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How to Speak Like a Management Consultant?


Talking like a management consultant is a good way to impress your interviewer during the case interview. However, many candidates make that dreadful mistake of using cliche’d jargons they find on the Internet – if you do that, the interviewer will perceive you as naive, at best.

How do you which terms consultants actually use in their workplace, then? To answer that question, I’ve wrote a little “dictionary” for the terms that we consultants use on the field.

Consulting content terminology dictionary – MConsultingPrep

This comprehensive dictionary is useful for:

  • Aspiring consultants looking to implicitly show their “consulting-like” background on resumes or in case interviews.
  • First-year consultants looking to immediately improve “professionalism” and improve consulting writing style on reports, emails, etc.
  • First-year consultants looking to immediately improve “professionalism” and improve consulting writing style on reports, emails, etc.

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For now, here’s a few examples from MConsultingPrep’s Consulting Content Terminology Dictionary.

TermDefinitionExample of typical consulting writing
Ad hocNon-structureLet’s turn this ad hoc process into a structured and efficient one.
DeliverablesEnd products of consulting projectsOur deliverables for this workstream include the master strategy and detailed implementation plan for the cement segment in the next 10 years.
End-to-endComprehensive; completeThe supervisors should manage and construct projects in an end-to-end manner.
FootprintSignificant and
powerful presence
in something
The firm has expanded its footprint in the real
estate and social infrastructure construction in
synergy with the urban development business.
FunctionE.g: HR, Finance,
Operation,
Strategy, etc.
IT systems are vulnerable while HR and Finance
functions also show gaps.
In lineAbout the sameThis steel plant performance is in line with
market average but room for improvement exists.
InitiativesActionsABC could pursue performance improvement
initiatives to further strengthen hydro power
generation’s contribution to the Holding.
LeverageTaking
advantage of
Apple should leverage its strong brand name.
LeversWays to improve
things
There are three levers to boost sales conversion
rate at branches.
Market perspectiveMarket understandingThe first phase in our project is to get a big-picture of market perspective.
MilestonesMini goalsThe company passed the £6 million milestone
this year.
RestructuringSignificantly and
massively changing
something
The board guided three-year Human Capital
Transformation Plan including restructuring
divisions and alignment to business strategy.
Root causeBottleneck that
causes the problem
The root cause of the problem lies in the poor
construction of the bridge.
StrategyWhere to play;
What to play; How
to play
The client should develop a holistic urban
development strategy to become the developer-of-choice for large-scale urban development
projects.
TurnaroundBringing something from the slums to the surfaceABC cement is facing serious financial challenges and the chance for a turnaround is small.

Merely speaking like a consultant is not enough to pass case interviews – you need to absolutely master the core fundamentals as well as the tips and techniques!

Here’s a “crash course” to help you do just that – from principles of consulting problem-solving, to case interview formats, along with dozens of tips and tricks, all in one free guide!

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