KNOWLEDGE FOR ACTION
IPS: TECH Samuel Jones
MBA Career Management
December 2015
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Agenda • Inspiration
─ Senior executives modeling great answers
• Research
─ Analyze Job Description and match to your resume experience ─ Wharton insights: Summer Surveys, CareerPath Notes, Student Memos,
Alumni Perspectives & Past interview Questions ─ Industry Trends – deep dive on the industry ─ Company SWOT Interview Preparation – deep dive on the company
• Skills
─ 5 Most Asked Questions ─ STAR – Behavioral Interviews ─ Case Framework ─ Follow up
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Senior Executives Modeling Great Answers
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SN, SS, JW Question
Satya Nadella, Microsoft
How to talk about a company’s aspirations? • What is the high-level description? • How is it elaborated?
Sheryl Sandberg, facebook
How to make the product better? • What is the problem? • How did fb address the problem?
Jeff Weiner, LinkedIn
How to communicate high-level aspirations? • What is the vision? • How does he believe the vision will be
achieved?
Senior Executives Modeling Great Answers
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SN, SS, JW Question
Satya Nadella, Microsoft
How to talk about a company’s aspirations? • “Empowering every person and organization
on the planet to achieve more.” • A learning, living culture; a culture informed
by the research of a “Growth Mindset”
Sheryl Sandberg, facebook
How to make the product better? • Need to get trust right • Past: Too many options around privacy • Solution: Simplify the options, have them
visible when writing a post
Jeff Weiner, LinkedIn
How to communicate high-level aspirations? • Economic opportunity for every member of
the global workforce • Develop the world’s first economic graph
connecting people, companies, jobs and universities
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RESEARCH
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Tech Team Curated Resources
Road to the Internship
ONLINE -Tech Page
-Monthly Coaching Letter -Student Memos
-Interview Questions -MBACM Company Insights
-Alumni Insights
WORKSHOPS -Industry chat
-Big 6 -Next 15
-Navigating the Enterprise Job Search -Interview Prep Workshop
-Fireside Chats
BIG EVENTS -NYC Treks
-West Coast Treks -Wharton Tech Conference
-Semester in SF
ONE-ON-ONE -Office Hours
-Scheduled Appointments -Career Fellow Mock
Interviews
MBACM GENERAL RESOURCES Online
-CareerPath Profile -Job Search Agents -Industry Communications -Resume Book
-Job Board -Offer Directory -Spike -LinkedIn
Workshops -Tune up Your Pitch
-Resume Book Training
Employer Events -Employer Information Sessions (EIS)
-Coffee Chats -Interviews
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Analyze Job Description
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Review Summer Surveys Find Summer Surveys in
the Offer Directory on the MBACM website
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Company Notes, Student Memos, Alumni Perspectives, & Interview Questions
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Employer Directory Company name Notes on CareerPath
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TECH INDUSTRY PAGE
MBACM Site Research Tools Research by Industry Technology Industries
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Company SWOT: Interview Preparation
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Strengths
Weaknesses
Opportunities
Threats
PROCESS: 1. Build a SWOT Preparation for each A-List company 2. Find 10 sources
• >5 Analyst reports • ~1 Sr. Executive Video (>15 min.) • ~2 Articles • ~2 current/former employees • 10-k
3. Topics: products, customers/users/markets, operation, revenue, competitors 4. Fill-in the chart 5. Ask yourself how the chart relates to the role you applied to?
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Sample LinkedIn SWOT (from 2013)
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Strengths
• Leading professional social network • Hiring solutions disruptive to online job
market • Barrier to entry = network effect • Value to recruiters depends on data, not
on user engagement
Weaknesses
• LinkedIn members less engaged than other social networks
• Hiring solutions susceptible to economic conditions
• Concentrated usage by a minority of users
Opportunities
• $50bn gap between online internet usage
and ad spend • Expansion into B2C online advertising • Under-monetized internationally • Well positioned for shift to mobile • Still room to grow user base (LinkedIn
membership is 27% of professional workforce)
• Students and recent college graduates = fastest growing member segment
Threats
• Competition • Heavy investments in technology to
upgrade product • Increase in international sales force size -
longer productivity ramp up in less mature markets
• Balance user needs with recruiter and marketer needs. User wins out.
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SKILLS
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5 Most Asked Questions (1000 Questions) 1. Walk me through your resume. (Drill down questions into a few bullets)
2. What is a tech product that you love? How would you improve it?
3. Why do you want to work in technology?
• E.g., Passion and interest • E.g., Data-driven
4. Why our company?
• Aspirational element of their vision • Product • Customer • Culture
5. Why this function?
• Career enhancing • Career switching
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WALK ME THROUGH YOUR RESUME – SAMPLE #1
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• Option #1: Start with the role you want and work backwards – I am very interested in becoming a PM at a company like Amazon. As I walk
you through my resume, I’ll make some connections back to this goal. Working
backwards, I decided to get my MBA at Wharton because of the program’s
emphasis on analytics and specifically customer analytics. Prior to Wharton, I
was a Producer at Riot Games where I worked closely with our engineering
team and our Community Managers to help connect user insights with new
game features such as virtual goods. While it was interesting to sell virtual
goods, I came to realize that I wanted to move in the direction of eCommerce
and sell actual goods.
State role & and roadmap that you will connect resume to that role Work backwards Virtual goods to traditional eCommerce
TIPS
Pros Cons
• Starting point: What is on the mind of the interviewer (why you want the job and why you are qualified) and connect the dots for him/her
• Demonstrate that you researched the role and company
• You may not be able to lead with a “hook” or strongest attribute
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WALK ME THROUGH YOUR RESUME – SAMPLE #2
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• Option #2: Start by stating 3 themes relevant to the company – As I go through my resume, I want to highlight three themes that have driven
decisions I have made about my career: user-insights, cross-functional teams
and new technologies. Prior to coming to Wharton, I was a Producer at Riot
Games, in this role I worked very closely with our Community Managers to gain
user-insights which is very similar to Amazon’s customer-centricity. At Riot, we
always considered the user first when creating new game features […]
State three themes Work backward or forward User-insights and customer-centricity
TIPS
Pros Cons
• Highlight the three most important things about your candidacy
• Easy for the interviewer to follow
• Does not allow for sequential story telling as other options
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WALK ME THROUGH YOUR RESUME – SAMPLE #3
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• Option #3: Start from undergrad or before – I grew up in California outside of Los Angeles. After graduating from high
school, I went to UCLA where I majored in Marketing at the Anderson School.
While I was at UCLA, I did two internships at Clorox and Riot Games. After
graduating from college I joined Riot Games as a Producer where I worked
closely with our engineering team and our Community Managers to help
connect user insights with new game features such as virtual goods. While it
was interesting to sell virtual goods, I came to realize that I wanted to move in
the direction of eCommerce and sell actual goods. This lead me to my decision
to come Wharton for my MBA. At Wharton, I am an organizer for an analytics
panel at the Tech Conference and I am a Student Life fellow. My goal after
Wharton is to join Amazon in the RLD or PM program.
Start with undergrad or prior Work forwards with your first job Virtual goods to traditional eCommerce Wharton Goal of joining
Amazon
TIPS
Pros Cons
• Provide a lot of detail • Sequential story is easy to tell and
prepare
• Risk losing the attention of the interviewer who is waiting for you to get to the point
• A lot of potentially irrelevant information
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STAR Framework for Behavioral Questions
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STAR Framework Assumption: past behavior is the best predictor of future behavior
“Tell me about a time that you…”
Situation • Describe the context of a specific event or situation from your past • Establish big picture and background information • Provide enough detail for the interviewer to understand • E.g., from a previous job, from a volunteer experience, Wharton
experience, or any relevant event
Task • Summarize your specific role, contribution or obstacle to overcome
Action • Describe the action you took • Use more “I” than “we” language, even if discussing a group
project or effort • Don't tell what you might do, tell what you did • Highlight your skills and expertise most relevant to the interviewer
Result • What happened? • How did the event end? • What did you accomplish? • What did you learn?
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Sample Behavioral Questions
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Category Questions
Influence Tell me about a time when you had to convince others.
Ambiguity Tell me about a time when you made a decision with limited data.
Conflict Tell me about a time you had conflict on a team.
Problem Solving/ Analytics
Tell me about a time when you had to solve a complicated problem.
Leadership Tell me about a leadership experience.
Accomplishment Tell me about an accomplishment.
Failure Tell me about a time when you failed / made a mistake.
Bonus Tip: plan to tell an interesting & unique story to be memorable & differentiate yourself. For example, MBACM once interviewed a candidate who had been mistakenly kidnapped for ransom while he was an expat on assignment in LatAm.
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Mini-Cases: What Do They Assess?
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• Problem solving – Structured thinking – Creativity
• Communication – Collaborative – Clear, concise
• Knowledge – Industry knowledge that you can bring
to the discussion – Technical/function knowledge and skills
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Formal vs. Mini-Case
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FORMAL CASE
Goal: understand and frame the problem
Focus: process
1. Take notes
2. Make no assumptions
3. Ask questions
4. Listen to the answers you get
5. Maintain eye contact
6. Take your time (30 minutes)
7. Lay out a road map for your interviewer
8. Think out loud
9. Present your thinking in a clear, logical manner. Where useful, use frameworks and business concepts to organize your answer.
10. Quickly summarize your conclusions
MINI - CASE
Goal: present a plausible solution
Focus: smart content (demonstrate knowledge of their business, tech trends, tech products) creatively (combine outside knowledge with the problem) communicated (clear, concise, passion)
1. Take notes
2. Make assumptions – it is not about asking the right questions
3. Ask questions
4. Listen to the answers you get
5. Maintain eye contact
6. Take your time (2-5 min.)
7. Quickly frame your response (1 sentence)
8. Think out loud
9. Present your thinking in a clear, logical manner. Where useful, use frameworks and business concepts to organize your answer. (Use a framework, but don’t sound like a textbook, flow naturally)
10. Quickly summarize your conclusions (one or two sentences) Sources: Formal Case = Vault; Mini-Case = MBACM
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Tech Mini - Case Sample Questions
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Function Sample Questions Product First day on the job and I want you to develop a new search engine, what
factors would you consider?
MKTG How would you market the Surface tablet to an 80 year old senior citizen?
OPS Why would we ship iMacs via sea, but iPhones via airplane? (What's the motivation behind that?)
Finance Pretend I'm the product manager for Bing Maps, and you are a finance person who is thinking about shutting down Maps if its projected profitability is too low. I have all the data you need. What would you ask me?
Biz Dev. Who should Facebook think about partnering with?
Corp. Dev. What factors would you think about when evaluating a private company? Public? What are some of the areas Cisco should think about expanding into for growth?
Corp. Strategy Talk me through a go-to-market strategy for new software product.
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SAMPLE MINI-CASE
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SAMPLE MINI-CASE
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• Questions: How would you market the Surface tablet to an 80-year old senior citizen?
1. Let’s think about the end user and make some assumptions about who is our customer within this demographic
• Mid to high socio-economic bracket (=access to broadband, cost of device) • Retired (likely not using the Surface for work purposes) • Open to new experiences (willing to learn how to use the device) • Aspiration of live full and textured lives in senior years
2. Most probable uses • Communication (keeping up with family members)
- Skype - Email - Social Networks
• Entertainment - Film & TV - Games
• News & Information
Answer provided by an alumnus who interviews using tech mini-cases
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SAMPLE MINI-CASE (CONT.)
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• Questions: How would you market the Surface tablet to an 80 year old senior citizen?
3. Advertising campaign • TV commercial of a grandfather communicating through Skype using a Surface
tablet with his grandson in a college dorm room using Skype on his Xbox. • Magazine print of same narrative of grandfather connecting with grandson • Newspaper print ad of female senior citizen sitting at her outside patio with flower
bed in the background using Bing on her Surface to look up some gardening tips.
4. To give a quick summary. I would target mid-high socio-economic seniors with TV and print campaigns showing active senior citizens using the Surface to connect with family, and enjoy learning and leisure activities.
Answer provided by an alumnus who interviews using tech mini-cases
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SAMPLE FORMAL CASE
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SAMPLE FORMAL CASE
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• Question: If LinkedIn wanted to develop an offering for college admissions officers to help facilitate undergraduate admissions, what product features would you include?
• Tip: In general I like to structure my thoughts in terms of the following frameworks: 1. Industry (5 forces) 2. 5 C’s of Marketing / running a business in general (Customer, Competitor, Company, Collaborator, Context) 4 P’s of Implementation (Product, Price, Promotion, Place)
1. Understand College Admissions Officers – Always start by understanding the customer
– Size the total addressable market of college admissions budgets in different regions / countries. Estimate revenue to LinkedIn.
– Research into admission officers pain points (Focus group to understand what’s broken about undergrad admission process and why, surveys to get broader feedback, perhaps an ethnographic study to dig into day-in-the-life)
– Understand the industry: What other players are there, what is the industry size, 5 forces of colleges recruitment industry
Answer provided by an alumnus who interviews using formal tech cases
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SAMPLE FORMAL CASE (CONT.)
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• Question: If LinkedIn wanted to develop an offering for college admissions officers to help facilitate undergraduate admissions, what product features would you include?
2. Competitive Analysis – Identify competitors, what they do, how much they charge, compare products &
services to LinkedIn’s – Identify potential collaborators and partners in adjacent services (i.e. admissions
consultants, college applicant tracking systems), how they would interact with LinkedIn
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SAMPLE FORMAL CASE (CONT.)
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• Question: If LinkedIn wanted to develop an offering for college admissions officers to help facilitate undergraduate admissions, what product features would you include?
3. Product
– Do we have existing products at LinkedIn that can be repurposed for admissions officers?
– What do we need to create from scratch, what companies are doing this that we could
acquire?
– We could think about college recruitment as a 3 stage cycle. Possible ideas to address each
stage:
• Attract the right candidates: Targeted advertisements to high school students on LinkedIn
homepage and profile pages, LinkedIn Career Pages can be used to dynamically target
the right high school candidates, Use LinkedIn Recruiter product to identify ideal
candidates and invite them to events, Admissions officers can use LinkedIn’s Mobile
CheckIn tool to record all candidates they meet
• Select the right candidates: LinkedIn doesn’t have many offerings in the interview /
applicant tracking space. Do we need to explore whether to create something, acquire a
product, etc?
• Retain the right candidates: LinkedIn Groups – how do college admissions officers want
to use these to market to those who have been admitted?
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SAMPLE FORMAL CASE (CONT.)
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• Question: If LinkedIn wanted to develop an offering for college admissions officers to help facilitate undergraduate admissions, what product features would you include?
4. Price: – Figure out customers’ willingness to pay in different customer segments /
countries (focus groups, experiments) – Benchmark against competitor pricing – Calculate marginal cost to LinkedIn of up-keeping this product, as the floor
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SAMPLE FORMAL CASE (CONT.)
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• Question: If LinkedIn wanted to develop an offering for college admissions officers to help facilitate undergraduate admissions, what product features would you include?
5. Packaging: – Instead of offering a bunch of separate products, how can we package them
altogether as one product + service offering targeted toward college admissions officers?
– Will packages be segmented by spend level, customer needs, or some other criteria? Can we create dynamic packages that change depending on your segment?
– What country / regional variation do we need to consider for packages?
6. Place / Distribution: What % do college admissions officers travel? Would a mobile version of these products / services help?
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Tie it all together – Sample interview research prep.
https://mbacareers.wharton.upenn.edu/student/files/LinkedIn_Research_-_Sample_Research.pdf
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Thank You and Follow-up • Finish the interview by reiterating that you are very interested in the job
• Thank the interviewer
• Follow up with a brief email:
− Play back a key point you learned from the interviewer about the company or role Share something that resonated with you. (e.g., “When you talked
about the goals of the Economic Graph it really resonated with me because …)
Do not evaluate the interview or interviewer (e.g., “You asked excellent questions.”)
− Restate your interest in the job
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Q&A
5 Most Asked Questions
Company SWOT
STAR
Cases
Wharton Resources: Summer Surveys, Company Notes, Interview Questions
Job Descriptions
Industry Trends
Thank You