Send us Fan Mail Every McKinsey interviewee last year got at least 1 non-traditional case. Most candidates are still only prepping for standard business cases. Namaan breaks down what's actually different about case interviews in 2026, and it's not just the case types. McKinsey is piloting an AI-enabled interview round. Bain's also adding one this summer. The bar on communication and presence just went up too, because AI raised the floor on sounding prepared – but sounding ready isn't t...
Jun 26
7 min
Send us Fan Mail Energy consulting grew in line with the market for a decade. Flat. Unremarkable. Nobody paid attention. That changed. The market's now projected to grow 11% in 2026, and leverage for candidates with ops or technical backgrounds is higher than at any point in recent history. Japheth sits down with Namaan to break down what's driving the boom. Spoiler: it's not just the data center buildout you've been reading about. Whether you're hunting for your next role or you're a f...
Jun 24
14 min
Send us Fan Mail The reality of MBB recruiting: 100 candidates apply. 15 get an interview. 1 gets the offer. Most of the 99 who don't get it aren't underqualified. They just had a bad plan. Kabreya Ghaderi, who coached hundreds of candidates and spent time at McKinsey, PwC, and Bridgespan, sees strong candidates still miss because their prep plan has a hole in it they can't see from the inside. In this episode, Kabreya walks through the 4 gaps that sink even candidates who are doing everythin...
Jun 19
30 min
Send us Fan Mail Ish Mawla ran a BCG case in front of a live audience. Real candidate, real pressure. The case: a solar company in an emerging market watching its revenue fall while the broader market keeps growing. Aditya has to figure out why – and what to do about it. Then Ish breaks down the whole thing – what Aditya did well and where he left points on the table. Here's what stood out: Why your framework can work against you – and the one thing most candidates build in that they shouldn'...
Jun 17
41 min
Send us Fan Mail 5 people just landed offers at McKinsey, Bain, BCG, Deloitte, and L.E.K. We got them all in one room and asked them the same question: what actually worked? The real stuff – how many cases they did, how they networked, what they wish they'd done differently, and the misconceptions that almost cost them. Aisha did 50 cases her first recruiting cycle and didn't get the offer. She did 25 the second time and got it. That contrast says more than any framework guide will. You'll le...
Jun 12
47 min
Send us Fan Mail Mitali Jalan was told she couldn't break into consulting as a chartered accountant. She was told it was unlikely she'd land Bain as an international MBA student. She got the offers anyway. She worked at Deloitte India and Bain London, then sat on the other side of the table as a Bain interviewer. She's coached over 350 candidates and knows where people lose the offer. The thing she kept seeing? Candidates who spent weeks on case prep, walked in technically ready, and still di...
Jun 10
39 min
Send us Fan Mail Every week we hear the same question from candidates: Is AI going to gut consulting before I can break in? Short answer: No. Longer answer: The model is changing fast, and you need to know what's shifting and what isn't. Arda Ecevit spent over 13 years at Deloitte, Strategy&, and Bain before co-founding NexStrat AI. He sat down with Namaan to talk about what AI is doing to consulting – and the parts of the job it can't touch. What AI is taking off the junior consultant's ...
Jun 5
45 min
Send us Fan Mail Walter applied to consulting out of undergrad and didn't get an offer. Went into investment banking, got another shot a year and a half later, and still wasn't ready – too busy, not focused enough, cramming at the last minute. So he quit his job to recruit full time. That's an extreme version of the lesson, but the lesson applies to anyone working full time while trying to break in: you have less time than you think. Consulting firms aren't running a six-month hiring cy...
Jun 3
17 min
Send us Fan Mail BCG interviews typically start 3–4 weeks after the application deadline – and deadlines are here. Tauseef Charanya spent 10 years at BCG – half consulting, half building AI products globally. He's done 300+ interviews and has seen strong candidates miss offers for the same reasons, over and over. In this episode, he breaks down the 3 mistakes that hurt otherwise solid BCG candidates, why doing more cases without feedback makes you worse, and the 4-step system that gets ...
May 29
27 min
Send us Fan Mail Most new consultants walk in with work style blind spots they can't see – and their managers notice before they do. In this episode, Namaan – COO of Management Consulted – breaks down his framework for owning your first 90 days in consulting: how to identify your blind spots, read your manager, and carry yourself like someone who's been doing this for years. You'll learn: What your manager actually cares about (hint: it's not how hard you work)The 3 work styles that get consu...
May 27
46 min
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