Structuring
Hypothesis
Your best early guess at the answer, which you then test.
Facts checked against sources onWhat does Hypothesis mean?
A hypothesis is a clear, early statement of what you think the answer might be, made before you have all the facts. Leading with a hypothesis means you pick the most likely answer first and then test it, instead of analyzing everything blindly. Good consultants say "I think the problem is probably X, let me check" and change the hypothesis when the data says so.
Where does it come up in case interview prep?
- Crack any case in five movesLesson in What a case interview is, and how to prepare
- The case, start to finishLesson in What a case interview is, and how to prepare
- Cracking any estimation promptLesson in Guesstimates and market sizing
- Using this in a caseLesson in Sourcing, trade and supply risk
- Using this in a case: growth and new product casesLesson in Customers and growth: the economics of marketing
- Using this in a case: operations and cost casesLesson in Making operations better, and planning for what can go wrong
- Change management: why change fails and how to measure adoptionLesson in People, rules and responsibility: organisation, regulation and sustainability
- Using people, rules and responsibility in a caseLesson in People, rules and responsibility: organisation, regulation and sustainability
Related terms
- Issue treeA branching diagram that breaks a problem into smaller parts.
- Top-down communicationSay the answer first, then the reasons.
- MECEBuckets that do not overlap and together cover everything.
- Driver treeAn issue tree built from the numbers that drive an outcome.
- Sensitivity analysisChanging one assumption at a time to see which matters most.
- Pareto principle (80/20)A small share of causes often drives a large share of results.
Learn it in context
See Hypothesis at work in a lesson from What a case interview is, and how to prepare, with checks as you go.
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