How you are scored, and 15 failure patterns
What interviewers look for at each stage, and the most common ways candidates lose credit.
Key takeaways
- Interviewers score evidence, not impressions. At each stage of the case, ask yourself: what did I just show them that they can write down?
- The weak answer is failure pattern 13: a recap of the process. The interviewer already knows what you did.
- Framework recital. Example: "I will use the 4Ps" for a hospital with long waiting times.
- No hypothesis. Example: a clean structure, then "Where would you like me to start?" Fix: say which bucket you think matters most and why, then start there.
- Asking for everything. Example: "Can I have revenue, costs, market share, and customer data?" Fix: ask for the one piece of data that tests your hypothesis, and say why.
This is part of the expert track. It assumes you have worked through the foundation lessons (structuring, case math, exhibits, synthesis) and several case types, and that you have run a few cases out loud. If not, start there and come back.
Scoring differs by firm, by office, and by interviewer. Many firms use their own forms with their own names for each skill, and interviewers weigh things differently. What follows is a practical picture of what interviewers commonly look for, drawn from how cases are usually run, not the scoring sheet of any one firm.
Key idea
Interviewers score evidence, not impressions. At each stage of the case, ask yourself: what did I just show them that they can write down?
| Stage | What earns credit | What loses credit |
|---|---|---|
| Opening | Restating the goal and its measure; two or three sharp clarifying questions | No questions, or ten questions that could wait |
| Structure | Buckets built for this problem, no overlap, a hypothesis, a clear first step | A memorized framework read aloud; a long list with no priority |
| Analysis | Asking for the data that tests the hypothesis; saying why each step matters | Asking for everything; losing track of the objective |
| Math | Setting up before calculating, narrating, units, a sense check, the so-what | Silent calculation; lost zeros; a number with no meaning attached |
| Exhibit | Finding the number that matters fast and saying what it means | Describing the chart line by line; missing the units or the footnote |
| Brainstorm | Ideas grouped into clear buckets, then ranked | A long unsorted list; stopping after two ideas |
| Synthesis | Answer first, reasons with numbers, main risk, next steps | A recap of the analysis; "it depends" with no view |
So-what
Every stage has a visible behavior that earns credit. Most failures are behaviors you can see and fix.
Communication runs through every stage: signposting ("I will do three things"), checking in ("Does that match what you expected?"), and staying calm when something goes wrong.
The 15 most common failure patterns, with a fix for each
Failure patterns interviewers see again and again
- Framework recital. Example: "I will use the 4Ps" for a hospital with long waiting times. Fix: build buckets from the question; for waiting times, follow the flow of patients.
- No hypothesis. Example: a clean structure, then "Where would you like me to start?" Fix: say which bucket you think matters most and why, then start there.
- Asking for everything. Example: "Can I have revenue, costs, market share, and customer data?" Fix: ask for the one piece of data that tests your hypothesis, and say why.
- Losing the objective. Example: twenty minutes on costs when the question was whether to enter a market. Fix: restate the goal at each step: "This matters for the entry decision because..."
- Silent math. Example: a minute of quiet writing, then a number. Fix: say the setup first, then narrate the key steps.
- Lost zeros and units. Example: an answer of 4.5 when it should be 4.5 million, or mixing monthly and annual figures. Fix: keep a unit on every number and use short forms (M, B).
- A number with no meaning. Example: "Payback is 25 months," then silence. Fix: add one sentence: "That is fast enough to justify closing the stores."
- Reading the exhibit aloud. Example: "This chart shows four regions and their sales..." Fix: find the one number that matters, then say what it means for the case.
- Missing the trap in an exhibit. Example: treating thousands as millions, or missing a footnote that excludes a region. Fix: read the title, units, and notes before the bars.
- An unsorted brainstorm. Example: "Price, social media, new stores, a loyalty card, cost cuts..." Fix: set two to four buckets first, then fill them, then rank.
- Defending a dead hypothesis. Example: still arguing for price pressure after the data shows prices are flat. Fix: use the four-part pivot: expected, shows, now think, test next.
- Giving in under pushback. Example: changing the answer when the interviewer says "I do not agree" without any new fact. Fix: hold the view with its reason, and say what would change your mind.
- A summary instead of a synthesis. Example: "First we looked at revenue, then at costs..." Fix: answer first, then reasons with numbers, the main risk, and next steps.
- No real answer. Example: "It depends on many factors." Fix: pick a view, say what it depends on, and say what you would do today.
- Poor time and pace. Example: a four-minute structure and no time left for the recommendation. Fix: signpost, keep each step short, and check in with the interviewer.
The interviewer asks "So what should the client do?" after twenty-five minutes of analysis.
Weaker answer
"We started by looking at revenue, which was flat, then we looked at costs, which rose in Leeds, then we looked at capacity..."
Stronger answer
"The client should close the plant in Leeds and move its volume to Bristol. First, Leeds loses about GBP 4 million a year. Second, Bristol has room for the volume at no extra fixed cost. Third, the move pays back in under two years. The main risk is losing skilled staff, so we should offer transfers. Next step: confirm Bristol's capacity by product line."
Why the stronger answer wins: The weak answer is failure pattern 13: a recap of the process. The interviewer already knows what you did. They want the answer and the reasons.
Practice: spot the failure pattern
A candidate is shown a bar chart of sales by region and says: "The chart shows sales for the North, South, East, and West. The North is 40, the South is 25, the East is 30, and the West is 35." Which failure pattern is this?
After a clean structure, a candidate says: "Those are the four areas. Which one would you like me to look at?" Which failure pattern is this?
The interviewer says "I am not sure about that." The candidate replies: "You are right, let me change my recommendation." No new information was given. Which failure pattern is this?
What does "interviewers score evidence" mean in practice?
A candidate says "It depends on many factors" when asked for a recommendation. What is the fix?
Which statement about scoring across firms is most accurate?
Sources for this lesson (1)
- Recognized public explanations of case-interview concepts and frameworks
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