How Long Will it Take to Make a Significant Contribution?

By Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter

In this video, Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter explains how to answer this interview question.

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Today, I want to talk with you about one of those tough interview questions that’s posed to. . .  They’re trying to learn more about you and part of what they’re trying to do is see if you’re dumb enough to give them a stupid answer on an interview and then they can use that to turn you down. Remember, the easiest thing for them to do is to dismiss people, rather than to hire people. So, what they’re trying to do was to filter people out.

Now, one of the questions that is sometimes asked is, “So, how long do you think it might take to make a meaningful contribution around here,” or words to that effect? Basically, what they’re trying to do is to see whether you’ve got “gumption.” That’s a word I really don’t like so I’ve kind of make fun of it by saying it is” gumption.”

Now, when you think about it, you have no idea what you’re stepping into. The “however” is they want to get a flavor for your tenacity and your determination. So, one of the things you can say is, “You know, I would expect to make some version of contribution from day one. The “however” is, if you’re talking about “a significant contribution,” I don’t fully know the organization and what I’m stepping into. I don’t know the relationships and I don’t know how things are done here. If you’re looking for a guesstimate from me, I think it’s reasonable to expect, six months to learn the lay of the land and how things are really done here and, conservatively, six months to a year, certainly to make a significant contribution.”

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Now, what you’ve done is a couple of things. Number one, is you actually given them a reasonable answer. Number two is, again, remember, I’m a big believer in you kind of use theater to act out your answer. So you kind of have to say it as, “I would expect to make a contribution from day one but it’s going to take a while to learn the lay of the land, how things are done, who does what, how to get things accomplished. So, I think it’s pretty reasonable . . .” Notice how I broke eye contact for a second? It gives them the idea that you’re thinking about your answer.

“I think it’s pretty reasonable to expect somewhere between six months and a year to make a contribution to the organization that you’d consider a significant.”

And if you really want to not pull punches with them, before you even start answering questions, ask them, what’s a “significant contribution” to you because their definition of “significant” can be very different than yours. So, you never want to seem like have a canned answer. You always have to act like you’re thinking about it.

But, ultimately, everything should be pretty well rehearsed so that instinctively. “What would you consider a significant contribution?”

“I would like you to part the Red Sea for all the world to see your infinite power.”

“Well, that might take longer than six to 12 months,” but, you know, when all is said and done, they’re going to talk about some significant job responsibility and what those are. You can just give them a reasonable guesstimate, but we’re always talking terms of making a significant contribution almost immediately, but then needed to learn the lay of the land, but you figure it could take . . . my suggestion is six to 12 months. They may be thinking in terms of something shorter than that. You’ll hear what they think is significant from them as they start answering the question.

Decisions

ABOUT JEFF ALTMAN, THE BIG GAME HUNTER

People hire Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter to provide No BS job search coaching and career advice globally because he makes job search and succeeding in your career easier. 

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