CQ_DataCrux | Rithik Sharma | Groww | Business Analyst

Interviewer: Hello Rithik! I am Diya from Communiqué. First of all, congratulations on being placed at Groww. Shall we begin our discussion?

Rithik: Yes, thank you very much. Sure, let’s begin.

Interviewer: What was the general interview process for the companies that you interviewed for? Could you please mention the number of rounds and the nature of the interview process?

Rithik: There were three rounds. The first one was basically an intro call. It was with the Head of Banking, where we just got acquainted with each other and it was very relaxed. I cannot say that it was a formal interview, but it was rather like I was having a conversation with her, where she got to know my interests, both personal and professional. Lastly, she asked me to choose from three career fields that would best describe me. So she gave me three real-world problems and asked me to rank them according to my interest, as in which problem would I like to solve the most. Basically through this, she was trying to gauge whether I would be fit for this profile or not. It went well, and that’s when I was transferred to the second call, where I was given a business problem as well. So, it was like a guesstimate. The interviewer didn’t ask me for the exact answer but was more interested in my approach towards the problem and how I will solve it. I didn’t have to do any calculations or take any numbers into consideration. So he asked me to estimate the alcohol consumption of a city that I currently live nearby, and since I knew the layout of the city, it really helped me breakdown the problem into smaller sub-problems, then to solve those sub-problems, and finally then prepare the entire solution and present it to him. That was the second round. In the third round, I was given a business problem in general, where I had to analyze a premium subscription of a product. He asked me for all the pros and cons of why we should have a premium subscription, its benefits, how do we earn money, whether it is feasible, how would it work, who would be our target audience, and so on. All these aspects were discussed in quite depth. This concluded the third round, following which I soon received the acceptance call.

Interviewer: Can you suggest some strategies and resources that can be helpful for the preparation?

Rithik: I did not prepare too extensively for this specific role, I just answered the interviews on my intuition. I had watched a couple of youtube videos on how to tackle any product interview, and I found a lot of similarities between them and my personal experience. So basically, this was a product approach and it also applies to the Business Analyst profile as well. The thing that I learned most importantly is that before you dive into solving the problem, you should clarify the problem statement by asking specific, important, and intelligent questions to the interviewer as that will make you stand out. Also, I’ve heard, although I haven’t personally done this, there are some product-related books and articles that you should read in order to get the knowledge of how to go through this interview process. Generally, these interviews don’t really require knowledge in any specific fields like technology, or any method and not even a lot of math. Basically, they check your problem-solving ability and the way in which you communicate your solutions and problems, which I feel can be developed by reading and watching mock interviews. Mock interviews are really helpful and are easily available on YouTube. One channel you can look for is Exponent.

Interviewer: What content in the CV can make it stand apart from the general public?

Rithik: The CV was quite extensively discussed in my first and third rounds of interviews. In the first round, she asked me about all the projects in my CV. I hadn’t done any product-related projects, but I had done some related to game development. So I don’t think the specificity of the projects mattered to the interviewer, but she just wanted to know the reason why I did this project. The projects that I had done were out of interest and they were like self-projects. Also, even though they didn’t discuss my PORs, I feel that for these profiles they matter, because these PORs only reflect how one can work in teams, manage and talk to people, and the results that have been achieved from the PORs also matter. Since a Product and BA profile involves dealing with people a lot, I feel PORs matter a great deal here. Also, I would like to emphasize that the fact that I was from an Economics background, helped me. In one of the rounds, we were discussing what I had learned in Economics and how would it apply to one of the problems that I will be solving if I get selected. Even, in the third round when I was asked a business problem, I tried to incorporate what I had learned in my course, and I also involved it in my solution, which I feel definitely helped.

Interviewer: Any fundae that you want to give to the students?

Rithik: Yes, so I would just like to say that keep yourself calm and composed. Even if you are nervous and not feeling quite confident, you should fake it. Most people can’t gauge if you’re really confident or if you’re just faking it. So just be confident and try to be as communicative as possible. Don’t hesitate to ask for a couple of minutes of time to think when given a problem to solve in the interview. Just ask the interviewer for some time to think and structure your solution properly before you present it to the interviewer. Thinking out loud is a good thing to do, it gives the interviewer an idea about your thought process while solving a problem. Also, be interested in what the interviewer is saying and listen carefully. Also, when they ask you to introduce yourself, both personally and professionally or ask you to take them through your CV, I would suggest keeping it interesting, light, and including your fun hobbies that you’re really proud of and interested in. Lastly, I would say just smile, it goes a long way. I remember I had really fun conversations with the interviewer apart from the interview process because I was interested in what they did, and simultaneously they had an interest in me, in what I did. We had a lot of informal conversations, which I feel helps you really bond with the interviewer which is very important. Also, a small tip, before you give an interview for any company just do some research on it and you can ask some questions about the company or your role at the end of the interview. “What skills in your opinion should I work upon to prepare myself better for the role, regardless of whether or not I get selected or not?”. Questions like these have a lasting impact on your interviewer’s memory and help you stand out.