MBACASE Coaching FAQs

How Case Interview Coaching Works

How much does coaching cost?: I offer two packages with follow-on sessions available for each:

Premium Package: 4 hours, $950, follow-on sessions are $200
Quick Prep Package: 2 hours, $550, follow-on sessions are $250

Is case interview coaching in person or by phone?

About 95% of the time I coach by phone. Clearly, meeting in person would be ideal but as my business has expanded globally, phone coaching has become necessary. I have helped land many clients at BCG, McKinsey, Bain, Mercer, Booze, AT Kearney, Marakon, Accenture, Parthenon and elsewhere even though I have never met them face to face.

How can you help on the interpersonal part of the case interview if you don’t meet me in person?

The combination of your resume, voice and photo are usually enough to give me a very clear picture of your image and the interviewer’s likely first impression of you. I will give you feedback on these perceptions and we will discuss how different management consulting firms may perceive your experience and personality (e.g. McKinsey vs. BCG). I have worked with over 300 clients and have a lot of tips I can give you to make that first impression the best one possible.

What kind of commitment is expected if I sign up?

Signing up with me is a serious commitment. I work very hard and naturally expect you to do the same. The rewards that await you in management consulting are phenomenal and are well worth the extra time and expense you may need to put in. I look forward to working with you!

How do we conduct a case interview session over the phone?

After you have signed up in my booking system and booked a session, we typically go through the following process:

Call 630-378-9738 at the scheduled time. Remember, all session times are posted as CST in the system. If you are calling from the east coast, CST is one hour earlier. If you are calling from the west coast, CST is two hours later.
Use a land line when possible. I understand the need to use cell phones at times but the sound quality is usually not as good. When I can hear you clearly, I can better discern the subtleties of your communication.
Have a pen/ pencil and paper for the case. During your real case interviews, you will be able to use pen and paper only. Calculators or computers are not allowed. I will give you original cases (not found in my book) during our session. I have several to choose from and will select one according to your progress or specific needs.
Take additional notes on my feedback at the end of our time. I’ll be taking notes as well and will e-mail them to you at the end of the case interview session. Most of the time these notes will be typed directly into the case or appended to the end of the case.
Review my notes and follow through on any homework assignments. After every session I’ll discuss with you ways to improve. Do your best to follow through on these assignments as they can make a big difference in your performance over time. Doing well on case interviews is a skill and practicing is the fastest way to improve.

Can you guarantee me a management consulting offer?

If I could make that kind of guarantee the fee would be your sign-on bonus at least. What I can guarantee is consistency in your case interview performance. To gain an offer from a management consulting firm like McKinsey, Bain, or BCG you’ll need to crack about 4-6 cases. To do well on so many cases will require consistency and mental endurance. As you work with me, we can develop techniques that will help you perform more consistently across a variety of case interview questions and across a variety of management consulting firms. As an aside, many of my clients have told me that the feedback I gave them on their thinking and communication skills was invaluable and had a large impact on their ability to do well in their current job.

Coaching Session Content

What kind of cases do you give?: None of the cases I give during our coaching sessions is found in my book or sold elsewhere. They are original cases that I designed to challenge your logic, math and overall communication skills. Because these are phone cases, I make sure the case does not require handouts to simplify our interaction (but the case is still plenty hard and you will receive data from me over the phone). The cases cover a variety of industries but are not designed to teach you in depth knowledge about an industry. Instead, the industry is a backdrop to more critical things that need to be covered.
Do you provide industry-specific prep?: Yes, to some degree. I can help you focus for a specific industry by reviewing with you key drivers for that industry. But I do not have a library of coaching cases separated by industry. Instead, I’ve designed cases that are meant to test certain skills that I know are critical for doing well on all of your interviews.
Can you help me with my fit interview as well?: In addition to case interview work, I often work with people on their "fit" interviews. The fit interview can be trickier than people realize as interviewers often convert resume fit interviews into mini case interviews. Thus it's critical to understand your resume well and how you played a role in each of those experiences listed. In a single hour session we can build a logical thread connecting your past experiences to your future goals in consulting. I'll help you discover and tighten the links between your work experiences, drill you on the points you want to make and ensure your responses are "answer first."
Do you help your clients write resumes?: I do not help with the crafting of the resume text but will give feedback on how the experiences on the resume may be interpreted. I can also let you know if there are any areas that are more difficult to understand.
Do you help with personality test interpretation and general job search coaching?: I do not specialize in these areas and find that there are career coaches who are more qualified for this kind of work. I do not have references for these kinds of coaches at this time.

Registration, Scheduling and Payment

How do I sign up?

To make scheduling easier for both of us, we have an on-line booking system. First, fill out our on-line coaching sign-up form to help me understand your needs and interview timing. Once I’ve confirmed that I have capacity to take you on as a new client I’ll send you the link to our booking system. See the tips below on how to book your sessions.

Tips on booking your session

Once you receive the on-line booking link, click on it to go to our customized booking system. You will be asked to set up your account and purchase a package. The system will know how much money you have on account and then "consume" each hour as you book it on my calendar.

To enter the system, please set up an account when prompted with: "Is this your first time to this site? Click here."
At the main menu, click on "Purchase a Coaching Package" and follow the prompts to select and purchase your desired package.
After purchasing a package, go back to the main menu and click on "Book Private/Interview Coaching." You will be taken to a screen which shows David's nearest available hour. Select the date you would like to meet with David, and then click "Search Now." You will be shown all of the available times on that particular date. If you select "Click here to automatically broaden your search" you will be shown additional dates/times.
Click on "Book It" to the left of the date/time and then follow the prompts to confirm your session.

What if I don’t use all my sessions?

MBACASE will pro-rate your unused sessions and refund the unused portion of your coaching package if the refund request is made within 4 months of the original date of purchase. A 5% processing fee will be deducted from your refund. After 4 months, your unused sessions will remain as credits and can be used at any time up until 12 months from the date of purchase. A refund must be requested within 4 months of the original purchase date. After 4 months, no refunds will be given. Credit for unused hours expire 12 months after original purchase date.