McKinsey Singapore: Final Round Strategy

Question

Hey Guys,

I'm preparing for my final round interview with McKinsey Singapore next week, and was wondering if anyone had any good tips for nailing this final round.

Specifically, I would like to know three things:

1) Case Types:

what sort of case work drives the portfolio at McKinsey Singapore and SE Asia by extension: Market Entry? M&A? Business Reorganisation? Some other functions?

2) Industry Portfolio:

what industries dominate the region? So far, I've been researching case studies and current trends in Financial Services, Manufacturing, Consumer Retail, Upstream Oil & Gas, and Public Sector. Am I missing any? Are there any above that seem more important to focus on?

3) Cultural Fit for an Outsider:

what is the best way to demonstrate Fit? For the sake of disclosue, I am 'outsider' to the region: a Moroccan national with a professional and academic background in Germany and the United Kingdom.

In this regard:

a) what aspects of my personal story should I look to highlight in these final interviews? and

b) what unique cultural elements of corporate SE Asia are likely to present themselves in a Fit interview, and how can I prepare for and navigate these unique cultural elements?

I am really grateful in advance to this solid community of experts and enthusiasts as your responses will be so helpful for these final stages of my preparation.

Many thanks!

Answer 1

Hi there!

No expert here by any means but I think, since you are asking very specific questions, the best thing you could do is network with younger people in the office you are applying and discuss the same questions you just posted.

LinkedIn being perfect for that.

Answer 2

No one? Not a word of counsel from ANYONE on here? :-(

I suppose it is a rather specific query relevant to a few, and experienced by fewer still.

Thanks all the same! :-)

Answer 3

Hi,

how did your interview go after all? I plan to apply for McKinsey Singapore in the next days and would be very curious about your experience.

Did you have any kind of "touch point" with the SEA area, such as internship experience in Singapore or a semester abroad? I have studied in Bangkok for half a year, but apart from that experience I studied and worked only in Europe and Middle East. Hence, I am a bit worried that they will directly refer me to their office in my home country (Germany).

Have you developed further insights after all to the questions you asked in this forum?

Thank you!