So What Club
Start free
Back to the case

Interviewer view · keep this screen to yourself

A 10-minute scan: cement

You run the case. Read the prompt, answer questions from the notes below, and share data only when the candidate asks for it or gets stuck. Score at the end.

Case timer

00:00

Target length:

1. Read the prompt aloud

Read it slowly, then pause. Let the candidate ask questions before they structure.

Your interview tomorrow is with an office that works on building materials. Run the scan for cement. Then check the core unit economics: a plant in India sells cement at INR 5,000 per tonne (illustrative). Its costs per tonne are power and fuel INR 1,200, freight INR 1,100, raw materials INR 800 and other costs INR 1,100. What is EBITDA per tonne (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization; here, price minus these cash operating costs), and what is yearly EBITDA for a plant with 5 million tonnes of capacity running at 70 percent utilization?

2. Answers to clarifying questions

This case has no scripted clarifying answers. Answer from the prompt, and say "assume what you think is reasonable" if the prompt does not cover it.

3. A model structure

Compare the candidate's structure with this one. A different split can be just as good if it is clean and fits the problem.

  • Cement: the scan on one page
    • CustomersHome builders (often buying through dealers), construction firms, infrastructure projects, ready-mix concrete makers
    • Value chainLimestone quarry, kiln makes clinker, grinding into cement, bagging, dealers or direct delivery, customer
    • Revenue modelTonnes sold x price per tonne (often called realization)
    • CostsPower and fuel, freight (cement is heavy and cheap, so it rarely travels far), raw materials
    • Key metricsCapacity utilization, EBITDA per tonne, freight cost per tonne, carbon emissions per tonne
    • Players (unranked examples)UltraTech Cement (India), Holcim (Switzerland), Heidelberg Materials (Germany), CEMEX (Mexico), Dangote Cement (Nigeria)
    • TrendsCutting carbon emissions from kilns, consolidation through acquisitions, demand tied to housing and infrastructure spending
    • Key: Typical casesShould we build a new plant here? Why did margins fall? Should we buy a regional rival?

4. The working, step by step

Each step shows how a strong candidate works it out. Share a new fact from it only when the candidate asks or is stuck, and let them do the math: the result in the dark box is what they should reach.

  1. Step 1: Cost per tonne

    What a strong candidate does: Add the four cost lines.

    Cost per tonne (INR): 1,200 + 1,100 + 800 + 1,100 = 4,200

  2. Step 2: EBITDA per tonne

    What a strong candidate does: Price minus cost.

    EBITDA per tonne (INR): 5,000 - 4,200 = 800

  3. Step 3: Tonnes sold

    What a strong candidate does: 5 million tonnes of capacity at 70 percent.

    Tonnes sold (millions): 5 × 0.7 = 3.5

  4. Step 4: Yearly EBITDA

    What a strong candidate does: 3.5 million tonnes at INR 800 each.

    Yearly EBITDA (INR millions): 5 × 0.7 × 800 = 2,800

  5. Step 5: In crore

    What a strong candidate does: 1 crore is 10 million.

    Yearly EBITDA (INR crore): 5 × 0.7 × 800 ÷ 10 = 280

The recommendation to listen for

At the end, say: "The CEO walks in. What is your recommendation?"

EBITDA is INR 800 per tonne, about INR 2,800 million (INR 280 crore) a year at 70 percent utilization. With this scan you can already say where a cement case will go: utilization (because plant costs are fixed), power and fuel prices, and the freight distance to customers. Because cement is heavy and low in value, markets are regional: a plant competes mostly with plants within a few hundred kilometres.

Score the candidate

Score each criterion from 1 to 5. A 2 or a 4 sits between the descriptions.

This case has no exhibit. Score Exhibit reading on how the candidate used the data you gave them: did they pick out the number that matters and say what it means?

Structuring
1
No clear structure, or a memorized framework that does not fit the problem.
3
A sensible structure, but with some overlap, a gap, or no clear priority.
5
A structure built for this problem, with no overlap and no gaps, a stated hypothesis, and a clear first step.
Math
1
Frequent errors, no units, or needed heavy help to finish.
3
Right answers but slow or messy working, or one error caught late.
5
Accurate and clearly narrated, with units, a sense check, and what the number means.
Exhibit reading
1
Read the chart aloud without finding the number that matters.
3
Found the key number but gave only part of the so-what.
5
Pulled the right number quickly and said what it means for the case.
Synthesis
1
Summarized what was done, with no clear answer.
3
Gave an answer, but with weak reasons or no next step.
5
Answer first, then two or three reasons with numbers, the main risk, and next steps.
Communication
1
Hard to follow: long silences, no signposting.
3
Clear most of the time, with some rambling.
5
Calm and concise, signposted each step, and checked in with the interviewer.

Total

0 out of 25

Score all five criteria to see the band and the feedback template.