Analyst Research

Analyst Research interview prep.

The library content Coach uses to tailor reports for this role. Generated reports personalise this against the candidate's CV + the firm's context.

Behavioural questions to expect

  1. Walk me through your CV.
  2. Tell me about your most impactful research project.
  3. Tell me about a weakness, a failure, or feedback you've worked on.
  4. Why industry research - vs consulting, journalism, or corporate strategy?
  5. Which sector + what's your view on it?
  6. Why the firm?
  7. How do you see the firm's practice + recent work?
  8. How does industry research create value for clients?

Technical concepts to master

  • Research methodology - primary + secondary + modeling

    Secondary research first · Primary research - executive interviews · Surveys + quantitative · Modeling + triangulation

  • Writing + reports

    Top-down writing · Argument structure · Evidence + specificity · Forward-looking vs descriptive

  • Sector forecasting + analytical thinking

    Trend identification · Forecasting methodology · Scenario analysis · Intellectual honesty

  • Client advisory + subscriber economics

    Subscription model · Inquiry call · Custom research + advisory days · Conferences + events

Practical drills

  • Walk me through your view on a sector + the most important current trends.
  • How would you research a specific question - market size, vendor share, adoption rate?
  • Walk me through a research note or report you've written + your key choices.

Smart-question anchors

  • Sector + coverage - firm's sector strengths + recent research
  • Methodology - research approach + primary vs secondary balance
  • Subscriber + advisory - subscription mix + advisory days + custom research
  • Thought leadership - publishing cadence + conferences + visibility
  • Career path - analyst → senior → principal → research VP

Sourced from

Industry research firm career content + role expectations · Magic Quadrant + Wave methodology (canonical evaluation frameworks) · Market Research Society + ESOMAR + ARF research methodology · Industry thought leadership content (recent analyst reports + research summaries) · Bloomberg Intelligence + S&P Global Market Intelligence · Tech Interview Handbook + behavioral

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