Talk like a Consultant - How to conduct Interviews with Clients
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 มิ.ย. 2024
- Do you want to learn how to conduct interviews with clients and talk like a consultant? As an Ex-McKinsey consultant, I will teach you some great tips for client interviews in this video. Learn how to talk to clients by applying these key consulting skills that MBB consulting firms like McKinsey, BCG and Bain teach in their onboarding programs. This video teaches you how to conduct interviews with clients. In the video series Talk Like a Consultant, I share my experiences in one of the most important consulting skills, and this is professional communication. These tips will also help you with case interview practice, as in case interview prep for consulting you need to show your client interview skills as well. Learn to talk like a consultant and conduct interviews with clients in this video.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction
00:45 Scheduling the Meeting
01:48 What would Success mean?
03:06 Show Empathy and Listen
05:04 Use the Power of Silence
06:33 Write Follow-ups and Minutes
08:02 Wrap-up
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For active listening, also summarising is a good technique
Fully agree, thanks Franco :) Best, Heinrich
Clarity on success and empathy are everything! Thanks for amazing content!
Fully agree - thanks for watching! Best, Heinrich
Appreciate how concise and direct these videos are! Thanks for providing examples for each tactic.
Hi Ake, thank you, great to hear you find them helpful!! Best, Heinrich
It’s 2 AM and I am on a binge of your videos. I have worked around management consultants as an operator during acquisitions and have always been very impressed with how they operate and you are helping me break down how it is that I felt that way, and most helpful that I am learning how to apply these in my every day business interactions.
Hi Derek, do not want you to sacrifice your sleep for my videos - but of course very happy to hear that they are helpful! All the best to you, appreciate you watching! Cheers, H
Man. This channel is super valuable. I wish I had this knowledge when I was just starting out!
Hi, thanks so much for your comment. Super happy to hear the videos are helpful!! Best, Heinrich
Thank you for this great information and channel. I wish I had learned this when I started my consulting career many years ago with KPMG. I learned the hard way!
Hi Mark, super glad to year you find the videos helpful. Yes, feeling you, the first years in consulting can indeed be hard. Lots of success to you!! Best, Heinrich
Very helpful pointers. Thank you.
Hi Heinrich, great videos! I just subscribed to your channel. Please keep going! Looking forward to the upcoming trust formula video 😁
Thanks for sharing these insights! Learning to practice it :)
Hi Swarup, thank you for your comment! Great to hear the video is helpful! :) Best, Heinrich
Looking forward to learning more about the trust formula. Great vid.
Thanks Vincze! Yes, stay tuned for that :) Best, Heinrich
Really helpful!
Number 1 and 4 were new for me.
Thanks a lot.
Great to hear that - thank you Ray! Best, Heinrich
Great video! Thanks for all these tips!
Hi Thanusan, great to hear that, appreciate it! Best, Heinrich
Too good!!! So much to learn!
Late to the party but I still want to thank you a lot for your videos Heinrich! As someone that will soon start his career in consulting, your videos are providing me with so much prior knowledge and making me much more comfortable in this new start. Thank you and keep up the great work!
I am so glad you like the channel! :)
HIt the like button before I even watched haha. The video is very interesting and I would love to learn more about this topic. Thanks!
Hi Pawel, thanks for the Like! :) Glad to hear the video is helpful. Best, Heinrich
Thank you!
Great insights, thank you for sharing!
Thanks!
Great suggestions Heinrich! I love the power of silence idea haha - maybe I'll try it in my area :)
Hi, great to hear you liked the video. Sure thing, give it a go! :) Best, Heinrich
Great content! Excited to see the Trust Formula video!
Thanks Geovy! Yes, stay tuned for it, will probably do it at some point in the next weeks :) Best, Heinrich
Your silence tip is true and so hilarious. However, I often the one being influenced by the silence, not the other way around! Could you do a video on how to control the energy in a client meeting or in the workplace?
Hi Thinh, thanks for your comment. Interesting idea, might pick it up in a future video! Best, Heinrich
Hi Heinrich, thank you for your content. It would be helpful you talk about introducing your self in a Client-Meeting and some useful Ice-Breaker. All the best! Andreas
Hi, thanks for your comment! Indeed good topics for additional videos in the future. Thanks for sharing! Best, Heinrich
Great video! Learned a lot
Great to hear that - thank you for watching Gerrick!! Best, Heinrich
Thank you for the information. Another great video, congrats!
Thank you Francisco, great to hear that you found is helpful! Best, Heinrich
@@FirmLearning 😁💪
thanks for your cons-english videos!
;) Thanks for watching!! Best, Heinrich
Great tips!
Thank you Jacek! Best, Heinrich
Thanks for sharing your experience. Based on this, 5 things to keep in mind are:
1. How to Elevate Your Meeting Invites
2. How to Define Success Before Every Meeting
3. How to Master the Art of Listening and Empathy
4. How to Utilize the Power of Silence to Your Advantage
5. How to Enhance Client Relationships with Effective Follow-Ups
Nice broh! This video is awesome
Thanks for the insightful video Heinrich. Related to this it would be great if you can elaborate in another video more on interviewing techniques and which questions consultants ask clients.
Hi Jo, thanks for your comment! Yes makes sense, for sure this topic has potential for many more videos :) Best, Heinrich
@@FirmLearning did you make additional videos about this? This is a crucial topic. Anyhow I subscribed.
Excellent.
Thanks Mike! Best, Heinrich
Interesting , the power of silence.
Thanks for watching Wei :) Best, Heinrich
Hi Heinrich, really liking your videos! I was wondering if you'd ever considering sharing your experiences and advice about business development in consulting. From applying your network to having the right conversations and building or contributing to proposals and presenting them. Would love to get your insight!
Really good tips , please do make a detailed video about how to deal with difficult or stub borne client.
Good video, thanks. Would like to hear more about the trust formula
Thanks Tom! Yes, stay tuned for future videos! :) Best, Heinrich
Thank you for the great video. I am a young consultant struggling with the client's interview preparation. Please advise how I can make a brief note regarding my resume.
Great video!
Thank you for watching Arjunan! Best, Heinrich
Great job
Thank you for watching!
Please Continue This series of How to talk & think like Management Consultant/Management Executives for students. It will be highly beneficial for students specifically.
Thanks in Advance!!
Hi Prathmesh, thanks for your comment. Yes, I will continue this series in the future :) Best! Heinrich
I love your silence tip. So funny 😂
Yes, can be quite effective! :) Best, Heinrich
Can you also make a video on how consultants can take care of themselves and avoid burnout given the stresses of consulting?
Hi Dottle, thank you for your comment! Recently did a video on how to deal with stress and anxiety on the job, maybe this already provides some insights. But will for sure continue talking about this topic in the future! Best, Heinrich
Very interesting take, how to use "the power of silence" in the case of remote meetings (mostly audio ones) ?
Hi! Can indeed imagine this to be less powerful than in person. Especially if it is only audio, the other party might believe that you dropped the line ;) Best! H
1. Schedule the meetings accessing the people's supervisor. Doing this, you will have a sense of prioritization from the supervisor, who understands the timing needed for the project.
2. Set goals for the meeting, defining what is a successful meeting, what are the optimal outputs from the meeting to ensure you start the meeting with an idea of the gaps to be closed.
3. 80% listening, 20% talking. Your role is to understand the client's perspective on the current situation.
4. The power of silence. Use moderately, to extract more information from the client when his answer is too short/shallow. Use it to create discomfort and stimulate more insights.
5. After meeting follow-ups to document discussion, results, next steps/to-do's.
Hi Matheus, thank you for summarizing, much appreciated! Best, Heinrich
Thanks Matheus for summarising much appreciated
Ah, the power of silence - use sparingly :-)
Two on one is also standard interrogation tactic, client doesn't get the chance to "think" whilst the interviewers can process answers and think up further questions alternatively. Sneaky.
Important to not only agree actions but also set a date for the results. Actions without deadlines tend to take a long time :-)
Hi Ian, thanks for your comment and also your additional suggestions. Makes a lot of sense :) Best, Heinrich
Terimakasih Heinrich! 👍
Thanks for watching Danirk! Best, H
inspiring trick of silence!
Thanks for watching :)
Hi Heinrich and thanks again for another excellent and informative video.
One question that I have for you is related to the stakeholders who are being interviewed. How do you deal with a situation where the stakeholders have competing priorities or conflict of interest and even become a bit hostile towards each other?
Hi, thanks for your comment! Can see why this can be challenging. Of course hard to give a one size fits all answer for these situations. In general it is important to understand what the people involved really want, and then try to convince them that you can actually help all of them achieve their goals :) Best! Heinrich
No coffee mug today?haha. Great video as usual! I would just llke to dig a bit deeper into these interviews - what is a good/appropriate interview question? I'm sure this is more an art than science, but I'm fairly certain there is always a better way to phrase a question. Some questions should be phrased as the confirmatory type "I understand xxx, can you confirm?", while others should be more open ended "do you think that xxx?" How do you strike a balance in validating your hypothesis (narrow) VS. understanding the things that you don't know in the industry (broad)?
Hi, thanks for your comment! Indeed sticked to water for this video, was already quite late when I filmed it :) Thanks for the idea of talking about questions. This is indeed an important topic with many things to discuss. Might pick that up in a future video! :) Best, Heinrich
Hey, would it be possible to get a video on dressing when working at MBB? At the client site, at Friday office day etc...
Hi Nikul, thanks for the video suggestion! Yes, great topic, trust I will pick this up in a future video :) Best, Heinrich
Hi sir, this is arun from chennai, India. It was a very useful video. I have client interview in 2 days with an American officer. I am bit nervous on how the interview is going to be? If possible please give few more tips sir. Thanks
Hello Heinrich, I have a recommendation for a video unrelated to a career in consultancy, rather, what are your favourite books you enjoy/have enjoyed reading? Every video you seem to have a large bookshelf in the background, it would be good to learn more about them!
Hi George, thanks for your suggestion, indeed something I might do a video about in the future. In the meantime, check out the book recommendations in the link in the video description :) Best, Heinrich
Hey :) I've been watching you videos for a while and I think they are really insightful, so thanks for that!
Now, I've got a question for you: I am currently in the recruiting process for BA at Mckinsey, but I am 27-28 y/o with 2 years of industry experience. Would you still suggest is a good move and if so, why/why not? Thank you!
Hi Camila, thank you for your comment! Yes, 27-28 is not too old in my opinion. With 2 years of experience you might try to get in as an Associate instead of a BA, have you discussed this? But still, at least for me McK was such a great learning experience, do not think you will regret working there for some years, independent of what you want to do in the long term. Best! Heinrich
0:10 extract info from them, their role and relevant to our job.
0:50 #1 tip: scheduling the meeting, by whom?
there might be some politics, people could put you off, so maybe the supervisor can invite, in this way, to put the meeting much higher on the agenda.
1:55 #2 what would success mean?
before walking into the meeting room, ask yourself. well-prepared and structure the interview.
2:20 coming unprepared is seemed unprofessional. the person might go around the organization and talk about this bad situation.
make you look bad and also the whole firm looks bad.
3:10 #3 show empathy and listen
3:50 restrict your speaking share to 20%
4:00 active listening: sense the feelings, if he's comfortable, defensive, or enthusiatic and so on.
read the room is very important, might have political situation.
5:10 #4 use the power of silence.
6:40 #5 write follow-ups and minutes:
situation might be framed as this is a misunderstanding. in the email with bullets, helps build trust.
7:40 trust formula (in executive education or consult onboarding)
My Consulting experience in Oil & Gas, Supply Chain let's connect and talk
Hi Koshy, thank you - always happy to connect on LinkedIn! Best, Heinrich
Heinrich where is ur coffee mug this time? ;-)
You are right ;) Was already late and did not want to drink even more coffee...! ;) Best, Heinrich
How consulting is different from MBA Finance?
Main differences between them
Please make a video
Hi Gautam, not sure whether I understand the question correctly. Consulting is a profession, MBA / Finance is a degree program. Or how exactly do you mean this? Thanks! Heinrich
How to write meeting minutes? Like how do I know what to write. I know bullet points don’t work, and I know paragraphs don’t work. So how do I write impactful meeting minutes on what we discussed.
Hi Harpreet, have a distinct video on the channel talking about how to take notes - check it out, trust it has some insights on that! Best, Heinrich
Can you make a video where you can buy the best shirts?
Hi! If you live in Germany, check out www.soer.de :) Best! Heinrich
How do you juggle making TH-cam videos with quality content along with being a C-suite ?
Hi, usually to the videos Friday late afternoon or on the weekend :) Best! Heinrich
how to quicken the conversation when client rambles a lot?
Indeed a good question, difficult to give general advice. In most cases you might need just to sit longer with them ;) Best, Heinrich
I like your videos but the speed is too high for me. I am not a native speaker. Is it a behavioral thing to speak so fast or the best method for presenting your materials on TH-cam?
Hi, thanks for your comment and feedback! Indeed seems difficult for me to "get this right", as I also receive many comments that I speak too slowly. Have you tried changing the speed in the video options? You can just slow down the video there. I also added captions to the video, maybe they help to better understand what I say as well. Best! Heinrich
Hello Heinrich, thank you for your informative videos. One suggestion: It would be nice if you could integrate 'they/them' pronouns when going through hypothetical scenarios, instead of 'he/him'.
hahaha, that silent stare is really uncomfortable, even on a screen... lol
Can be quite uncomfortable indeed :) Thanks for watching! Best, Heinrich
Hi
Hi Aaron :) Best, Heinrich