Grant Thornton UK Interview Questions
& Process

The process kicked off with an initial screening call with a Senior Manager to check fit and go over the CV. Then, there was a technical case study interview with a Manager and Director, which included both technical questions and soft-skill questions. These soft-skill questions were mostly follow-ups, like if you'd advised X instead of Y, and the client said Z, how you'd plan and implement that change. The last step was a competency interview with two Directors who asked STARR questions and questions about why this specific company. The whole thing took exactly 4 weeks from applying to getting the offer, though it might have been quicker if not for a holiday.

After submitting an application, which was pretty standard with personal details, I had to answer two written questions: one about what caught my eye in the industry over the last year and another about my understanding of the role and qualifications. Then came an online assessment, a psychometric test that measured how quickly I could respond to a question with two single-word answers. Initially, I was supposed to do a standard assessment centre, but I was informed via a phone call that this would be replaced by a virtual group task. After that, I was told there would be final interviews, followed by an online interview, which could lead to an internship offer. Before the case study, I was cut off from the process.

My interview at Grant Thornton was a letdown and made me feel exploited. There were two steps. The first involved STAR-based questions about competencies linked to the company's values. I was told I did great and advanced to the second stage. This second stage involved giving two detailed presentations: one on a digital adoption strategy and another on UX process enhancements. I covered discovery planning, stakeholder engagement, success metrics, user segmentation, risks, and recommendations, even answering things the interviewers weren't sure about. However, they later said I wasn't a fit because I apparently lacked experience in an area I had just strategized about. They also mentioned the role's scope was changing and it would be reposted. They transcribed the whole second interview, so now they have all my ideas without hiring me. It felt like they were just trying to get insights without paying for them. For a company that talks about being purpose-driven and 'candid but kind,' this felt the opposite. I left feeling deceived and like my professional effort was taken advantage of.

The interview process for the Business Consulting Manager role was a mess, lasting a frustrating 6 months due to incompetence and indecision. It started as a two-stage process but evolved into four stages with additional steps added along the way. After completing a case study/technical interview and a presentation (meant to assess communication skills), they reached the offer stage. However, 6 months after applying, they cancelled the position stating they didn't have sign-off for the hire. This indicated a lack of leadership, especially since feedback on my presentation was that it wasn't as technical as another candidate's, raising questions about their integrity. Interviews were constantly rescheduled, showing a lack of respect and consideration. They also failed to provide quality feedback and didn't seem to operate by their stated values of purposefully driven, candid but kind, and actively curious. I learned from HR that they haven't hired in this area for years, suggesting the stated values might just be for PR. Interviews felt rushed, with little time to ask my own questions.