Page 86 - The McKinsey Mind

03 (049-082) chapter 3 1/29/02 4:49 PM Page 61

Gathering the Data 61

book, we used interviewing as our primary data collection method
and found the interviewing techniques we learned at the Firm
extremely helpful. In conducting interviews with dozens of
McKinsey alumni and sending E-mail questionnaires to thousands
of alumni, we focused on identifying the right people, carefully
thinking through our interview guides and questionnaires, and dili-
gently documenting our findings. We then summarized the con-
tent of the interviews on spreadsheets and used our alumni’s
comments throughout the book.
The Firm relies extensively on interviews. In fact, interviewing
is part of every McKinsey engagement, as it not only generates pri-
mary data but can also identify great sources of secondary data.
The value of interviewing also extends beyond data gathering by
serving as a mechanism to test ideas and increase buy-in (see Chap-
ter 7). Let’s review some interviewing tips from McKinsey and
identify how you can successfully implement specific interview
techniques in your organization.

THE McKINSEY WAY
In interviewing, McKinsey emphasizes preparation and courtesy.
Be prepared: write an interview guide. An interview guide is
simply a written list of the questions you want to ask, arranged in
the order you expect to ask them. There are two reasons why you
should have such a guide. First, placing your thoughts on paper
forces you to organize them. Second, the guide helps the interview-
ee to identify the topics you intend to cover in the interview and
prepare accordingly.
Your guide should be brief. Boil down your list of questions
to the three or four most important. Your goal should be to get
those answered in the limited time you have with the interviewee;
anything more is gravy. And don’t forget to close with every