Why should we hire you?

thehobbit

thehobbit

Well-Known Member
To me the question seems idiotic, It's not like you're going to tell them not to hire you. If you've been invited to an interview they want to hire you, they're just looking for you to give them a reason not to. To me a better question would be, tell me about yourself, to see if you would be enjoyable to work with. My answer is that I want the job, I can do the job, I take pride in my work and I'm not a debbie downer. How would you guys answer this question?
 
The best interview I've been to (IMO, as part of the interview) was at the bar the night before with a soon to be co-worker. To see if they liked you. Right UAL747400?
I thought about it afterwards, and thought it was brilliant.
 
z987k said:
The best interview I've been to (IMO, as part of the interview) was at the bar the night before with a soon to be co-worker. To see if they liked you. Right UAL747400?
I thought about it afterwards, and thought it was brilliant.
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I interviewed in the morning, but the interview consisted of drinking the Jimbo the night before after he picked me up from the airport, and then a long lunch with Pete the next day after the check flight. I agree, best interview technique I've seen and it's so simple! Anyone can BS through BS HR, technical, "what would you do" crap. AMF was actually similar as well, no drinking, but it was more of a social setting.

Probably not realistic for United or Delta people to go drinking or to a more social setting with every applicant though... :)

Why should we hire you? That's a crap question and I would just search the depths of my brain for the most bullcrap answer I can come up with.
 
I think it is a great question - allows you to express your strengths in a systematic method to make yourself stand out. Your answer would be considered weak IMHO. It does nothing to differentiate.
 
Why should we hire you? Because if you don't you will see me next time you are hiring and the time after that and the time after that.

So to save all of us a whole bunch of extra work just hire me now. :D
 
Because I bring value to your company in several ways. My background, training and experience meet and exceed all of your requirements. I'm customer service focused and work to ensure that our revenue stream is maintained by providing the customer the best possible experiece and value for their money. My attention to detail in quality and safety cannot be surpassed. I strive hard to continue learning as well as sharing my experiences with others and improve our collective knowledge base. I have a strong work ethic, positive attitude and seek to grow in my position. I own several high caliber rifles and a vast quantity of ammunition, have written a manifesto on how the world should be run, created a diorama of your workplace including the parking lots, all known entrances and exits and likely hiding spots along with noting your arrival and departure times from the office for several weeks and plan to kill you should you not hire me.......Hope that was clear and answers your questions ;)
 
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I would answer the question by stating all of my strengths and what I can offer the company. I would definitely try to differentiate myself from other candidates. That question is not nearly as bad as "Tell us about some of your weaknesses."
 
pilot4500 said:
I would answer the question by stating all of my strengths and what I can offer the company. I would definitely try to differentiate myself from other candidates. That question is not nearly as bad as "Tell us about some of your weaknesses."
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The problem is that you've already listed all your strengths and what you would offer the company during an earlier part of the interview. You've also already been trying to differentiate yourself for the entire length of the interview. IMO it's a stupid question.
 
pilot4500 said:
I would answer the question by stating all of my strengths and what I can offer the company. I would definitely try to differentiate myself from other candidates. That question is not nearly as bad as "Tell us about some of your weaknesses."
Click to expand...

I hate the weaknesses question. I'm so glad they didn't ask me in my interview on Tuesday.
 
I really hate the written essay questions. I always feel that I over think it and then end up rambling through my answer. I do better on question like that when they ask them in person.
 
I reckon that this question is asked just to see whether the interviewee is being consistently truthful in his explanations. I have neither nor ever sat on an interview board, but one thing that I would strongly stress out is consistency because it underscores the interviewee's overall mindset. That said, I myself am of the opinion that the question can be used rather effectively as a further chance to bolster one's strong suits to the interviewer. It makes one look smarter, too.
 
Since the basic aviation info is listed on my resume/cover letter I used this: When we are paired together on a 7 day trip, you're not going to want to kill me by the 7th day, you'll have a blast, and years later you'll come across my name and say,"Raul was an awesome person to work with, and he's a really great pilot. Now let me tell you about this one time at...."
 
The weaknesses question is an interesting one, though. I know that when asked it, my first reaction is to say "I don't have any that are relevant to this position". However, I'm equally certain that if I were hiring someone and the prosepective employee answered in this way, I would think he was an ass. Perhaps there's a lesson here, although I can't quite figure it out. ;)
 
To the interviewee every question might sound idiotic.

"Why should we hire you?" or "What are some of your weaknesses, or where do you feel you could improve your skills and qualifications in regards to this position?"

I'd ask this question for two distinct reasons:

1. I'd like to genuinely know what the applicant thinks differentiates him/her/ it from all the other smiley faces.
2. I'd like to see if the challenge to the noggin will be enough to make the person talk me out of hiring them.

Many people have managed #2 by starting to brag and show personality traits that clearly raised a flag.
Especially when placing a woman (note-taker) on the table or having more than one person ask questions, you can see how easily someone gets nervous or intimidated. Incredibly funny, especially if your note taker looks hot and just scribbles smiley faces on a blank piece of paper throughout the whole interview... :aghast: Every response equals a smiley face.

Remember, the reason you're sitting for an interview is that the employer is intrigued/ tempted to hire you.

We used to have a "scenario questionnaire" that could be used to differentiate the dumbos from who we'd like to hire.
The "If => Then" style question (answered in full sentences) game is cool, as it shows if people tend to over-think or bolster their responses in order to make themselves look better.

When you dig deeper, you'll find discrepancies on a resume or expose downright lies or fluffed up titles.
 
When I was interviewing folks and used the weakness questions, I would hate those folks that tended to paint their weakness as a positive.

"I guess my greatest weakness is I work too much" Yeah right, all employers hate that buddy.....

Doesn't have to be an absolute fail item like, "I have an addiction to internet scat and snuff films"

Add something like, "While I think I'm fairly effective at closing deals, I think I could use some insight and perspective on XYZ companies negotiation strategies and how I can improve in my own in order to deliver better value to our bottom line"

The whole process at Boeing is structured and will start with, "Tell me about a time when....." Then you are supposed to talk for 3-5 minutes, not say yes, or nod your head, not a 60 min documentry about your life.
 
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