MECE FRAMEWORK for STRUCTURED THINKING
CRACK Scenario-based & Case Interview Questions
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What is the MECE Framework?MECE stands for “Mutually Exclusive – Collectively Exhaustive”
It is a problem-solving approach that forces you to list down all possible options without double counting. • The Problem Statement is written down first. You must choose your words carefully while
writing this down to ensure that there is no ambiguity in understanding the problem.• The Options to solve the problem are then listed down in a tree-like fashion. The options must
not overlap (Mutually exclusive) and no option must be missed out (Collectively exhaustive)• Once the tree is built, the pros and cons of each path in the tree is discussed until the optimal
solution path is decided.MECE is popular among business consultants to solve problems and communicate their solutions.
Problem Statement
Option 1 Option 2 Option 3
Option 1-A Option 1-B Option 3-A Option 3-B Option 3-C
The optimal solution path
MECE Illustration 1: A business case study
Problem Statement: My restaurant is not profitable
Increase Revenue Reduce costs
Increase # of orders Increase menu prices Reduce salary expenses
Reduce raw material expenses
Reduce rental costs
Marketing promotions
Change cuisine/ theme
Shift to a less pricey
neighborhood
Shift to a mall to get more foot
traffic
Fire redundant
workers
Change the vendor
Better storage facilities to avoid
wastage
Once a MECE Tree like this is built, each option can be analyzed for feasibility. The optimal solution can then be chosen.
MECE Illustration 2: Situational Interview Question
Situational Interview Question: One of your team members is not delivering their work on time and you are worried that as a result the project will not be completed before the deadline.
Ignore the issue. It will probably be fixed on its own.
Solve it internally. Chat with the teammate to understand what’s
wrong
If the issue is very drastic, raise it
with Mgmt.
Increase your teammate’s productivity
Increase productivity of others in team to
compensate
Offer tutoring on problem
areas
Offer help with personal/
professional problems
Rebalance the workload to align
with your teammate’s
strengths
Get everyone to chip in and do a bit
more while your teammate is going
through a tough period
Recommend Training
Programs
Personal leave as necessary to
get personal issues sorted
out
Change this person to some
other project that he/ she is
more interested in. Bring in
someone else for this project.
Feedback sessions/
Disciplinary warnings if
needed
Drop low priority features from the project
Postpone the
deadline
Increase productivity of the
concerned employee
Personnel change
Realign delivery expectations
MECE Illustration 3: Software Project MgmtSoftware Project Mgmt Interview Question: You have identified that the customer requirements cannot be delivered on
time. What do you do?
Increase productivity of the team
Add more resourcesRisk: See the Man Hour Myth.
New employees take 2-3 months to ramp up
Realign delivery expectations
Push people to work harder with incentives
(team outing). Risk: Burn out
Training & MentoringDownside: Training
takes a few months to have impact
Change development methodology to
increase productivity
Take shortcuts during the
development cycle to save time
Risk: Quality will suffer. Not
Recommended
Extend time for delivery
Risk: Customers may not be happy
Drop low priority items from backlog
but ensure delivered items are high quality
and tested end-to-end.
Switch to agile. Continuous delivery with testing can
increase productivity by keeping QA always engaged (In waterfall, QA gets engaged only towards
the end). Feedback is also incorporated early to avoid time
wasted on corrections.
Use Test Driven development. Define interfaces clearly based on
requirements and have QA develop test cases against those
interfaces, while developers write code to satisfy interfaces.
Both agile and test driven development together is also possible.
Using MECE Framework in a job interviewThe MECE Framework is a structured approach to problem solving that is useful in answering many types of job interview questions.
1. Before staring on the solution, focus on defining the Problem Statement using a clear, unambiguous sentence.
2. DON’T just use the MECE Framework within your mind. Use it to communicate that your thought processes are actually structured. Draw the MECE Tree on paper or on whiteboard during the interview.
3. Once you have drawn the MECE Tree, engage the interviewer on different solutions that are the leaf nodes in the MECE Tree.o Ask questions to get more context to see if this solution is applicable.o Discuss pros and cons of each solution with the Interviewer.o Always think out aloud to ensure that you and the Interviewer are on the same page.
4. If the Interviewer offers any hints, always take those hints and make corrections to the MECE structure as necessary.
5. After you have arrived at the final solution, conclude with a quick summary. The summary should restate the problem statement, describe the pros and cons of various alternatives considered and finally state the solution that you would recommend.
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CodeGround Online Testing Platform is an online assessment and evaluation system that helps Recruiters conduct online screening tests to filter candidates before the interview process. CodeGround Recruitment Tests can be used during Campus Recruitment or screening walk-in candidates. CodeGround supports Aptitude Tests, English Communication Skills Assessments and Online Coding Contests in C, C++, Java, PHP, Ruby, Python and JavaScript. CodeGround also supports asynchronous automated interviews.
