Sometimes you have to wonder if hiring managers throw oddball questions at candidates to come off as being quirky or they are simply going through great lengths to appear smarter than they really are. And, while some of these oddball questions might be part of a corporate playbook and, a way to test a candidate’s analytic and thinking skills some of them are just weird.
A list of aptly named, strange interview questions is compiled by Suzanne Lucas in her article 10 of the Strangest True Interview Questions.
- “When a hot dog expands, in which direction does it split and why?” –SpaceX Propulsion Structural Analyst job candidate (New York, NY).
- “Would you rather fight 1 horse-sized duck, or 100 duck-sized horses?” –Whole Foods Market Meat Cutter job candidate (Lexington-Fayette, KY).
- “If you’re the CEO, what are the first three things you check about the business when you wake up?” – Dropbox Rotation Program job candidate (San Francisco, CA).
- “What would the name of your debut album be?”–Urban Outfitters Sales Associate job candidate (New York, NY).
- “How would you sell hot coco in Florida?”–J.W. Business Acquisitions Human Resources Recruiter job candidate (Atlanta, GA).
- “If I gave you $40,000 to start a business, what would you start?”–Hubspot Account Manager job candidate (San Francisco, CA).
- “What would you do if you found a penguin in the freezer?”–Trader Joe’s job candidate (Orange, CA).
- “If you were a brand, what would be your motto?”–Boston Consulting Group Consultant job candidate (Washington, D.C.).
- “How many basketballs would fit in this room?”–Delta Airlines Revenue Management Co-op job candidate (Cincinnati, OH).
- “If you had $2,000, how would you double it in 24 hours?”–Uniqlo Management Trainee job candidate (Los Angeles, CA).
Maybe, some of these companies are trying to pick the best and brightest mind from their list of candidates and that’s one of the ways to select the true creative genius out of the pack. And as for the candidates, the best advice is to be prepared for anything.
Keep current with ATS:
- Follow ATS on Twitter
- Join the conversation with ATS on Pinterest
- Follow ATS on Google Plus