The Top 10 Protiviti Consultant Interview Questions and How to Ace Your Interview

Interviewing at Protiviti for a consultant role? You’ve likely heard how rigorous and demanding their interview process can be While each interviewer has their own style, there are several common questions candidates can expect to receive. In this article, we’ll go over the 10 most frequent interview questions for a Protiviti consultant position and provide tips on how to craft winning answers Whether this is your first consulting interview or your fifth, being aware of these popular prompts can help you navigate the process with confidence.

Why Protiviti?

This is likely to be one of the very first questions asked. Interviewers want to understand why you specifically chose to interview with Protiviti over the many other consulting firms out there. Make sure you’ve done your research beforehand on Protiviti’s culture, services, specialties and workplace benefits so you can give a thoughtful and informed response. Mention any friends or colleagues who have worked there and gave positive reviews. Highlight one or two specific things that drew you to the firm, such as their mentoring program travel opportunities, or expertise in a certain field like cybersecurity audits. Convey your interest in the hard work and high impact consulting brings.

Why Consulting?

Along the same lines, interviewers want to know what attracts you specifically to the consulting industry. What makes you believe you’d thrive in the fast-paced, demanding environment? Point to past experiences or skills like analytical thinking, problem-solving, communication abilities, and leadership that will translate well. Share any previous consulting internships or roles you had and what you enjoyed. If you don’t have direct experience, talk about classes or case competitions that gave you a taste for the work. Explain the aspects of consulting – like variety, learning opportunities, collaboration, and client impact – that appeal to you.

Walk Me Through Your Resume

This is one of the most common behavioral interview questions out there. To prepare carefully review your resume and be ready to discuss in detail, your biggest accomplishments and responsibilities from your most relevant positions. Have a story or two ready to showcase skills like leadership, teamwork, and project management. Be prepared to answer follow-up questions about anything on your resume. The interviewer may ask you to elaborate on key projects, so re-familiarize yourself with the goals, challenges, your role, and the end results.

What Accomplishment Are You Most Proud Of?

With this prompt, the interviewer wants insight into what you feel is your greatest career achievement so far. Pick an example that showcases skills and strengths needed for consulting, like analytical ability, creative problem-solving, leadership in ambiguity, stakeholder management, or project ownership. Share details on the situation or task, the actions you took, and the results you delivered. Quantify those results with metrics or dollars whenever possible. Explain why this accomplishment makes you proud – how it aligns with your values, helped you develop new skills, impacted the company, etc.

Tell Me About Something That’s Not on Your Resume

The goal here is to learn more about you as an individual beyond your work history. Share an example that provides additional context into who you are. This could be a passion project, volunteer work, an impressive skill or hobby outside work, college leadership roles, or even family responsibilities. Choose something meaningful that required real commitment, focus, or perseverance from you over time. Explain how this experience allowed you to develop skills or perspectives relevant to consulting, whether it was leadership, communication, problem-solving, or relationship-building abilities.

Tell Me About a Time You Had to Lead a Team

Consultants need to be strong team leaders, so expect behavioral questions like this one. Reflect on a past situation where you took on a leadership role, whether an officially appointed one or more informal role. Set up the context briefly, then walk through the key challenges you faced leading this team and guiding them to the end goal. Emphasize listening and collaboration skills you utilized to understand concerns. Share how you motivated teammates for peak performance and commitment, supported them through roadblocks, and leveraged their individual strengths. Mention any processes or structures you implemented to facilitate the team’s success. Discuss the specific results delivered through your leadership approach.

How Do You Handle a Difficult Teammate?

Behavioral questions about working through conflict are quite common for consultant interviews. Set up a scenario where you dealt with a challenging team member – someone who was negative, competitive, or not pulling their weight. Explain how you approached them 1:1 to understand their perspective and motivations. Share how you involved your manager when appropriate. Discuss tactics you employed to influence their behavior and get them more positively engaged with the team, whether through candid feedback, incentives, delegation of tasks better suited to their strengths, seeking mentoring support, or leading by example. Share the end results of how you improved team cohesion and performance.

How Do You Prioritize Tasks With Competing Deadlines?

Consulting involves constant juggling of multiple client needs under tight timelines. This question tests your time management and prioritization skills. Discuss systems you’ve used to stay organized and keep track of shifting priorities, whether it’s digital task lists, Kanban boards, calendars, or other tools. Share an example of a crunch period where you had multiple competing deadlines. Walk through how you objectively assessed urgency and importance, had open conversations with managers or clients about tradeoffs if needed, delegated where possible, worked longer hours when necessary, and still delivered quality work on time through planning.

Describe a Time You Made a Mistake and How You Handled It

Don’t be afraid to share an example of a failure – interviewers want to see how you handle mistakes. Pick an example where the mistake was meaningful but not catastrophic. Take ownership – don’t point fingers at others. Share what you learned and changes you implemented afterward. Did you improve processes, double-check work, seek mentorship, improve communication, or take other actions to prevent repeat issues? Discuss how you openly acknowledged the mistake with your manager and team rather than covering it up. Demonstrate that you take responsibility seriously and consistently work to learn from errors.

Why Should We Hire You Over Other Candidates?

This is your chance to summarize your unique qualifications. Share some of your strongest skills and experiences that make you an excellent fit for this consultant role. If possible, relate them back to key requirements or challenges the interviewer mentioned earlier. You can reiterate your passion for consulting, capacity for hard work, eagerness to learn, collaborative approach, and fit with the firm’s culture. Mention any similar roles where you exceeded expectations. Keep it concise yet compelling. This is your final opportunity to convince the interviewer you are the right choice over other applicants.

Preparing responses for these common Protiviti interview questions shows you’ve done your homework about the consulting industry and firm. It also enables you to craft narratives that highlight the soft skills, critical thinking abilities, and technical expertise needed to excel as a consultant there. Use these to build confidence going into the interview process. With diligent practice of your stories and sample answers, you’ll be equipped to present the very best version of yourself to your interviewers. This preparation shows the dedication needed to ultimately become a valued member of the Protiviti team.