What is a "SMART" Problem Statement at McKinsey?

Aligning on the problem statement is the first step in McKinsey's approach to structured problem solving.  It is considered best practice at the Firm for these problem statements to be "SMART".  In this post I'll explain some of the characteristics of good problem statements...

Do's and Don'ts for Being Hypothesis-Driven at McKinsey

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When problem solving at McKinsey, it's considered best practice to use hypotheses to guide your thinking and work.  Your McKinsey boss will often ask you to be more "hypothesis-driven".  If you are interviewing for a job at McKinsey, your interviewer will expect you to be hypothesis-driven when solving the case interview.  In this post, I'll explain what that means and also provide some tips on what to do and not do when being a hypothesis-driven consultant...

What does it mean to "Trim an Issue Tree" at McKinsey?

As covered previously, issue trees are used to solve complex problems by breaking them down into their component parts.  Your McKinsey boss might ask you to prioritize efforts by trimming an issue tree.  In this post, I'll explain what that means...

4 Reasons Issue Trees are Used for Problem Solving at McKinsey

"Issue Trees" are especially useful for solving problems - especially large, complicated ones.  In this post I'll cover what they look like and some reasons why they are the preferred problem-solving approach at McKinsey

What Does It Mean to be "MECE" at McKinsey?

Working at McKinsey (or for a McKinsey boss) often requires dealing with large amounts of information.  There is a strong preference for organizing that data in a manner that is "MECE".  Your McKinsey boss might also ask you to be "more MECE" in your problem solving approach.  If you're applying for a job at McKinsey, your interviewer will be looking for MECE frameworks during your case interview.  In this post, I'll explain what that means.