Simon-Kucher case interview, pricing and growth
Simon-Kucher's student FAQ describes three steps: an online application, an online test of your analytical skills, then interview rounds or interview days run by consultants. Each interviewer prepares a case study for you and also tests personal fit. A 2015 workshop deck on its site says cases take about 20 to 30 minutes. Its cases usually come from past projects, so expect pricing and commercial growth problems with charts, estimates and a closing recommendation. Want to test a price rise out loud? Soreno, an AI voice interview practice app for consulting, investment banking and other finance candidates, runs a free pricing case with no sign-up.
Updated
- Three steps. Application, an online analytical test, then interview rounds or interview days.
- Consultants interview you. Each prepares a case study and also checks personal fit.
- Cases from real projects. Charts, brainstorming and estimates, solved under time pressure.
- End on a recommendation. With the reason, the risks and the next step, in Simon-Kucher's own case guide.
- Feedback is fast. Usually within three days of an interview, its German FAQ says.
How a Simon-Kucher case runs, with a worked pricing case
Simon-Kucher's case guide splits a case into four parts: the prompt, a structure, solving it with charts, brainstorming and estimates, and a closing recommendation. Below is that flow on a pricing case we wrote, since pricing is the firm's specialty.
Example case: a 50 cent latte price riseSoreno's invented case
Our own case, not Simon-Kucher's. It shows the structure and the math in the four parts of its guide, not a full model answer.
The prompt
Should Arlo raise its latte price?
Arlo, a coffee chain, sells 1,000,000 standard lattes a year at $5. Each costs $2 to make. Its CEO asks whether to charge $5.50. Write the numbers down and ask what success means: here, more profit this year without hurting the brand.
Structure
Value, volume, rivals
What is the latte worth to Arlo's regulars? How many would buy less at the new price? What do nearby rivals charge, and would they follow? Start with volume, since the rise only pays if enough buyers stay.
How to build an issue treeThe math
Arlo can lose about 14% of volume
The margin per latte goes from $3 to $3.50. Today the lattes earn $3,000,000 above their cost. To match that at $3.50, Arlo needs 857,143 lattes, so it can lose about one buyer in seven before profit falls.
Free case math drillsThe chart
Analyze, put in context, interpret
The interviewer shows a survey suggesting Arlo would sell 8% fewer lattes. That is 920,000 lattes at $3.50, or $3,220,000, which is $220,000 more a year. Say what the chart shows, then what it means for Arlo.
Recommend
Decision, reason, risk, next step
Raise the price, because the 8% expected loss is well under the 14% break even. The risk is that surveys understate switching. Next, test the price in a few stores for a month before the whole chain.
See a real sample report
What Simon-Kucher says it assesses
A May 2026 post on its careers site lists the competencies it looks for across consulting roles, and its case guide adds what a case tests. It publishes no scoring rubric.
Problem-solving
Breaking down complex questions, finding the priorities and working toward practical solutions. Its case guide adds solving complex, unstructured problems.
Communication
Explaining ideas clearly and in structure. In the case, say which assumptions you make and what follows from them.
Creativity in the case
Its case guide says cases often need creativity, especially in open brainstorming questions and the recommendation at the end.
Collaboration and fit
Teamwork matters a lot to the firm, so personal fit counts. Its German FAQ asks you to be authentic rather than play a part.
Adaptability and ownership
Bringing structure to ambiguity, adapting when things change, and following through on what you commit to.
Tools
Familiarity with AI tools and skill in Excel and PowerPoint, which it calls a common foundation.
From Simon-Kucher: what we look for, its case study guide (PDF, German) and its German student FAQ.
Simon-Kucher's process, step by step
From the student FAQ on Simon-Kucher's German site. The interview rounds differ by position (internship or full time) and by division. One Bonn intern's account follows.
Its three steps, and one intern's account
Step 1
Apply online
Your CV, academic transcripts and references through its portal. No cover letter is needed, and German or English both work.
Step 2
An online test
After a review of your documents, an online test of your analytical skills. Passing it moves you to interviews.
Step 3
Interview rounds or interview days
Run by consultants. Each interviewer prepares a case study for you and also judges personal fit. You usually hear back within three days.
Personal account, Bonn
A test and two interviews
In a February 2022 post, a former intern, by then a senior consultant in its Life Sciences division, describes submitting documents, an online aptitude test and two interviews in Bonn.
Read October 30, 2026. The current careers pages we read give no round count, interview length or timeline. A 2015 workshop deck from its Frankfurt office gives the case length, so treat that as a guide. Its German FAQ is written for students applying in Germany, so other offices may differ.
12 pricing and growth practice questions
Written by us. Simon-Kucher works on product, price, innovation, marketing and sales, so most cases here are pricing and commercial growth problems. Two fit questions close the list.
Pricing cases4 questions
Start from what the customer values, then test the volume math.
A chemicals supplier hasn't raised list prices in three years. How much can it raise them now?
What a strong answer does
Look at what switching would cost its customers, contract terms and how rivals would react. Start with the customers least likely to leave.
A software firm wants to move from one price to three tiers. How would you design them?
What a strong answer does
Group customers by what they need and will pay, then build each tier around one group. Show which features fence the tiers apart so few customers trade down.
Your client's main competitor just cut prices by 20%. How should it respond?
What a strong answer does
Work out what matching, holding or differentiating does to a year of profit. Decide, then name the signal that would change your mind. Practice it, see a model answer
A theme park wants to charge more on busy days. Should it?
What a strong answer does
Check how full the park is by day and how flexible visitors are. Say what share of visitors would shift to quiet days and what that does to revenue and crowding.
Commercial growth cases4 questions
Tie each idea back to sales, margin or both.
A bank's new savings account wins customers but loses money. What would you change?
What a strong answer does
Find which customers bring deposits that pay off and which only chase the rate. Propose a change to the offer, not just the rate.
An industrial parts maker's sales team discounts too much. How would you fix it?
What a strong answer does
Look at discounts by rep, customer size and product. Suggest clear discount rules and pay that rewards margin, then say how you'd measure the effect.
A consumer brand is launching a premium version of its best seller. How big could it be?
What a strong answer does
Size the buyers who'd trade up, the price gap they'd accept and how many would leave the old product. Count only the new profit, not the switched sales.
A streaming service wants to add a cheaper plan with ads. What should it consider?
What a strong answer does
Weigh new subscribers it would win against current ones who'd trade down. Add ad revenue per viewer and say which number decides it.
Estimates and math2 questions
Simon-Kucher's guide says many cases include estimates and charts. Say each assumption before the math.
Estimate the yearly market for electric toothbrushes in Germany.
What a strong answer does
Households, the share with an electric brush, how often they replace the handle and heads, and average prices. Check the total against something you know.
A product's price rises 10% and volume falls 5%. Did revenue go up?
What a strong answer does
Multiply 1.10 by 0.95 to get 1.045, so revenue rises about 4.5%. Then ask what happened to profit, which depends on the cost per unit.
Fit questions2 questions
Simon-Kucher asks for specific examples: the situation, your task, your actions and the result.
Why Simon-Kucher rather than a general strategy firm?
What a strong answer does
Name its focus on growth and pricing rather than cost cutting, and connect it to something you've done or studied. Generic praise of consulting won't land.
Tell me about a time you brought structure to a messy problem.
What a strong answer does
One clear situation, most of the time on the steps you took and why, and a result you can count. A New York recruiting manager names bringing structure to ambiguity.
More to prepare with
Habits Simon-Kucher's own advice warns against
Losing the numbers in the prompt
Its case guide asks you to structure and note down the information as you hear it, especially numbers, and to ask questions.
One framework for every case
It asks you to find the right approach for each context, from issue trees to frameworks that fit the problem.
Ending without a recommendation
Close with a recommendation, the reason for it, the risks and the next step.
Calculating revenue, not profit
Its 2015 deck names this trap, along with not asking for the cost. It also warns against naming frameworks out loud, so you don't look like you're fitting the case into a mold.
Abstract fit answers
Its careers post says clear, factual examples often work better than abstract statements.
How to prepare for Simon-Kucher
Simon-Kucher's own advice first, then two steps we suggest.
Simon-Kucher's advice
Know the firm and its practices
Its German FAQ says to get to know Simon-Kucher, its practices and its philosophy in depth, and a London recruiting coordinator wants you to explain clearly why you fit.
From Simon-Kucher: student FAQ (German) and Simon-Kucher: what we look for.
Simon-Kucher's advice
Prepare examples for fit
Reflect on times you showed teamwork, initiative, problem-solving and learning from feedback, and tell each as situation, task, action and result.
Simon-Kucher's advice
Work its smartphone case
Its 2015 deck has a full sample pricing case with what each part tests. Try it before you read the answers, which is our suggestion, not its.
Simon-Kucher's advice
Read charts in three moves
Its case guide suggests analyze, put in context, interpret whenever you get data as a chart.
Simon-Kucher's events
Join a case workshop
Some offices run case workshops where you solve a real business problem and learn how case interviews work. Turkey ran two online in December 2024.
Our suggestion
Drill price and volume math
Practice how far volume can fall before a price rise loses money, until you can do it aloud in under a minute.
Our suggestion
Run full pricing cases aloud
Time yourself from prompt to recommendation, and check that you ended with a decision, a reason, a risk and a next step.
Simon-Kucher's own material
Free on simon-kucher.com. The summaries are ours, and the case guide and FAQ are in German.
Case studies in the application processTwo-page guide (PDF, German)
A case is a real-world problem, usually based on past projects, that you solve under time pressure. It sets out four parts, from the prompt to a closing recommendation.
Simon-Kucher: case study guide (PDF)Case interview prepWorkshop deck, April 2015 (English)
Cases of about 20 to 30 minutes, often a toned-down past project. It walks through pricing a new smartphone: at a $300 cost, $600 earns the most, at $180 per buyer in the market against $100 at $800 or $400. A cut to $450 then needs double the volume to hold profit.
Simon-Kucher: case interview prep (PDF, 2015)FAQ for studentsApplication FAQ (German)
The three steps, the documents to send, who interviews you, that each interviewer prepares a case, and that feedback usually comes within three days.
Simon-Kucher: student FAQWhat we look for in applicantsCareers post, May 2026
Values, mindset and six core competencies, with quotes from recruiters in Madrid, New York, Frankfurt and London.
Simon-Kucher: what we look forPrice it, size it, then recommend
Soreno's AI interviewer runs pricing and commercial growth cases, hands you charts as you ask, checks your volume math and scores your closing recommendation. Free for 7 days. Soreno is not affiliated with Simon-Kucher.
Questions people ask
What are the steps in Simon-Kucher's recruiting process?
Its German student FAQ lists three: an online application, an online test of analytical skills, then interview rounds or interview days. The interviews differ by position and division.
Does Simon-Kucher have an online test?
Yes, for students applying in Germany its FAQ describes an online test of analytical skills after your documents are reviewed. A Bonn intern also describes an online aptitude test.
Are Simon-Kucher cases about pricing?
Its case guide says cases are usually based on past projects, and the firm calls itself a commercial growth and pricing specialist, so pricing, sales and growth problems are likely. It doesn't publish a list of case topics.
Who interviews you at Simon-Kucher?
Consultants, its German FAQ says, so you meet possible future colleagues. Each prepares a case study and also judges personal fit.
How long is a Simon-Kucher case?
About 20 to 30 minutes, according to a 2015 workshop deck on its site. Its current pages don't give a length, so ask your recruiter.
How fast does Simon-Kucher give feedback?
Usually within three days of an interview, according to its German student FAQ.
Can I reapply to Simon-Kucher after a rejection?
Yes. Its German FAQ welcomes a later application and suggests using the time to gain more experience.
Is Soreno affiliated with Simon-Kucher?
No. Soreno is independent of Simon-Kucher and wrote the worked case and every practice question here.