If you look that question up on the web, the standard answer is to focus on technology, see what you can do to update technology and then the final quip invariably is, “for you who aren’t on Twitter, learn about Twitter. Talk about Twitter.” What a crap answer that is!
I think there is a realistic way to answer that question that really will make you stand out. If you give the generic answer, “Well, there was a time when our technology didn’t work, etc.,” you just bored them. Is what you want to do?
When they ask that question, answer by saying “I think business is about
constantly reassessing. Every time we do an update, every time you do an improvement, it’s based upon the idea that the old was good for a while but things change and we have to be prepared to change with it.
“So, for example, in our firm, we were doing it, such and such and I was part of a group that evaluated and assessed the few alternatives to doing it that way, you were trying to . . . Do you get where I am going with this?
This can be answered at the staff level. “Our department was doing things in a particular way.” You define where you were at that point. “We were constantly looking at ways to improve performance. “So, I noticed that we weren’t getting results from the same old thing. So, I spoke with my boss about . . . “
Notice, you are defining the problem, you are talking about how to improve how that situation is being handled and what you did to contribute.
You can talk about the process that you engaged in, whether you interviewed different people to see if they saw there was a problem, got input from them throughout, polled them throughout the process, etc..
But, do not, I beg you, do not talk about technology specifically and, that Twitter answer … What crap! You don’t want to give crappy answers. You want to have solid professional quality answers, not bull like that!
Ⓒ The Big Game Hunter, Inc., Asheville, NC 2020
ABOUT JEFF ALTMAN, THE BIG GAME HUNTER
Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter is a coach who worked as a recruiter for what seems like one hundred years. His work involves career coaching, all as well as executive job search coaching, job coaching, and interview coaching. He is the host of “No BS Job Search Advice Radio,” the #1 podcast in iTunes for job search with more than 1800 episodes, and is a member of The Forbes Coaches Council.
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