What are the killer interview questions asked by top CEO's like Musk, Branson & Weiner and how would YOU answer them?
Steve Blakeman
Founder & CEO at Influenza / Author / 4x LinkedIn Top Voice / LinkedIn Strategist
Just asking a prospective candidate if they have any questions for you is such a cliché, so how do the World's most successful CEO's tease more insightful responses from their interviewees?
In an article from Business Insider, they quizzed over 50 CEO's about their personal favourite killer interview questions are and some of their responses might surprise you...
Richard Branson apparently doesn't like the traditional face-to-face interview. He also isn't a huge fan of the CV either:
"Obviously a good CV is important, but if you were going to hire by what they say about themselves on paper, you wouldn't need to waste time on an interview"
So, what is Branson's killer question?
"What didn't you get a chance to include on your résumé?"
A great opportunity to impress, for sure but I suspect answers like "I am secretly a serial killer" is probably not going to line you up for success. Any ideas as to what you would say?
Jeff Weiner, CEO of LinkedIn, revealed his favourite interview griller to Adam Bryant from CNBC last year:
"What is your dream job?"
Now I would assume that the answer would be the one that Jeff was interviewing you for but maybe he's searching a little deeper than that. So what is it? Astronaut? Rock star? Taster in a chocolate factory? Well, if Jeff were to ask me, I would say a LinkedIn Influencer. Come on Jeff, make my dream come true ;)
Elon Musk doesn't really pose a question about the candidate, he prefers his interviewees to answer a little riddle:
"You are standing on the surface of the Earth. You walk one mile south, one mile west, and one mile north. You end up exactly where you started. Where are you?"
If you know the answer pop it in the comments section to show why Mr Musk should interview you. To give you a little clue, my answer was "lost". Apparently, that isn't the correct answer... Ah well, I didn't want to work for Elon Musk anyway.
Other killer questions from top CEO's also include:
"If you were an animal, which animal would you be?"
"If I were to say to a bunch of people who know you, 'Give me three adjectives that best describe you,' what would I hear?"
"On a scale of one to 10, how weird are you?"
"What is an essential travel packing item for you?"
"Why should I decide against hiring you?"
"What would you do in a zombie apocalypse?"
I'm going with sloth, strange / stranger / strangest, 11, a sinus rinse bottle, that you secretly work for your main competitor and learn to run faster.
I'm guessing that I probably won't get any of the gigs on offer but I would at least have some fun yanking a few executive chains.
So, what about you? How would you answer these killer questions? Do you have any better questions than these that you ask interviewees? As ever, I am interested to hear your POV...
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5yBit surprised by this Steve. "Interview" questions like these were completely discredited as useful indicators of future performance more than five years ago. They tell you more about the interviewer than the interviewee. Defenders of questions like these will tell you they show if someone is able to think on their feet. Of course they do. Except they absolutely don't. And even if they did, how often, in their day-to-day jobs, is the ability to think on their feet critical to success? You have to imagine that executives such as the three quoted only ever interview candidates for REALLY senior roles: can we honestly picture Elon Musk asking a prospective Global CTO, "If you were an animal, which animal would you be?" No, of course we can't. Given that, in most cases, the interview is by far the worst assessment tool in the selection process, interviewers would make better use of their time, and that of the candidate, if they focussed their questions solely on past performance because that's the most reliable way to predict future success.
RVP- Southwest Region (AZ, NV, HI, SoCal) - Liberty One Investment Management
5yElon Musk: The North Pole. The only direction you can travel is south. south one mile in any of the 360 degrees. THen turn right and travel one mile west. (you are still one mile south of the pole). Then travel one mile north from wherever you are and you end up back at the north pole. (this does not apply to the south pole as you can only trave north). Let's talk Elon. ;-)
Art Director | Print/Web Designer | Business Professional
5yTo Elon Musk - I'd be one mile west of myself, shoulders parallel and facing the opposite direction. I'd be a mirror image of myself on the face of the earth. And weirdness? 7. Enough to be unique and able to offer different and exciting outcomes, but normal enough to handle client interaction and work politics. Oh, and Elephant.... empathetic and remember everything.... plus lucky Great post Steve Blakeman
Customer service affects sales revenue, business opportunities, and growth
5ySteve Blakeman, I would answer Jeff Weiner by saying, "I would love to travel the world and be paid for it. Our world is full of new discoveries and experiences that many of us may never see at home. The fascination and adventure of travel has its own education that provides priceless memories, and further opportunities"