Interview questions...

[ringo747]

Doing some prep for an interview and would be interested to see how folks would answer the following questions:

1) Tell us about yourself?
(Do you answer this with personal info like hobbies/interests?)

2) You are on a customer site and they are convinced that they need a software solution from a rival company. You check their logic and it is sound. Do you still try to push your own company solution to the customer?
(Not sure what is the better answer here... give customer good sound advice v lose possible business)

3) Tell us a joke...
(I am rubbish with jokes and it's very difficult to find something that isn't slagging off at least one group of people!)

Most other competency based questions aren't too bad but the above seemed fairly awkward.

 

[Gaijin]

Read this - written by the interview master Lord Admiral Huddy himself:

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=17469564

 

[ringo747]

Excellent.

 

[Biohazard]

Tell us a joke? Really? Never had that at an interview..

 

[ringo747]

Tell us a joke? Really? Never had that at an interview..

I've known a few people who had this... also mate has been asked to sing at one! I think my weirdest question ever was 'If you were God what would you change in the world'.

 

[rustynuts]

1) Tell us about yourself?

Tell them what they want to hear.. Your out going, confident, quick learner, punctual, work well under pressure. And throw in a few hobbys like Sports, we all like to go out and get wrecked every now and then but your boss dont want to know your a **** head so simple solution for that is Im very social lol ...

2) You are on a customer site and they are convinced that they need a software solution from a rival company. You check their logic and it is sound. Do you still try to push your own company solution to the customer?

End of the day its all about the money. Selling your product is No1 in any business, Do both. Tell them yes you would advantage from this that or thee other,but with ours your would get those too and you would also get this this and this.

Does that make sence lol

3) Tell us a joke...

No idea why you would be asked this in a interview lol But here goes.

Q. What lies at the bottom of the ocean and twitches?
A. A nervous wreck.

 

[Biohazard]

I've known a few people who had this... also mate has been asked to sing at one! I think my weirdest question ever was 'If you were God what would you change in the world'.

I think I could be dangerous with a question like that

I think that would sway me too as I'm not really a sort of knock knock, man in a bar sort of humour... be too easy and tempting to take the **** out of the fact they are asking for a joke in the first place to be honest.

 

[The Funktopus]

The most awkward question I was asked at interview was "If you could be one animal, what would you be and why?". Now at this point I start to struggle, as one part of my brain's trying to formulate a serious, considered answer, another's thinking "what a stupid ******* question!" and yet another's fighting to force me to take full advantage of the opening and make a crude sexual joke out of it. Literally, in my head I'm picturing the words "A PANDA 'COZ IT EATS, SHOOTS AND LEAVES" on a billboard in neon flashing lights with fireworks erupting and the 1812 overture blasting out. So now the absurdity of the situation and what's going on in my head is making me want to laugh out loud so badly, that I'm struggling to barely contain it and keep a straight face.

I finally manage to croak out an answer, and make an inadvertent pun when I stammered out "some sort of ape because I find my opposable thumbs handy", so I cringe inwardly at that, then the subconscious hits me with a torrent of masturbation jokes, and I'm back to struggling to keep a straight face.

 

[Windle]

Which is what bizarre questions are all about, seeing how you react when presented with the unexpected and forced to process it quickly. As an interview technique it's very useful

 

[piggeh]

2) You are on a customer site and they are convinced that they need a software solution from a rival company. You check their logic and it is sound. Do you still try to push your own company solution to the customer?
(Not sure what is the better answer here... give customer good sound advice v lose possible business)

Most businesses would not want people to see them as pushing their product onto people unnecessarily. Offer customer your expert opinion, show your complimentary products and build respect, trust and future business rather than a one off sale that will create bad blood.