A young man told me of an interesting interviewing experience he had recently. He’s in his final year of a Master’s program in engineering and heard about a consulting firm coming on campus for interviews. He thought it sounded interesting and so signed up.
They conducted a formal presentation and then held five-minute meet-and-greet and invited him to take two tests (math and reasoning of some sort). I assume he did well because they called him and invited him back for what they said would be a 15-minute interview. It was interesting that they pre-screened candidates by testing them and then moving forward with only those who did well on those tests but, given the number of students, it sure makes sense. Many sales roles are filled this way (I think of insurance salespeople in particular — so many candidates, a quick on-line pre-screening test and then moving forward only those who ‘pass’ or are deemed a fit for the role).
His first thought? What to wear! He was away at school and the best he could do was a pair of slacks and shirt but, alas, he only had sneakers and boots! I suggested he go to Winner’s and buy a pair of shoes, make sure he has a presentable shirt and tie or shirt and sweater. I counseled him that his first line mght be an apology for not ‘suiting up’ but, his Master’s work was full-time and didn’t have the six-hour turnaround which would be required for him to get back to Toronto to pick up his suit. He could say he thought they’d be more interested in what he brings to the table vs. whether or not he was in a full suit. Well, he didn’t heed my advice and his dad drove a suit, shirt, tie and shoes to him at school (oh and some bright pink socks!)
We spent some time redrafting his resume (not sure what happened to the earlier version I prepared last year but the formatting was very wonky). Turns out we shouldn’t have bothered. While he brought the resume along and offered it to them (since they had not yet seen a resume), they didn’t want to see it. Now, while I’ve conducted many interviews without a resume, I never turn one down when it’s presented. After all, it’s a part of a candidate’s marketing strategy and a reflection of them.
The 15-minute interview really was 15 minutes and the questions were:
- Tell us about yourself from the day you were born until now
- What is the hardest thing you have ever done?
- What do you do for fun?
- What is the most important part about your research?
They were interesting to be sure. I hope my coaching him to be clear and concise paid off when he responded to the first question. Geez, a guy could go on forever. Luckily he’s only 23 and so he didn’t have decades and decades to discuss. This is a play on the old “tell me about yourself” question.
When faced with a question like this, hit only the highlights and then ask if there is anything specific they want you to elaborate on. Knowing you only have 15 minutes and there’s more questions, certainly adds to the pressure on you to be brief but still to add something meaningful. I suggest you practice both a question like this and the old “tell me about yourself” question (where you should highlight only those things about your self that would be interesting and relevant for the role you are seeking and the company itself. Going on and on about things not relevant to the role is meaningless).
The second question is a good one (and I think I’ll incorporate it into my interviewing question toolkit). In thinking about the question, you want to discuss something that was indeed hard for you and be able to explain why and how you were successful. Think about the role you are interviewing for and the company and what might be meaningful to them. Of course, if you climbed Mt. Everest or went cliff-diving in Mexico, those would be good to use as examples. Be aware that their follow up question might be “why was that hard for you?” especially if it’s something they didn’t find all that difficult.
What do you do for fun? Well, maybe people might not have anything in their lives that would be all that interesting or fun (sad but true). In this case, my client brews beer and has built his whole home-brewing apparatus with some of his classmates. Think of a bunch of engineers developing this home-brewing contraption. That’s fun! Start thinking about what you actually do for fun and, if you can’t think of anyone, start doing something. You might just have some fun!
The research question is fairly standard for someone who is conducting research and I won’t elaborate here.
My point to this post? To get you thinking about less traditional interview questions that you might be faced with in your interviews. Being prepared for them avoids having you smacking your palm on your forehead afterward and saying “why didn’t I think to say that”.
Your very best way to ace that interview? Be prepared!
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