going deep on a few areas, while others require moving quickly across several parts. How do I know when to go deep and when to move on?
Ian’s Answer
First, you can stop thinking this way!
Focus on the objective - what actually matters? This will help you sift through unimportant information
Create a framework/buckets/hypothesis that allow for process of elimination - you should always be thinking high-level first, to eliminate areas you don't need to look at. For example, with a market entry, do we really care about looking at the competitive landscape, our product mix, etc. if the market is both tiny and shrinking? No! So, look at that first!
Forget about long vs short case - They are all problems. So, solve the problem! Figure out the 2-3 things that matter, and chase those!