How Should I Answer the ‘Why Should We Hire You’ Question in Job Interviews?
Welcome to CB’s work-advice column that includes Emily Durham, a Toronto-based senior recruiter at Intuit, public speaker and content material creator identified for her humorous and relatable TikToks about all issues work. Each month, Durham solutions reader questions on matters that have an effect on our capacity to thrive in our jobs, and presents her real-world insights on find out how to deal with even probably the most rock-and-a-hard-place conundrums. Have a work-related query? Send it to [email protected].
Q: I’m at the moment interviewing for a brand new function and battle every time the hiring supervisor asks me “why should we hire you?” I’ve no downside promoting my abilities in different interview questions, however this one actually stumps me. I merely don’t know what to say and find out how to place a solution that isn’t clichéd and units me other than different candidates. How can I reply so I impress the interviewer?
You’re not alone find this query robust. It’s open-ended and it’s laborious to know find out how to reply with out being imprecise or come off as obsequious by merely gushing in regards to the firm and the way a lot you need to work there. But in any interview, it’s nearly assured that you can be requested “why should we hire you?” by the assessor. When answered properly, this query does have the potential to set you other than the competitors and provide help to safe your dream job. When answered poorly, it could actually set the improper tone for the remainder of the hiring course of.
Understanding find out how to successfully reply “why should we hire you?” begins with reframing how you concentrate on the query. The query will not be designed to make you stumble or slip up, moderately it’s designed to present you one other alternative to promote your self for the function. While many frequent interview questions permit so that you can share your expertise and abilities, this one permits you to zero in on the {qualifications} that you simply suppose are most spectacular and related for the actual job.
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Before you map out the construction of your reply, it is very important take into consideration what data you’ll embody to spotlight your match for the place. You can take into consideration your reply as structured into three elements: an outline of who you’re and what you do, some examples of your abilities and, lastly, some examples of your values.
Your reply ought to begin with that quick overview, about one to 3 sentences (consider this as your LinkedIn profile headline). When I first interviewed with Intuit 4 years in the past, that is what I stated: “Hiring me means hiring a seasoned recruiter with seven-plus years of experience in talent programs, high-volume hiring and talent marketing.”
Next, name out how your abilities align to these listed within the job description. This portion of your reply is designed to reiterate your robust profile with a direct tie to the way it meets the wants of the corporate you’re making use of to. It’s helpful to spotlight among the less-obvious or extra specialised abilities as a way to actually stand out from the competitors. For instance, saying you might have “strong communication skills” isn’t as impactful as saying that you’ve a observe document of speaking with of us who work in any respect totally different ranges and capabilities inside an organization. For my job, Intuit was on the lookout for a recruiter to construct an early careers recruitment program throughout a number of markets, so I pressured that I’m each skilled in and captivated with that facet of the function, citing particular examples.
Next up, examples of your values and the way they align with the job. Because your reply wants to spotlight your curiosity in each the function and the group, I all the time advise job seekers to take a look at the corporate’s web site and careers web page prematurely of interviews to get a way of their values, merchandise or tradition and to be prepared to speak about these within the interview. As all the time, be sincere in regards to the components of the function and firm that stand out to you; recruiters need to see your genuine curiosity. As a rule of thumb, should you don’t have a selected instance or proof, don’t convey it up. Going again to my expertise, I stated one thing to the impact of: “I really align with the organization’s passion for solving customer problems with technology. Intuit’s value of ‘stronger together’ is something that I’ve personally embodied while building international recruiting programs in partnership with stakeholders.” I used the remainder of the interview—and the others questions requested—to present examples of how I did this in earlier roles.
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It’s necessary to do not forget that a very good interview ought to really feel like a dialog, so watch out to not over-prepare. Sometimes of us write out their interview solutions and ship them word-for-word like a monologue. Although being ready is a optimistic factor, being too scripted can really make your interview really feel robotic and never real. Instead, map out the tough factors you’ll cowl on this reply, and provides your self the house to ship your response in a manner that’s natural and off the cuff.
“Why should we hire you?” is a query that presents a tremendous alternative to market your self as the perfect candidate for the place. Using this framework, and avoiding writing a full script, can set you up for achievement in your subsequent huge interview.
