Customer Reviews

Case in Point: Complete Case Interview Preparation (10th Anniversary Edition)

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

After reading this book, I have found myself thinking differently about business issues. I had an epiphany on many business issues including:

1)How to increase profitability?
2)How to analyze an industry?
3)How to increase market share and sales?
4)How to think about entering a new market or business?
5)How to analyze Mergers and Acquisitions?
6)How to formulate growth strategies?
7)How to formulate pricing strategies?
8)How to formulate competitive responses?

This book provides a framework in a decision tree format to answer all the above and more. Furthermore, it has 30 case interview questions for sample questions and answers and analysis. Be warned, this book is NOT an easy or breezy read. In order to do well in case interviews typically given by consulting companies (McKinsey, Bain, BCG, Deloitte etc), one would need to master the contents in this book and practice them thoroughly. I would think that would take substantial investment of time and practice (20-50 hours according to many).

Even if you do not want to be a consultant or plan to participate in case interviews, I still recommend this book. If you are running a business, you should understand the basic framework of business. That is, what questions you should be asking and how you should analyze the data you have to formulate an effective strategic business action plan. Contrary to what many believe, running an effective and competitive business takes more than common sense. For example, an effective pricing strategy is often price-based costing (pricing and developing a product and services based on what the consumers are willing to pay) and NOT cost-based pricing (pricing a product based on how much it costs to develop).

I initially purchased the Kindle version of this book. Due to the small print of this book and its many decision trees, the Kindle version of this book (on my Kindle 2) was often illegible, especially the all-important decision trees. So I do NOT recommend the Kindle version of this book. FYI, I am happy with almost all of my Kindle purchases but some books, such as this one, are just better in print.

So I purchased the book and I am very glad I did. I want to give this book 4.5 stars and not full 5 stars mainly because I think much of the concepts are still not completely coherent. Many case interview answers provided, for example, substantially deviated from the IVY system, and that made me question whether the current IVY system is all that complete and exhaustive.

I used this book as part of the interview process and landed a job at one of the Big 3 firms. That being said, I did most of my practice in groups and only used the book to review the week before the interview.

Here is how I used the book:

I spent a lot of time looking at the Ivy Case System. I think that summary is the most interesting/important part of the book. When you think about a case interview, prep is most important when getting those first few ideas down on paper so that you can start the discussion. For me, once I had done that, the rest of the interview was completed without actively thinking about a single thing from my preparation. The case system is great for just thinking about what large buckets you should be considering so you don't miss something important. I also read a few of the sample cases to get the juices flowing a few days before the interviews. The morning of the interview I carefully read the case system to keep things fresh. This prep worked out well for me.

Note: I'd stay far away from the other frameworks in the book (Porter's 5 forces, etc). I heard that the big consulting firms hate those frameworks because they are never applied properly.

I needed an understanding of the different types of cases or problems that I could possibly analyze. Something that I could use for every case that would enable me to do a comprehensive analysis. Case in Point helped me to gain a broad understanding of the various scenarios and gave me a formula for each one. When combined with "How to Get Into the Top Consulting Firms: A Surefire Case Interview Method - 2nd Edition" you get a complete understanding of the problems that exist in the business world and how to solve them. Case in Point enables you to be creative and artistic in your analysis by teaching you how to think about the possible solutions. Every business student should have this book!

Marc Cosentino's book should be the foundation of anyone's preparation for consulting interviews. I recently signed with the most prestigious management consulting firm in the industry after 10 case interviews, and this book has been the key to my success. I'm graduating from a top 20 b-school in May 2010, but it's not a core consulting school, so I did all my preparation on my own.

Case in Point has 1) a great overview of consulting interviews, both the case and non-case questions, 2) a great system for approaching any case question, 3) very detailed frameworks and key factors to use during cases, and 4) a HUGE number of practice cases, along with suggested answers.

I met Marc in person during a seminar at my school, and he is great. His presentation was great, and the book and his website are gold. His website [...], especially the subscriber-only section, has GREAT cases and math drills that make for INCREDIBLE practice.

This book is a must have for anyone interviewing in the consulting or management field. The layout of the book is perfect for reviewing basic concepts and best practices and then applying them to different scenarios. That some of the simulations are of different length is great for studying on the go as it let me select a situation as complex or simple as my time needs permitted.

I enjoyed reading the book, it offered 30 unique cases and answers. Not well suited for McKinsey type cases as theirs are more structured. This book does a poor job explaining ON how to choose a framework and simply claims to MEMORIZE them. Memorizing frameworks will not allot for success.

I got a job at one of the big 3, and it was thanks to this book.

I highly recommend the following system:

1.read the book
2.go to an interview at a company that is not your number one choice
3.and then read the book again and start practicing.

The book starts to be really useful after you truly understand the case interview situation, and for me it was not until after my first interview. The frameworks help you trough every possible case, but you should try to construct maybe 3-4 frameworks based on all the frameworks given and not try to remember every little detail of all the 12 frameworks given.

Case In Point is the case study Bible.

If you have a serious interest in business, consulting or finance, I recommend this book for you. In this book, Marc covers the basics of the interviews, case questions and expectations that a serious interviewer should have in mind. Understanding what is ahead in the interview is a battle itself, but his advice and insight on how to handle these tricky impromptu problem solving tests will allow one to be prepared for what the interviewer is hoping to see.

The writing style in Case In Point is superb. Marc's ability to convey complex material to even the most general audience is fantastic. Examples, analogies and memorization techniques are used as a tool to help one develop a mastery on the subject matter and I have confidence that anyone can do it. It does not matter if you are a novice or an expert on the subject. It is a fun read.

The Ivy Case System is an easy structure which enables the interviewer to deliver a well-formulated response and help one's poise. As this book is a wealth of progressive information, I would not recommend that one skips a page. It is full tips and tricks which incorporate themselves with the rest of the structure. Marc's 12 case structures are simple and logical; however, I must admit, took some time before I felt comfortable regurgitating the information verbally and written, without flaw. The additional frameworks Marc covers, such as the BCG Matrix and Michael Porter's Five Forces, are extremely helpful as well.

The practice consulting cases are important. Real dialogue depicted in this book gives a solid feel for how these cases will be presented and allow one to prepare their responses to questions. Practicing these cases has allowed me to recall examples quickly and easily, adapting my answers to the interview questions I have been presented. Once the reader becomes comfortable with the material, it's a very "plug and play" system, tried, tested and true.

***A very unique addition to this book is "The Roommate's Guide." I very much like as a strong value-added. The simple reading as allowed my non-consulting roommates to practice case interviews with me, giving them a strong idea of what types of questions to ask and how to critique my responses. Overall, I get an additional ten hours each week of practice from them.

Overall, I regard this book as one of my personal favorites. It's a fun read, a wealth of knowledge and, unexpectedly, my best tool for success. I've learned just as much about consulting through reading this book as I have through my years of studying the field. Read it, learn it, apply it. This stuff works.

Thanks to this book, I got an offer from a major strategy consulting firm. The book is a great summary of the types of case interviews one can expect as well as the situations they are given. Half of the book talks about the strategy to solve the problems, half of the book is case examples. Of the examples, about one third is "practice cases" which you can use to practice with your friends, teachers, etc. I had an advice from ex-consultant friend to do practice with other students, which indeed turned out to be the best thing to do. This may not always be easy (I used craigslist and found two) but if you do find partners, this part of the book will help you get prepared.

I am in my late 20s and used this book to prep for a series of case study interviews at a large corporation, not at a consulting firm. This book was excellent. While other case study books focus on providing series of frameworks to memorize, this books focuses on practice, practice, practice. Critiques and helpful tips are provided as you progress through the practice cases. Frameworks are provided, but they are not as rigorous as in other books and the author encourages you to mix and match frameworks according to the case. There are both self-guided and partner practice cases in the book, and I found that the partner case interviews were the most helpful.

I will caution that this is not a quick read. The material is thorough and difficult to memorize, and the practice interviews take a lot of time to get through. I would recommend at least two weeks to properly digest all of the information and complete and practice interviews. If you're looking for a quicker fix, perhaps try the Vault Guide to Case Interviews.