Bain Capability Network, Bain & Co.

Role – Analyst; CoE: Corporate Finance

Step 1 – CV Shortlisting

Step 2 – Aptitude Test

Hirepro Test of 1 hour containing 20 questions. Questions were under the following categories:

1. Decision Making – Set of questions based on a paragraph about loss aversion; involved
basic calculation
2. Reading comprehension
3. Data Interpretation

Step 3 – Personal Interview Round 1

Duration: 1 hr approx.
Interviewed by: Project Lead at Corporate Finance CoE
The interview started with introductions – both by the interviewer and the candidate and a few
ice breaker questions
Questions:

1. How did you develop your interest in finance? (Candidate mentioned her interest in
finance in the intro)
2. As far as I remember, BMS was a 4-year degree at Delhi University but was later
modified to a 3-year one. Can you please elaborate on the BMS Degree in SNU and
why 4 years?
3. Do you know the concept of money multiplier? Please explain.
4. What causes inflation in the economy and what are the indicators?
5. P/E Ratio related questions:
a. What are some valuation comparable ratios you are aware of?
b. What does the P/E ratio indicate?
c. When you mean P/E ratio is higher/lower - what are we comparing it with here?
d. Let’s assume HUL has a P/E ratio of 12 and P&G has a P/E ratio of 16. What is
your inference from this scenario – both from the perspective of an investor and
the company
6. A company has a lot of surplus cash. How would you advise them to utilize these funds?
7. Walk me through your project (The project was related to the equity valuation of an
automobile manufacturer). The following points were discussed:
a. Revenue streams of the organization
b. DCF Model
i. How did you arrive at the Free Cash Flow?
ii. What discount rate did you use?
iii. Explain how you arrived at the cost of equity?
 8. You are a consultant in Delhi. Your client is a rubber ball manufacturer who wants to
expand its market in Chennai. Estimate the market size of rubber balls in Chennai.
9. I understand that a company has come to college for campus placements and many
students including you have applied for the same. But why Corporate Finance in Bain?

The interview ended with questions that the candidate had for the interviewer.
Step 4 – Personal Interview Round 2 (Commenced around 30 mins after the end of Round
1)
Duration: 1 hr 15 mins (approx.)

Interviewed by: Senior Manager and Head of the Corporate Finance CoE
The interview started with introductions – both by the interviewer and the candidate and a few
ice breaker questions
1. What do you know about the financial Markets?
a. What do you think are the factors currently affecting volatility in the market?
b. Inflation/Recession – how do they impact the market
i. What causes inflation in the economy
ii. What are the measures taken by the central bank to curb inflation and
how do they help in achieving the same?
2. A company approaches us seeking advice regarding an investment decision. They want
to invest in stocks for a period of 3 – 5 years. They have performed a sectoral analysis
and have decided on one sector, which has around 100 listed companies. They want to
narrow down this list to 20 – 25 companies using quantitative metrics. They plan to
analyze the qualitative factors after narrowing it down to 20 – 25 companies.
a. Suggest 4 – 5 quantitative metrics that can be used to evaluate the companies
and why? You have access to all information related to financial performance
and market data
b. What are the kind of companies that we are missing out on by evaluating them
on the said quantitative metrics?
3. Unilever has performed well during the pandemic, and they have around $1 billion cash
in surplus. They would like to utilize these funds. The CFO of Unilever is approaching
us seeking advice regarding the same. What would be your recommendation?
4. Talk about your valuation project and walk me through the DCF model.
5. The graph of a stock price over a certain time is shown on the screen. Share your
observations on the behavior of the stock price. What could be the possible reasons for
the said behavior?
 6. The CEO of HP (Ink Division) approaches us regarding a product launch decision. They
have developed a new ink in the market, which has 10 times the capacity of the ink
currently available in the market. They want to know whether they should launch the
product in the market or not. What would be your recommendation?
Upon further questioning by the candidate, the following details are provided by the
interviewer:
- The capacity of the products sold by the competitor in the market currently
is equivalent to that of HP’s products.
- The cost of manufacturing the existing is 500 per unit.
- They earn a margin of 30% on the existing product and would like to
maintain the same margin for new products
- The cost of manufacturing the newly developed product is 3x the existing
product
- The resources required to manufacture the newly developed product in a
large scale can be arranged in 6 months
- The technology/technique used to develop this new product has been
patented by HP

The interview ended with questions that the candidate had for the interviewer.