any help on grant thornton final round plz =)

Have a look at Grant Thornton interview questions and competency based interview.

What do you think you will be doing in your first year at Grant Thornton?

..actually, that's a really important question to be able to answer. It's almost guaranteed to come up in the interview.

i've had a look at that section already, thanks for the reply. The section on the manager/partner interview isn't very detailed unfortunately and i was just hoping someone who may have experienced the partner/manager interview will be able to give some further indications as to the questions they may ask. thanks again for any extra info =)

-Take a look at partner interviews to get some general tips for these.

-Think about current industry issues (and see the section/articles on the front page too).

-Think about why GT, why you want to work in tax, and what you will be doing in your first couple of years on a day to day basis.

-Consider what you have to offer the firm specifically (what skills can you offer that others can't) and why they should hire you - think clearly about what you can do for GT, rather than what you want to get from working here.

-Check other threads/forum posts as there is some more detailed info on GT partner interviews here too.

You will never be able to plan 100% for all the questions in a partner interview - they can literally throw anything up - but it certainly sounds like your doing the right things...

Good luck Kayley - please let us know how it all goes for you, and what comes up in your interview!

thanks for the reply once again, i've thought about most things you've stated already but it's reassuring to know that i'm looking into the right areas. I'm just hoping for some more concrete questions that GT managers or partners have used in their interviews because i'm sure it's just not going to be simple competency based.. I've tried looking for older threads regarding a final round, but haven't found any yet..most seem to be regarding the telephone interview or assessment centre unfortunately rather than the final partner and manager interview. Hopefully, someone who has experienced this stage will be able shed some light before my interview because i really do admire what gt have to offer. thanks in advance once again!

Hi Kay,

I had my manager/patner interviews last week, and got offered the job soon after. The first thing to say is relax, if your interviewers are anything like mine then you will be fine, you have already made it through the hardest bit.

The manager first made general conversation talking about hobbies etc. He then just simply read off a list of competency questions such as when have i disagreed with someone within a team, and how did you resolve it? It will be very similar to your HR interview at the assessment day, just make sure you can go into more details with your examples and have at least two for each question. It ends with the standard questions of why GT and audit (in your case TAX). He may also ask you who else you have applied to and why, so just make sure he knows you really want GT!

The patner interview is slightly different. I think this interview is more to see whether you would fit in with GT and how much business knowledge you have. I got asked to talk about three or four current events and how they have effected audit and GT (start with something other than the credit crunch maybe as when i did he seemed relieved to talk about something else). He will again then ask some competency questions, have at least two examples ready for each question. Then we just discussed sport and my social activities. Just be as relaxed and confident as you can, make sure you smile and have constant eye contact.

Hope this helps

Firstly, well done hammers for getting in! I'm guessing you're going to or have already accepted the offer. thanks a bunch for that info, that def helps! Did they actually ask for a second example for each of the competencies, or is that just a tip? Otherwise, i'll def need to think up some more examples..sigh. So in your manager interview, they didn't go too far into commercial awareness? Because in HR they asked only 1 question relating to that.

The partner interview def sounds quite different - more focused on your business knowledge which i'm more worried about =S So your particular partner actually asked for at least 3 current events affecting audit and GT? If that's the case, i'm going to have to do some extra research in tax, i'm very weak on commercial awareness unfortunately. Was there any other commercial awareness qs or was that it? Also, did the competency questions in the partner interview differ much from the manager interview, or were there similar questions too?

Sorry for the barrage of questions, its just i'm really hoping to get into GT. thanks in advance

Hi Kay,

They say, can you give some examples of when.......? So the more examples the better, but make sure you can go into detail in each example. In my manager interview i didnt get asked any commercial awareness questions, i was just asked how do i keep on top of current financial events (i.e read the FT and accountancy age). However I do know some people who have been asked commercial awareness so be prepared for them.

The patner simply said to me what current events are effecting Gt and audit, and i discussed 3 or 4, again make sure you know your stuff as they may go into detail with you. But they are just looking for you to have an understanding, they do not expect you to already know everything.

No the competency questions throughout the day are similar to the HR interviews, mainly focused on teamwork and motivation.

For me the main thing is to be yourself and be enthusiastic about the job and GT!

Hope this helps

thanks again hammers! Your insight has definitely helped. It's good to know that the manager interview is very similar to the HR one. Did the partner not ask any competency questions then? It was just about current events? If that's the case i can't really see that interview lasting an hour =S I'm def going to try be as enthusiastic as poss, i genuinely do want to work for gt and hopefully, i'll show that on the day. I can't help but feel more nervous than i have ever remem..but thanks for your help anyway, i really do appreciate it once again =)

Its only natural to be nervous, especially as you want it so much, i was extremely nervous but both the manager and the patner were so nice it really calmed me down so i wouldnt get to stressed out. Sorry for not being clear the Patner asked and discussed the commercial awareness first and then went on to competency questions, which are similar to ones you would of already done.

Hi Hammers, how long did you have to wait after your final interview until your offer?

It was either the next day or two days after, when did you have your interview? I wouldnt worry if you havent received an offer straight away, i knew someone who waited over a week to get the offer, it just depends on how busy your partner and the HR staff are.

thanks again hammers for the insight. it's really helped with my prep. just got to get rid of these butterflies and i should be ready..hopefully!

Sorry I didn't see this post earlier! When's the interview? It must be any day now?

in a few days, any last min tips? news? =D

Hey.. I have a final round with GT next Tuesday and I think i feel the exact same way. the company is my first choice and commercial awareness is definitely not my strongest point. This information has really helped but if you could throw in anything extra, that would be great!! I've been told i have one interview in which there will be both an HR director and a manager, and then a second interview with the partner.

Just be wary of sticking to your guns in the partner interview. The partner asked me how I would deal with a co-worker who was not an enthusiastic team player. I said I would take him aside and ask him how he felt the team was working and listen to his views, but then explain to him that the team would work better if we all pulled together and that good coperation was about making personal sacrifices to achieve the common goal. Then I said I would be positive and enthusiastic and hope it would rub off on him. The partner nodded and said "Yeah, thats a good approach to take. But...what if he still didnt change?" At that point, I had no more ideas in my arsenal and was beginning to sweat and I just repeated my earlier answer of staying positive, encouraging and energetic to which the partner responded "Hmm...yes...yes, but what if he still didnt change?" By now, I was completely stumped and for the third time repeated that at times a positive team member can really change the outlook of a team or an individual, and that I would explain to my fictious lazy coworker the error of his ways and the benefits of collaboration. I also then added that ultimately life is too short to be demotivated by unambitious people. The Partner then smiled in a manner that indicated that he was having a bloody good time watching me squirm and moved on to another question.

I got an offer from GT so what I took from the partner interview was that they want to see you how you cope when put under stress. So stick to your guns!

Though a little flustered, I enjoyed the partner interview because he seemed like a genuinely likeable dude, and he was cracking jokes throughout. Post interview, I googled him and found that he was an amateur stand up comic and runs a comedy club!

how'd it go kayley86? I'm waiting on a response :(

Hope my advice was usefull, how did you guys get on?

It was quite useful. i didn't get the position tho, there was only one place left when i interviewed and didn't quite make the cut. I did, however, get an offer from BDO so all is not lost :) Thanks for the help

BDO stoy hayward have a great reputation - personally, everyone I've met from that particular firm has been lovely too. Have you decided if you're going to take the offer?!

Unlucky for GT. What was your interview like? ..interested to find out if it was similar to the wiki profile or if this needs updating..?

Well I have one more interview next week with KPMG next week, but it is very likely that i will take the BDO offer.

Well when i got there i had an interview with an HR manager and Senior Audit Manager. They told me that only if I passed that interview, would I be given the opportunity to interview with the Partner. That interview was more or less like the above, competency based questions, why I wanted to join GT, why ACA trainee, and a lil bit about my background.

The partner interview, was a little bit different. I was expecting a lot more on current commercial awareness, maybe something about credit crunch of the oil price situation, but I got a question on South Africa (because I'm from Zimbabwe) and the questions i got on the news were specific questions. It wasn't discuss 2-3 current affairs, like it seemed from above, or discuss something thats interested you lately. With my experience with the few partner interviews is that it really depends on the partner, my BDO one was like having a conversation and I was quite comfortable, however, with GT, the commercial awareness through me off quite a bit. With any partner interview, I think the best preparation is have an awareness of current business issues, know why you want to join that company and your specific position, and smile and be yourself. I think the advice on here is sufficient to prepare though!

Good choice. I wish I worked at BDO. Partner interviews are really all about chemistry. If you made it that far then all the competency type stuff is basically over- you've proved your worth. The partners just want to see 'what you are like' and if they like you enough, they'll give you the job. It takes two to tango of course, and it's luck of the draw who you get and what they might think of you. Best bet, be professional, sharp and on the ball and you'll do fine.

One tip though- even if a partner interview seems to be stiff, with no chemistry whatsoever, they might still give you the seal of approval if they see your potential as an employee.

Had my partner interview last week with GT, and was asked:
Tell me when had you have been in a situation where you have had to solve a difficult problem...then what would you have done differently?

It was an interview for a corporate tax trainee position, I was asked
What have you read in the news lately that has interested you....what implications did it have for GT.
(I gave a corporate tax example)
Could you think of a personal tax news item which was also in the news recently?

Hope this helps someone.

Thanks - very helpful. Would you say the interview followed the lines of what we have on our wiki profile - Grant Thornton ?

The Manager interview questions were definitely similar to those on the wiki profile.

The Partner interview seemed more unstructured and was more based on what the partner was interested in from my application form rather than a set of predetermined questions.

That's pretty typical of all partner interviews.

What example did you use for the "personal tax news item" question?