Accenture Application Process

1. Application & Psychometric Questionnaire

The initial part of the application process for Accenture is to submit your contact details online accompanied by an upload of your CV. There are free CV templates from PrepLounge if you need them.​

Accenture requires applicants to complete a short psychometric questionnaire.​

Not all applicants will pass this initial screening and be invited to take the online test. If you are successful then the next step is to take a digital assessment test.

2. Online Test

The online test is described as an 'immersive experience' what that means is that it involves observing situations and then answering questions based on those situations. The best way to prepare for these is to practice your numerical, diagrammatical, and situational reasoning skills. Although it is not a like-for-like scenario as there is a lack of animation, the skillset required is the same. They are looking for your ability to apply logic and reasoning to an unfamiliar situation – something that consultants do on a daily basis.

2.1 Numerical Reasoning

The question would ask you to combine the information on the graph with the information in the table to find a correct answer. You are able to use a calculator so the hardest part is identifying the right numbers to use as the maths does not get more complicated than basic maths:​

• Addition
• Subtraction
• Multiplication
• Division​

An example question would be "Which founders had the most valuable shares at funding round C?"​

The answer would be 'Healthy Brussells' as they have 51.41% of a company valued at £32m leaving them with a share value of £16.45m versus the next closest, Nightly AI, whose founders have a share value of £15m (20% of £75m).​

As you can see, these types of questions may require multiple steps but the maths involved is not the hard part. To practice numerical reasoning questions in preparation for your online test, see our numerical reasoning exercises.

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2.2 Diagrammatical Reasoning​

In a diagrammatical reasoning test, you are looking to identify sequences such as these as quickly as possible and it is useful to start with a single object and follow its path through each image, this usually allows you to eliminate one or more of the potential answers.

For example following the top row of images we need to decipher whether A, B, C, or D comes next:

Taking the triangle in the top left corner of the first box we can follow its path: top left > top right > bottom right > bottom left. This appears to follow a clockwise rotation around the box so we can assume that the correct answer will have a triangle in the top left, this means that B is the correct answer.​

To confirm this we can take another shape, the square in the bottom right, and follow its path as well: bottom right > bottom left > top left > top right. Another clockwise rotation suggests the answer would have a square in the bottom right corner. Therefore, we can now be certain that B is the correct answer.​

Not all sequences will be as straightforward as that example and there may be two sequences happening simultaneously but the same process applies. ​

2.3 Situational Judgement​

Situational judgment tests are designed to extract personality traits, and in turn, build a corresponding personality profile of the applicant. This helps the employer understand how an applicant may act in certain situations.​

The first thing to know about situational judgment tests is that hiring companies often dictate which traits they are looking for so the "correct" answers can vary between employers. It is a chance for them to present you with a relevant scenario to the job you would be doing and see how you may act. The kind of traits they are looking for are:​

• Honesty & integrity
• Communication
• Teamwork
• Problem-solving
• Relationship building
• Analytical thinking​

Situational judgment tests are designed to be good discriminators, this is to tease out clear personality traits. They do this by asking you to either select your response to the situation or rank the given responses in order. ​

There is a good incentive to simply be yourself and answer the questions honestly, especially if the "right" answers were determined by running the test on current employees. It is an indicator of your fit within a team and if you aren't honest you could end up working in a team that you don't get on with.

3. Assessment Center

If you are successful in your online application and assessment then you will be invited to interview at the company offices. Usually, the interviews are all on the same day so you don't need to make multiple trips. ​

The day consists of a total of two interviews, a VR experience, and a group exercise. One of the interviews is a case interview and the other is a competency interview based on the CV you originally submitted with a small market sizing question usually to finish. The VR experience expects you to work through a simulation competently and the group exercise requires you to work together to solve a business challenge.

3.1 Competency Interview​

The competency interview will consist of generic questions such as:

• Why are you interested in consulting?
• Why are you interested in the work we do?
• Are you willing to travel with work?
• What are your interests outside of work?
• Why do you think you would be a good fit at Accenture?​

As well as specific questions about what is on your CV. Be aware that interviewers are not looking to find out if what you wrote on your CV is true but they want to see how you articulate that experience. Being able to communicate your prior experience in a confident and interesting way is very valuable so be prepared to talk around the points on your CV.

3.2 VR Simulation​

This is as much for Accenture to show their specialty in technology and engage with candidates as it is a test for you to pass. As long as you tackle the simulation competently and with a smile on your face then you are likely to score highly. They are looking to see how you will react to more fun and different scenario in a professional environment; those that shy away or those that turn into uncontrollable children will score low on this task as emotional extremes in front of a client are not preferred.​

3.3 Case Interview

A case interview is a business case that involves a strategic problem such as entering a new market or increasing profitability and as the interviewee, you are asked to recommend an appropriate strategy. An example question might be:​

The CEO of Deutsche bank has become increasingly concerned about their declining profitability over the last 36 months and has asked you to determine the factors causing the decline as well as recommend a strategy to reverse this trend.

The most critical part of any case interview is selecting, customizing, and presenting the approach you are going to take to the interviewer. If you can do this well then you will score highly as long as you follow that approach through, even if it doesn't get you to the right answer.​

If you have not come across a case interview before then you should definitely research them and practice them more than anything else as they are very easy to get wrong but are crucial to almost every consulting interview you take.​

Read our comprehensive guide to case interviews basics to get yourself up to speed.​​​

3.4 Market Sizing

Market sizing questions (sometimes known as guesstimates) are often used in interviews because they require a mix of logic, maths, and common sense. They can be asked as a standalone question or as part of a larger case interview. Candidates that are competent with market sizing questions can find them extremely easy to execute.

All the top-tier consulting firms are likely to test their candidates with a market sizing question at some stage in the process as it is considered a “back-of-the-envelope” calculation. For instance, you may be sat talking to a UK clothing retailer about their growth strategy and someone may put forward the idea of opening an e-commerce store inviting the question “how much revenue could we expect to generate from an e-commerce store?” and on the back of an envelope (or more likely a piece of paper), you could estimate the size of the UK’s online clothing market and apply a market capture percentage for the client to give them a rough figure. Being quick with these calculations keeps the conversation flowing with the client and maintains a good impression.​

There are two structures to know when answering a market sizing question: issue tree and tabular. It is sensible to practice these frameworks before an interview that involves a market sizing question because it can be the difference between being successful and unsuccessful. ​

3.5 Group Exercise​

The group exercise will have an answer to it and most groups will reach it but getting the right answer is not paramount to scoring well. Naturally, there will be someone within the group who assumes the role of the leader but the person that does will not be guaranteed extra points for doing so. Taking the position of a leader shows confidence but it is essential that the leader does not become overpowering and should make a concerted effort to ask for other people's opinions and bring quieter members of the group into the conversation. ​

Someone who isn't the leader should be seen to contribute positively to conversations and communicate their opinion and thoughts clearly to the rest of the group. If they notice that there are members of the group struggling to communicate their thoughts then they should bring them into the conversation or task by asking their opinion or delegating a task. ​

It is likely that an element of change will be introduced during the task such as swapping a team member for someone completely new. This is a simulation of a real-life project situation when team members do come into the team at short notice and so must be up-skilled as quickly as possible. It is important that if this happens you take the initiative to introduce yourself, the team, your thinking, and how they can help as quickly as possible.