Have you ever been asked to complete a case study for an interview? Yes or no?
If yes, how long did they give you to complete it?
How detailed was the case study?
Did you get compensated for the case study work you did?
Many companies are beginning to ask candidates to complete case studies during the interview process so they can understand how a person thinks, the quality of their work, ability to create solutions, and much more. However, case studies require time and effort = work.
So how do you decide if you should complete a case study or not?
A case study is where you are asked to create a strategy (& or plan) on a problem a company has had before and has already solved.
When a company gives you a current problem and asks you to provide a "case study", they are asking you to do work that you have not been hired to do yet (& not compensated) and therefore is not a case study.
So if you are in situation #1, you should ask yourself a few more questions to determine whether you should complete it. How much time is it going to take you? Does the role closely match your ideal position? If the answers to these questions are acceptable to you then move forward and complete the case study.
If you are in situation #2 - you can go in a few directions. You could ask to be compensated for the solution you are providing to a current problem. Alternatively, you could ask for a past problem they have faced to complete. You could also decline to complete the "case study" and ask them for another way to provide the information they are trying to learn about you.
You could also create a case study of one of your previous projects. You can then provide this to any hiring manager that you are interviewing with. Giving them insights into the details and the strategy of your previous work beyond your bio and resume!
What is your experience with case studies and how you have navigated through the process!
#interviews #careercoaching #peppercorndiscovery #peppercorncommunity #jobseekers #casestudy #interviewcoaching #jobsearchcoaching
I encountered this fairly often in Engineering, generally necessitating a day or week-end to complete. It's never compensated in my experience.
While it might be a reasonable request when used wisely, I find it often disrespectful to the candidates' time if the company is not serious about hiring them. It can make sense as a last step before hiring, but is not considerate imho in the early stages of the interview process.
I’m often asked to complete a case study as part of the hiring practice. But more than that, even if I’m not asked, it feels expected for me to proactively craft a deck of materials proving my understanding of the rule and how I would contribute to that particular project. This work generally takes about one week, part or full time. I can see value in the practice if the hiring company is really serious about the candidate, but personally I’ve lost a LOT of time doing this kind of personalized work only to be passed over with no feedback or explanation. If required by the hiring company, I think this work should be paid.