Once known as Booz & Company and now part of PwC, Strategy& stands as one of the more selective tier-2 consulting firms. With just 3-5% of applicants receiving offers, their challenging process demands smart preparation.
I’ve designed this guide to walk you through Strategy&’s interview process, incorporating all the latest changes for 2025. From understanding their unique interview structure to developing targeted preparation strategies, you’ll find everything you need to perform confidently.
Structure of the guide
- How is the selection process at Strategy& structured?
- What are the components of a Strategy& interview?
- How do Strategy& interviews differ from other consulting firms?
- What types of cases can you expect at Strategy&?
- What can you expect in the FIT portion of a Strategy& interview?
- How do you approach preparing for a Strategy& case interview?
Why this guide is different
Unlike generic consulting preparation resources, this guide zeros in on Strategy&’s specific requirements and recent hiring trends. Whether you’re just beginning your preparation journey or polishing your approach, this comprehensive resource gives you the tools to navigate Strategy&’s interviews with confidence and maximize your chances of landing an offer.
How is the selection process at Strategy& structured?
Below is a detailed comparison between Strategy&’s interview format and other consulting firms. Understanding these differences will help you focus your preparation efforts where they matter most.
| Criteria | Strategy& | Tier 1 firms (McKinsey, BCG, Bain) | Other Tier 2 firms (Oliver Wyman, Roland Berger, etc.) |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Interview format |
Candidate-led with emphasis on strategic frameworks |
McKinsey: Interviewer-led; BCG/Bain: Candidate-led |
Varies by firm; typically candidate-led with different focal points |
|
Interviewer role |
Acts as client, focuses on testing strategic thinking |
McKinsey: Actively guides; BCG/Bain: Acts as client |
Similar client role but with varying emphasis |
|
Case structure |
Strong focus on capabilities-driven strategy and fit-for-growth frameworks |
Broader mix of case types with less framework specificity |
Varies by firm’s specialization |
|
Evaluation process |
Emphasis on strategic thinking and PwC cultural alignment |
McKinsey: Standardized checklists; BCG/Bain: Structured evaluation |
Usually less standardized assessment |
|
Feedback timing |
Typically within 5-7 days |
Usually within 2-5 days |
Similar timeframe (3-7 days) |
|
Number of rounds |
Two to three rounds, with PwC cultural fit assessment |
Typically two rounds |
Typically two rounds, sometimes three |
|
Interviews per round |
Two interviews per round, plus potential written case
|
Two to three interviews per round |
Usually two interviews per round |
|
Common industries |
Focus on deals, technology, operations, and industrial products |
Broader coverage across industries
|
Often specialized by firm (e.g., Oliver Wyman: financial services) |
What are the components of a Strategy& interview?
Strategy&’s interview process breaks down into three distinct parts. Each segment carefully assesses different aspects of your skills, values, and fit with the firm’s culture.
Personal fit interview
Through targeted questions about your professional background, Strategy& evaluates qualities they expect to see in your future work. They look closely at four key areas:
- Strategic thinking: How well you identify core issues and develop clear, coherent solutions.
- Industry perspective: Your grasp of sector dynamics and competitive forces that shape markets.
- Capabilities alignment: Your ability to spot and leverage distinctive capabilities that create advantage.
- Cultural fit with PwC: Your professional style and alignment with PwC’s values and approach.
This structured approach helps them determine how well you match the qualities they prize in their consultants. Pay attention to how they place special emphasis on strategic clarity and cultural alignment with the broader PwC organization.
Case interview
Lasting about 35-40 minutes, this second and most extensive portion of the interview reveals Strategy&’s distinctive approach. They employ a candidate-led format with several unique characteristics:
- Heavy emphasis on their signature “capabilities-driven strategy” framework
- Sharp focus on identifying and leveraging a company’s distinctive capabilities
- Cases frequently centered on organizational transformation and strategic cost restructuring
- Clear expectation to connect high-level strategy to practical execution
- Strong emphasis on alignment with PwC’s broader service offerings
This section tests your ability to apply Strategy&’s strategic frameworks while demonstrating practical implementation considerations. This combination reflects their unique position within the broader PwC ecosystem.
In order to better understand the difference between interviewer led and candidate led cases please watch our YouTube video
Your questions for the interviewer
As the interview concludes, you’ll have a valuable opportunity to ask questions about the interviewer’s experience at Strategy&, their most memorable projects, or other topics that interest you. Strategy& interviewers often appreciate questions that demonstrate your understanding of the firm’s rich heritage (from Booz & Company) and its integration within PwC.
While most interviews now take place via video conferencing platforms, Strategy& has implemented a hybrid approach as of 2025. Final rounds typically include PwC office visits, allowing candidates to experience both Strategy&’s strategic focus and PwC’s broader professional services environment.
How do Strategy& interviews differ from other consulting firms?
Many candidates stumble by failing to prepare specifically for Strategy&’s distinctive interview style. This oversight leads to confusion about expectations during the actual interview and, ultimately, rejection.
While Strategy& uses a candidate-led format similar to BCG and Bain, they stand apart through their emphasis on capabilities-driven strategy and fit-for-growth principles. This distinctive approach reflects both the firm’s intellectual heritage from Booz & Company and PwC’s implementation-focused mindset.
In Strategy&’s candidate-led format, you—not the interviewer—must drive the entire case from start to finish. You’ll need to ask insightful questions, request specific data, analyze information thoroughly, and present compelling recommendations. The interviewer mainly observes your approach like a client would, rather than guiding you through the process.
This key difference shapes how you should structure your thinking:
In Strategy&’s framework-oriented approach, a strong response might sound like: “To tackle this market expansion challenge, I’d like to examine three critical areas: the client’s distinctive capabilities, how these capabilities might create competitive advantage in the new market, and what capability gaps we might need to address. Could we start by exploring the company’s current capability system in more detail?”
Such an approach demonstrates familiarity with Strategy&’s capabilities-driven strategy while maintaining the independent problem-solving they expect in their candidate-led format.
Strategy&’s unique elements include:
- Capabilities focus: Stronger emphasis on identifying and leveraging distinctive capabilities that create advantage
- PwC integration: Cases may explore connections to broader professional services offerings
- Fit-for-growth mindset: Focus on aligning cost structures with strategic priorities
- Strategy-to-execution connection: Greater emphasis on implementation considerations
Understanding these subtle but important differences is crucial for success in Strategy& interviews. Their format demands that you demonstrate strategic thinking through their specific lens while showing awareness of practical implementation realities.
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What types of cases can you expect at Strategy&?
Success in Strategy& case interviews hinges on mastering fundamental frameworks while demonstrating familiarity with their distinctive capabilities-driven approach. The case-solving journey unfolds through several key stages, each offering a chance to showcase your strategic thinking and implementation mindset.
Case types to expect at Strategy&
Excelling in Strategy& case interviews requires demonstrating rigorous analytical thinking and the ability to develop strategic insights that create lasting value, which Strategy& (formerly Booz & Company) particularly values. Successful navigation through these interviews typically follows these critical areas:
Key steps in solving a case
- Clarifying questions – After receiving the case prompt, ask targeted questions to better understand the client’s problem and objectives before structuring your approach.
- Structuring – Choose a relevant framework and adapt it to the specific problem and industry, with particular attention to strategic fit and capabilities-driven strategy.
- Analyzing graphical data – Identify trends in the provided charts and interpret their implications for the client’s problem.
- Solving the math problem – Perform calculations and interpret the results within the context of the case.
- Providing recommendations – Conduct a structured brainstorming session to offer actionable solutions, considering the client’s objectives and constraints.
Common types of business problems tested
Quantitative structures
- Market sizing: What’s the addressable market for industrial IoT solutions in the manufacturing sector across developed economies?
Here is an example of a marketsizing exercise that you can encounter
- Profit and Loss (P&L): A global telecommunications provider has invested heavily in network infrastructure, yet return on invested capital continues to decline—what’s driving this trend?
Qualitative structures
- Growth strategy: How should a multinational energy company reposition its portfolio to capitalize on the energy transition while maintaining profitability?
- Market entry: Should a leading automotive components manufacturer enter the electric vehicle supply chain in emerging markets?
- Pricing: What value-based pricing strategy would optimize revenue while accelerating market adoption for this cloud-based enterprise solution?
- Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A): Would acquiring this specialized technology provider create sustainable competitive advantage for our industrial client or merely provide temporary capabilities?
- Capacity expansion: Should our pharmaceutical client invest in developing manufacturing capabilities for advanced therapies or form strategic partnerships? The answer requires careful evaluation of multiple factors.
- Public sector strategies: Develop a digital transformation roadmap for a national postal service facing disruption.
Process-oriented structures
- Operational cases: Supply chain resilience at our client’s global operations has deteriorated despite increased investments—identify root causes and strategic solutions.
- Customer journey cases: Brand loyalty metrics for a premium consumer electronics manufacturer have declined despite product quality improvements. Why?
Unique public sector processes: A government-sponsored innovation program has seen decreasing commercial outcomes despite increased funding. What strategic shifts are needed?
Industry knowledge
Beyond mastering case types, familiarize yourself with key industries where Strategy& demonstrates particular strength: industrial products, technology, healthcare, consumer products, and deals/M&A. Their cases frequently reflect these sectors, where they’ve built strong market positions over decades of specialized work.
Strategy& often incorporates elements of their proprietary frameworks—such as Capabilities-Driven Strategy, Fit for Growth, and Strategic Identity—into case discussions. Familiarity with these concepts can provide a significant advantage, helping you speak their language and approach problems through their distinctive lens.
By following a structured approach and understanding these business scenarios, you’ll enter interviews well-prepared for the variety of cases Strategy& uses to assess candidates.
What can you expect in the FIT portion of a Strategy& interview?
The FIT portion carries equal weight to the case interview, carefully assessing your personal values, motivation, and experiences to ensure alignment with the firm’s culture and PwC’s broader professional environment. This critical evaluation typically explores three question categories:
“Tell me about yourself and your career journey”
You’ll need to provide a concise yet comprehensive overview of your background, highlighting experiences directly relevant to consulting and Strategy&’s values. Unlike at other firms, Strategy& particularly values candidates who can articulate how their past experiences demonstrate strategic thinking and capability development—the twin pillars of their consulting approach.
Motivation questions
Interviewers will probe why you’re pursuing consulting and why Strategy& specifically attracts your interest. Be prepared to articulate what draws you to Strategy&’s culture, values, and approach to strategy consulting. They place special emphasis on your understanding of their capabilities-driven methodology and their unique position within the PwC network—a hybrid offering that combines strategic insight with implementation power.
Behavioral questions
This represents the most critical component of the FIT section, where you’ll share stories demonstrating specific skills and values:
- Strategic thinking: Describe when you identified core issues in a complex situation and developed a coherent, effective solution.
- Industry perspective: Show your understanding of competitive dynamics and market forces in a particular sector, and how these shaped your thinking.
- Capabilities alignment: Explain how you’ve identified and leveraged distinctive strengths to create competitive advantage in past roles or projects.
- PwC cultural fit: Demonstrate your professional approach and alignment with PwC’s core values: integrity, making a difference, care, working together, and reimagining the possible.
- Implementation focus: Illustrate how you’ve translated strategic concepts into practical execution—a critical skill in Strategy&’s world.
Preparing Your Stories
Begin crafting these stories 2-3 weeks before your interview, ensuring they precisely meet Strategy&’s specific criteria for each category. Each narrative should run 3-4 minutes and follow the STAR framework (Situation, Task, Action, Result), with approximately 70% focusing on your specific actions and the measurable impact you created.
Strategy& interviewers typically value stories that demonstrate both strategic thinking and practical implementation skills more highly than general leadership examples, reflecting the firm’s position between pure strategy and execution. This balanced perspective sets them apart from purely strategic or implementation-focused firms.
How do you approach preparing for a Strategy& case interview?
Preparing effectively for a Strategy& case interview demands a disciplined, structured approach. Let’s explore the essential preparation stages:
1. Setting a clear goal
A well-defined goal serves as the foundation of effective preparation. Without a precise objective, you risk losing focus and motivation during the demanding preparation process. Knowing that securing an offer is your ultimate aim will fuel your consistency throughout. For Strategy& specifically, understand that your preparation must emphasize both strategic frameworks and implementation considerations—reflecting their hybrid consulting model.
2. Creating a study schedule
Consistency trumps intensity in case preparation. Allocate time daily based on your available preparation window:
- 3 months: 45 minutes of focused study per day
- 1.5 months: 1.5 hours of concentrated work daily
- 1 month: 2 hours of intensive preparation each day
For Strategy& specifically, dedicate additional time to understanding their capabilities-driven approach and fit-for-growth principles, as these represent critical success factors in their distinctive cases.
3. Mastering case interview theory
Before diving into practice cases, build a rock-solid theoretical foundation. Cover all critical aspects of case-solving methodology, including:
- Key steps for solving cases through a capabilities-driven lens
- Various case types (quantitative, qualitative, and process-oriented)
- Industry-specific nuances (industrial products, technology, deals/M&A)
- Strategy&’s proprietary frameworks and approaches
Dedicate specific days to each theoretical block to avoid overwhelming yourself. Pay particular attention to understanding how capabilities connect to competitive advantage—a fundamental concept in Strategy&’s approach that appears throughout their cases in various forms.
4. Practicing case interviews
There’s simply no substitute for practice. Aim to solve at least 50-80 cases before your interview, focusing on feedback and continuous improvement rather than just quantity. For Strategy& specifically:
- Emphasize capabilities-driven approaches and fit-for-growth principles in your solutions
- Practice identifying and articulating distinctive capabilities that create competitive advantage
- Build comfort with cost restructuring decisions that align with strategic priorities
- Focus on connecting high-level strategy to practical execution steps
- Develop familiarity with Strategy&’s thought leadership concepts and terminology
Work with experienced candidates or professional case coaches to ensure the feedback you receive is actionable and high-quality. For Strategy& preparation, prioritize practice partners who can accurately simulate their framework-oriented, capabilities-driven interview style.
5. Preparing the FIT portion
Craft your personal stories following Strategy&’s specific requirements. Use the STAR framework to structure each narrative (Situation, Task, Action, Result), ensuring they run 3-4 minutes and address the core values Strategy& seeks:
- Strategic thinking
- Industry perspective
- Capabilities alignment
- PwC cultural fit
- Implementation focus
Prepare compelling examples that showcase both your strategic thinking abilities and practical implementation skills, as these twin qualities are particularly valued by Strategy& interviewers more than general leadership stories.
By following this structured approach tailored to Strategy&’s specific interview format and values, you’ll develop the skills, confidence, and readiness to excel in their rigorous selection process.
