Your interview process

Structuring your CV thoroughly gives the recruiters the impression that you are structured, which is a valuable quality as a consultant.

Be genuine about your motivations for applying to Analysys Mason, and explain why you find the telecoms industry interesting. Consulting experience is a plus, but any work experience is valued.

The case study gives the interviewer a chance to see how you solve problems, so do not be afraid to explain your reasoning and ask questions.

Be authentic; the people at Analysys Mason are genuinely interested in getting to know about you. Being authentic will help you to stand out and make the interview process enjoyable for both you and us!

Do not lose sight of the fact that your interviewers are first and foremost people with their own personalities who will be looking to know yours; there is more to the process than just following textbook guidelines.

Do not panic. The interviewer is there to help you through the case study. Make sure that you ask as many questions as you need to make everything crystal clear and then talk through your thought process when you are presenting your answers.

Make sure that you clearly explain your thought process during the interview; this is more important than ‘cracking the case’ per se.

Polish your quantitative skills. Showing your thinking while solving cases helps the interviewer to get a better grasp your logic. Having a basic understanding of telecoms definitely helps.

Master your business case skills and show some knowledge and curiosity in the TMT industry. This will give you a good chance to become part of our team.

Your interviewers are genuinely interested in helping you during the process. If you get stuck, do ask for help; as long as you structure your hypotheses well, you will be fine!

Try to break down the problem into smaller parts and clearly state the assumptions that you make along the way. You might even end up with a tip from the interviewer.

During the interviews be ready to answer the interviewers, but also to ask some questions. It is a great way to get to know the company and show your interest.

Keeps notes of the feedback after every case study that you consider. Keep on reading through these notes once or twice a week to iron out your mistakes as you go.

At the beginning of the interview, do not be afraid to ask for a minute to structure your thoughts on paper. It will help you out in the long run.

Practice with your friends to ensure that you can effectively communicate your motivations for applying for the position. Also, make sure that you have an understanding of the types of clients that Analysys Mason supports and how it does so.

Do not memorise your answers because it will be easy to tell that you are just reciting your pre-written answers. Make sure that you know your key points so that you can come across prepared and knowledgeable, which will ultimately help you with your confidence.

Nobody expects you to be an expert in the TMT industry, but you should show interest and general knowledge of the hot topics.

Always do some research on what projects Analysys Mason has completed recently to showcase yours interest. Bonus points if you can explain why you would have been a good fit for that specific project team!

Be positive! As a consultant you will have to interact with a wide range of different people, and people generally prefer to work with other positive people. Apart from testing your abilities, the interviewer will also be looking to see if your energy is a good fit.

If the interviewers provide a presentation about the company, write down any questions that arise (there is nothing wrong with writing during their presentation; it shows that you are following and curious). Wait until the interviewers are done with the presentation before asking the questions, and ask yourself whether the answer will give you any value; try to avoid unnecessary questions.

Prepare questions about the firm/position in advance and write them down.

Practice, practice, practice! There are plenty of free resources online to help you brush up on your market sizing and business strategy skills.

Teamwork is a key component of consulting. Do not be afraid to ask questions and work with your interviewer to solve the case study together.

Listen to the interviewer. They are interested in how you respond to their points, and (in case study questions) the extent to which you can take on board helpful suggestions about your approach. This is of interest to us because it is also directly relevant when working with clients.

Be honest and genuine in your answers. An interview is a two-way process to understand if the company and you are a good fit, so a candid, honest discussion is the best way to ensure that is the case. Experienced interviewers can tell if you are overly rehearsed or disingenuous; be yourself!

Relax! This is a great opportunity to have a discussion with an expert in the TMT industry and demonstrate how you will fit into the company. You should be prepared to talk about your interests, including those that are not related to the position.

I would recommend doing practice tests for general numerical skills. Make sure that you are in a quiet space and set aside time for it as you want to optimise your performance by making sure that you are focused and in the right mindset.

Have a go at a free online numerical assessment so that you can practise getting the timings right and get a bit quicker with your mental maths in general. I am definitely a lot slower than I used to be! In the actual assessment, try to be as accurate as possible in the time given, but do not stress if you have to leave an answer without double checking.

Make sure that you manage the amount of time you spend on each question so that you can get them all done before the end.

Be succinct, make sure that what you are writing is related to the topic and use a sensible structure. Having a friend or family member read over it is great to spot any errors and to ensure that it all makes sense.

I think the best thing to do is to try to form your own understanding of the question and the topic; reading a bit outside of the given sources or trying to explain it to those around you can help. When writing, it is good to think about the structure and the title, and try to make the report as clear as possible.

Research the TMT sector and look at Analysys Mason’s published reports to get of sense of its reporting style.