Comprehensive McKinsey, Bain & BCG Operations Case Approach

[@Kris.Safarova]

We hope you will find this video helpful. Let us know what do you struggle with the most in your career/business. And as you are building your skills with FIRMSconsulting content please also focus on building a skill set that will serve you for the rest of your life, versus only focusing on achieving a short term goal.

[@marcussoori]

Another solution is taking into account the expiration date of the soda, the on-shelf time before purchase, and then implementing a plan (if this is a yearly production issue) to overproduce in expectation of the summer months during the low-demand period immediately preceding the high-demand period. In addition, you could use your scientists on staff to test whether expiration dates could be stretched without any effect on the quality or safety of the soda.

[@leahgoldberger3586]

Thank you, thank you, thank you! I'm a Dartmouth MBA who successfully avoided all case interviews while in school. Thanks to your video and subsequent practice, I just crushed a series of case interviews that resulted in two job offers. Could not have done it without you. Thank you for your careful and thorough explanations of each step.

[@firmsconsulting]

You are very welcome, Leah. Glad we could help!

[@Lucas-go3vu]

Great content for practicing alone. I strongly recommend this for those that want to study but do not have a partner.

[@reginaldwallace3578]

Solution makes sense, and a cost-benefit analysis will yield an accurate basis for making a decision as to whether to bring in more equipment or ship product in from another plant to fix the supply shortage problem.

[@josemariaperalta7378]

You can learn a lot from this video, communication, solving problem skills, operations etc. FirmsConsulting is very generous for sharing this material for free.

[@firmsconsulting]

We are glad you found it useful, Jose.

[@BBBarua]

This is true in the real-world manufacturing field. Very helpful indeed.

[@PinkRobinCamp]

QA step still needs to be conducted after bottling process so its not really solving the capacity issues. Absorb capacity planning (level manufacture to cope the fluctuate demand before peak season) is the obvious solution. Cost and benefit analysis would be carry out on two scenarios : build excess capacity vs. build stocks ( this could be finished goods - customer inventory or part finished - bottles components). I wouldn't recommend to go for outsourcing because this would entails wider business implications e.g: IP, processes, warehousing, workers, trials, control and could potentially invite wider operational complexities and risks The another creative solution is to look at downstream value clain- how to mitigate customers complains. This could be done by transfer the capacity level issue to customers. By encouraging customers (preferred Key accounts) to build up summer stocks in advance with incentivize trade deals.

[@firmsconsulting]

Glad, not the bottling process but the bottleneck process. That is why it fixes the capacity issues.

[@tianwangice]

as some comments point out, to produce more before summer comes seems like the most reasonable way. However, after my second thought, I would say this solution wouldn't meet the criteria that "client wants the problem to solved asap" since it's already in summer. So maybe we can mention this solution for record, but really need to dig the other perspectives. Have just finished reading the summary of the book The Goal, it's great but i agree the summary is enough to know the basics

[@williamfabiano5585]

Great content for practicing alone. I strongly recommend this for those that want to study but do not have a partner.

[@firmsconsulting]

Hi William, Thank you for your kind words.

[@chris11111-s]

Early on one might have asked specifically which customer was unhappy; the distributor (implying supply chain issue) or the end customer (implying quality issue).

[@Samuel-bw6hg]

I watched this case before and after reading the book "The Goal by Eliyahu Goldratt", and trust I learnt a lot with the knowledge shared in that book! It's good to see how many of the principles shared in the book and in this episode relate.

[@OSS976]

I haven’t heard of that book before. Thanks for sharing, I’ll look into that!

[@sherry8782]

7 years later, still great content. I'm interviewing with one of the top tech companies as an operations manager, this video is fantastic to go through as part of my prep

[@marcoantoniohernandezmarin321]

Ok good

[@brunomorado]

Q&A is Questions & Answers. Quality Assurance is usually abbreviated QA.

[@firmsconsulting]

Bruno Moesch Thanks. Michael

[@mikeruhland4402]

Alex, The idea suggested is used in manufacturing whenever a bottleneck's throughput needs to be elevated. The idea is to protect the bottleneck operation from any defects that will waste machine cycles. The function of QA to protect the customer downstream of the bottling operation remains. The expense of moving some of the QA process upstream, even if the effort of duplicated, is small with respect to the value created by increasing the throughput in the bottleneck operation.

[@hindflight]

Wouldn't that depend on proportion of finished product defects versus raw material defects? You might address the delivery complaints at the expense of product quality complaints... right?

[@jeeves2129]

Enjoyed this case. I would also highly recommend the book "Goal from Dr. Eliyahu Goldratt" which Michael referred in the beginning.

[@firmsconsulting]

Yes, a very good book. Here is a link to all books Michael recommends www.firmsconsulting.com/quarterly/best-strategy-books/

[@sirisaksirisak6981]

Usually have a safety stock 10% and for cleaning the product tank on duration time and set up product machine. When compare to safety stock per set up cost and sunk cost is in acceptable cover to season festival, or special holidays will have high order.

[@mikecartwright9091]

Great breakdown. I like the layout and walkthrough, especially compared to some other youtube case tutorials.

[@OSS976]

This has to be the most useful casing video I’ve seen on KZbin (and I’ve seen hundreds). Thank you for sharing! I’ve subscribed and plan on watching many more before my interviews next week.

[@firmsconsulting]

Awesome, thank you!

[@josephte7117]

so much for your creativity, you just ramped up the capacity, either its inhouse or outsourced its the same duhh

[@ashishp3954]

This FC episode helped me understand a lot of broader concepts such as communication style, delivery and maths that can be applicable to other case types and client situation. Thanks FC!

[@zacharyramsey6006]

I have an MSIE and an MBA, operations are essentially my life, but I'm looking into consulting so I've been studying your videos to prepare for case interviews and I have a question... Would moving QA actually work in real life? I don't think so, for a number of reasons. First off we need to see this as a value chain, not a supply chain. The QA step is non value added but prevents loss. Your solution only works out mathematically. In real life putting QA too far upstream in the process assumes that down stream won't make a mistake, you can fix this with multiple QA steps (which I have seen in practice), but at the same time even theoretically this barely increases capacity. Secondly, it doesn't address the root cause directly, it just moves it slightly. Your extra 400 bottles are artificial as a result of not doing actual math and instead doing "business math." You catch defects early and move toward 100% capacity of 8,000. You don't get extra capacity of 8400. My solution to this problem: I thought this case was simple, if it is a seasonal problem and normally you have excess capacity why not just issue forward production to prepare for the peak season? Soda has a long shelf life compared to the peak season. It could easily be done if storage space isnt an issue. Now your holding costs would go up in the off season so looking at those vs outsourcing production would be where a cost/benefit analysis would need to be done. Thoughts?

[@tianwangice]

thanks for your elaborating, i really like your idea

[@preshthabijlani4366]

Excellent solution! I too had identified that the 100% capacity gets you to produce 8K bottles and not 8.4K. I agree with your solution that moving QA upstream would work in theory but not practically in a plant. I do have a question in regards to the "QA solution" - Is moving QA upstream the only option? Alternatively, could we think of other solutions like enhancing the machinery in the bottling plant to produce more bottles or doing reduced batch size productions? I don't have any degree in Operations but have some work experience so i am curious to know your opinion on that!

[@solocookingsolo8600]

Totally agree with you. That was my first thought as well to solve this problem.

[@scottwhittle6319]

i would suggest that you get some real work experience in materials planning/logistics....spend time with the cfo's office; then the vp of sales.

[@baudinb5562]

Hi Zachary, I fully agree with your first thoughts however the situation is already there and it actually happened (so being proactive and prepare for seasonal pick won't work unless for the next season). So, in order to fix the issue we currently have we look at other options. Cheers

[@brunofreire5968]

Thanks a lot, I usually struggle with these types of cases

[@firmsconsulting]

You are welcome, Bruno. Glad it was helpful.

[@123chupachups]

For production I'd recommend to categorize solutions into short and long term; production is not as flexible as other processes so time to deploy is the defining feature. I'd be surprised if candidate wouldn't mention demand forecasting as problem

[@pradnyakurdekar4279]

Moving Q&A before bottleneck? What if damages occur during the filling or bottling process? Q&A is absolutely necessary for the final product. It is probably one of the FDA guidelines.

[@scottwhittle6319]

i suppose that to someone who has never worked in a factory would find this challange daunting...id rather see something where the root cause actually requires you to think... like a line workers perfume casuing failure in a work cell .... but only on days when she/he works two shifts....

[@petarking66]

Technically, not meeting the demand is also a solution. Implementing a lean, JIT system would eliminate the customer complaints and the bottleneck at the expense of not meeting the seasonal demand. This in turn can allow the company to smoothly and sustainably scale up :)

[@nailyatolstenko931]

You are a great teacher! Thank you.

[@yoganandh1882]

I am not convinced with moving the Q&A before the bottle neck to improve the production. As even by doing so you will still end up producing 8000 good bottles and not 8400 as told in the video ( coz 400 are reject anyhow) maybe your 7600 earlier becomes 8000 now that's it. also this there should be a consideration of addition of another q&a after the bottling again as we can't negate the bottling machine will produce 100% right.

[@devilisahomo]

I stopped at 17.55 just to verify if I heard him correctly. Seems like McKinsey is only good for being a CIA front. Not too bright.

[@tikiortaka]

One thing I think could've been added is knowing about the shelf lives of the bottles i.e how long can you keep them stored without the taste getting severely affected. In that case since it's a seasonal issue inventory could be built up ahead of summer months and leasing storage space is a cheaper option than importing the additional capacity imo especially when quality might be degraded when imported from other plants.

[@tiagoquintana4062]

QUICK QUESTION: We assumed the problem lies on the bottling because it is only finishing 8k products per day (2k less than it started) but why is the problem not on the filling part as well? If the bottling got 9k ready per day = current filling (9k) would we still say the bottleneck is on the bottling or would we say it is both on the bottling and filling? I would really appreciate your help !

[@АлександрПерилов]

Really good episode!!! Thank you FC!

[@mickeyt1371]

If the above case study was an actual case, I would have FIRED the plant manager for not being able to figure out something so basic to identify. There was actually no need to hire a consulting firm for this project.

[@sammiecortese8439]

THANK YOU

[@scottwhittle6319]

Amen!!! 40 min to figure it out???? i guarantee the alarm bells would be going off way eay before an inexperienced turd comes in to bill hours

[@Inxective]

Hi, thank you for this video - I just had a question about the approach to this problem. I understand the importance of doing things in a systmatic manner - however whilst I was doing this case on my own following the video, it went a little like this: The moment I found out that the inventory is in process I knew it was a manufacturing problem (or guessed, maybe I shouldn't jump to conclusions) - but I said this out loud to myself "Since the issue is with unprocessed inventory and we have doubled our inventory, it seems we are getting more supplies than we can output, this most likely is the reason for the reduced delivery times". Note, that I didn't ask any other questions about manufacturing, inbound, outbound, etc. Of course I got a lot of help from you upfront information that I may not have had during an actual interview - for example I would never ask "what type of inventory" and You already said that depending on the type of inventory we would have different problems - this was the biggest tip. Is jumping to this conclusion a bad idea - sometimes I can just see where the problem is and I want to simply state this is the first thought that comes to my head - but it may of course be premature. Or should I keep this to myself and move on systematically?

[@firmsconsulting]

Each interviewer is different so what one interviewer may see as a strength another may see as a weakness. But, in general, it is best to be very structured and, as you said, move on systematically.

[@malthepedersen2145]

You could also increase prices during the summer to reduce demand.

[@BBBarua]

Pulling the wrong lever at the wrong time will hurt us both sort and long.

[@АлександрПерилов]

Great content for practicing alone!

[@firmsconsulting]

Thank you

[@nailyatolstenko931]

Good job, FC! Thank you.

[@shardulironmaiden]

Wouldn't the QA step for food & beverage production be before bottling (screwing caps) anyhow? QA might be concomitant to the last step in production for finished goods but for f&b all you can do is test the structural integrity of the bottles after the caps are screwed on. Wouldn't I face a rebuke from my client if I suggest this? (Thoughts?).

[@abc34557]

I guess that the same question has been asked below but, what about producing the "surplus" of bottles needed for summer during winter in the same plant? Assuming that: - 5% of bottles are not passing the quality test (thus max effective capacity of 7.6k bottles per day) - The expiry date of 1yr per bottle - Having roughly 5 months of summer-time and 7 of winter-time We would fit the demand of 10k bottles during summer time and 6k during wintertime Also, would you have a video of the Russian Telecom Company? I am curious now XD

[@Mithaerian]

Great video! Helped me a lot with bottleneck understanding and operations :)

[@firmsconsulting]

Glad it was helpful

[@adityaintouch]

Hi I have a small question, during solution you mentioned to move QA before bottleneck (somewhere around @18:00 minutes) where the maximum capacity is 8000 caps per day. How can a company scrutiny the quality before the complete finished good is in hand. What if there is a lack of efficiency during the last stage that comes after QA as the solution suggested by you?

[@MarcusSpehBirkenkrahe]

Excellent, thank you. I am going to link to this video as part of a research methods course (section on "case studies") because I think the series of 7 steps (step no 7 seems to be missing?) could also be used outside of the interview situation to build a case study (for a master or MBA thesis). Cheers!

[@shivajaitly]

By moving the q&a before the bottleneck, we are just maximizing the capacity to 8k/day and not 8400/day. So the problem will be to find a solution to produce 2k/day more and not just 1600.

[@amine231]

I was looking for someone in the comments raising this question. Before moving Q&A, we would actually have 1600 queueing bottles per day, meaning 2400 bottles shortage per day. After moving Q&A, we 2000 bottles queuing and of shortage. I believe the answer is simply that they assumed the 8k output equals already the 95% capacity, and 100% equals to 8400 without mentioning it during the breakdown. In that case it is correct, just miscommunication.

[@martasilvalopez3355]

Thank you so much for such a well and thoroughly explained video! I found it incredibly helpful.

[@firmsconsulting]

Glad it was helpful!

[@joaomatosgraca1013]

Thank you friend. :)

[@firmsconsulting]

Hi everyone, Thank you for your comments. Because we have over 6,500 published episodes and thousands of yet unpublished episodes across our various platforms we cannot recall the specific details about the case presented in this episode. Therefore, we cannot address questions about the specifics of this case. In terms of the book Michael refers to, it is The Goal by Eliyahu Goldratt. You can find it here amzn.to/31PEEKF. You can also find other books recommended by Michael here www.firmsconsulting.com/quarterly/best-strategy-books/

[@fluorine121]

thank you for sharing this. :) Amazing and full of brilliant insight!

[@firmsconsulting]

You are very welcome, Fluorine

[@monimal2012]

Since Cola is a durable product, I would find out whether there are certain months in which the production capabilities exceeds the demand. if so i would push production to the limit in those months and store the product in order meet the demand in those summer months. how about that?

[@KLm912]

Beautiful thought, as long as there is a capacity for required storage

[@bkalrasheed]

Nice thought. The issue here is that you will be increasing inventory during storage which would impact the working capital (cash wise)

[@rohitdarure9400]

Also, that would reduce shelf-life of the product once it is in market. If it meets 2 constraints - storage capacity and shelf-life in market, then it is a good solution.

[@TheBelgianBeast1]

One of the problems is that storage costs a lot of money.

[@Renaissanceman86]

Average ten years of sales data and manufacture product output accordingly.

[@Lightsparks12]

Thank you!

[@firmsconsulting]

You are very welcome, Thao

[@danieldjunaidi6932]

How can you assume the capacity of sterilizing, filling, and bottling to be 10k, 9k, and 8k respectively? Do you have any recommendation on how to set an assumption number in study cases?

[@firmsconsulting]

Hi Daniel, This is where business judgement is used. You need to be knowledgeable enough to make assumptions that are close to reality and be able to check your result to make sure it makes sense and, if not, go back and see where you made an error.

[@laurafosci]

You need capital expansion to accommodate extra 1,600 so you are assuming there is not going to be any defect during the Bottling phase and the 5% rejection will be fully in the Sterilize and Filling phase.. too risky assumption. I would assume 1% defects in the Sterilizing and 2% in Filling and Bottling part each, reduces output to only 7840 and you are still short 2,160 instead of 2,400. You Q&A right at the end you would be short 2400. I would suggest double Q&A, if that is possible, to increase supply

[@brenosantos8198]

I'm starting to prepare myself to apply for the consulting groups and I really appreciate your video. Anyway, I'd like to clarify one point with you. In the solution approach, I'd also consider increasing a shift in my company, working an additional day or even hiring temporary employees instead of looking for a third party with idle capacity to fill the remaining demand for me. Does it make sense, since we could face some technical problems at the filling line of the third party partner? Thanks for sharing your approaches. They are way worthwhile.

[@sarapepic9375]

HI Breno, I agree with you, adding extra shifts might be a solution as well. What I was thinking about was to hire or outsource a QA firm to take a look at the part of the production process which we think might be causing the bottleneck in the end. It would raise extra costs in the first place, but having the third part of the process (more towards the end product) without a significant QA control is not the best idea. How can we be sure that some other problem or product error will not occur later. The second thing (next to having additional QA) would be in technology improvement through robotics and other disruptive technologies. It would not only cut costs (speed up the process) but also made the whole supply chain more efficient and easier to observe (and control). I am not currently sure about which disruptive technology example I would recommend, but will look it up. What do you think?

[@eldwinc9884]

For the hypothesis statement, can it be 2-parts (instead of 3) if the observable phenomenon is the effect? my solution: raise cola prices to reduce customer demand. how does that sound?

[@firmsconsulting]

Hi Eldwin, Yes it may! Provided you state a reasonable sentence of what you think if the problem or solution, no one will punish you. This 3-step process is to guide interviewees, but the interviewers are not expecting it. Michael

[@eldwinc9884]

Thanks so much Michael, appreciate the help!

[@firmsconsulting]

You are welcome Eldwin

[@stormwonder]

Somehow I stumbled onto this video while looking for something else slightly related but kept watching because I got curious. All the logic makes sense to me but quick question, the extra 400 bottles you found (making it 8400 bottles moving through the bottle neck), where did they come from? did I miss something in the math? Thanks

[@firmsconsulting]

Hi Derek, Thank you very much for your comment. We have over 6600 episodes out there so will not be able to remember the details of this particular episode. But hopefully someone in the comments can assist.

[@teokhibran2733]

I also didn't get where the extra 400 came from, while the output of the machine is 8000 a day (it's also achieved after moving the QA before the production process)

[@manideepv9035]

Here the quality check is moved before the bottle neck,hence the 400 defected bottles which should have gone through the bottle neck will not pass through the stage,which makes space for additional 400 bottles. Hence the case solver said the apparent capacity increased to 8400 and there is a deficit of 1600 bottles to make it to 10000

[@amine231]

You are correct. They surely assumed the 8k output equals already to the 95% capacity, and 100% equals to 8400 without mentioning it during the problem breakdown. In that case it is correct, simple miscommunication.

[@themhogsweremeanmommabutno1618]

customer, do they mean retailer or consumer

[@themhogsweremeanmommabutno1618]

I take it's the retailer, can you write out your thoughts on a grease board or something

[@modise9009]

At 7:50 Would it have been a bad thing if I had said: "With the supplier inventory surging and customers complaining that they are experiencing delays in delivery, one can hypothesise that the two are (directly) proportional and thus it is possible that the problem lies on the manufacturing process"? Meaning we are not converting our supplies into the final product fast enough. While I would also look at the inbound and outbound side of things, based on my hypothesis, I would prioritise the manufacturing bit first to see if there aren't any bottlenecks or inefficiencies there. Please let me know.

[@modise9009]

10:01 Your hypothesis turned out to be similar to mine, I just came to it quicker by making some assumptions upfront. Would I have been penalised for that?

[@sid8483]

Such an easy one and interesting

[@firmsconsulting]

Thank you, Siddharth

[@lukeyh1148]

Could you post the full details of the Goldratt book you reccommended. It's difficult to understand the audio. Thank you

[@creamy0bear]

so useful! thank you :)

[@marcussoori]

What if defects happen post-bottling?

[@reardelt]

Yeah I was wondering the same thing. They could still be losing 5% each time even after moving the Q&A before the bottleneck. However, I presume there would be fewer defects as they defects will be only from one stage (assuming defects have equal prob of occurring across all manufacturing stages).

[@janniklasmeyer2045]

thank you so much for this very helpful video! I learned a lot. I was wondering why you were assuming that Pepsi was buying more supplies? Or did you mean "why are we continuing to buy materials despite the hold-up? In that case I think the way you wrote down the question might have been a bit ambiguous.

[@firmsconsulting]

Glad it was helpful! Since we have over 6,000 episodes across platforms (mainly on StrategyTraining.com/apps) and this episode was recorded a long time ago we unfortunately do not recall the details of this particular case.

[@fezario]

Are you sure your maths is correct? You say that by moving the Q&A before the bottleneck you will get an additional 400 bottles. You say that the plant is running at 95% with 5% defects. If the defects are 400 then the plant at full efficiency will produce 8000 bottles - thats 100%. This means that by moving Q&A before the step you are NOT getting an ADDITIONAL 400 bottles, you are merely getting to full efficiency, you will need another 2000 bottles, not another 1600. If instead you are saying that the plant produces 8000 at 95% efficiency, then by moving Q&A before the bottleneck you will be reaching 8421 bottles. In this scenario you will need another 1579 bottles, not another 1600. Am I wrong? Please comment. Also please comment on whether you should estimate the numbers rather than get precise figures. I understand that is an important part of case interviews.

[@mikeruhland4402]

Faisal, Think of it this way. The bottling equipment is rated for 8000 units / day. 5% of 8000 units come into the operation with some defect. Bottles could be chipped or damage. If we move part of the QA process upstream of the bottling line we can remove these 500 defective bottles. This results in 500 more opportunities for the bottling line to produce units each day.

[@reardelt]

Yeah. The plant is producing 8000 bottles/day. Period. That's how fast the conveyor belts move. It can't produce 'extra' depending on the number of defects.

[@iDannyAce]

was gonna write the same thing. thanks.

[@madhwahusein]

Isn't the whole purpose of having QA at the end of manufacturing processes is to ensure the final products, or in this case, bottles are free from any defects? If you move QA before the final process i.e. bottling, there is a probability that defect takes place during bottling process. There is no way we would know it since we have shifted QA to be earlier than bottling process. As a result, the final bottles that are shipped consist of defects. Correct me if I am wrong.

[@rishikamalik4752]

He has talked about outsourcing production at 14:20

[@fernandafuentealba5476]

Where can I find more operations cases? Can you please recommend me a source? Marc Consentino focuses on business strategy cases and numerical short cases. I'm applying to a position in manufacturing.

[@firmsconsulting]

Hi Fernanda, You can find operations and other types of cases within our Premium membership program. You can sign up on FIRMSconsulting.com

[@gconsulting5648]

good video

[@firmsconsulting]

thank you. Glad you found it helpful

[@selflove96]

Very helpful 👌

[@alexemerson2669]

If you move "Q&A" before the bottleneck, then what happens with the bad products created at the bottleneck station? Nobody detects them since there's no more quality assurance after it, so they get shipped to the customers. Don't think that will work - not in the real world at least.

[@hindflight]

I agree Alex, in my industry there is a QC step for inbound suppliers' raw materials and outgoing finished products...

[@andrewjang]

Alex Emerson agreed as well, this is not a possibility with considerations of the regulatory environment around food products...

[@nunitoism]

Any link for this russia Telco case he mentions as the hardest one ?

[@firmsconsulting]

Hi Nuno, That video is only available to subscribers in our website. You may however use the rest of the videos here or follow our iTunes channel. It is the largest channel for case interviews, ranked in the top-10 for careers in most countries and regularly updated.

[@nunitoism]

Ok, thanks for your reply.

[@tailankabysh5000]

I didn't get the case at the very beginning, can someone explain, please. If our inventory has grown, why are we talking about product deficit?

[@sebastiancusis4650]

cuz he is talking about inbound inventory, materials that go into manufacturing (which grows due to seasonal demand). The problem is that manufacturing is not producing the quantity in demand, thus product deficit.

[@scottwhittle6319]

this is a great vid... and i know it is about following a methodology... but i have some years in ops and interacting with ops...and the first thing is go talk to the vp of mfg and ask where the prob is. And btw... the GM would have already received the call from the buyer asking WTF is going on....long before you have to get some consultant. Again i know it is about framework and orgainzation...but isnt the goal to fix the problem?

[@firmsconsulting]

Hi Scott, Great input. This is a practice consulting case for case interviews vs. how this problem would be addressed when it occurs in a similar company. But always great to hear input on how things usually would work when such problem occurs. Cheers, Kris

[@emineo3252]

Where are the customers located? Lead times are the biggest complaints, is this a new bottle design? Customer compalints. Cut costs by trying to reduce the price of the current materials, since more is being bought!

[@vikasbhat8336]

How do we tackle hbs type business cases with humngous amount of data and info?

[@ProfJoeOMahoney]

You won't be asked HBS style cases.

[@firmsconsulting]

Hi Vikas, Thanks for your comment. Please refer to our videos/podcasts. I am sure this was covered somewhere. Data rich cases are very common and we definitely cover it. And it is 100% covered in The Consulting Offer (part of Premium membership) www.firmsconsulting.com/product/premium/

[@bashirhasanov335]

Hi, could you please write here the name of book you suggested in th beginining of the case to understand the operations? You mentioned that we could also read just a summary.

[@firmsconsulting]

"The Goal"

[@andrewcbuensalida]

Can i use prefilled frameworks during my interview?

[@firmsconsulting]

What do you mean by pre-filled Andrew?

[@taissb8060]

How is the name of this book - cannot find it in the internet?

[@scottwhittle6319]

Taiss B its called The Goal -- eli goldratt

[@castrozzz]

I think that the most natural solution was overlooked, if this is a seasonal problem, with 10k/day demand whereas the past demand was 6k/day, why not just produce in advance (given the bottleneck is 8k/day) for these months and hold the inventory?

[@pratik6792]

How can one improve his analytical skills and start linking the various concepts like you did here. I Mean i could understand what was being said here, however linking this those concepts could never come in my mind. i m a an undergrad and taken up a professional qualification course of a Chartered accountant. however my interest is there in business development too.

[@firmsconsulting]

Pratik Shah Hi Pratik. Sorry for the late response. The ability to link everything together comes from having good business judgement. That basically means being well read on business and news in general, and seeing how others have linked together similar concepts. I would suggest reading MQ and BCG Perspectives very often. Over time you will see a pattern to the way we link up ideas. Do not worry too much. I was not so good at this when I started - if I recall my first review, and I made partner so it can be done. Michael

[@solongsucka]

Take a critical thinking and analysis course. That may help you. However, some of these skills are developed over years.

[@joezhao5379]

Hi could you share the name the book you recommended? I just cannot tell from the voice. Thanks.

[@firmsconsulting]

Hi Joe, It is "The Goal" by Eli Goldrat. Michael

[@joezhao5379]

Ah I see. Thank you:)

[@joaomatosgraca1013]

+firmsconsulting Thanks.

[@Salamo76]

what book was recommended in the beginning?

[@firmsconsulting]

The Goal by Eliyahu M. Goldratt

[@Salamo76]

thank you

[@mandumeyandemufayo1960]

I'm supposed to do all of this in an interview?

[@firmsconsulting]

Yes, but the interviewer will guide you. It is a conversation. You are not expected to think of all of this by yourself.

[@Lightsparks12]

👍👍👍

[@firmsconsulting]

Glad you found it helpful

[@nishthagupta9844]

Ver helpful

[@firmsconsulting]

Glad it helped

[@arturobolanos9080]

The reason student fail is because they have no experience in operations from being a Manager or from being an operator.

[@scottb6483]

Q&A = questions and answers? When they give a funny look after saying that, they could be doing so because the speaker is using incorrect terminology. "QA" or "quality assurance" is correct. The speaker sounds so elite and snobby when referring to the delivery structure of the hypothesis statement, yet I can tell you that in a real life situation with a client, someone is more likely to laugh or throw something at you if you are acting smarter than everyone with fluffy jargon while using incorrect basic terminology like "Q&A". Also, QA/QC in real life usually needs to be done near the end of the process simply due to its definition. A more accurate statement might be, "Inquire to determine if PARTS of the QA process can be moved behind the bottleneck." The speaker comes across as an academic-type without much real industry experience.

[@firmsconsulting]

Hi Scott, Thanks for your comment. We do teach not to use jargon and certainly never advice members to act as if they are smarter than their clients. It is difficult to teach what we teach in a way that is easy to grasp and internalize. So sometimes it may come across as academic or using jargon but it is certainly was not intended to. I think generally it is important to give people the benefit of the doubt and not to judge them based on one video. I am sure you are not always perfect in everything you do and neither am I :-). Cheers, Kris

[@BillusTinnus]

24:11 extrahhct

[@michaelrodriguezz]

a