Andrew the Consultant is asked for an honest, precise forecast for a project deliverable by a senior manager at the firm. The best approach for Andrew would be to:
Explanation
Answer: b - The best approach is to always be on top of project details and provide an answer to the senior manager that indicates you are on the ball, but defer details until a check-in has been completed. An example might be what you believe to be a range of dates. The other answers are options, but you don’t want to bog down a senior manager with too much detail, nor do you want to provide an estimate that’s wrong. At the same time, you want to provide a personal touch and accurate detail.
Key Takeaway: A frequent question in a case interview asks you how you would handle a particular situation when a senior manager requests information on the spot. In this case, the key word in the original question is precise. The manager may be doing some planning based on your deliverable completion date. As such, it’s better to defer an answer until some additional analysis and confirmation can be done.
