To be fair: A lot of people don’t hate their jobs. Of course, if someone asked me the question in the panel, I’d think they were over-doing it, but it’s a completely fair question to ask someone why they think this job could be something they enjoy.
Specifically, employees that enjoy their work are less likely to leave the company at the first opportunity. Hiring people costs money, so it makes sense to choose a candidate that is at least to some degree passionate about what they’ll be doing.
Of course you need money, the interviewer knows that and isn’t asking about it.
They are asking why would you choose to work for this company over another. Imagine you got 3 job offers, and all are offering the same salary. You’d have to choose one offer to accept, and the interviewer wants to know why his company is the one you’d choose, because they’d prefer someone who is interested. What caught your eye about this job posting?
Source: Am the interviewer. Of course I wouldn’t word it like in the meme.
The company typically has much more opportunities to hire someone else than the prospective employee has to accept another offer.
Forcing the interviewee to pretend to love the company is both a demonstration of that power imbalance and a way to test just how desperate and/or creatively subservient they are. The company then gives points for the load of bullshit closest to the preferred ones they decided on in advance.
Not at all. The reason you’d choose to work at a particular company exists whether or not you have any other offers.
And loving the company is just creepy, that’s not what you should be showing. Your interviewer is probably your potential coworker, and they don’t want work with a bootlicker either.
There are multiple good reasons though, and it’s a good question.
First, whoever answers it well is going to have a leg up, whether it’s asked or not. Would you prefer secret questions you just have to know or would you prefer they just ask you explicitly?
Second, if you’re so jaded that you can’t come up with a reason, however minor, you’re probably more trouble than you’re worth. Negative morale is contagious.
whoever answers it well is going to have a leg up, whether it’s asked or not
No. If you don’t ask the specific question, preparing a specific answer to it isn’t going to be advantageous.
Would you prefer secret questions you just have to know or would you prefer they just ask you explicitly?
That makes even LESS sense than the first part! Personally I don’t like my ability to not die to depend on how well I lie about my motivations and preferences. Unless the job is an undercover op where being super psyched about spreadsheets is an integral part of the cover, I guess 🤷
As for your “would you prefer”, that’s a hell of a false dichotomy! There’s no world where explaining why I’d be overjoyed to work at Blouse Barn is necessary for not being required to be able to answer secret bullshit. None. Even if you believe in infinite multiverse theory.
Second, if you’re so jaded that you can’t come up with a reason, however minor, you’re probably more trouble than you’re worth
Yeah, because everyone knows that the only people who don’t have a thesis on why being the night receptionist for The Very Big Corporation of America would profoundly fulfill them must be “jaded” 🙄
Negative morale is contagious.
The fuck it is! Mistreating and underway in workers, though? Seems to be a socially contagious epidemic every time there’s a bootlicker convention…
In conclusion,
There are multiple good reasons though, and it’s a good question.
Is the biggest lie I’ve seen since the last time I read about a Trump nominee for chief ruiner of something.
I’ve always enjoyed fashion, and I like being able to work with people to find what they like.
a thesis on why being the night receptionist for The Very Big Corporation of America would profoundly fulfill them
Assuming hotel for “night”. People tend to be more honest and interesting at night, sometimes for the worse, but sometimes for the better. I don’t mind being personable in that way, and I appreciate quiet time to keep things organized. It can be a lot like solving a jigsaw puzzle, except you’re actually getting something done.
It’s not that hard. It doesn’t have to be your goal in life. They understand you’re there primarily for money. But it certainly helps if there are things you like doing at least a little. Prompted or not, someone who talks about those reasons is going to do better in the interview than someone who doesn’t. It’s easier to tell them if they explicitly ask you. And if you can’t find a reason, I guess you better hope there aren’t too many applicants for that shitty job.
Imagine you got 3 job offers … the interviewer wants to know why his company is the one you’d choose
Because you expressed interest in hiring me? And I need a job? So I’m here? I’d also be perfectly content picking the other 2 companies if it’s the same salary.
What caught your eye about this job posting?
The fact that you guys said you were hiring?
they’d prefer someone who is interested
I guess this is the real problem. I don’t care about your company. I’m here to exchange my time for money. I have my own interests and they don’t involve working at your company.
But, yes fine. I understand this is the game I have to play. I will lie to you and tell you that it’s been my dream since I was a little kid to work at your dumb company, selling shit that no one needs or tricking people into giving you money.
One company that asked me this made… let’s say IoT flower pots (something mundane like that)… I guess I’m supposed to say: OMG! I. LOVE. CONNECTED. FLOWER. POTS! How did humanity survive without internet connected flower pots??! My sole purpose in life is to help make IoT flower pots. Please allow me to join you guys! 🙇♀️🙇♀️🙇♀️
Is it not possible to have something like this?
Job: We need someone who can build IoT flower pots.
That’s a perfectly fine position to have, but surely you are not surprised that given a candidate that shows some interest, and a candidate that doesn’t care, the company would prefer the former. You don’t need to be interested, that’s ok, but if someone else is, then they will probably be easier to work with.
IoT flower pots? I could say “I noticed you use MQTT for networking the pots, I used it before for a hobby project of a multiplayer Scrabble game, it’s pretty cool tech. And I saw in the posting you want to move from Atmega32 to an ARM chip? What are your plans for the compiler toolchain?”
At no point did I mention I like flower pots or that I think they are a good idea. And yet I’ve shown I have previous experience, a desire to learn new skills, and turned the conversation around by asking a question. And I didn’t lie or “play a game”.
And if there is literally nothing interesting about the company, that’s fine, but then the company is probably not interested in you either. And there is nothing wrong with that.
surely you are not surprised that given a candidate that shows some interest, and a candidate that doesn’t care, the company would prefer the former.
Definitely. That’s why I lie.
if someone else is, then they will probably be easier to work with.
I actually really challenge this point. Specifically because I don’t care, I would say I’m very easy to work with. Example: Did the manager just order us to do something really stupid? Sounds good to me! I’m on it, boss! On the other hand, I’ve worked with tons of people who care way too much. Sometimes it seems like they think it’s their company. Those people are hard to work with.
The order doesn’t even have to be stupid, it can just be something the passionate employee disagrees with. At a previous company, we were told to make some app work because we had an important demo coming up. One super passionate dude on my team almost derailed us because he insisted that we fix the app the “correct” way. In theory, he was correct, however in practice he was dead wrong.
I didn’t care either way, so I just made the thing work.
I could say “I noticed you use MQTT for networking the pots…
Yeah, this is the same game I play. I avoid answering their question of “Why FlowerPot.ly?” and just give some generic answer that applies to any company, not specifically FlowerPot.ly. I would also throw in some lies like, “My brother owns an IoT flower pot. I think it’s so cool!”.
It is supremely stupid and a waste of everyone’s time to ask a question that everyone knows the vast majority of people are going to parrot some variation of the same lie too.
You’re operating under some weird assumption that people get multiple job offers within a timeframe that can be considered competitive.
I’m in the middle of job interviews right now. I hate this question so much.
I want to work here because I need money! WTF are you talking about??? Are you a real human??
See also: https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/2014-08-17
To be fair: A lot of people don’t hate their jobs. Of course, if someone asked me the question in the panel, I’d think they were over-doing it, but it’s a completely fair question to ask someone why they think this job could be something they enjoy.
Specifically, employees that enjoy their work are less likely to leave the company at the first opportunity. Hiring people costs money, so it makes sense to choose a candidate that is at least to some degree passionate about what they’ll be doing.
The only panel that’s wrong is the answer to “why this company in particular”
It should be “your company gives more currency in exchange for service than your competitor”
At least in the US, you don’t typically know whether that’s true or not until after the interview when (if) you get an offer letter.
Haha then how do you know which companies it’s even worth your time applying for?
That’s the thing. You don’t.
Corporations are not people. There are people working there, but they all represent something that is inhumane.
Of course you need money, the interviewer knows that and isn’t asking about it.
They are asking why would you choose to work for this company over another. Imagine you got 3 job offers, and all are offering the same salary. You’d have to choose one offer to accept, and the interviewer wants to know why his company is the one you’d choose, because they’d prefer someone who is interested. What caught your eye about this job posting?
Source: Am the interviewer. Of course I wouldn’t word it like in the meme.
I’m gonna stop you right there
Skill issue
Haha I know, but it illustrates the concept.
By inverting the freedom of choice balance.
The company typically has much more opportunities to hire someone else than the prospective employee has to accept another offer.
Forcing the interviewee to pretend to love the company is both a demonstration of that power imbalance and a way to test just how desperate and/or creatively subservient they are. The company then gives points for the load of bullshit closest to the preferred ones they decided on in advance.
Not at all. The reason you’d choose to work at a particular company exists whether or not you have any other offers.
And loving the company is just creepy, that’s not what you should be showing. Your interviewer is probably your potential coworker, and they don’t want work with a bootlicker either.
There are multiple good reasons though, and it’s a good question.
First, whoever answers it well is going to have a leg up, whether it’s asked or not. Would you prefer secret questions you just have to know or would you prefer they just ask you explicitly?
Second, if you’re so jaded that you can’t come up with a reason, however minor, you’re probably more trouble than you’re worth. Negative morale is contagious.
No. If you don’t ask the specific question, preparing a specific answer to it isn’t going to be advantageous.
That makes even LESS sense than the first part! Personally I don’t like my ability to not die to depend on how well I lie about my motivations and preferences. Unless the job is an undercover op where being super psyched about spreadsheets is an integral part of the cover, I guess 🤷
As for your “would you prefer”, that’s a hell of a false dichotomy! There’s no world where explaining why I’d be overjoyed to work at Blouse Barn is necessary for not being required to be able to answer secret bullshit. None. Even if you believe in infinite multiverse theory.
Yeah, because everyone knows that the only people who don’t have a thesis on why being the night receptionist for The Very Big Corporation of America would profoundly fulfill them must be “jaded” 🙄
The fuck it is! Mistreating and underway in workers, though? Seems to be a socially contagious epidemic every time there’s a bootlicker convention…
In conclusion,
Is the biggest lie I’ve seen since the last time I read about a Trump nominee for chief ruiner of something.
I’ve always enjoyed fashion, and I like being able to work with people to find what they like.
Assuming hotel for “night”. People tend to be more honest and interesting at night, sometimes for the worse, but sometimes for the better. I don’t mind being personable in that way, and I appreciate quiet time to keep things organized. It can be a lot like solving a jigsaw puzzle, except you’re actually getting something done.
It’s not that hard. It doesn’t have to be your goal in life. They understand you’re there primarily for money. But it certainly helps if there are things you like doing at least a little. Prompted or not, someone who talks about those reasons is going to do better in the interview than someone who doesn’t. It’s easier to tell them if they explicitly ask you. And if you can’t find a reason, I guess you better hope there aren’t too many applicants for that shitty job.
Because you expressed interest in hiring me? And I need a job? So I’m here? I’d also be perfectly content picking the other 2 companies if it’s the same salary.
The fact that you guys said you were hiring?
I guess this is the real problem. I don’t care about your company. I’m here to exchange my time for money. I have my own interests and they don’t involve working at your company.
But, yes fine. I understand this is the game I have to play. I will lie to you and tell you that it’s been my dream since I was a little kid to work at your dumb company, selling shit that no one needs or tricking people into giving you money.
One company that asked me this made… let’s say IoT flower pots (something mundane like that)… I guess I’m supposed to say: OMG! I. LOVE. CONNECTED. FLOWER. POTS! How did humanity survive without internet connected flower pots??! My sole purpose in life is to help make IoT flower pots. Please allow me to join you guys! 🙇♀️🙇♀️🙇♀️
Is it not possible to have something like this?
That’s a perfectly fine position to have, but surely you are not surprised that given a candidate that shows some interest, and a candidate that doesn’t care, the company would prefer the former. You don’t need to be interested, that’s ok, but if someone else is, then they will probably be easier to work with.
IoT flower pots? I could say “I noticed you use MQTT for networking the pots, I used it before for a hobby project of a multiplayer Scrabble game, it’s pretty cool tech. And I saw in the posting you want to move from Atmega32 to an ARM chip? What are your plans for the compiler toolchain?”
At no point did I mention I like flower pots or that I think they are a good idea. And yet I’ve shown I have previous experience, a desire to learn new skills, and turned the conversation around by asking a question. And I didn’t lie or “play a game”.
And if there is literally nothing interesting about the company, that’s fine, but then the company is probably not interested in you either. And there is nothing wrong with that.
Definitely. That’s why I lie.
I actually really challenge this point. Specifically because I don’t care, I would say I’m very easy to work with. Example: Did the manager just order us to do something really stupid? Sounds good to me! I’m on it, boss! On the other hand, I’ve worked with tons of people who care way too much. Sometimes it seems like they think it’s their company. Those people are hard to work with.
The order doesn’t even have to be stupid, it can just be something the passionate employee disagrees with. At a previous company, we were told to make some app work because we had an important demo coming up. One super passionate dude on my team almost derailed us because he insisted that we fix the app the “correct” way. In theory, he was correct, however in practice he was dead wrong.
I didn’t care either way, so I just made the thing work.
Yeah, this is the same game I play. I avoid answering their question of “Why FlowerPot.ly?” and just give some generic answer that applies to any company, not specifically FlowerPot.ly. I would also throw in some lies like, “My brother owns an IoT flower pot. I think it’s so cool!”.
And there we go, we’ve answered your original question of
You get what he’s taking about - it’s not about the money.
There are two issues with your entire argument.
It is supremely stupid and a waste of everyone’s time to ask a question that everyone knows the vast majority of people are going to parrot some variation of the same lie too.
You’re operating under some weird assumption that people get multiple job offers within a timeframe that can be considered competitive.