Consultancy Interview Questions & Answers

My interview was enjoyable overall. I had to travel to London, but the provided me with accommodation for the night before. I showed up early and my interviewer started the interview early so that I did not have to wait, which was very nice of him. He was very friendly. The questions he asked were a little outside the general schedule, a bit more challenging but in the end, they were manageable.

Why would a client choose us and not one of our competitors?

Prepare yourself by studying the firm, the news around them within the last couple of years, and reading their website in detail. From the annual report, you can learn a lot of details useful in the interviews, such as financials for your chosen department and growth for the last year.

The assessment centre was a half-day event. I was in a group of people from varied backgrounds and places, which I think shows how inclusive the recruitment process is.

I did a telephone interview consisting of competency based questions and a role play. I was then invited to an assessment centre which was very difficult! 3 group exercises and a written exercise in a high pressure environment but got to see the office and meet some of the team.
Then I was invited to a one to one interview with the regional manager which was more competency based questions and a role play, this was fairly relaxed. Then I had to complete an online SQL test to see how I would be able to sell.
Finally, I did a one to one interview with the managing director which was the hardest interview I've ever done. She asked very intrusive personal questions and questioned everything I've done ever! Very stressful.

What is the most selfish thing you've ever done? I had to think of this on the spot and as a not very selfish person I really struggled..

Really make sure you want to go into a hard sales environment with long hours, but are rewarded massively with money and holidays. Be confident, you have to sell yourself so much and don't take a back seat - show you want it.

Group activities including a role play, interviewing each other and prioritising tasks

After an initial application, there is a short 15 minute telephone interview clarifying details and assessing interest in the company/ sector/ role. My assessment day was two days later and comprised of two five-minute interviews, a numerical test, a test on set notation, and an aptitude test. The two interviews were standard and friendly, and were focussed mainly on personality and approach.

Would you sacrifice quality to meet a deadline?

Do plenty of prep before hand, the questions aren't hard but it's definitely worth a look over! It is also important to be open, friendly and enthusiastic. The training scheme means you can pick up any technical knowledge you need so their real focus is on hiring those with great inter-personal skills and an ability to learn fast. The technical and business pathways are assessed together but not ranked together meaning there is no need to panic about not knowing all the technology ins and outs.

The numerical test is GCSE maths, the set notation test is given alongside an instruction leaflet and the video provided before the day is very useful. The aptitude test has some basic coding questions, some logic puzzles, and a number of IT questions (inc IP4vIP6, SQL, bits in a byte, etc.). A little Google research was enough to get through this!