KPMG Cappfinity Assessment Practice

About KPMG's Recruitment Process

KPMG describes its UK graduate recruitment process as strengths-based: candidates are assessed on what they do well and enjoy doing, rather than screened against a fixed competency framework. KPMG's own assessment guidance advises candidates not to prepare as they would for a competency-based process, and to respond naturally rather than with rehearsed answers. The core online stage is an assessment called "Transforming Small Businesses", reported in independent test-preparation guides as being delivered on the Cappfinity platform. It combines situational judgement, numerical reasoning, and strengths-based questions presented within a business scenario. Later stages typically include a further strengths and situational judgement assessment, a critical thinking exercise, an assessment centre, and a final interview, though the exact sequence and naming can vary by year and by the programme you apply to.

Assessment Components

Transforming Small Businesses (reported as Cappfinity)

The core online stage. It blends situational judgement, numerical reasoning, and strengths-based responses within a business scenario. It is untimed, but KPMG recommends completing it in one 90-minute sitting so your responses stay consistent.

What "strengths-based" means in practice

Rather than asking you to demonstrate specific competencies, a strengths-based assessment asks what energises you and what you naturally do well, then checks whether that profile fits the demands of the role. Questions are designed so there is no single "correct" personality profile; consistency between your answers matters more than picking any particular option.

Situational judgement within the test

Alongside the strengths questions, you will see workplace scenarios and be asked to judge the most and least effective responses. These scenarios are framed around KPMG's client-facing business context, but the underlying skill, reading a situation and weighing competing priorities, is the same judgement skill assessed by SJTs across most graduate employers.

Numerical reasoning within the test

Some questions require interpreting figures and simple calculations presented as part of the business scenario. This is the same core numerical reasoning skill, working with rates, proportions, and data presented in tables or short passages, that appears in most graduate numerical tests, regardless of which platform delivers it.

Later stages

Candidates who progress typically move on to a further strengths and situational judgement stage, sometimes described as assessing how you deliver outcomes, followed by an assessment centre and partner or senior manager interview. KPMG uses these later stages to assess alignment with its stated values.

KPMG Roles Using This Assessment

Graduate Programmes

• Audit
• Tax
• Consulting
• Deal Advisory

Experienced Hire

• Technology Consulting
• Risk Consulting
• Business Services
• Financial Services

Top Tips

Answer naturally, not strategically

KPMG's own guidance is explicit: this is not a competency-based test, so rehearsed answers tend to stand out for the wrong reasons. Strengths-based questions are designed to surface consistent patterns across many items, so answering honestly produces a more coherent, and better scoring, profile than trying to guess the "ideal" answer.

Don't rush Transforming Small Businesses

This stage is untimed. KPMG recommends 90 minutes, but you can take longer if needed. Read each scenario carefully and respond deliberately; rushing produces superficial answers that score poorly on both the situational judgement and strengths dimensions.

Practise the underlying skills separately

Even though the assessment is strengths-led, it still contains numerical reasoning and situational judgement questions. Building general speed and accuracy on those question types beforehand means you can spend your attention on the strengths content during the real test, rather than on unfamiliar question formats.

Prepare for the full multi-stage process

The online assessment is one part of a longer process. Budget time to also prepare for the later strengths stage, the assessment centre, and the partner or senior manager interview.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does KPMG use Arctic Shores?

There is no verified evidence that KPMG uses Arctic Shores. The reported platform for KPMG's core online assessment, Transforming Small Businesses, is Cappfinity, corroborated by KPMG's own description of the process as strengths-based. CogniPrep's KPMG guide covers the Cappfinity-style format only.

How long is the KPMG online assessment?

KPMG recommends setting aside 90 minutes for the Transforming Small Businesses stage. The full multi-stage recruitment process, including later strengths stages and the assessment centre, spans several weeks.

Can I retake KPMG's assessment?

Generally you need to wait 6-12 months before reapplying. KPMG's policy can vary by programme, so check directly with their recruitment team for the latest guidance.