I was invited to do an online test with some case studies and calculation questions based on case studies, eg using data provided and competitor landscape analysis, which product should Diageo focus on producing.
As for the assessment centre, it was a 6 hour long process (pretty exhausting) with only 3 to 4 5/10-min breaks in between. It was split into couple parts: Icebreaker session, panel interview, individual case studies exercise (no group work due to virtual event). Icebreaker had something to do with finding an item that represents/inspires you (not assessed).
Panel interview was you against 2 interviewers, and was 1 hour long. It involved the 2 interviewers blasting at least 12 interview questions at you for the entire hour, like a fast-paced Q&A session.
10 min break
The case study part was split into 3 sessions (around 40 min each). I was given 5 min to look at information, 10-15 min to prepare, 10 min to present and 10 min for Q&A.
First session: case study had something to do with assessing competitor landscape (not real companies) and come up with a product launch plan and explain your reasoning on certain things.
5 min break
Second session: related to designing a marketing strategy for the same product and asking which celebrity would be chosen for celebrity endorsement (then followed by tough questions such as if this celebrity made a public announcement criticising Diageo, what would your response be). No preparation time was given and they expected you to think on your feet and say first thing that came to your mind.
5 min break
Third session: More about your purpose at Diageo, your legacy, again no time to think and they expect answers immediately.
5 min break
Networking session with Diageo employees who have done graduate scheme before
End
Overall, the assessment centre was quite difficult, in a way that I lost much of my focus and energy around 3 hours in as a result of exhaustion & burn-out. For the same reason, I went to the point of 'please make it end' by the time I reached the second session for case study.
