Strategy Simplified

S24E16: AI Took the Grunt Work – Consultants Are Getting Promoted Faster

Send us Fan Mail Paul Edwards has led more than 1,000 private equity deals. AI took the grunt work, and now Stax consultants are getting promoted faster. He leads the P

S24E15: McKinsey's Cases Are Interviewer-Led – Most Candidates Practice the Wrong Way

Send us Fan Mail Most consulting interviews let you drive the case. McKinsey doesn't. McKinsey is one of the only firms that runs interviewer-led cases – the inter

S24E14: Why McKinsey Asks up to 25 Follow-Up Questions in the PEI

Send us Fan Mail Most candidates prep for the McKinsey PEI like a regular behavioral interview. McKinsey built it to do more than that. One story, and up to 25 follow-u

S24E13: The AI Hire Every Consulting Firm Is Struggling to Find

Send us Fan Mail Every firm on our new 2027 Top Enterprise AI Consulting Firms ranking wants to hire the same person right now. And none of them can find them.  Namaan

S24E12: A McKinsey Coach's Playbook for Winning Case Competitions

Send us Fan Mail Last year, 500 students on 100 teams competed in the Case Competition World Cup. Before they saw the case, coach Divya – 8 years at McKinsey – taught th

S24E11: Inside Private Equity Consulting: AI Bets, Harder Exits, and Real Diligence

Send us Fan Mail A private equity firm bought a paint company. Turned out their sales reps were handing out 50% discounts to any contractor who asked nicely. That'

S24E10: The Toothbrush Test: Why Most Case Frameworks Fail at MBB

Send us Fan Mail If your case framework doesn't pass the toothbrush test, it's too generic for McKinsey, Bain, and BCG. Ex-Bain coach Abi Chen walks through t

S24E9: Inside a Bates White Economic Consulting Case Interview

Send us Fan Mail Bates White let us inside a real economic consulting case interview. Annie Olecki, a senior consultant in Bates White's antitrust practice, ran a

S24E8: Private Equity Consulting Firms Have a Sameness Problem

Send us Fan Mail Namaan talked to dozens of PE practice leaders for our 2026 ranking. Almost every one said the same three things: 1) Cross-practice integration. 2) Stra

S24E7: MBA Case Prep in 2–4 Weeks: An Ex-Bain Interviewer's Plan

Send us Fan Mail Most 2nd-year MBA candidates have 2 to 4 weeks to get case interview-ready this cycle, not the usual 6 to 8. More cases won't close that gap for M

S24E6: McKinsey Solve Game 2026: What It Is and How to Prepare

Send us Fan Mail McKinsey screens candidates with a video game – McKinsey Solve – before they ever see a case interview. Most candidates either try to copy other people&

S24E5: McKinsey Case Interview Example: Electric Truck Market Entry

Send us Fan Mail George Cary spent five years as a McKinsey EM. In this live case, he coaches candidate Harvey through a real McKinsey market entry study: should a diese

S24E4: She Bombed MBB Her First Try – Then Landed 2 Offers the Next Time

Send us Fan Mail Sharon had everything going for her. Top-tier MBA. MBB interview invites across the board.  She'd done 50–60 cases – but didn't make it past

S24E3: 3 Questions That Kill Your Case Interview Opening

Send us Fan Mail "Any other objectives?" sounds polite. But in a case interview opening, it costs you points. Namaan breaks down the 3 questions that kill candidates in

S24E2: How Consulting Firms Really Score Case Interviews

Send us Fan Mail You can nail every case you practice and still get rejected. That's because firms aren't grading you on vibes. McKinsey scores you piece by p

S24E1: The Hottest Consulting Sectors to Target in 2026

Send us Fan Mail McKinsey is making 12% more hires this year than last. But the jobs aren't going to the same profile of candidate. Energy and utilities is project

S23E30: Why Retail Consulting Firms Are Losing Market Share

Send us Fan Mail Consumer and retail consulting used to be one market. Now it's 4. Each lane pulls a different lever – growth, margin, or talent. Firms that used t

S23E29: How to Build Business Acumen for Consulting

Send us Fan Mail Building business judgment is learnable – most candidates just go about it the wrong way. Tauseef Charanya spent 10 years at BCG, conducted over 300 ca

S23E28: How to Use AI in Case Prep (And How Not To)

Send us Fan Mail Using AI for case prep? For most candidates, it's costing them the offer. McKinsey and Bain are already grading how you use AI in interviews this

S23E27: Former BCG Consultant Runs a Live Higher Education Case Interview

Send us Fan Mail This episode is presented by Bates White, one of the world's top economic consulting firms. If you're an undergraduate rising junior (Class of