Bain Written Case Interview: The Comprehensive Guide

Last Updated on November 26, 2024

Navigating Bain’s written case interview? This guide distills essential strategies and tips to excel in this critical component of Bain’s hiring process. Discover how to analyze written cases, draft persuasive recommendations, and present your analysis with confidence.

Bain Written Case Interview: A Quick Introduction

Bain & Company employs written case interviews during their recruiting process in addition to the traditional face-to-face case interviews.

What Is a Written Case Interview?

A written case interview is a specialized format employed in management consulting to assess how candidates tackle business problems, mirroring real consultant tasks. It usually unfolds in five stages: receiving case documents and questions that need to be answered, analyzing the information, creating analytical slides, presenting findings in front of one or two interviewers, and engaging in a Q&A session.

A unique aspect of the Bain written case is the preparation time allowed, necessitating a thorough analysis of extensive information. During that time, candidates are required to analyze the situation and craft slides to convey their analysis and recommendations, simulating the consultant’s role in client meetings.

More specifically, the Bain written case interview asks you to draft a recommendation for a challenging client situation. You are presented with a lot of information and facts about the problem as well as a few key questions that need to be solved. You will have ~1 hour to prepare your recommendation, which you have to present and defend in front of one or more interviewers afterward.

Your task is to understand the client’s problem, and develop a sensible recommendation, taking into account the various trade-offs. You are expected to engage in a problem-solving discussion with your interviewer, who acts as a fictitious client to ensure a strong outcome for the client.

In the process, you are bombarded with information. You have to work hypothesis-driven and link the questions to the provided information to quickly zero in on the relevant bits of data and then, conduct your analysis.

Based on this analysis, you should draft a short consulting-style presentation, crafting your own storyline and narrative.

When Does the Bain Written Case Interview Occur?

This written interview typically occurs after passing initial resume screenings and the Bain SOVA and other online tests in the recruitment process.

While the traditional case interview is always part of the Bain assessment, the written case interview serves as an equally critical tool in consulting recruitment for several Bain offices. Yet, you should be aware that the written case interview is not always part of the Bain recruiting process as each individual office can adjust their recruiting process.

Keep that in mind when creating your consulting interview preparation plan.

If the written case is included in your assessment, do not worry.

After all, the written case interview presents you with a slight variation of the classic case interview. Hence, preparing for the case interview also helps you with your performance with the written case and vice versa.

Essential Skills for the Bain Written Case Interview

In the written case interview, Bain assesses various competencies that are critical for success:

• Analytical Thinking: Your skill in dissecting complex datasets to extract vital insights and draw informed conclusions is evaluated.
• Problem-Solving: You’re tested on your ability to hypothesize and devise practical strategies for the case’s business challenges.
• Time Management: Your capability to effectively distribute time across tasks, ensuring a comprehensive analysis and well-prepared recommendations, is crucial.
• Communication: Your presentation must clearly and convincingly convey your solutions and the thought process behind them.
• Detail-Oriented Approach: Your knack for pinpointing and assessing even the minutest but impactful data points is scrutinized.
• Innovative Thinking: Your flair for crafting novel solutions and approaching problems from unique angles is observed.
• Business Insight: Your grasp of the broader business landscape, specific industry knowledge, and the viability of your proposals is assessed.
• Quantitative Proficiency: Your adeptness at executing precise calculations and leveraging data to bolster your case is evaluated.
• Grace Under Fire: Your poise and ability to remain unflustered under the interview’s pressure, particularly when challenged, is gauged.
• Presentation Acumen: The aesthetic and structural execution of your slides, coupled with your proficiency in delivering content compellingly, is judged.

Bain Written Case Fact Pack

• Duration: 1 hour 35 minutes in total (55 minutes to prepare, 40 minutes to present and debate)
• Data: 20-30 slides packed with information on a specific client’s issue
• Output: Slide templates to structure and guide your storyline and recommendations. Fill in the blanks on the specific slides (e.g. provide supporting data and points for an action title, fill results calculations, strengthen graphs and tables with data you have calculated, etc.)
• Format: You prepare several slides to present your recommendation and analysis/ supporting arguments and then get challenged by the interviewer to see how you would react in a real client situation
• Math: The numerical problems are simple and should be tackled with classic pen-and-paper math or estimations; calculators are not allowed
• Focus: All industries or functions are fair game
• Target group: The written case interview is currently employed mostly in Asian and European offices during the second round interviews
• Preparation materials: Case study examples and case study examples for students applying at McKinsey, BCG, or Bain

The Stages of the Bain Written Case Interview

Stage 1: Case Reception

Bain presents candidates with the case materials, which may comprise printed PowerPoint slides or A4 documents. The information comprises 20 to 30 slides with text, data tables, and charts and a client objective.

Stage 2: Hypothesis Development and Data Analysis

Prior to crafting their slides, candidates should perform an in-depth analysis of the case materials. This stage is crucial for generating and evaluating hypotheses informed by the data.

Here, candidates must demonstrate their analytical prowess by filtering through the material to pinpoint essential data and formulate initial hypotheses that will inform the creation of their presentation slides.

Dealing with the volume and intricacy of the data requires adept hypothesis generation and evaluation.

Stage 3: Crafting Presentation Slides

With data-driven insights in hand, candidates begin to create their presentation slides. This stage involves a careful selection and analysis of data to back up their hypotheses and the creation of slides that concisely capture their analysis, insights, evidence, and strategic recommendations.

Stage 4: Delivering the Presentation

After 55 minutes of preparation, candidates have around 15 to 20 minutes to present their conclusions and recommendations to interviewers. The presentation should be well-organized, featuring a summary of the case, well-defined hypotheses, supportive charts/graphs/insights, and definitive recommendations.

Stage 5: Engaging in a Q&A Session

The interview process wraps up with a 15 to 20 minute Q&A session, which might delve into more personal aspects or clarify particulars of the candidate’s presentation.

Interviewers will examine the candidates’ conclusions and challenge their reasoning to evaluate their level of preparation and comprehensive understanding.

Candidates should understand that intensive scrutiny of their assumptions and conclusions is a deliberate aspect of the assessment, aimed at testing their composure and the robustness with which they can uphold and justify their recommendations when faced with pressure.

Bain Written Case Interview Tips

Bain recommends the following to tackle their interviews. Keep it in mind when you draft your recommendation!

• Trust your gut. There is no one correct answer. You need to deliver a persuasive recommendation and participate in a rich discussion about how to achieve results for your client.
• Prioritize. Preparation time goes quickly, so put aside case slides that seem less important.
• Be concise. Have your key messages outlined in your summary. Save the details for your discussion.
• Do the math. Figure out what analytics are necessary for your recommendation, and piece together the required data from the slides.
• Be pragmatic. Craft a recommendation that can actually be implemented by the client.
• Consider both sides. Strengthen the rationale behind your recommendation by working through the strongest arguments against it.

While these tips are helpful, they do not allow for a structured problem-solving process. Hence, we created one ourselves for our clients to go through.

Bain Written Case Interview Strategy

We’ve developed a proven strategy designed to navigate this specific type of evaluation successfully. Here is our six-step method for approaching written case interviews, tailored to concentrate your efforts, pinpoint the essential elements of the case, quickly process and integrate the information at hand, and formulate a compelling recommendation.

1. Have a Plan Before You Start the Bain Written Case

Since time is usually limited, you should have a plan on how long you want to spend on each task of the assignment beforehand. For the 55-minute case take

• 2.5 minutes for a quick scan of the documents
• 2.5 minutes to plan your approach (i.e. what do you need to figure out, what information is important, what analyses would you have to do, what output documents do you have to draft)
• 10 minutes to draft your output slides (doing this early helps you to focus your analytical efforts)
• 30 minutes to conduct analyses and work through the case
• 10 minutes to populate your slides with your findings and recommendations.

Utilize case study examples and templates available at this link for your preparation.

Considering the time limitations, it’s practical to anticipate that things may not always proceed as planned. Therefore, it’s crucial to assign definite time segments for each activity during your prep work, while also setting aside a contingency period for unforeseen setbacks or to enhance any aspects of the case needing additional attention.

2. Quickly Separate Crucial Information From the Noise

Written case interviews often inundate you with an excess of information that requires sorting. Initially, identify the essential information needed for your analyses to formulate a recommendation. Document the primary question you need to address and continually reference it throughout your work on the case.

Ensure clarity on the questions posed and develop a hypothesis for each possible response. Given the premium on time, it’s not feasible to explore every analysis and hypothesis comprehensively. Concentrate on the critical questions that fundamentally influence your recommendation, aiming to focus your presentation on the most relevant aspects.

This approach allows you to read with targeted objectives, enhancing your ability to process information quickly. Then, gather the necessary data, organize your analysis strategically, and engage deeply. Adopt a hypothesis-driven method to structure your analysis and reasoning, integrating each piece of your analysis to arrive at well-founded conclusions, akin to the process in a traditional case interview.

You can practice this by looking at business school cases, such as

• HBS case studies
• Ivey case studies
• INSEAD case studies
• MIT case studies (includes free materials)

You can also look at case study examples and case study examples for students that we compiled here. There is also a certain overlap with HireVue interview questions.

Additionally, try to increase your reading speed with apps such as Spreeder, Reedy, or Read Me!

Ace written case interviews with our dedicated preparation packages.

3. Interpret and Distill Key Insights From Charts and Data Tables 

Written cases bombard you with charts, graphs, tables, and other visual depictions of data that you should use to test your hypotheses. Learn how to quickly read and interpret them.

• What are the key messages and insights?
• How does the information of several charts/ tables, etc. relate to each other?
• What information is relevant to the case?

To prepare these skills, go through The Economist, the Wall Street Journal or similar and use their graphs or tables to train your reading and interpretation skills. Alternatively, look at practice McKinsey Problem Solving Test or BCG potential test graphs. Time yourself while doing it, e.g. giving yourself 30 seconds before you are able to communicate what the graph is all about and what you would infer from it (what is the ‘so what’?).

You can also use our Consulting Chart and Data Interpretation Course and Drills to improve how consultants analyze charts and generate insights quickly.

4. Quickly Draft Formulas and Conduct Pen-and-Paper Math

Get into the habit of quickly setting up and simplifying calculations. Practice quick pen-and-paper math as well as estimations similar to what you would do in a normal case interview. To prepare and practice, look into McKinsey PST, BCG potential test exercises as well as GMAT questions.

If you need to brush up on your math skills, we have created a program with detailed insider learning materials and more than 2,000 practice drills that mimic the McKinsey, BCG, and Bain case interview math for you here: the Case Interview Math Mastery.

5. Draft a Compelling Storyline and Tell It With Visually Appealing Outputs

Create a top-down storyline of your recommendations. State your primary recommendation, then use supporting arguments to strengthen your position.

In practice, you would have one key slide talking about your finding and recommendation, i.e. what or how the client should solve the problem, Then, you would have several supporting slides, discussing arguments for your solution, i.e. why your approach is the best. Lastly, put a slide talking about the next steps to hedge your bets (what else would you like to know to make your recommendation even stronger) and demonstrate that you think ahead.

As for the slide design, use an action title on each, then some visual aids like a graph (remember to have a graph title as well) and some supporting bullet points, or if not applicable, just bullet points.

• The action title should convey the so-what of your analysis. You need to show the implication of what you present rather than a description of what you have found.
• The headings of each slide together should tell the full story. Everything below the heading are details to the story and should support your key message

6. Communicate and Defend Your Recommendation

If you have to present your findings at the end of the case, follow the top-down approach of your slide deck. Be confident and engaging when going through your recommendations and supporting arguments.

First, present your headlines, e.g. “The client needs to cut cost by x% to break even within the next 5 years”; then move on to the details of the slide such as “Our manufacturing cost has increased by 25% over the last 3 years,..”

Follow this structure:

1. Offer your recommendation succinctly.
2. Back it up with compelling evidence and reasoning.
3. Outline potential risks linked to your strategy.
4. Advise on the next steps to further improve your analysis or move towards implementation.

Remember, reiterating the case prompt isn’t necessary—it’s a prudent use of precious time to dive straight into your insights.

This approach is very much like the recommendation you would give at the end of a normal case interview.

Point out when you are using hypotheses and assumptions that you were not able to fully verify.

Lastly, be open and ready to debate. The interviewers will definitely challenge your recommendation. It is important that you confidently stand your ground unless they make you aware of an obvious mistake on your part. In the latter case, demonstrate that you are coachable and save the situation by providing a plan of action on how to re-do the analysis to cross-check and improve your results.

Learn more about consulting case interview communication here.

Practice for the Bain Written Case Interview

Preparing effectively for the Bain written case interview is crucial to securing that coveted consulting role. For Bain case interview preparation, employ consulting case study tips and robust case interview strategies to navigate the challenges and ace your assessment.

If you want to test your ability to work on a written case, click the following link that redirects you to a real example by BCG.

Here are six key strategies to polish your skills for a standout performance:

1. Refine Rapid Reading Abilities: Speed reading is essential due to the voluminous information you’ll face. Learn to quickly identify key data, which is vital when under time constraints. Employ techniques such as using a tracker or pacer and practice using speed reading apps on your computer and phone.
2. Hone Consulting Math Proficiency: Sharp mental arithmetic is a must for consultants who work with numbers daily. Using a calculator is not allowed. Strengthen your mental math with daily practice, starting with small steps and building up to complex calculations.
3. Develop Data Analysis Skills: The core of a hypothesis-driven approach is the ability to analyze data to support your recommendations. Focus on the three key processes: Analyzing the data presented, contextualizing within the case’s framework, and interpreting the results to drive business insights.
4. Grasp Case Interview Basics: The fundamental skills of a traditional case interview apply here too. Familiarize yourself with concepts like issue trees, MECE principles, structured communication, and top-down analysis.
5. Master Consulting-Style Slide Creation: In consulting, presentations are the end-product of your analysis. Learn to organize content in a clear, impactful way, even if the actual design isn’t your responsibility. Look for resources that guide you through crafting slides that resonate with a consulting audience.
6. Practice with Mock Interviews: Simulate the interview experience with mock sessions. Seek out former consultants and expert interview coaches who can provide informed feedback and guidance.

Diligent practice in these areas can significantly enhance your readiness and confidence for the written case interview, setting you apart in the competitive field of consulting.

How We Help You Get Top-Tier Consulting Offers

We have specialized in placing people from all walks of life with different backgrounds into top consulting firms both as generalist hires as well as specialized hires and experts. As former McKinsey consultants and interview experts, we help you by

• tailoring your resume and cover letter to meet consulting firms’ highest standards
• showing you how to pass the different online assessments and tests for McKinsey, BCG, and Bain
• showing you how to ace McKinsey interviews and the PEI with our video academy
• coaching you in our 1-on-1 sessions to become an excellent case solver and impress with your fit answers (90% success rate after 5 sessions)
• helping you ace your personal fit interview
• preparing your math to be bulletproof for every case interview
• helping you structure creative and complex case interviews
• teaching you how to interpret charts and exhibits like a consultant
• providing you with cheat sheets and overviews for 27 industries.

To improve your skills in all areas of the written interview, check out our targeted offers below.