Answers to Interview Questions. Really.

Wasn't convinced. That is the most common rejection reason from the first round interview be it technical or behavioral. Interviewers unconvinced jobseekers are strong enough to succeed in the next round. They shouldn't be making a hiring decision this early in the game, but first round interviewers are gatekeepers. Protectors. Defenders for the rest of the interview panel.

Throughout your discussion with this interview, they were not sufficiently convinced that you would be successful in subsequent interviews. Did you feel like you said all the right things? Check these off your list (be honest!) and you'll increase the likelihood you make it to the next round.

Answer their questions.

Before the eyeroll or the "obviously!" bare with me. Just because you're speaking in response to their question doesn't mean you're answering their question. And as an interviewer, it can be really uncomfortable to continually press if it feels like a candidate doesn't want to answer a question.

Tell me about a time when you weren't going to meet a deadline. How did you handle it and what caused it?

Good Answer

"The first one that comes to mind is a recruiting event in San Francisco planned four weeks in advance." <-- BOOM. Answered. The additional context is the sweetener to add on top and fill in the gaps. Your answer should be the exact instance of what you're describing before you describe it. THIS was the thing and THIS is the background and further context.

Bad Answer

"We had been recruiting for an event in San Francisco...". This signals I need to wait and listen carefully to hear exactly what the instance is where they missed a deadline. I still don't have enough information. Now you're risking my misinterpretation of your missed deadline.

Can you give me a high level overview of your experience?

Bad Answer

"Sure. Let me start from the beginning. Hi, my name is ______ and I'm a ____. I went to university at _______ and my first job was ______." This is a non-answer-answer. It's the worst possible answer.

This may sound like an exaggeration but it happens often. The intro/experience overview is meant to help build rapport between interviewer and jobseeker. To help put both at ease as they learn more about one another. When you sidestep their question with a monologue of your own, you're conditioning the interviewer for what's to follow: a difficult interview filled with follow ups and indirect answers.

Good Answer

Instead, give them an answer directly to what they asked. Want extra credit? Ask if they'd like you to go back to any certain job or just the most recent role. Now they'll give you their expectation so you aren't throwing darts at a dart board.

How would you solve XYZ?

Bad Answer

"I would solve XYZ by (fill in the blank with any solution) and then (some follow up context)".

Wait -- isn't that the answer to their question? They asked how I would solve something and I'm telling them how I would solve something?

This is a tricky one. There is a risk to diving too quickly into a solution without seeking further clarification. Dependencies, constraints, tradeoffs, timeline, customers, assumptions, etc. should all be considerations when you provide your solution. This question can sometimes be used as a trap to see if jobseekers will dig deep or if their arrogance will shine through with their poorly thought out solution.

Good Answer

"XYZ is complex, can you give me an idea of what sort of timing and resources we have to work with?"

Now you're getting your interviewer talking! That's a good thing. Don't filibuster by continually asking question but engage in this back and forth (if they're will) and use the information they give you to inform their answer. If they say it's something that has an expiry date of EOM, don't propose a solution that will be fully implemented by the next quarter. They're teeing you up and opening the door, walk through and learn more.

What do you know already about our company?

Bad Answer

"I actually haven't had a chance to do much research so not very much."

Full disclosure, I hate this question. Who cares what they know in advance about your company? It's of little to no use in evaluating the capability of job seekers. This answer, however, won't cut it.

Good Answer

"I don't know a lot but I know the company used to be called _______ before it merged in 2020. The primary customers are ______ industries and it solves for issues of __________ with precision. I think it's a great way to address this industry and seamlessly introduce _____."

See the head fake? You're signaling to the interviewer, "prepared to be underwhelmed" and then knocking it out of the park with a solid, short, and sweet 'candidate level' description of their company.

Where do these come from? Do 60-seconds of research to find this info. It shouldn't be any longer than 2-3 sentences and should be a little deeper than what's surface level.

What are your compensation expectations?

Bad Answer

"It's a little early in the process to be discussing that and I'd prefer to discuss that at a later time."

I'm not sure who circulated this as an appropriate answer but it's not. You're essentially refusing to answer a question that is a major component of the role you're discussing. Imagine if the role paid half of what your range was and you didn't find out until the very end of the process? Long after reference checks and follow up interviews.

In an interview, compensation expectations falls under the 'fair game' category and you should be able to answer the question genuinely and honestly. A good litmus test is if you can't answer any of the other interview questions this way, it's probably not an okay way to answer this question.

Good Answer

"I'm interested in learning more about this role and my target total compensation range is ______ and ______. I know that's a wide range, can you give me an idea of the range of the role?"

Total compensation includes everything including bonus, equity, commission, etc. so this leaves a lot of room come negotiation time. By sharing first what your numbers/range are, you open the door for them to share. And they should. You can now tailor your follow ups with regard to compensation accordingly. Is that the top end of the range? What do the benefits look like? etc.

Let's wrap this thing. Interview questions aren't one size fits all. There's wiggle room, interpretation, misunderstanding, emphasis, context, and more that all influence the way questions are asked and the way answers are delivered. It's YOUR job to make sure your answers are heard and the best parts of your background come shining through. Wishing you the best on your next round interview!

-- Robb