life science case study interview

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Biotech & Pharmaceutical Consulting Case Studies

• Life Science Consulting Case Studies

Over the past decade, Alacrita Life Science Consulting , has provided expert guidance and hands-on support to life science companies, investors and academic research centers . What makes us unique is the first-hand experience of our subject-matter expert consultants, who have spent their careers discovering, developing, manufacturing and/or commercializing drug products. Lead by our core team, our Expert Network contains over 500 such specialists, allowing us to offer precisely relevant support on a range of R&D and business issues. The below case studies can help illustrate the extensive capabilities of Alacrita's life science consultants. 

Life Science Consulting Case Study, Supply Chain : Commercial supply chain consulting for US launch of a blood cancer drug

Challenge: Our client was a publicly-traded clinical-stage life science company using an epigenetic approach modulate gene expression in tumor and immune cells to treat cancer. Their lead program was a small molecule inhibitor in late-stage clinical development for a hematological malignancy. In preparation for regulatory approval and launch in US, Alacrita was asked for support to help design and create a roadmap for setting up a commercial supply chain for the drug. The company had an upstream supply chain in place (API, DS, and DP manufacture), but no downstream elements yet in place.

Solution: Alacrita’s supply chain consultants worked closely with functional representatives of the client through a work plan involving a situational analysis, definition of the supply chain requirements, a gap analysis, and mapping required activities and dependencies to a launch timeline .

The roadmap took into account the following items:

• Financial and tax set up for finished goods, intermediates, and raw materials
• The company legal structure as it relates to manufacturing and distribution of product
• Product safety considerations and their impact on storage and distribution
• Product serialization
• Volume forecasting
• Inventory strategy, likely stock holding points and finish-to-order concepts
• Packaging design and configurations
• Customer service requirements
• Early access programs
• Service level agreements and impact on margin
• Supply chain vendor recommendations

Life Science Consulting Case Study, Due Diligence : Due Diligence of Late Stage Gene Therapy Asset

Challenge: Our client, a global specialty life science company, was facing a short deadline to making an offer for a late stage gene therapy asset and was under considerable competitive deal pressure. This would be the client's first gene therapy asset and as such, the company did not have internally the specialized personnel required to conduct an expert due diligence of the opportunity. Alacrita was asked to conduct within a two week period, a deep dive due diligence focusing on clinical, CMC, regulatory and related issues.

Solution: Alacrita assembled an expert team of life science due diligence consultants comprised of a highly experienced medic, an ex-FDA gene therapy regulatory specialist, a gene therapy CMC specialist and a quality specialist. Over a very limited timeframe, the team assessed the target's dataroom and identified a number of critical issues including some where the target had yet to disclose the relevant documentation. This complemented the work that our client's internal, although not gene therapy-experienced, team had done, and the combined team reached the appropriate conclusion that informed the client's deal team over how to proceed.

Life Science Consulting Case Study, Market Landscape : LNP technology and competitive landscape

Challenge: A privately held life science company using AI/machine learning/Big Data to develop novel LNPs and LNP formulations for particular payloads instead of using a traditional “trial and error” approach. The client’s core expertise was in informatics, and it was also building a team of chemists to synthesize and bioengineers/robots to screen formulations in a wet lab.

The company engaged Alacrita to analyze which applications/RNA payloads to focus its efforts on. This encompassed existing products or projects where a superior LNP may result in significant enhancements as well as opportunities to rescue failed/failing projects.

They asked Alacrita to:

• Identify potential LNP players that might benefit from a partnership on AI-improvements to their existing LNP technology
• Gain a better understanding of what other LNP companies are currently focused on
• Define payloads for the client to prioritize and companies to partner with.

Solution: Using publicly available information, proprietary databases and our internal knowledge of the RNA therapeutics arena, we assembled a market landscape of RNA therapeutics projects, especially the subset using LNPs for delivery, aiming to be as comprehensive as possible for commercial projects and selective for academic projects, where information availability is more sparse.

We prepared a database specifying:

• Company or academic institution name
• Country of company or academic headquarters
• Clinical indication(s)
• Stage of development
• LNP technology used (as far as is available in the public domain)

Our deliverable included recommendations and rationales for priority payloads and companies to approach for potential partnering.

Life Science Consulting Case Study: Pre-IND meeting support for repurposed drug for stroke

Challenge: Our client, a privately-held life science company, was working with a family office which had invested in a novel IV formulation of a repurposed asset for the treatment of ischemic stroke. With a promising completed phase II clinical trial and an ongoing phase III in Europe, our client was seeking to understand how the FDA would view this data, and whether any separate US trials or integration of US sites into the ongoing trials would be required to support the asset's approval in the US. They also wanted to understand whether they could obtain orphan drug designation (ODD) or any other approval that would allow for a faster approval in the US. Our client reached out for support in managing a pre-IND meeting with the FDA to discuss these matters.

Solution: We brought in our expert regulatory consultants to lead interactions with the FDA in securing a pre-IND meeting acceptance and scheduling the meeting. Firstly, we gathered any relevant information from our client which would be useful in building the Meeting Request Letter. We also enlisted clinical specialists from our network to advise and assist in building the documentation. We provided support in preparing a briefing package. We participated in the meeting and helped support FDA interactions both during and after it, and helped prepare responses to the FDA.

Life Science Consulting Case Study, Valuation : Valuation of viral vector manufacturing spinout

Challenge: A listed life science company had developed a significant capability in viral vector manufacturing and was considering spinning it out into a joint venture with a major CDMO. The client had already generated a profitable business serving third parties using its platform and asked Alacrita to conduct a  valuation  exercise to determine the value of its potential contribution to the joint venture.

Solution: Alacrita developed a   risk-adjusted valuation model   for the client’s bioprocessing business including the following items:

• Contract development and manufacturing revenues;
• Risk-adjusted royalty tail revenue from third party contracts;
• Fixed and variable operating costs.

Building on the detailed inputs from the client's financial model, we modeled contract development and manufacturing revenues and the associated operating cost structure at high level and agreed appropriate ranges for those inputs with significant associated uncertainties.

For the prospective royalty income streams we developed projections for the associated product revenues in the US and EU5. The remainder of the available opportunity was be estimated as a multiple of the major market opportunity. We reviewed the client's projections as inputs (where available) but used our experience and judgement to develop assumptions for key inputs (e.g. clinical development timelines, adoption curves etc) into the valuation model where more specific data from the client was absent.

We used Monte Carlo simulations to develop a range and probability distribution for   rNPV   and also used comparables analysis to cross-validate our findings.

Life Science Consulting Case Study, Oncology : Providing expertise through an oncology scientific advisory board

Challenge: An emerging drug discovery life science company, with a core expertise in molecular modeling, had developed a small molecule inhibitor for a novel cancer metabolism target. The company was looking to nominate a development lead and sought advice about the additional experiments that would be required and the clinical strategies that should be considered.

Solution: Our expert oncology consultants participated in, and chaired, a scientific advisory board meeting with the company. We reviewed the data generated by the company to date, along with that from a close competitor, and suggested several additional preclinical strategies that would be important to differentiate our client’s molecule from the competition. We also provided feedback on the client’s clinical strategy, confirming that a niche, targeted development strategy in a specific tumor type with significant unmet need would befit the capabilities of our client, while at the same time, if successful, generate substantial value. As the preclinical program progressed, we continued to review data, provided feedback and suggested the next steps for our client.

Life Science Consulting Case Study, New Product Planning : Researching payers and pricing for a novel anemia therapy

Challenge: Our client needed an assessment of the market opportunity and value proposition for a novel anemia therapy in order to facilitate discussions with potential partners.

Solution: We conducted the assessment in two stages.

Stage 1: Targeted secondary research

We profiled the market to inform primary research, which included reviewing:

• Clinical guidelines in the US and EU5
• Trends in actual clinical practice, especially where differing from guidelines
• Pricing of comparator products across US and EU5
• Health Technology Assessment evaluations by bodies including the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in the UK, the Transparency Commission (TC) in France and the Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Healthcare (IQWiG) in Germany, to provide an understanding of how our client’s future dataset might be evaluated

Stage 2: Primary research with European and US payers

Using physician feedback, we conducted primary research with relevant payers to explore:

• To what extent anemia was an issue of concern for payers
• What the budget impact of the novel product would be
• Perceived differentiation for the client’s asset - open and closed pricing analysis
• Likely market access hurdles and formulary restrictions at different price points

Life Science Consulting Case Study, Due Diligence : Due diligence on a novel T cell therapy and discovery platform

Challenge: A VC life science investor wished to make an investment in a California-based preclinical biotechnology company with a discovery platform and novel T cell therapies for cancer and other diseases. Alacrita was commissioned to use its experience in cell therapeutics to perform a technical due diligence  on the company to highlight any key risks and to propose mitigation strategies.

Solution: Alacrita reviewed information provided by the client and compiled a report, analyzing the following key areas in the technology platform and therapeutic programs:

• Therapeutic focus
• Molecular targets
• Scientific rationale
• Pre-clinical data
• Regulatory status/correspondence
• Clinical development plans
• Competitive landscape
• Market opportunity
• Company infrastructure.

Upon further discussion with the target life science company on issues raised during the initial review and analysis, we finalized our report to the investor summarizing the above points and outlining the key risks in the programs. The company agreed that the identified risks were indeed material, and one of the predicted issues occurred shortly after our report was finalized.

Life Science Consulting Case Study, Product Development : Development & Refinement of a Patient-Reported Outcome (PRO) Strategy

Solution: Alacrita was approached by a life science company developing an enzyme approved by the FDA for the treatment of toxic plasma chemotherapy concentrations in patients with delayed clearance due to impaired renal function. The company was planning to investigate repeated administration of the drug as an adjunct to high dose chemotherapy for patients with central nervous system (CNS) cancers. The patient’s subjective experience of the condition and its treatment is a key element of the information stakeholders require to inform decision making. This perspective is particularly important in conditions such as cancer that are associated with significant morbidity and treatment-related toxicity. Alacrita’s consultants led the development and refinement of a patient-reported outcome (PRO) strategy to demonstrate the benefit of routine administration of the drug in cancer patients also receiving high dose chemotherapy therapy.

Solution: Alacrita’s life science consultants reviewed the current FDA-approved product label for the drug, Biologics License Application (BLA) documents, internal client documents and investigator-led study protocols. A targeted literature review was undertaken to identify patient relevant endpoints in which treatment with the drug alongside high-dose chemotherapy have demonstrated treatment benefit, which identified potential benefit in terms of cognitive function, physical function and HRQL. The PRO strategy was refined through discussions between Alacrita consultants and KOLs. The PRO strategy was further refined through regular interactions with the client’s team during weekly team meetings, alongside preparation of an FDA briefing document for a type C meeting. A report was generated providing recommendations for the PRO strategy for measuring patient-relevant outcomes for treatment with the drug alongside high dose chemotherapy in patients with CNS cancer. The recommendations were in line with the Center for Medical Technology Policy (CMTP) recommendations for the incorporation of PROs into clinical comparative effectiveness research in adult oncology in order to capture the patients’ subjective experience and provide complete information for decision making. The recommended PRO strategy represented a robust and comprehensive approach for capturing the patient voice, in order to demonstrate the benefit of repeated administration of the drug as an adjunct to high dose chemotherapy for patients with CNS cancers. The proposed approach was designed to generate data suitable for publication in peer-reviewed journals and address the requirements of multiple stakeholders. The recommendations set out in the report were incorporated in the Phase 2 study protocol synopsis for further refinement and discussions with KOLs, patient interviews and discussions with the FDA.

Life Science Consulting Case Study, Launch Planning : Commercial infrastructure & launch plan for orphan disease drug in EU & US

Challenge: Alacrita was engaged by a life science company developing a therapeutic for a severe orphan disorder. With Breakthrough status designation from the FDA and a Prime designation from the EMA, the company was preparing for commercialization in both the US and Europe. A few offices had already been set up, and some work had been done to map specialist centers in the US and EU that would be targeted. A program was underway to complete the steps required to gain market access, however, a fully integrated plan taking into account tax, regulatory, legal and supply chain needs was not yet in place. With this requirement now fairly urgent, Alacrita was asked to develop a high-level infrastructural plan integrating all of these elements. Based on this, and further validation of the market access plans, the life science company also wanted a clear go-to-launch plan to realize the best possible launch for its product. In order to align the launch on a global basis and ensure successful launches in both the US and Europe, the company also wanted the supply chain outlined in the context of their planned US organizational structure.

Solution: Alacrita's life science consultants delivered blueprints for a US and an EU organization to define and integrate the commercial, operational and supply chain structure with considerations for tax optimization, regulatory compliance, quality systems and SOPs and HR/legal considerations. In addition, a top-level go-to-launch, cross-functional process map was sketched out to plan the key activities and foresee any potential bottlenecks and manage activities on the critical path. The exercise in the EU focused on the top 5 markets – Germany, France, Italy, Spain and the UK. For the US, an analogous commercial organizational structure and map of the optimal supply chain was provided. Each of the areas below constituted a component of the project and were evaluated as follows:

Regulatory:   Review of the regulatory environment on a country by country basis, to verify personnel required, licenses required and systems mandated on a country level. This was done through local regulatory consultants within Alacrita’s network.

Quality Systems:   A top-line definition of the SOPs and quality agreements needed were evaluated and outlined on both an EMA level and FDA level.

Tax Review:   We conducted an analysis of the current tax laws governing distribution of EU goods through a Swiss HQ, with support from independent advisors, and any operational requirements – including minimum size of the headquarters in Switzerland. An analogous was also developed for the US.

HR/Labor law:   An overview of HR/hiring considerations was included in the analysis based on current country-specific labor laws for both the EU and US. Recommendations included optimization of current office locations, trade-off of higher salaries in some territories versus stricter labour laws in other countries etc.

Supply Chain:   Using the input from regulatory, tax, quality and license modules of the project, we outlined a supply chain to ensure 24-hour delivery to all centers and to optimize product and financial flow for the biopharma company. An evaluation of the USA supply chain needs was conducted through analysis of the centers to be reached, the manufacturing and secondary packaging site locations and the required product and financial flows.

Commercial Operations:   The optimal country/regional organizational structure and number of FTEs was proposed by evaluating the coverage needed for the specialist centers already mapped, out as well as considering the tax and HR situation.

Market Access:   Alacrita also worked with the life science company to define the market access strategy and pricing considerations in EU. These plans – including the timelines – were integrated into the go-to-launch project plan, the organizational structure and hiring plan.

Our Life Science Consulting Services:

• Product Development : Our  expert consultants  are ready to support you through every step of the pharmaceutical product development process, leveraging our scientific, clinical and commercial expertise to help you maximize value at each stage. Learn more.
• Strategy & Commercialization : Our team of expert pharmaceutical business consultants provides deep knowledge in critical areas such as company and portfolio strategies, fundraising pitch materials, platform or program opportunity-feasibility assessments, new product planning, value-based pricing and market access, and product launch preparations. Learn more.
• Business Development : We dovetail with our clients’ teams to augment their existing capabilities. We have deep experience on both the buy and sell side. Learn more.  

If we can assist you with a biotech consulting project, please contact us.

Case study index.

• Business Development
• Product Development
• Strategy & Commercialization
• Asset Scouting
• Business Strategy
• Expert Witness
• Partnering and deal-making
• Pharma Licensing
• Preclinical Development
• Research and IP evaluation
• Cancer Vaccines
• Cell Therapy
• Discovery Platforms
• Gene Therapy
• Immunotherapy

Additional Life Science Consulting Case Studies

Primary market research and patient segmentation mapping in myelofibrosis, anti-metastasis mab assessment, regulatory support to understand likelihood of approval of an ophthalmology asset, validating the opportunity for a novel anticoagulant with kol research, evaluating the attractiveness & potential positioning of a new kinase inhibitor, gene therapy technology opportunity assessment, need biotech consulting support we can help..

Contact us today to learn how our pharma & biotech consulting expertise can serve your project.

Explore our biotech & life science consulting services

• Strategy and Commercialization Learn more
• Product Development Learn more
• Business Development Learn more

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Hacking the Case Interview

Looking for a case interview cheat sheet or study guide to help you prepare for your upcoming consulting interviews?

Download our Case Interview Cheat Sheet and Study Guide , which covers all of the most important things you need to know. If you are looking to read the case interview cheat sheet in plain text, we’ve included all of the text below.

This case interview cheat sheet covers:  

What is a case interview?

What do case interviews assess?

What is the structure of a case interview?

What are the common types of cases?

What formulas do you need to know for case interviews?

What numbers do you need to know for case interviews?

What are some case interview tips?

If you’re looking for a step-by-step shortcut to learn case interviews quickly, enroll in our case interview course . These insider strategies from a former Bain interviewer helped 30,000+ land consulting offers while saving hundreds of hours of prep time.

A case interview is a 30- to 45-minute exercise that places you in a hypothetical business situation in which you and the interviewer work together to develop a recommendation or answer to a business problem.

• How can Walmart increase its profitability?
• How can Nike increase customer retention?
• How should Apple price its new smartphone?

A case interview assesses five criteria:

1.   Logical, structured thinking : Can you structure complex problems and ideas in a clear and organized way?

2.  Analytical problem solving: Can you analyze and interpret data to draw the right conclusions?

3.  Business acumen : Do you have a strong understanding of business fundamentals and good business judgment?

4.  Communication skills : Can you communicate clearly, concisely, and articulately?

5.  Personality and cultural fit : Are you a good fit for the work culture of the firm you are interviewing with?

All case interviews follow seven major steps:

1.  Understand the case background : Take notes while the interviewer reads you the case information. Pay particularly close attention to the context, company, and objective.

2.  Ask  clarifying questions : If necessary, ask 1 – 3 questions to clarify the objective of the case, understand the company better, or understand an unfamiliar term.

3.  Structure a framework : Structure a framework to break down the complex business problem into simpler, smaller components. A framework is a tool that organizes different ideas into major categories. Present your framework to the interviewer. Make sure that your framework is MECE .

M utually E xclusive: None of the parts of your framework overlap with each other

C ollectively E xhaustive: All of the parts of the framework account for everything you need to know to solve the case with no major areas missing.

4.  Start the case : How the case will start depends on whether the case is an interviewer-led case or a candidate-led case .

Interviewer-led case : The interviewer will be steering and controlling the direction of the case. They will explicitly point you to which questions to answer.

Candidate-led case : You will be driving the direction of the case. You will propose what area of your framework to start in, what questions you want to answer, what analyses you want to do, and what the next step of the case is.

5.  Solve quantitative problems : There are three major types of quantitative problems you could be asked in case interviews.

Market sizing or estimation questions : You will be asked to calculate the size of a particular market or estimate a particular figure. You may need to make your own assumptions on what number to use or the interviewer may provide you with the data.

Profitability or breakeven questions : You will be asked to calculate the expected profitability of a company or investment decision. You could also be asked to calculate the conditions necessary for a company to break even .

Charts and graphs questions : You will be asked to interpret data from various charts or graphs . These can include bar charts, pie charts, line graphs, scatterplots, bubble charts, and waterfall charts.

6.  Answer qualitative questions : There are two major types of qualitative questions you could be asked in case interviews.

Brainstorming questions : You will be asked to brainstorm a list of ideas for a particular problem or question.

Business judgment questions : You will be asked for your opinion on a business issue or a strategic decision.

7. Deliver a recommendation : Present your recommendation and provide the major reasons that support it. Then, propose potential next steps that you would take if you had more time.

Profitability case : A company is experiencing a decline in profits or profitability and is trying to identify what is causing the decline and what they should do about it.

How to solve:  

• Identify the driver behind the decline in profitability, whether it is from a decline in revenue, increase in costs, or both
• Understand what is causing this by looking at customer needs, competitor moves, and market trends
• Identify ways to improve profitability

Growth strategy case : A company is trying to decide how to best grow its business.

• Determine whether the company is looking to grow organically or inorganically
• For organic growth, consider growth through existing revenue sources and new revenue sources
• For inorganic growth, consider potential acquisitions and partnerships

Market entry case : A company is trying to decide whether they should enter a particular new market.

• Determine whether the market is attractive
• Assess the competitive landscape
• Determine if the company has the capabilities to enter
• Estimate the expected profitability from entering

Merger & acquisition case : A company is trying to decide whether or not they should acquire or merge with a particular company.

• Determine whether the company is attractive
• Assess potential synergies and risks
• Estimate the financial implications

New product case : A company is trying to decide whether or not they should develop and launch a particular new product.

How to solve:

• Determine whether the market that the product targets is attractive
• Assess whether the product meets customer needs and is superior to competitor products
• Determine whether the company has the capabilities to successfully develop and launch the product
• Estimate the expected profitability from launching the product

Pricing case : A company is trying to decide the best way to price a particular product or service.

• Determine the cost to produce the product. This is your minimum price.
• Estimate the customer’s maximum willingness to pay by quantifying the value the product provides. This is your maximum price.
• Investigate the price that competitors are setting for similar products. This will help you determine the optimal price between your minimum and maximum price.

Profit Formulas

• Profit = Revenue – Costs
• Revenue = Quantity * Price
• Costs = Total Variable Costs + Total Fixed Costs
• Total Variable Costs = Quantity * Variable Costs
• Profit = (Price – Variable Costs) * Quantity – Total Fixed Costs

Investment Formulas

• Return on Investment = Profit / Investment Cost
• Payback Period = Investment Cost / Profit per Year

Operations Formulas

• Output = Rate * Time
• Utilization = Output / Maximum Output

Market Share Formulas

• Market Share = Company Revenue in the Market / Total Market Revenue
• Relative Market Share = Company Market Share / Largest Competitor’s Market Share

General Statistics

• Global population: 8 billion
• Average household size: 2.5 people per household
• Average life expectancy: 80 years

Country Population Statistics  

• United States: 320 million
• Canada: 40 million
• Mexico: 125 million
• Brazil: 200 million
• United Kingdom: 60 million
• Germany: 80 million
• France: 60 million
• China: 1.4 billion
• India: 1.4 billion
• Russia: 150 million
• Japan: 125 million
• Australia: 25 million

Tip #1 - Make sure you understand the business problem and objective : Answering or addressing the wrong business problem is the quickest way to fail a case interview.

Tip #2 - Don’t rely on using memorized frameworks : Interviewers can tell when you are regurgitating memorized information and not thinking critically.

Tip #3 - Structure your approach before doing any math calculations : This helps you avoid making unnecessary calculations or reaching a dead-end.

Tip #4 - Talk through your calculations out loud : This decreases the likelihood of making a mistake and helps the interviewer follow what you are doing

Tip #5 - Structure your answer to qualitative questions : Use a simple two-part framework such as internal/external, short-term/long-term, or economic/non-economic.

Tip #6 - Answer “so what?” after every question : Throughout the case, connect each of your answers back to the case objective. What implications does your answer have on the overall business problem?

Tip #7 - Have a firm recommendation : Do not have a flimsy recommendation that switches back and forth between two different recommendations. Pick one and provide support.

Tip #8 - Be 80/20 : You will not have time to answer every single question. Focus on the most important questions that have the greatest impact on your answer. This is the 80/20 principle which states that 80% of the outcome comes from 20% of your effort.

Tip #9 - Be coachable and easy to work with : Interviewers look for people that they would personally want to have on their team. Demonstrate that you would be a great teammate.

Tip #10 - Be enthusiastic : Interviewers want to hire candidates that love their job and will work hard. Displaying enthusiasm shows you are passionate about consulting and working at the firm.

Check out our complete list of case interview tips .

Learn Case Interviews 10x Faster

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• Comprehensive Case Interview Course (our #1 recommendation): The only resource you need. Whether you have no business background, rusty math skills, or are short on time, this step-by-step course will transform you into a top 1% caser that lands multiple consulting offers.
• Hacking the Case Interview Book   (available on Amazon): Perfect for beginners that are short on time. Transform yourself from a stressed-out case interview newbie to a confident intermediate in under a week. Some readers finish this book in a day and can already tackle tough cases.
• The Ultimate Case Interview Workbook (available on Amazon): Perfect for intermediates struggling with frameworks, case math, or generating business insights. No need to find a case partner – these drills, practice problems, and full-length cases can all be done by yourself.
• Case Interview Coaching : Personalized, one-on-one coaching with former consulting interviewers
• Behavioral & Fit Interview Course : Be prepared for 98% of behavioral and fit questions in just a few hours. We'll teach you exactly how to draft answers that will impress your interviewer
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47 case interview examples (from McKinsey, BCG, Bain, etc.)

One of the best ways to prepare for   case interviews  at firms like McKinsey, BCG, or Bain, is by studying case interview examples. 

There are a lot of free sample cases out there, but it's really hard to know where to start. So in this article, we have listed all the best free case examples available, in one place.

The below list of resources includes interactive case interview samples provided by consulting firms, video case interview demonstrations, case books, and materials developed by the team here at IGotAnOffer. Let's continue to the list.

• McKinsey examples
• BCG examples
• Bain examples
• Deloitte examples
• Other firms' examples
• Case books from consulting clubs
• Case interview preparation

Click here to practise 1-on-1 with MBB ex-interviewers

1. mckinsey case interview examples.

• Beautify case interview (McKinsey website)
• Diconsa case interview (McKinsey website)
• Electro-light case interview (McKinsey website)
• GlobaPharm case interview (McKinsey website)
• National Education case interview (McKinsey website)
• Talbot Trucks case interview (McKinsey website)
• Shops Corporation case interview (McKinsey website)
• Conservation Forever case interview (McKinsey website)
• McKinsey case interview guide (by IGotAnOffer)
• McKinsey live case interview extract (by IGotAnOffer) - See below

2. BCG case interview examples

• Foods Inc and GenCo case samples  (BCG website)
• Chateau Boomerang written case interview  (BCG website)
• BCG case interview guide (by IGotAnOffer)
• Written cases guide (by IGotAnOffer)
• BCG live case interview with notes (by IGotAnOffer)
• BCG mock case interview with ex-BCG associate director - Public sector case (by IGotAnOffer)
• BCG mock case interview: Revenue problem case (by IGotAnOffer) - See below

3. Bain case interview examples

• CoffeeCo practice case (Bain website)
• FashionCo practice case (Bain website)
• Associate Consultant mock interview video (Bain website)
• Consultant mock interview video (Bain website)
• Written case interview tips (Bain website)
• Bain case interview guide   (by IGotAnOffer)
• Bain case mock interview with ex-Bain manager (below)

4. Deloitte case interview examples

• Engagement Strategy practice case (Deloitte website)
• Recreation Unlimited practice case (Deloitte website)
• Strategic Vision practice case (Deloitte website)
• Retail Strategy practice case  (Deloitte website)
• Finance Strategy practice case  (Deloitte website)
• Talent Management practice case (Deloitte website)
• Enterprise Resource Management practice case (Deloitte website)
• Footloose written case  (by Deloitte)
• Deloitte case interview guide (by IGotAnOffer)

5. Accenture case interview examples

• Case interview workbook (by Accenture)
• Accenture case interview guide (by IGotAnOffer)

6. OC&C case interview examples

• Leisure Club case example (by OC&C)
• Imported Spirits case example (by OC&C)

7. Oliver Wyman case interview examples

• Wumbleworld case sample (Oliver Wyman website)
• Aqualine case sample (Oliver Wyman website)
• Oliver Wyman case interview guide (by IGotAnOffer)

8. A.T. Kearney case interview examples

• Promotion planning case question (A.T. Kearney website)
• Consulting case book and examples (by A.T. Kearney)
• AT Kearney case interview guide (by IGotAnOffer)

9. Strategy& / PWC case interview examples

• Presentation overview with sample questions (by Strategy& / PWC)
• Strategy& / PWC case interview guide (by IGotAnOffer)

10. L.E.K. Consulting case interview examples

• Case interview example video walkthrough   (L.E.K. website)
• Market sizing case example video walkthrough  (L.E.K. website)

11. Roland Berger case interview examples

• Transit oriented development case webinar part 1  (Roland Berger website)
• Transit oriented development case webinar part 2   (Roland Berger website)
• 3D printed hip implants case webinar part 1   (Roland Berger website)
• 3D printed hip implants case webinar part 2   (Roland Berger website)
• Roland Berger case interview guide   (by IGotAnOffer)

12. Capital One case interview examples

• Case interview example video walkthrough  (Capital One website)
• Capital One case interview guide (by IGotAnOffer)

13. Consulting clubs case interview examples

• Berkeley case book (2006)
• Columbia case book (2006)
• Darden case book (2012)
• Darden case book (2018)
• Duke case book (2010)
• Duke case book (2014)
• ESADE case book (2011)
• Goizueta case book (2006)
• Illinois case book (2015)
• LBS case book (2006)
• MIT case book (2001)
• Notre Dame case book (2017)
• Ross case book (2010)
• Wharton case book (2010)

Practice with experts

Using case interview examples is a key part of your interview preparation, but it isn’t enough.

At some point you’ll want to practise with friends or family who can give some useful feedback. However, if you really want the best possible preparation for your case interview, you'll also want to work with ex-consultants who have experience running interviews at McKinsey, Bain, BCG, etc.

If you know anyone who fits that description, fantastic! But for most of us, it's tough to find the right connections to make this happen. And it might also be difficult to practice multiple hours with that person unless you know them really well.

Here's the good news. We've already made the connections for you. We’ve created a coaching service where you can do mock case interviews 1-on-1 with ex-interviewers from MBB firms . Start scheduling sessions today!

The IGotAnOffer team

28 Case Interview Examples for Consulting Interview Prep (2024)

• Last Updated January, 2024

Rebecca Smith-Allen

Former McKinsey Engagement Manager

How to Use Case Interview Examples

Video Case Interview Example: Questions & Answers

Tips for Acing Your Case

Free Case Interview Examples (Consulting Firms)

Free Case Interview Examples (Consulting Clubs)

Practice is the key to passing your consulting interviews. To practice, you’ll need some examples of case interview questions and answers to work with.

We’ve got links to loads of them below.

In addition, we have:

• Tips on how to use case interview examples to prepare for your consulting interviews,
• A video case interview example with My Consulting Offer founder Davis Nguyen, and
• Insight into the difference between average and exceptional answers to case interview questions.

Get ready to dive deep into structuring your analysis of business problems, identifying the key issues, and recommending solutions!

Keep reading to find out how to use case interview examples to ace your case.

How to Use Case Interview Examples to Ace Your Case

1. start your case interview preparation early..

You’ll need to practice dozens of case interview examples to get good enough to receive an offer from one of the top consulting firms. This is not something you can cram the night before an interview.

Start as soon as possible.

2. Don’t Read Straight through Sample Case Interview Examples or Passively Watch Videos.

Some people think that the best way to improve their chances of passing a case interview is by reading as many cases interview examples as they can.

This is like reading about how to play tennis but never picking up a racket. To get better at tennis, for example, you need to actually pick up a ball and be active. The same applies to your interview preparation.

Stop and think at each step in the case interview question. Come up with your own answer and say it out loud. Practice driving each part of the case interview example yourself.

• How would you structure your analysis of the problem?
• What questions would you ask the interviewer?
• How would you set up the case math problem?
• What recommendation would you make to the client?

After you’ve developed your answer, compare it to the suggested answer for the case.

What did you get right?

How did your answer and the case interview example answer differ?

Are there things you miss consistently across multiple case interview examples?

The answers to these  case interview examples can look simple when you just read through them, but it’s not easy to come up with all the key aspects of the solution on your own.

Nail the case & fit interview with strategies from former MBB Interviewers that have helped 89.6% of our clients pass the case interview.

3. Find Partners to Practice Case Interviews with.

Teamwork is an important part of consulting work, so get ready for it now. Find a case interview practice partner, preferably someone else who’s applying to jobs in the management consulting industry because they’ll know more about what recruiters are looking for.

Practicing cases with a partner provides the opportunity to get feedback from someone else on what you’re doing well and what you need to improve. Additionally, you’ll learn a lot by watching how your partner solves sample case studies.

Look for aspects of their approach that are effective as well as what they could do better. Working with a partner will make your consulting interview practice feel more real.

Similar to how you need a tennis partner to feel what is like to play tennis, you need a case partner to experience what a case interview is like.

4. Master the 4 Parts of the Case Interview.

In our article on Case Interview Prep , we discussed the 4 parts of the case interview: the opening, structure, analysis, and conclusion. As you practice with consulting case interview examples, practice each of these 4 parts to ensure you’re strong at them all.

5. Avoid Case Burnout.

A case zombie is someone who’s grown tired of casing from doing too much of it. Their answers feel rehearsed, not conversational. 

They may seem bored, not engaged in solving the problem. They’ll be less creative in their solutions. They certainly won’t pass the airport test!

Avoid becoming a case zombie by practicing smarter, not harder.

Video: Case Interview Examples – Questions & Answers

In the following case interview example, Davis Nguyen, founder of My Consulting Offer solves McKinsey’s SuperSoda case.  The video is broken into 4 parts of the case interview.

Remember, don’t just watch the video. Stop the video and provide your own answer before listening to Davis’s  answer to the case question.

Step 1: Case Interview Example Opening – Ensure you understand the client and the problem you’ll be solving in the case.

Step 2: case interview example structure – break the problem down into smaller parts. make sure you cover all key case issues., step 3: case interview example analysis – ask questions, gathering information from graphs and charts provided by the interviewer, do case math, and provide insight into the client’s business problem based on what you learn., step 4: case interview example recommendation – develop a rational recommendation for the client based on all you’ve learned throughout the case interview., tips for acing your consulting case interviews – the difference between average & exceptional, case interview opening.

The opening is a great point to ask “dumb” questions because, at this point, you’re not expected to know much about the client and their business. 

Here your goal is to understand the client, their business, and what a successful project will look like.

Don’t shy away from asking for clarification on things that will help you better understand the business problem and solve it. For example, if you don’t know how life insurance works and the case is about life insurance, then ask.

After ensuring you understand the client and their problem, the next thing to ask about is key metrics of success. 

For example, the client may want to find new avenues for growth. Are they looking for a 5% increase in revenue or to double their business?

Finding out what success looks like in the client’s eyes will ensure you work to deliver a solution that meets their expectations, not one that’s underwhelming.

After you find out what success looks like, ask further probing questions to better understand the client, their business, and any constraints on solving the case.

Examples of Relevant Questions to ask Your Interviewer 

Examples of relevant questions about the client might include the geography they operate in or the sector of their industry they are strongest in. 

Examples of relevant questions about their business might include what products or services are most profitable or most important to their customers. 

Examples of relevant questions about the problem might include whether there are any costs that can’t be cut or what the maximum amount the client is able to invest in developing a new product. 

Asking these types of questions up front will give you a better context for solving the client’s problem and make it more likely that you will solve the case interview.

Case Interview Structure

You’ll need a framework to make sure your analysis covers all key aspects of the consulting case. 

You can use one of the many standard Case Interview Frameworks we’ve outlined , but top interviewees develop their own framework for analyzing the case interview question. 

Their frameworks may include pieces of one or more of the standard frameworks but are tailored to the particular business problem they’re discussing. 

Good frameworks are hypothesis-driven, that is to say they can be tested similar to the science experiment, so that the answer is either a “yes” or “no.” For example, examining your bank account to see, “if I have $400 for a ticket” is an example.

Second, good frameworks cover all topics relevant to the answer. For example, if the client is opening up a new hotel in a foreign country, checking out the existing competition should be part of the framework.

As you study more about interactive case interviews and practice them you’ll develop a sense for what factors are relevant or not relevant to the case at hand.

Finally, a good structure will be  MECE  or mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive.

This means the framework will break down the market or population being analyzed into segments that include every part of the whole (collectively exhaustive), and each segment of the market or member of the population will show up in one and only one category without overlap (mutually exclusive). 

For example, if you divide the target market for a retail product into segments by age, these segments would be MECE:

•  10-19,
• 40-49, etc.

The categories 15-25, 20-30, 27-35 would not be MECE because people could be counted twice. 

Case Interview Analysis

In the analysis phase of your case interview example, you’ll ask questions to get the information you need to solve the client’s business problem. Your questions will likely lead you to one of the 4 types of analysis that are common in consulting interviews: market sizing, brainstorming, quantitative reasoning (case math), or reading exhibits. 

No matter which of these types of analysis comes up, there’s a 4-step method that ensures you can crack the case. 

This 4-step method is:

• Ask for data,
•  Interpret the data,
•  Provide insight, and 
• Outline next steps. 

The data you ask for will depend on the case interview question you’re solving. For example, if the question is about profitability, you’ll need to know about the client’s finances: dig into revenues and costs. 

For example, if you find that the client’s revenues are flat while their costs have been rising, you’ll know that the problem is in the cost structure and that you’ll need to examine costs more closely.

Next, provide insight. As you examine costs further, you’ll find out why they’ve grown faster than revenues. 

This insight will naturally lead to the next steps. What does the client need to do to get costs under control and fix their profitability problem? 

You may need to go through this 4-step method a couple of times, focusing on different aspects of the client’s business problem. 

Once you’ve examined and developed insight into all key aspects of the problem, your next step will be to conclude the interview with a recommendation for the client.

Case Interview Conclusion

At this point, you’ve hopefully cracked the case and are ready to present your recommendations to the client (your interviewer). 

The best way to do this is to use the 5R approach:

• Recap – restate the business problem you’ve analyzed. In consulting this is done because a CEO might have hired 5 McKinsey teams and can’t remember which one you are on. 
• Recommendations – Provide the solution your analysis led to. We lead with the recommendation because it is the most important piece of information. Stating it first and clearly puts everyone on the same page.
• Reasons – Summarize the key facts and insights that lead you to your recommendations. 
• Risks – Outline any risks the client should be aware of as they implement your recommendations. No recommendation has a 100% probability of success. Clients need to be aware of business risks in the same way patients need to understand the side effects of drugs.
• Retaining the client – Provide next steps for how you can help the client ensure success. As consultants, we are paid for helping our clients. If there is a natural extension of the work as the client implements the team’s recommendations, we should tell them how we can provide further assistance (and ultimately make money for your firm). 

While most candidates will address their recommendations and possibly the reasons for their recommendations, few will hit all these points. 

In particular, outlining risks and further ways you can help the client will differentiate you from other candidates and help you to advance  to the second round of interviews or get the offer.

Free Online Case Interview Examples from 7 Top Consulting Firms

Now that you’re familiar with how you should use case interview examples and what differentiates an average answer from an exceptional one, you need sample questions to practice with.

Below, we provide links to dozens to help you hone your business problem-solving skills.

1. McKinsey Case Interview Examples

Disconsa – Help a not-for-profit develop better financial-service offerings for remote Mexican communities.

Electro-Light – Help a beverage manufacturer prepare for a new product launch.

GlobalPharm – Help a pharmaceutical industry client manage with its merger and acquisitions strategy.

Transforming a National Education System – Help a country’s education ministry develop a new strategy for educating the country’s children. 

2. BCG Case Interview Examples

Climate Challenge – Help a global consumer goods company reduce its environmental impact.

Driving Revenue Growth at a Healthcare Company – Help a medical devices and services company to increase revenues following an acquisition. (The same one that is highlighted above in our example)

3. Bain Case Interview Examples

Coffee Shop Co. – Help a friend decide whether they should open a coffee shop.

F ashionCo. – Help a fashion company understand why its revenues have been going down.

Private Equitas – Help a private equity company maximize its investment in a portfolio company.

4. Deloitte Case Interview Examples

Footloose  – Help a footwear company improve their market share in the boots category.

Recreation Unlimited – Help a global apparel and sportswear company improve its digital customer experience and its revenue.

Agency V – Help a large federal agency recover from a front-page scandal that sparked investigations and congressional hearings.

Federal Benefits Provider – Help a federal agency that provides benefits to millions of U.S. citizens prepare for a major expansion of its mandate.

5. AT Kearney Case Interview Examples

Promotion Planning – Help a national grocery and drug store chain improve its product promotion strategy.

6. PWC Case Interview Examples

Modernizing a Hotel’s Loyalty Platform – Help simplify and modernize the platform, providing customers with immediate access to their data.

Green Energy – Help an energy company transition to net zero greenhouse gas emissions.

Nonprofit Impact – Help a community organization respond to client needs during the pandemic.

Love at First Byte – Help a data management client comply with new regulations.

Prioritizing Ethics and Integrity – Help a software company leverage data analytics to comply with regulations.

7. Accenture Case Interview Examples

Sustainability – Help drive sustainability for an auto manufacturer.

IT integration strategy – Driving merger integration by linking technology systems.

We have more on how to Accenture Case Interviews in our article.

8. Capital One Case Interview Examples

Ice Cream Corporation – Help the president of Ice Cream Corporation grow profits.

9. Oliver Wyman Case Interview Examples

Wumbleworld – Help a China-based theme park operator identify the reasons for declining profits and develop options for reversing the trend.

Aqualine – Help a manufacturer of small power boats determine why its sales growth has slowed and identify opportunities to boost sales.

10. LEK Case Interview Examples

Theater chain – Help a large theater chain identify revenue growth opportunities.

Free Online Case Interview Examples from Consulting Clubs

Need more case interview examples? Here are links to MBA case books compiled by INSEAD, Harvard, Wharton, Darden, and several other business schools.

Recent Consulting Case Interview Examples

• Darden School Of Business 2021-2022 Casebook
• NYU Stern MCA 2020-2021 Casebook
• The Duke MBA Consulting Club Casebook 2021-2022
• Notre Dame Casebook 2022
• Kellogg Consulting Club 2020 Casebook
• FMS Consulting Casebook 2021-22
• INSEAD Consulting Club Casebook 2021
• IIMC Consulting Casebook 2021-22
• UCLA Case Book 2019 – 2020
• Columbia Business School 2021 Casebook
• IIM Lucknow Casebook 2022
• Cornell MBA Johnson Consulting Club Casebook 2020-2021
• Darden School Of Business 2020-2021 Casebook

Older Consulting Case Interview Examples

• 2019 Berkeley Haas School of Business Consulting Club Interview Preparation Guide and Case Interview Examples
• The Duke MBA Consulting Club Casebook 2018-2019
• 2017-2018 McCombs University of Texas at Austin Consulting Case Interview Examples
• Columbia Business School Management Consulting Association Case Interview Examples 2017
• Duke Fuqua School of Business MBA Consulting Case Interview Examples 2016-2017
• NYU Stern MBA MCA Case Interview Examples: 2017
• UCLA Anderson School of Management Consulting Association Case Interview Examples 2015-2015
• Darden Consulting Club Case Interview Examples: 2014-2015
• Yale Life Sciences Consulting Case Interview Examples 2014
• ESADE MBA Consulting Club Case Interview Examples 2014
• Darden Consulting Case Interview Examples: 2012-2013 Edition
• Kellogg Consulting Club Case Interview Examples and Interview Guide: 2012 Edition

Even More Consulting Case Interview Examples

• The Cornell Consulting Club Interview Interview Examples
• Harvard Business School Management Consulting Club Case Interview Examples
• The MIT Sloan School of Management Consulting Club Case Interview Examples and Interview Guide – October 2001
• The Berkeley MBA Haas Consulting Club 2006 Case Interview Examples
• London Business School – The 2006 Consulting Club Case Interview Examples 
• Columbia Business School Management Consulting Association Case Interview Examples – 2006
• Torch the Case – The NYU Stern Consulting Case Interview Examples – 2007 edition 
• Michigan – the Ross School of Business Consulting Club 2010 Case Interview Examples
• Wharton Case Interview Examples by the Wharton Consulting Club – December 2010
• The Duke MBA Consulting Club Case Interview Examples – 2010-2011
• Case Interview Examples by the ESADE MBA Consulting Club 2011  
• INSEAD Consulting Club Handbook and Case Interview Examples – 2011

Still have questions?

If you still have questions on case interview examples, leave them in the comments below. We’ll ask our My Consulting Offer coaches and get back to you with answers.

We have tons of other articles to help you get an offer from one of the top consulting firms. Check out our pages on:

• Case Interview Math
• Case Interview Types
• Case Interview Formulas
• Market Sizing Questions

Help with Case Study Interview Preparation

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3 Top Strategies to Master the Case Interview in Under a Week

We are sharing our powerful strategies to pass the case interview even if you have no business background, zero casing experience, or only have a week to prepare.

No thanks, I don't want free strategies to get into consulting.

We are excited to invite you to the online event., where should we send you the calendar invite and login information.

Consultingcase101

Tag: healthcare pharmaceutical biotech life sciences

Case industry overview: pharmaceuticals.

Industry Coverage: healthcare: pharmaceutical, biotech, life sciences .

(1) Overview of pharmaceutical industry

* Historically, the pharmaceutical industry is among the world’s most profitable industries.

* Total domestic expenditures for prescription drugs were roughly USD $384.1 billion in 2018, and is still increasing.

* Worldwide sales are expected to increase 58% per year (similar figures in the US), and reach $1.1 trillion in sales by 2014.

* In 2019, the … Read the rest

Pfizer to Launch New Treatment for Multiple Sclerosis

Case Type: new product, new technology ; investment . Consulting Firm: Trinity Partners first round full time job interview. Industry Coverage: healthcare: pharmaceutical, biotech, life sciences .

Case Interview Question #01379: Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a potentially disabling disease of the brain and spinal cord (central nervous system). In MS, the immune system attacks the protective sheath (myelin) that covers nerve fibers and causes communication problems between your brain and … Read the rest

Amgen to Develop Treatment for Neonatal Congenital Disease

Case Type: new product, new technology ; prioritization, optimization . Consulting Firm: Trinity Partners first round full time job interview. Industry Coverage: healthcare: pharmaceutical, biotech, life sciences .

Case Interview Question #01378: Our client, Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) is an American pharmaceutical company headquartered in Thousand Oaks, California. Focused on molecular biology and biochemistry, Amgen’s goal is to provide a healthcare solution based on recombinant DNA technology. In 2018, the … Read the rest

Gilead Sciences to Commercialize Ear Infection Vaccines

Case Type: new product ; investment . Consulting Firm: ClearView Healthcare Partners first round full time job interview. Industry Coverage: healthcare: pharmaceutical, biotech, life sciences .

AbbVie’s New Chicken Pox Vaccine Enters Phase III

Case Type: new product ; investment . Consulting Firm: Health Advances first round full time job interview. Industry Coverage: healthcare: pharmaceutical, biotech, life sciences .

The R&D department … Read the rest

Biogen to Develop Vaccine for Staph Infections

Case Type: new product, new technology ; market sizing . Consulting Firm: Health Advances first round full time job interview. Industry Coverage: healthcare: pharmaceutical, biotech, life sciences .

Case Interview Question #01368: Our client Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB) is an American multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, specializing in the discovery, development, and delivery of therapies for the treatment of a number of diseases to patients worldwide. … Read the rest

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Interview Preparation

Life at l.e.k..

• The L.E.K. Career

An interview is your opportunity to show us how you think. We use case-based interviews so we can see how you approach specific business problems, marshalling data and your own experiences to reach and defend a conclusion.

Advanced Case Interview Preparation

Here are a few suggestions to help you prepare for the case questions:

• Attend case interview preparation workshops on campus
• Read major business publications or daily papers regularly
• Practice with people who currently work in strategy consulting; know what kind of work we do, as this will help you anticipate the kinds of question you may be asked
• Review the case studies and other content available throughout our website

During the Case Interview

Here are some tips for how to perform your best during a case interview:

• Take your time: Listen to the question, repeat or paraphrase to be sure you understand; state your assumptions and restate the facts
• Gather your thoughts: Jot down preliminary ideas, formulate intelligent questions and devise a coherent approach
• Stick to your approach: Outline how you are thinking and move methodically to address each issue, point-by-point
• Ask questions: Clarify issues and scope; ask for additional information you need
• Formulate hypotheses: Share your thought process as information is revealed
• Come up with an answer: Commit yourself to a course of action, but show flexibility and a willingness to rethink in the face of new data
• Be yourself!

A Brainteaser

Background and challenge.

Airplanes are taking off from JFK and LAX airports every hour on the hour continuously, flying identical New York-Los Angeles routes. The flight takes five hours. You are leaving New York at 12:00 PM EST and flying to Los Angeles (because it’s sunny and the beaches are great). How many airplanes flying the opposite route will you pass on the way there?

Approaching the Case Interview

• What clarifying questions would you ask?
• What do you know?
• What logical traps might you want to avoid?
• What information really matters and what is superfluous?
• What assumptions, if any, would you need to make and why?

Brewery Profits

We are evaluating two beer-brewing companies, Cheapo Beer Company and Bourgeois Beer, Inc. Cheapo and Bourgeois are competitors; both have been reporting similar revenues over the last five years showing steady growth. Cheapo is designated the "All-American Beer" and is a staple at tailgate parties. Bourgeois markets its product as brewed fresh from mountain water. Cheapo has posted consistent profits that have been growing at a moderate rate whereas Bourgeois' profits have fluctuated significantly. Why is there such a difference? If you were CEO of Bourgeois, what steps would you take to minimize these fluctuations?

• How would you organize your response?
• What data would you want or need?
• What assumptions, if any, would you need to make and why?  

Large Pharma Co.

Our client is a large pharmaceutical company that has developed a cure for baldness. It's a pill that will rapidly (within three months) regrow your hair to the thickness that it was when you were 15. The pill, IPP2, needs to be taken daily to maintain that thickness. Estimate the size of the market for this drug and describe how you would go about pricing this product.

Let’s shape your future. Are you ready?

Read our latest thought leadership, see where you can make an impact, see some of our social & community responsibility initiatives, view l.e.k. recruiting videos.

Case Interview Preparation

Perform at your best during your case interview., bcgers share their case study interview tips., follow these dos and don ’ ts to ace your case prep:, test your case interview skills with these interactive quizzes..

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Day in the Life: Inside a Life Sciences Consulting Case

Published: Nov 03, 2020

The Project:   L.E.K. Consulting is supporting a diagnostics company in developing a strategic plan for its business over the next five to ten years. The client wanted to understand the market opportunity for its key products, with a particular focus in targeted global markets.  During the course of six weeks, nine L.E.K. workers—two partners, one manager, three Life Sciences specialists and three associates—across four offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Paris and Milan, will work hard to help the client find the best path forward for its business.

Sarah O., a Sr. Life Sciences Specialist, is named the day-to-day project leader. Her Day in the Life takes place about a week before the interim presentation to the client.

8:30 AM : Stop by the coffee maker, then catch up on email. Send out team goals for the day—need to finalize the first draft of the interim presentation by the end of the day tomorrow to start getting VP input before next week’s meeting.

9:00 AM : Jump on a conference line with the EU team to catch up on the latest physician interview findings. Compare notes to the U.S. interview campaign. Make a note to highlight key differences among the various geographies at the case team meeting.

11:00 AM : Interview a key opinion leader at a major academic medical center with another LSS (an MD) to discuss key product features, assess unmet needs and explore market opportunities. Our educational backgrounds were perfect for this discussion—between an MD and a PhD, we were able to get to the bottom of both the technical issues around our client’s key products as well as the product’s likely impact on a hospital’s standard of care.

12:30 PM : Grab lunch with my San Francisco officemates. Whine about how the 49ers are looking this year.

1:30 PM : Hold a case team meeting to discuss team progress, highlight key findings to the partners, and agree upon which analyses best supports our points and should be included in the final slides for the client meeting next week. Email the EU team with highlights from the meeting, and include questions and notes from the partners.

2:30 PM : Work with team on dividing and conquering the slides to be finished by the end of the day.

3:00 PM : Finish a draft of the customer interview guide for Phase II of the project, which will begin after the interim presentation next week. Email my manager to set up a time to review.

4:30 PM : Review slide production from team and send through edits—we need to get the draft fully polished before the VPs see it!

5:00 PM : Go through the manager’s feedback on the customer interview guide. Incorporate revisions and share with team.

7:30 PM : Grab dinner with the team. Discuss final goals for the evening and review the progress on meeting goals for the week.

9:30 PM : Consolidate finished slides. Send it through to the manager for feedback and head home. 

Final Notes:

Since a project leader is typically a Consultant at L.E.K., this project represented a big step up into major management responsibility for me.

The examples above give a sense of the many “moving parts” typical to an L.E.K. team. Team members often work independently—by conducting interviews, gathering secondary research and analyzing their data—but they also must work together to understand how the key findings contribute to the overall “answer” for the client. It's these cycles of independent and team-focused work that ultimately roll up into full presentations and detailed financial models, which are the final deliverables for the client.

Originally published: 2011-10-03 

This post was adapted from L.E.K. Consulting’s L.E.K. Advisor blog, which is an interactive resource for undergraduate, MBA and PhD candidates interested in pursuing a career in management consulting. The L.E.K. Advisor acts as a voice for the L.E.K. brand and also features contributions from L.E.K. employees who share their “real-world” perspectives about the management consulting industry and life inside L.E.K. Check it out at http://ask.lek.com/.

To learn more about the firm, also check out Vault's L.E.K. Consulting profile.

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Pharmaceutical/life sciences consulting cases.

Hello all. Please recommend the best way to prepare for pharma and life sciences consulting cases? Any books or websites? Thank you.

Overview of answers

• Date ascending
• Date descending

This is indeed an interesting question which is probably relevant for quite a lot of users, so I am happy to provide my perspective on it:

• In my perspective, the key questions is whether in your specific situation, it is required to gather some in-depth knowledge on the pharma and life sciences industries or not . For instance, unless you apply in an industry-specific boutique or as an experienced hire in the specific practice, chances are quite low that interviewers will expect you to have in-depth knowledge.
• If you actually need to gather in-depth knowledge on the industries and related case studies, I would advise you to 1) have a look at Big 4/ analyst reports on those specific industries (consulting companies' reports tend to be very focused on specific topics) and 2) gather all types of pharma and life sciences case studies from case books and PrepLounge you may find . Still, it will not hurt to do a couple of case studies from other industries either.

In case you want a more detailed discussion on how to best prepare for your upcoming interviews , please feel free to contact me  directly.

I hope this helps,

• Pharmaceutical Rare Disease Business Growth pg. 49
• 3.. Healthcare pg. 84
• GGC Health pg 44
• Botox pg 163

Tepper 2018

• Regional Health Plan pg 9

Kellog 2016

• Maine Apples

If you end up needing more please let me know!

Hello. Which is HBS 2014? Thanks

What you are looking for is very niche, so am afraid there isn't plenty available. Some suggestions:

• Search for casebooks and find Pharma/LS cases
• Make yourself familiar with the pharma value chain. Look at GSK, AZ and Takeda's websites. There is plenty on there
• Find peers on PrepLounge who are preparing the same

While I don't have any relevant cases myself, I now work in Healthcare/LS industry. So, I am more than happy to help you with the concepts, framework and share my knowledge. Feel free to send me a direct message.

Thank you. At a junior level, would it be a good idea to just have good practice of the general consulting cases?

Yes, general consulting prep is good but I understood you are looking for Lifescience exposure. So knowing a little bit more about the industry will boost your case performance.

Let me add that you can find some good cases at Preplounge, just follow this link: https://www.preplounge.com/en/management-consulting-cases

and the write “pharmaceutical” or “life science” (or "health) in the search box.

I recommend checking expert cases here on PrepLounge. You could also refer to other well-known case books such as LBS and MIT.

Hope this helps.

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Optimizing evidence-based practice implementation: a case study on simulated patient protocols in long-term opioid therapy

• Ellen Green   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-2643-984X 1 ,
• Megan Hamm 2 ,
• Catherine Gowl 2 ,
• Reed Van Deusen 2 ,
• Jane M. Liebschutz 2 ,
• J. Deanna Wilson 3 &
• Jessica Merlin 2  

Implementation Science Communications volume  5 , Article number:  44 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

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Metrics details

Substantial work has been done to update or create evidence-based practices (EBPs) in the changing health care landscape. However, the success of these EBPs is limited by low levels of clinician implementation.

The goal of this study is to describe the use of standardized/simulated patient/person (SP) methodology as a framework to develop implementation bundles to increase the effectiveness, sustainability, and reproducibility of EBPs across health care clinicians.

We observed 12 clinicians’ first-time experiences with six unique decision-making algorithms, developed previously using rigorous Delphi methods, for use with patients exhibiting concerning behaviors associated with long-term opioid therapy (LTOT) for chronic pain. Clinicians were paired with two SPs trained to portray individuals with one of the concerning behaviors addressed by the algorithms in a telehealth environment. The SP evaluations were followed by individual interviews, guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR), with each of the clinician participants.

Participants

Twelve primary care clinicians and 24 SPs in Western Pennsylvania.

Main measurement

The primary outcome was identifying likely facilitators for the successful implementation of the EBP using the SP methodology. Our secondary outcome was to assess the feasibility of using SPs to illuminate likely implementation barriers and facilitators.

The SP portrayal illuminated factors that were pertinent to address in the implementation bundle. SPs were realistic in their portrayal of patients with concerning behaviors associated with LTOT for chronic pain, but clinicians also noted that their patients in practice may have been more aggressive about their treatment plan.

Conclusions

SP simulation provides unique opportunities for obtaining crucial feedback to identify best practices in the adoption of new EBPs for high-risk patients.

Zoom simulated patient evaluations.

Peer Review reports

Contributions to the literature

This study uses simulated patients (SPs) in implementation science planning, offering insights into identifying gaps and tailoring implementation strategies effectively.

Focusing on long-term opioid therapy, our research exemplifies SPs’ practical role in implementing evidence-based practices, addressing a critical gap in substance use therapy.

Beyond training, our findings provide insights into SPs as facilitators for professionals dealing with high-risk patients, acknowledging both the potential benefits and limitations of the SP methodology.

Introduction

Timely adoption of current evidence-based practices (EBPs) is key to ensuring high-quality care in our changing health care environment. Creating EBPs alone is insufficient to ensure their implementation. Without well-designed implementation strategies, the adoption of these practices can take decades [ 1 ]. This is because clinicians often face barriers to implementing EBPs, including limited awareness, resistance to change, and resource constraints. Organizational culture, patient factors, and the complexity of implementation further contribute to the challenges. Evaluation of implementation strategies outside of an active practice setting can address these barriers and increase the likelihood of dissemination, long-term adoption, and appropriate use of EBPs by providing a controlled environment for assessment, feedback, and identification of facilitators for a successful implementation [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]. We argue that the standardized/simulated patient/person (SP) methodology serves as a valuable tool for formulating implementation strategies for EBPs before their application in practice.

SPs are people trained to portray complex behaviors and react as an actual patient would to a clinician in real time creating a fully interactive patient-clinician experience outside of a real-world practice [ 5 ]. SPs can be trained to consistently exhibit specific emotions (e.g., anger [ 6 ]), desires (e.g., prescriptions), and/or patient needs (e.g., language barriers [ 7 ]) across clinicians. The flexible nature of simulation can be leveraged to reflect either a single patient encounter or multiple patient visits portraying the passage of time depending on the application (e.g., teach providers how to perform a physical exam or re-evaluate patients after a new prescription). While SP methodology is commonly used to train and test clinicians on new techniques [ 5 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 ], its application to the planning phases of implementation science remains limited. Our work specifically leverages SP methodology within the planning phases of an implementation bundle for an EBP - a novel approach that has been underutilized in existing literature.

There are several advantages to using SP methodology as a part of implementation strategy. First, the consistent portrayal of a patient case can help identify gaps in EBP implementation and facilitate targeted solutions for future implementation. Second, recruiting clinicians from multiple and diverse practices to use the EBPs with SPs can provide insight into how the EBP would be best implemented in their unique practice setting after the provider has first-hand experience with the EBP. This can provide richer and more diverse insight for implementation scientists relative to feedback from directly implementing an EBP into a singular practice that may not generalize to other clinics.

Likewise, evaluating an EBP outside of the daily activities of a typical clinical practice provides clinicians with immediate and protected time for debriefing. Without dedicated time for good feedback, it is difficult to identify areas of improvement for implementation. Also, developing implementation strategies for EBPs in practice can be high risk for patients. The use of SPs provides a safe environment to develop implementation strategies and gain active experience with EBPs without putting patients at risk [ 16 ]. Lastly, SPs can provide insight into events that may be uncommon or take a long time to occur in practice, which can expedite necessary adaptation of implementation strategies for EBPs. Overall, SPs may provide a critical step in increasing the likelihood of a successful adoption of an EBP by identifying the barriers and facilitators prior to implementation in the field.

For these reasons, we adopted the SP methodology for a research project implementing an evidence-based approach to addressing concerning behaviors in patients on long-term opioid therapy (LTOT), such as diversion, use of other substances, or non-adherence to pain therapy. Although the evidence for the effectiveness of LTOT is limited [ 17 , 18 , 19 ], there are millions of Americans prescribed opioid analgesics yearly, with more than 17% of Americans receiving an opioid prescription in 2017, with an average of 3.4 opioid prescriptions dispensed per patient [ 20 ]. Multiple efforts to improve opioid prescribing have occurred on the broader policy level (e.g., prescription drug monitoring programs), the insurance level (limits on doses or length of time), and through education (the RDA risk evaluation and mitigation strategy program [ 21 ] and most recently, the drug enforcement agency requirement for training on addiction and opioids) [ 22 ]. While opioid prescribing has decreased overall [ 23 ], none of these broader measures address concerning behaviors among patients taking LTOT. To augment non-specific recommendations in the CDC guide to prescribing opioids (“weigh the risks and benefits” [ 24 ]) and other broader prescribing policy, our team previously developed a set of evidence-based clinical decision-making algorithms using Delphi process to address concerning behaviors among patients prescribed opioids. The lack of uptake of most clinical guidelines [ 25 , 26 ] led the team to look for effective ways to implement these EBP. Because the concerning behaviors of patients on LTOT may occur sporadically among primary care physicians (PCPs), using the SP methodology would allow for rapid feedback, making it attractive for developing and testing potential implementation methods of the EBP.

In this article, we describe the SP methodology for developing an implementation bundle for a new EBP to address concerning behaviors among patients on LTOT. In conjunction with the SP methodology, we used observation and discussion from one-on-one structured interviews to develop an implementation bundle to increase the likelihood of effective, sustainable, and reproducible adoption in practice. Our approach was guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR), a commonly used tool to guide qualitative inquiry about how clinicians would implement EBPs in practice [ 27 ].

We demonstrate the important and practical use of the SP methodology for developing implementation strategies for a new EBP: 6 treatment algorithms designed to address common and challenging behaviors associated with long-term opioid therapy (LTOT) developed by Merlin and colleagues and published in 2016 [ 28 ]. As previously described, these algorithms were developed using a modified Delphi process [ 29 , 30 ], a rigorous methodology that uses several rounds of questionnaires sent to a panel of experts to find consensus on how to respond to behaviors such as missing appointments with clinicians prescribing the opioid, taking more opioid than prescribed, and substance use. One of the algorithms is included as an example of the new EBP in Fig. 1 . In the present study, we conducted SP sessions with providers using 6 SP cases, one for each algorithm. These SP sessions were followed by one-on-one structured interviews with questions mapping onto domains from the CFIR to assist in the development of an implementation bundle for the new EBP.

SEQ figure \* ARABIC 1: “Other Substance Use” Algorithm

Case development

We developed 6 SP cases. Each case simulated a patient exhibiting a unique concerning behavior addressed by the algorithms (see Table 1 outlining the behaviors portrayed). The SP cases were written with unfolding steps to represent three visits with a provider, because the algorithms guide decision points that would normally occur in subsequent follow-up visits in real-life practice (Fig. 1 ). The unfolding nature of the scenarios was piloted early in the SP case development process to ensure feasibility.

SP cases were next reviewed by a Patient-Provider Advisory Board (PPAB) consisting of 3 patients with lived experience with opioids, 4 researchers (among whom are PCPs familiar with caring for patients with opioid misuse disorder), and a primary care provider with familiarity with providing care for patients with opioid misuse. SP cases were edited based on feedback from the PPAB. In concert with the review of the 6 cases, the PPAB reviewed the instructions which provided context, expectations for SP-clinician interactions, and training on the algorithms (see Appendix ). Finally, cases and instructions were piloted with an SP and a provider outside of the panel. During this pilot, a physician with topical expertise was recruited to interact with SPs portraying two SP cases over three subsequent visits on a remote/telehealth platform (Zoom). This pilot helped to further develop the other five SP cases in structuring how clinicians would be oriented, updated, and guided through the simulations.

Training and description of organization for SPs

Four experienced SPs were recruited from the University of Pittsburgh SP program to portray the patients exhibiting misuse behaviors. The SPs in the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine SP Program received foundational training in case portrayal, providing feedback, supported physical exam training, and checklist scoring. This 16-h onboarding combines both active training and also guided observation of SP activities. It prepares SPs to identify, recognize, and reward learner skill in portrayal, and to record it faithfully in assessments.

To allow rotation, redundancy and information sharing, the SPs worked in pairs for each case, alternating the role of moderator and patient. When not portraying the patient, the SP acted as a moderator by providing clinicians with inter-visit updates in accordance with what the clinicians ordered in the first session and noted the passage of time between visits. A fifth experienced SP was recruited to proctor the event—orienting the clinicians as they arrived, running the Zoom sessions, and serving as a backup should one of the other SPs not be able to participate. They also were given an overview of case content, portrayal, and event structure. SPs were provided with case materials a week in advance of the portrayal date, were able to ask questions over email, and completed a case-specific training to align portrayal with parameters provided in the inter-visit updates with SP staff in the 45 min preceding the simulation. The SP program follows the Association for Standardized Patient Educators (ASPE) Standards of Best Practice, which “were written to ensure the growth, integrity, and safe application of SP-based education practices.” [ 9 ]

Description of session for clinicians

Clinicians were emailed information and instructions about the event prior to participating in the session (see Appendix ). All sessions were held virtually via the Zoom interface due to the COVID pandemic. During the sessions, there was a brief orientation for participants. The orientation included (1) a brief training in how to use the algorithms; (2) an overview of how to approach the simulated interaction (i.e., as close to real practice as possible); and (3) an overview of the one-on-one interview that would follow to discuss the approaches to implement the management algorithms.

Clinicians then moved into Zoom breakout rooms to begin their patient encounters. Clinicians were given up to 60 min to have their 3 distinct visits per patient. There was a 15-min break, and then another 60 min for the second patient scenario.

For each of the 60-min SP scenarios, clinicians were told that they were about to see a patient who was being seen by one of their partners (Dr. Williams) who recently left the practice. Dr. Williams had started the patient on opioid therapy and had an opioid agreement with the patient. Participants were given a copy of Dr. Williams’ last progress note and the opioid agreement prior to meeting the patient. After reviewing this information, the clinicians joined a Zoom breakout room with the SP portraying their patient. Once the provider ended the first encounter, the portraying SP turned off their camera, and, to reflect the passage of time between visits, the moderator gave the clinicians the results of any testing they ordered and any information about the patient that had changed between the last and next visit. The provider indicated when they were ready to start the next encounter. This process was repeated between the second and third encounter.

Data collection: semi-structured interviews

Immediately after they interacted with the SPs, each participant completed a one-on-one interview to reflect on and assess the experience, as well as to provide feedback on how the algorithms should ultimately be integrated into practices like theirs. Interviews were conducted by three experienced qualitative data specialists who work at Qualitative, Evaluation and Stakeholder Engagement Research Services (Qual EASE) at the University of Pittsburgh. Multiple interviewers conducted the interviews, because multiple interviews needed to be conducted at the same time following each SP session. Interviewers used a semi-structured interview guide developed by the research team that covered the following domains: (1) Assessment of their orientation to the algorithms, including training; (2) Assessment of their interaction with the SPs; (3) Assessment of and opinions on the algorithms; and (4) Description of how they thought the algorithms would operate in their practices, and how they could best be implemented there. Interviews were conducted on Zoom and recorded.

Questions and further probing were used to best assess how the algorithms could be implemented in their practices, which map onto several CFIR domains and constructs as shown in Table 2 .

Within one week of their completion, the qualitative methodologist associated with the project wrote a summary of each interview, which was forwarded to the study team so that they could begin to plan for implementation. Following that initial summary, interviews were transcribed verbatim with identifying details redacted. Under the supervision of the qualitative methodologist, experienced analysts at Qual EASE inductively developed a codebook reflecting the content of the interviews, with coding categories reflecting the four areas of the interview guide mentioned above. Use of the codebook was practiced on two transcripts by 2 Qual EASE coders, following which they both applied the codebook to the remaining 10 transcripts. Cohen’s Kappa statistics were used to assess intercoder reliability; the average kappa score was 0.8565, indicating “near perfect” agreement. The primary coder for the project then conducted a conventional content [ 31 ] and thematic analysis [ 32 , 33 ], which was reviewed by the qualitative methodologist, and shared with the study team to better facilitate implementation planning.

Data collection: development of implementation bundle

The final step to developing the implementation bundle—which included materials for initial training, an online algorithm interface, e-consultation support, and electronic health record (EHR) integration for the 6 algorithms—was to review notes from the structured interviews. The bundle was then drafted and reviewed by the PPABs and co-Is.

Recruitment and study sample

Recruitment emails were sent to Community Medical Inc. (CMI). CMI is a network of 400 primary care and specialty physicians who practice throughout western and central Pennsylvania and provide care for over 495,000 patients. The practices cover a large geographic area; however, the network is predominantly in Allegheny County. Participants were required to be primary care clinicians at CMI practices and at least 18 years of age. Each of the clinicians were recruited to participate in two virtual patient evaluations followed by one-on-one interviews. The experience lasted approximately 4 h and clinicians were paid $1000 for their participation. We ultimately recruited 12 PCPs to participate in the virtual experience, which provided two perspectives for each of the 6 SP cases.

Table 3 summarizes the demographic characteristics of the clinicians participating in our study. All of our participants (100%) were trained as physicians with 33% specializing in Internal Medicine, while 66% specialized in Family Medicine during their residency. There was a prevalence of urban practitioners (58%), followed by those in suburban areas (42%), with an absence of participants from rural locales. We had 42% male and 58% female participants. The racial and ethnic composition of our study cohort is diverse, with White participants comprising the majority at 50%, followed by 33% of participants identifying as Asian. Additional categories encompass Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin of any race (17%), and two or more races (17%), with a nuanced representation of other racial and ethnic identities.

Implementation support strategies

When asked about how algorithms should be implemented in practices like theirs, clinicians indicated that the orientation they had received to the algorithms would be a useful implementation support strategy. Other themes illustrating helpful implementation support strategies included (1) the importance of having the algorithm use endorsed by practice leadership, and of having a local “champion” who promoted their use; (2) integration of the algorithm workflow into practice EHRs; (3) practice and location-specific inputs into the algorithms, such that a suggestion to refer to a specialist come with a list of who, specifically, to refer to, or a suggestion to call security provide the practice-specific number for security; (4) access to specialists who could help interpret unclear or difficult-to read drug screens or suggest a particular course of action with a tricky patient.

Representative quotes supporting these themes, as well as the CFIR domains that they map to, are provided in Table 4 . These findings were integrated into an implementation toolkit that included an initial training session followed by a suite of supports, including EHR integration, algorithm guidance hosted on a separate website with links to useful tools, and support for clinician participants via e-consultation.

Simulation feedback from clinicians

We identified two themes related to the physicians’ encounters with the SPs: (1) clinicians found it useful to practice the algorithms with the SPs; (2) while clinicians applauded the skill of the SPs, they noted that not all actual patient counters go so smoothly. Each is presented in more detail below.

Clinicians found it useful to practice the algorithms with the SPs

Clinicians interviewed found it useful to practice the algorithms with the SPs. As will be discussed below, not all clinicians found the scenarios or SP reactions to be fully realistic. However, they did find practicing the algorithms in this way to be a useful way of learning the algorithms. As one provider put it:

It was a good chance to sort of get to look through the algorithm while I’m talking to them and sort of follow along. So, that was good to get familiar with the algorithm itself in a situation where you don’t feel like you’re with a real patient who you’re, like, ignoring to read through the algorithm.

Another provider similarly reflected:

So, that was really helpful, because this is sort of cut and dry of the way it’s written. And not until you’re in an actual patient scenario do you see some of the gray nuances. For example, one of the cases, the patient was having trouble sleeping secondary to pain. So, she was using her oxycodone in the evening to help with sleep, but it was related to pain. So, it wasn’t this clear-cut ‘I’m just using this to fall asleep at night.’ It was ‘I’m using this because at night my pain is worse which is affecting my sleep, so that’s why I’m using it.’ Which is a gray space. So, having the algorithm to sort of follow through and use as a guide let me make sure I’m asking all the right questions, let me make sure I’m offering all the other alternative things, was definitely beneficial.

While clinicians applauded the skill of the SPs, they noted that not all actual patient counters go so smoothly

Many clinicians described the practice session with SPs as being realistic or very similar to encounters with real patients. One provider described themselves as “shocked” at how realistic the SPs were, adding that “I felt very engaged in each of the scenarios. Like, they knew their background, they kind of were living the patient. I was really impressed... the scenarios were spot-on.” Other clinicians described the scenarios as “realistic situations that you can see in the office every day,” and “totally realistic.”

However, some clinicians described pointed differences with real life patient visits. For example, the following provider described that some of their actual patients would simply never agree to the treatment plans presented in the algorithms:

In the back of my mind I’m thinking of my actual patients who I’ve run into these instances and how this would go, and I don’t think it would’ve – it won’t go the way that it went with the SPs. Because it sometimes doesn’t matter how good your rapport is, they just aren’t gonna do what’s suggested... I think I run into much harder stops with some of my real non-SP patients.

Another clinician echoed this description, noting that:

My experience is that patients don’t normally accept what you say so easily. […] The interactions that I have with my patients are not anything like these, ‘cause these were very calm, very reasonable, willing to listen to you; they seemed to have a health literacy level that is well beyond a lot of the patients I deal with.

While these concerns were not voiced by every clinician, they were voiced by clinicians who experienced different scenarios with the SPs, indicating that patients may not always be agreeable to the actions suggested in the algorithm—and that that lack of agreement would be something that would need to be managed in an ongoing patient relationship, rather than disappearing at the end of the role play with the SP.

In this study, we used the SP methodology in combination with one-on-one interviews guided by CFIR to develop an implementation bundle for 6 algorithms designed to address common and challenging behaviors associated with LTOT. We found the use of the SP methodology to be a valuable tool for highlighting important components of an implementation bundle. Specifically, we found that an implementation bundle addressing (1) the importance of having the algorithm use endorsed by practice leadership, and of having a local “champion” who promoted their use; (2) integration of the algorithm workflow into practice EHRs; and (3) practice and location-specific inputs into the algorithms would be most effective in promoting the successful adoption and implementation of the EPBs for the LTOT algorithms. We also found that the SPs were realistic in their portray of patients with LTOT; however, it was noted that patients of the clinicians that participated in the simulations were likely to be more resistant to the adoption of the recommendations outlined by the algorithms than the SP portrayal. SPs are trained to recognize and reward participant skill, which may account for this observation.

Of methodological note in the realm of qualitative research: completing the interviews just after the SP interactions set an excellent stage for collecting qualitative data, likely because clinicians had just had a novel experience that was fresh in their minds. They could also talk about the details of the SP cases without concern for inappropriately describing actual patient cases in too much detail and contrast the SPs with their patients in general. This made for highly engaging interviews in which rapport building between interviewer and interviewee was more easily built. Additionally, interviews were conducted by qualitative research specialists who were not personally invested in the development of the algorithms or orientation to the algorithms, setting the stage for open and honest feedback.

In this study, we used the SP methodology in combination with one-on-one interviews guided by CFIR to develop an implementation bundle for 6 algorithms designed to address common and challenging behaviors associated with LTOT. Our findings underscore the value of the SP methodology in elucidating essential components of the implementation bundle. Specifically, we found that an implementation bundle addressing (1) the importance of having the algorithm use endorsed by practice leadership, and of having a local “champion” who promoted their use; (2) integration of the algorithm workflow into practice EHRs; and (3) practice and location-specific inputs into the algorithms would be most effective in promoting the successful adoption and implementation of the EPBs for the LTOT algorithms. We also found that the SPs were realistic in their portrayal of patients with LTOT; however, it was noted that patients of the clinicians that participated in the simulations were likely to be more resistant to the adoption of the recommendations outlined by the algorithms than the SP portrayal.

Of methodological note in the realm of qualitative research: completing the interviews just after the SP interactions set an excellent stage for collecting qualitative data, likely because the experience was fresh in their minds. They could also talk about the details of the SP cases without concern for inappropriately describing actual patient cases in too much detail and contrast the SPs with their patients in general. This made for highly engaging interviews in which rapport building between interviewer and interviewee was more easily built. Additionally, interviews were conducted by qualitative research specialists who were not personally invested in the development of the algorithms or orientation to the algorithms, setting the stage for open and honest feedback.

Despite the merits of the SP approach in examining EBP implementation, several limitations warrant consideration. The applicability of SP methodology to diverse practices and various points in care management raises questions about its universal relevance. The effectiveness or practicality of SPs for EBP training and adoption may vary across different clinical settings, requiring careful consideration when extrapolating findings to practices with distinct characteristics or specific care management points.

The selection of long-term opioid therapy (LTOT)-related care as a case study introduces a contextual limitation. While SP methodology effectively addresses concerns within LTOT-related care, the transferability of findings to other healthcare scenarios might be constrained. The unique nature of LTOT-related care may not fully capture challenges present in different medical specialties or care contexts.

Additionally, while the goal of this manuscript is to illuminate the SP methodology, our study's findings may not be universally generalizable, considering factors such as regional variations in healthcare practices and differing levels of familiarity with EBP implementation. The dynamic nature of clinical practice introduces a limitation in capturing all potential scenarios through SP methodology. Clinician encounters with patients can vary widely, and SPs may not fully replicate the complexity of real-world situations.

Overall, this study demonstrates the potential of using the SP methodology guided by the CFIR framework to develop effective implementation strategies for improving care in real-world healthcare settings. The use of SPs allowed the research team to observe the EBP in practice with feedback from end-users with experience from different health care clinics. The CFIR framework provided a comprehensive approach to guiding the development of an implementation bundle that addressed the multiple factors that influence EBP implementation. The study’s success prompts further exploration of whether the developed implementation bundle correlates with increased EBP adoption levels to further validate the use of SPs for this purpose.

Availability of data and materials

The dataset supporting the conclusions of this article is available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Abbreviations

Consolidated framework for implementation research

Community Medical Inc.

Co-investigator

Evidence-based practice

Electronic health record

Long-term opioid therapy

Primary care physician

Patient-provider advisory board

Simulated patient

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Acknowledgements

Not applicable.

A completed SRQR checklist has been completed for this paper.

We gratefully acknowledge funding from NIDA Agency for our publication through an R34 grant mechanism entitled “Consensus-based algorithms to address opioid misuse behaviors among individuals prescribed long-term opioid therapy: developing implementation strategies and pilot testing.” Project Number: 5R34DA050004-03. Jessica Merlin is supported by the following grant from the NIH: K24DA05683701A1.

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Ellen Green

School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

Megan Hamm, Catherine Gowl, Reed Van Deusen, Jane M. Liebschutz & Jessica Merlin

Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA

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Contributions

EG contributed to the development of the standardized patient protocol and was a major contributor to writing the manuscript. MH conducted the interviews as well as analyzed and interpreted the data. CG and RVD developed the standardized patient protocol and conducted the simulations. JDW and JML contributed to the development of the standardized patient cases and interpretation of the data to ensure it aligned with primary care practice. JM provided oversight to the entire study.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ellen Green .

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Ethics approval.

This study was conducted at School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh PA between June and July of 2021. The University of Pittsburgh IRB determined that the study was considered an exempt-level research project (STUDY20030189).

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The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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Appendix: Instructions for participants

Dear Participant,

Thank you for participating in our study of opioid misuse in primary care.

In this exercise, you will encounter 2 different simulated patients played by standardized patients (SPs) of the SP Program of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. The purpose of these visits is to help us study clinical algorithms for managing opioids.

Therefore, please be aware of the following expectations:

For this simulated scenario, each of these patients were started on opioid treatment by one of your partners who recently left your practice (Dr. Kia Williams). You may not have started opioids if it were up to you, but they have already been started and have an opioid agreement with this practice. Therefore, please focus your time on the algorithms and not on whether the patient should/should not have been started on opioids.

You will see each patient in 3 separate “telemedicine” visits via Zoom. Therefore, you do NOT need to perform a physical examination for these visits.

The “visits” will occur in break out rooms on the Zoom platform. The 1 st visit will be to establish care with you after Dr. Williams has left the practice. The next 2 visits will be follow-up visits.

For each scenario, there will be a “moderator” in the breakout room with you and the SP. The moderator’s camera will be off. This person will be helping with timing of the visits, and they will post updates about the patient’s case before each visit in the chat section.

Therefore, please enable the chat on your screen.

Also, please “hide nonvideo participants”, so the presence of the moderator is not a distraction for you as you conduct the visits. (If you need help in how to do this, please ask, so a team member can walk you through the steps)

In the interest of transparency, the moderators are also SPs. They are not clinicians.

After you are done with the visits, you will meet with researchers from the study to debrief your experience.

Timing of the whole activity:

Orientation: 30 min

Encounter with 1 st patient: 60 min

Break (including time to prepare for 2 nd patient): 15 min

Encounter with 2 nd patient: 60 min

Debrief with researchers: 75 min

Timing of your patient visits: You have 1 h for each session, which includes 3 distinct visits with the same patient. You will see timing banners at 15-min increments, and a 5-min warning. How you divide the time between the three visits is up to you.

If it would help you communicate with the patients in the simulation, here is some information about Dr. Kia Williams:

Dr. Williams recently left your practice to be closer to her family in South Carolina. Her father’s dementia has been worsening, and she wanted to be closer to her family in this time. As your partner, she was well liked by your colleagues, the staff, and her patients. She was an excellent doctor and a friend.

Prior to meeting each patient, we will share Dr. Williams’ last progress note with you. You will have time to review that information before starting the first visit. This note will have information about what work up has been done and what pain treatments have been tried.

The patients are aware of what has been tried, and they can answer these questions, but for the sake of this study, you do not need to explore this in great detail given the limited timeframe of each visit.

Dr. Williams had an opioid agreement with each of the patients you will meet today. This will also be shared with you in case you need to reference it during the sessions.

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Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver ( http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/ ) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated in a credit line to the data.

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Green, E., Hamm, M., Gowl, C. et al. Optimizing evidence-based practice implementation: a case study on simulated patient protocols in long-term opioid therapy. Implement Sci Commun 5 , 44 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s43058-024-00575-y

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DOI : https://doi.org/10.1186/s43058-024-00575-y

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