Deloitte Case Interview: Prep Tool, Process and Example

A Deloitte case interview is a business problem, modeled on Deloitte's client work, that you talk through with an interviewer so they can see how you think. Deloitte US says to expect two to three interview rounds that can mix behavioral, technical and case-based interviews depending on the role, and it offers a free online case prep tool for entry-level consulting candidates.

Soreno isn't affiliated with Deloitte. Process facts here come from Deloitte's own careers pages and prep tool, read on October 1, 2026, and we name the country for each one because the process differs by country.

What Deloitte says the case interview tests

Deloitte US has one main page on this: Preparing for the Case and Scenario Interview. It says the cases are fictional examples modeled on client projects. Deloitte looks for clear thinking and practical judgment, delivered professionally.

Its five-step approach, in short:

1. Understand the issue, asking clarifying questions as needed.
2. Identify the underlying assumptions.
3. Summarize specific issues and findings.
4. State your recommendations.
5. Outline next steps and expected results or impacts.

The same page says you aren't expected to give the "right" answer but to convey your logic and thought process clearly. Take two tips literally: "Ask questions, but don't use them as a crutch," and share a framework and initial hypothesis with the interviewer. And don't skip step 5. Practice saying what happens next and what result you'd expect.

The process by country, from Deloitte's own pages

Deloitte doesn't publish one global process. Here's what each country page says.

The UK early-careers page describes a prepared topic discussion rather than a conventional case interview. Follow the instructions for your programme; the page notes that some applicants complete only the skills and motivation interview.

The US pages linked here don't state how long a case interview lasts, whether cases are interviewer-led or candidate-led, how many you'll get per round, or how formats differ between practices such as Monitor Deloitte, Human Capital, technology and Government & Public Services. Ask your recruiter.

Deloitte's case interview prep tool

The official tool lives at usrecruiting.deloitte.com/case-prep-tool. Deloitte US sends entry-level Consultative Offerings candidates there, and entry-level Audit & Assurance candidates to a separate scenario interview tool. The older caseinterviewprep.deloitte.com address still appears in search results but didn't load when we checked.

You get a business situation, then a series of questions (four in LeadAuto and five in Recreation Unlimited). You type each answer, then open an "Answer review" listing what a good answer may include, and sometimes what a great answer adds. Deloitte estimates 15 to 20 minutes per case and says it's not an assessment: responses aren't tracked or saved, and you can practice as often as you like.

The current library has ten Consultative Offerings cases:

Three of the ten are set in federal agencies. The two commercial cases we read in full, LeadAuto and Recreation Unlimited, each mix brainstorming with one numbers question and a question about people, talent or organizational change. Expect to be asked who has to change, not only what the client should do.

How to get real practice out of the tool

Use these as practice instructions:

• Read the business situation once, close it and say the problem back in one sentence.
• Answer each question out loud on a two-minute timer before typing anything.
• Mark every answer-review point you missed, especially the "great answer" ones.
• Finish each case with a next step and an expected impact (Deloitte's step 5), then redo it cold two days later.

Worked example: a public-sector case in the tool's format

This is our own case, built like Deloitte's tool: a fact sheet, then questions. The agency and all numbers are made up.

Business situation. The Northvale Motor Vehicle Agency, a fictional state agency, handles 6.0 million license renewals a year: 30% online and 70% in field offices, where the average wait is 70 minutes. Its 1,400 counter staff cost a fully loaded $60,000 each and handle about 3,000 visits each a year. Office overhead (leases, utilities, security) is $21 million a year and won't change with volume for five years. An online renewal costs the agency $4 in processing and payment fees. 350 counter staff (25%) can retire within five years, and today every retiree is replaced. The Director has ruled out layoffs.

Problem statement. The legislature will fund a new online renewal portal: $30 million one-time, $2 million a year to run. The Director wants 60% of renewals online within three years, office waits cut in half, and to know whether the money comes back.

Question 1: Why might only 30% renew online today? Split residents from the agency. Residents may not know the option exists or may lack reliable internet access. The agency may legally require some visits (a new photo or vision test), or its site may be hard to use on a phone.

Question 2: What does the portal save each year, and when does it pay back? Moving the online share from 30% to 60% shifts 6.0M × 30% = 1.8M renewals out of offices. Office visits fall from 4.2M to 2.4M, a 43% drop.

First, cost per office visit. Labor is 1,400 × $60,000 = $84M, or $84M ÷ 4.2M = $20 a visit. Overhead adds $21M ÷ 4.2M = $5, so the all-in cost is $25.

The trap is multiplying 1.8M by the $21 gap between $25 and $4, which ignores two constraints in the fact sheet:

The 600 is 1,400 staff today minus 800 needed (2.4M visits ÷ 3,000 each). With no layoffs, only the 350 retirees come out, over five years.

For this fictional forecast, assume the online share is 40%, 50% and 60% for the whole of years 1 to 3, then stays at 60%. Assume 70 staff retire at the start of each year for five years, their replacements are avoided immediately, and the portal costs $2M annually from year 1 onward:

After five years the agency has recovered $24.2M of the $30M. If the year-five savings continue, the last $5.8M takes about half of year 6 ($5.8M ÷ $11.8M), so payback is roughly 5.5 years. Retirements are the limit every year (year 1 needs 1,200 staff and still has 1,330).

Question 3: Can it also cut waits in half? By year 5, 1,050 staff remain for 2.4M visits, about 2,286 each instead of 3,000. The 250 above the 800 needed can shorten queues or staff an online help line. Waits don't fall in a straight line with volume, so pilot before promising "half."

Question 4: What are the people and organization implications? Counter staff will worry about their jobs, so repeat the no-layoff commitment early. Some need retraining for phone and chat support. Office managers need targets based on wait time, not visit counts. And residents without internet access need a guaranteed in-person option.

Question 5: Recommendation and next steps.

"Fund the portal if the service benefits and these assumptions hold. On this forecast it pays for itself in about five and a half years, not one. The $37.8 million figure assumes layoffs and lease savings it can't get. Next, I'd stop replacing counter retirees from day one, move about 250 staff toward online support and the busiest offices, and pilot in five offices for six months to measure waits. I'd expect office visits to fall by about 43% over three years and annual savings to reach $11.8 million by year 5."

The behavioral interview

Deloitte US has a separate Behavioral interview tips page. It recommends the STAR method (situation, task, action, result) and explains what sample questions test: juggling many responsibilities shows how you balance priorities, and a rush project with missing information shows how you handle ambiguity. A recruiting specialist quoted there says: "I'm a big proponent of doing mock interviews." The UK final stage includes a 50-minute skills and motivation interview, so prepare for it alongside the business exercise.

Prepare four or five stories covering leadership, conflict, ambiguity and a mistake you fixed. Our behavioral interview questions for consulting article has worked answers, frameworks for case interviews helps with Deloitte's framework and initial-hypothesis tip, and our case interview examples give you more full cases.

Practicing out loud

Start with Deloitte's free tool: it gives you the firm's own practice material and answer guidance. But it's typed, and nobody pushes back. Soreno's consulting practice runs voice mock case interviews where you choose interviewer-led or candidate-led format, the AI interviewer shows exhibits and asks follow-ups, and you get a rubric-graded report. It doesn't have Deloitte-specific cases, and it doesn't simulate the UK's online assessments, written cases or group exercises.