Thrive in the Behavioral Portion of the Interview
Behavioral
The Behavioral Interview is the second portion of consulting interviews. Typically, this mimics networking sessions as you are introducing yourself and answering questions regarding your resume, personality and working style. Recruiters and managers want to see if you can back up what you say on your resume. They also want to see if you would be a good fit for their team and at large, the company. There’s a saying that some interviewers like to see if a candidate would be someone they would want to be stuck at an airport with. If you think about it, it makes total sense. Consulting requires constant communication between you, your client, the rest of your team, and any other stakeholders. Having a personality that is both unique but cooperative is essential to any consulting project. Let’s dive deeper into what you should focus on.
Your Resume
You should be able to know everything you have listed on your resume and be able to talk about any project or skill you have listed. Recruiters typically first ask “So tell me about yourself”. I would stay true to yourself and have your elevator pitch ready to go, but this is also the best place to highlight any skills or experiences that are relevant to consulting and/or industry experience. Practice makes perfect, and I would try practicing this in front of a mirror so you’re not nervous and forget anything!
Specific Behavioral Questions
A recruiter might then ask you additional questions that highlight your working style and how you handle stress. Thus commonly, recruiters ask questions such as “How do you handle conflict?”, or “Tell me about a time you were a leader”. Again, pull from your resume if possible to highlight all the amazing skills you have, but I also like to make things personable by answering as if I am recounting a short story. It always helps to include a funny anecdote about the experience here and there, and it makes you sound less rehearsed (even though you are!).
Your Questions
Typically near the end of the interview the recruiter will ask you if you have any questions. THIS, is your chance to direct the conversation in any way you desire. To prepare for this, research the company ahead of time. Have some genuine questions ready. For example, “What is your favorite part about working here?” or “What would make me a standout analyst?”. Aside from these questions, you also want to prepare some questions beforehand where you can highlight your experience. For example, “I see XX Company is developing a new strategic offering in Biotechnology. I have some experience in biotech due to experience xyz. Can you tell me a little more about what the company envisions with this offering in the next 5 years?”. This example highlights and stresses the fact that a) you have the experience for where the company is heading b) you could help grow this sector and c) you did your research ahead of time and are serious about joining this company.
Ultimately, the best thing that you can do is be the best version of yourself. It doesn’t help to pretend to be something you’re not. You just want to present yourself with your best foot forward. And if you stumble a bit, don’t worry! Just pivot the conversation, because that’s what behavioral interviews ultimately are, a conversation between you and the interviewer to see if you would like to join them. They’re human too, so make it genuine, fun and interesting for them as well.
Networking
Now that you have studied and practiced the case interview, it’s time to focus on the other crucial aspects of the recruiting process. While these aren’t technical aspects of the interview, they are extremely important to defining the tone of your interview and can significantly increase or decrease your chances of scoring the offer, or heck, even the interview itself.
Networking is a term that many people throw around in college. Simply put, networking is the action of building the number of people you know by reaching out and talking to them. For fellow introverts, this might be the most difficult part of the process, not the case interview! However, it is incredibly important as it increases your chances of landing your dream internship or full-time offer. Why? The more you talk to people, the more you
Learn about consulting as an industry
Gain more insight to certain companies
Practice talking to strangers (essential for interviews)
Get your name and “personal brand” out there
Have the potential for referrals which you ultimately be the deciding factor in your offer
Ultimately, practice makes perfect, and networking is an ongoing process that should never stop in your career.
As you are probably most interested in pursuing consulting given you are reading this consulting guide, the first most important thing to ask yourself is where are you in the networking process. If you’re still months ahead of recruiting season, this is the perfect time to start reaching out to individuals in consulting. First identify family and close friends who might be in the industry. They can provide some basic knowledge on their role at their company. I personally didn’t have any family in consulting, but I found many alumni of my university who entered the consulting industry. If it is your first time networking, I advise you to reach out to people near the entry level first. Let’s say you want to work for Patty’s Consulting. On sites like Glassdoor, you can identify what the entry level positions are and find alumni on Linkedin who work at Patty’s. Reach out to them and schedule a phone call, Zoom call, or even a safe in-person meeting if possible. After the meeting is set, go on various websites like the aforementioned Glassdoor, as well as Linkedin and Patty’s website to see if you have any questions. You should! Given that you want to work here. Common questions are:
What encouraged you to work here?
What is the most rewarding part of your job?
What do you hope to do in the future?
Cold-emailing is another great way to meet someone completely new. Cold emailing is the process of emailing someone you do not know with the intention of setting up a call/speaking opportunity to get to know them, their career and their background. All it takes is a well-written email that introduces you, your interests, and why you wish to speak with them. Below is an example:
• • •
Hello Roger,
My name is Angela, and I hope this email finds you well. I am a recent graduate of UC San Diego and am currently a content contributor at Menti. Going through university through Covid revealed how difficult it is to network and come across helpful resources. That is why I decided to help build Menti, a non-profit dedicated to helping students and other young adults in their career journeys.
I am reaching out to you because I noticed that you are involved in many charities involving youth development and education equity in underserved areas. As Menti is contributing in these areas as well, I would love to hop on a call with you to discuss your experience in developing non-profits as Menti is still in its early stages. I would appreciate any advice you can provide if you have the time!
Thank you for your time. I am looking forward to speaking with you.
Best,
Angela
• • •
Keeping it short, direct and to the point is always best. The overarching tone should be polite and courteous as well. After the call, make sure to send a short thank you email for their time and ask to keep in contact!
