1. How to make the most
of your summer
internship 2012 – notes
(2011 notes in grey!)
J-P Martins, Consulting Careers Team
10 May 2012

2. Panellists top tips (2012)
Be confident – you’ve been through a
rigorous assessment process
Always communicate and ask for help – but
have an idea what the answer might be!
Make full use of the firm’s resources
Get to know as many people as possible
Remember – there is no such thing as a
typical case, there are too many variables.
Stay flexible
Ensure clarity – of tasks, expectations, next
steps, relationships of tasks, context
Engage fully with other summer interns –
they will share invaluable tips
It’s a 3-month interview – focus on the
impression you make, being a team player
Focus on the basics – what you can control
• Understand feedback criteria from
the start
• First impressions really matter
• Engage – ‘show-up’ with great
attitude
Check-in with your Engagement
Manager/Principal re how to work with them
from Week 1
‘Own’ the firm – values and culture.
Suspend disbelief if you have to, put
everything into it
Take the initiative – even if ‘on the beach’
• ‘Can I help you?’
• Research the firm and its work
• Go out whenever invited
2

3. Panellists top tips (2011)
Leverage your relationships with junior team members
Try to work on projects or aspects of projects that you have some familiarity with
Bring a good attitude – work well with people, get the basics right, make no
mistakes!
Seek and receive feedback, both formal and informal
Bear in mind the need to balance project excellence and building relationships
3

4. Questions (2012)
4
What % of time do you
think you were adding
value to the client?
I had lots of client engagement, bringing real expertise and value (ZS)
On my DD case, we identified lots of tangible value for the client, and
my personal slides made it into the final deck
We developed a new senior role and capability for a global pharma
client, and it’s doing good as well as being good for the business
We were able to bring a fundamentally fresh perspective on how the
client’s business actually works
What shouldn’t you do? Lose momentum towards the end, fail to deliver
Ignore feedback or fail to act on it
Be tentative in your analysis (go with your convictions)
Wait until you’ve finished something before sharing it (be more
comfortable taking 10-30% complete work to managers/peers for
early feedback)
Ask too few questions

5. Questions continued (2012)
5
How best to prepare? Don’t party the weekend before starting
Meet your peers – get to know the firm, office, culture
Clean up your inbox and all pending matters so you can focus 100%
on your internship
Start relaxed
Read
• The McKinsey Way
• The McKinsey Mind
• The Trusted Advisor
As questions – there are no stupid questions!
Practice your elevator pitch/spiel
Talk to last year’s interns (in the same office) – understand the
evaluation process

6. Questions continued (2012)
6
What are the most
important technical skills?
Breaking a complex problem down into constituent parts and drivers,
then piecing it all back together again
Communicating via slides – not PowerPoint per se, but compelling,
insightful story-telling
• Using Thinkcell, Bain Wizard etc makes drawing the charts
easy…
Stepping back from the problem
Storyboarding your slides before jumping into PowerPoint
Navigating your firm’s knowledge
• Intranet
• Knowledge management teams
• Practice teams
• Industry primers
• Identifying suitable frameworks
• Online training (eg ‘how to get up to speed’ training)

7. Questions continued (2012)
7
How were you introduced
to your case?
Big range possible:
• Case team meeting
• 13MB email and e-tickets
• Partner discussion, followed by introduction to Principal
If you have any influence,
how should you choose
your case?
Do something different to what you’ve done before!
Any time-management tips,
and how does it compare
with I-banking or
transaction legal?
Still hectic, but you’re more in control – more continuous deliverables
Plan backwards and communicate
• Eg priorities, progress, roadblocks
Plan your week – diarise frequent check-ins
• Diarise coffees, informal chats too

8. Questions (2011)
8
What tools should we
learn/practice beforehand?
Excel and PPT should be enough!
Excel (eg pivot tables) - try online training?
Thinkcell
How encouraging was the
environment; why do some not
get offers?
Good, but don’t expect continual pats on the back;
relationships, or consulting not the right fit
What are some team ‘dos and
don’ts’?
Be humble; voice opinions & speak up; make you
contribution clear; do what’s asked of you & do it well;
don’t try to over-impress/do to much; take part (eg lunch,
dinner, social
What’s the timing of offers,
autumn internships, other
recruiting activities?
Summer internships should yield offer acceptance
deadlines that allow consulting recruiting in the autumn
term – if not or unsure, contact Career Services
Autumn internships may be later – consult other firms you
might want to recruit with well in advance

9. Questions continued (2011)
How easy is it to switch office
post-internship?
Possible and there are precedents, but beware annoying
the recruiters. Consult with Career Services!
How easy is it to participate in
recruiting if on exchange in the
autumn?
Talk to Adeel Hyder/Pooya ? (MBA2011s) about their
experiences
Possible, in fact better for some geographies, but be
proactive & consult with your target recruiters in advance
Slight handicap in some circumstances
How should you communicate
your LT plans if asked during
your internship?
Be quite open, but reinforce commitment to the
development experience
Time management – best to
execute a slow start and build as
you gain knowledge and
confidence?
Get stuck in – 8-10 weeks is too short a time, and projects
move quickly

10. Questions continued (2011)
What not to do? Try too hard
Blow up
Abuse juniors
Miss a deadline
NO SURPRISES!
What preparation to do? Take a short holiday
Talk to others that interned/worked in the office you are
going to
Who are the decision makers on
offers?
Everyone – truly 360 including client
Engagement manager, partners
No place for anonymity

11. Questions continued (2011)
How to choose a project? Choice can be limited
Make a few staffing preferences clear
Use it as an opportunity to understand the staffing system
in your firm/office – get to know the person that manages
staffing
Do Project Leaders/others
oversell your
capabilities/expertise?
Not necessarily
Will ‘sell’ you well, but never in their interests to expose
you
What’s expected of you socially? Lots of opportunity – recommended to take part
Mainly around travel if working with remote clients – eg
breakfast, lunch, dinner with team mates
Make sure you go to Friday drinks, outings/awaydays