Reply to: The worst interview question.........

[MyUserName]

I'd imagine the COMS expert was a communications expert - IP phone servers, networking, etc.

Ah right, that makes sense. Weird how he ended up in a software interview for COM expert!

[zara_backdog]

Would you be interested in a permanent position?

I have just been asked at an interview last week 'Would you be interested in a fixed term contract?'

Shudder!

Oh and yesterday - I had to do a presentation

[ContractorHardman]

I was interviewing at a bank and I was interviewing as part of a graduates scheme. The guy in front of me was the favourite on the basis of CV.

Me: "What do you think you could do to improve processes?"
Guy: "I really think managers get more complacent as they get older. They use their experience and stick to their ways which means they become less efficient, blah, blah"
Me: "Meet my colleague X sitting next to me, 30 years in banking and she is a senior manager"
Colleague X then proceeds to roast the poor kid

Lesson: Learn your audience before you make a sweeping statement at interview.

[LondonManc]

It'd explain the candidates you have probably punted to clients from time to time

[DodgyAgent]

[LondonManc]

We were interviewing a guy once for a COM expert position. We wanted a contractor to knock a COM framework for us to use so the requirement was expert in COM and we don't give a stuff about anything else.

The interview started and we asked what he knew about COM. He looked blank and after a few seconds replied "nothing, why do you ask?".

After shared stunned silences we worked out he was a COMS expert and not a COM expert. I am not completely sure what a COMS expert is but it certainly wasn't any use to us.


I interviewed for a position at Pzifer(sp?) for my industrial placement year and the first of about a dozen interviews went:

Him: "Which stats modules do you take?"
Me: "None"
Him:"What? Why?"
Me:"I do not like stats, I took the applied maths modules"
Him:"You do realise that we are hiring a statistician?"
Me:"Are you? I thought you were hiring a programmer?"
Him:"No"
Me:"Oh ... should I go then?"
Him:"The bus isn't coming until 5 so you might as well stay for the interviews but I doubt we will hire you"
Me:"I see ... well ... have you seen any good films recently?"

We had a laugh about it but it was a surreal first interview! It turns out my tutor has misread the job spec.

I'd imagine the COMS expert was a communications expert - IP phone servers, networking, etc.

[MyUserName]

We were interviewing a guy once for a COM expert position. We wanted a contractor to knock a COM framework for us to use so the requirement was expert in COM and we don't give a stuff about anything else.

The interview started and we asked what he knew about COM. He looked blank and after a few seconds replied "nothing, why do you ask?".

After shared stunned silences we worked out he was a COMS expert and not a COM expert. I am not completely sure what a COMS expert is but it certainly wasn't any use to us.


I interviewed for a position at Pzifer(sp?) for my industrial placement year and the first of about a dozen interviews went:

Him: "Which stats modules do you take?"
Me: "None"
Him:"What? Why?"
Me:"I do not like stats, I took the applied maths modules"
Him:"You do realise that we are hiring a statistician?"
Me:"Are you? I thought you were hiring a programmer?"
Him:"No"
Me:"Oh ... should I go then?"
Him:"The bus isn't coming until 5 so you might as well stay for the interviews but I doubt we will hire you"
Me:"I see ... well ... have you seen any good films recently?"

We had a laugh about it but it was a surreal first interview! It turns out my tutor has misread the job spec.

[tomtomagain]

Worst interview answer I ever received...

The worst answer I ever received was when interviewing for a C# dev.

So we have a candidate in front of us, myself and a colleague, and this guy is a bit of a talker, comes across as amiable, but maybe not much of a listener.

Mid-way through the interview we're not getting much detail but he's OK. Plenty of amusing anecdotes and my colleague says:

"Now we are going to ask you some questions on Object Orientated Design"

And I ask my question "Tell me a time when you used an abstract class...... blah blah".

And clearly the guy is not listening because he starts going on about how he took the design lead in his current team because he knew how to use Photoshop and had a good eye for colour.

We're looking at him incredulously when my partner interrupts and says : "Not graphics, object oriented programming".

And which point he says : "Oh you mean things like C++? Oh I never bothered to learn any of that it's much to hard!" .... and then his face falls as he realises what has just come out of his mouth.

Nice guy though. Didn't make the team.

[MrMarkyMark]

Worst interview answer I ever received...

The question: "Tell me, how many data warehouses have you worked on, in terms of building or maintaining?"

The answer (bearing in mind that we were recruiting for a seasoned data warehouse developer and I hadn't sourced the candidates or seen the cvs): "None yet, but I'm really looking forward to it."
Clammy handshake as well.

[LondonManc]

Worst interview answer I ever received...

The question: "Tell me, how many data warehouses have you worked on, in terms of building or maintaining?"

The answer (bearing in mind that we were recruiting for a seasoned data warehouse developer and I hadn't sourced the candidates or seen the cvs): "None yet, but I'm really looking forward to it."

Clammy handshake as well.

[tomtomagain]

In years gone by I used to have to interview many, many, developers for C#/ASP.NET contract positions. I was interviewing 10 - 15 a week at one stage. It is so tedious after a while.

As such I have asked many awful questions. Sometimes simply because I was bored. My worst question was "How do you know when you are done?". That used to illicit some strange responses.

My "best" question to ask a developer though is :

Tell me the name of the last abstract class or interface YOU wrote.

The reason I like it is because a good or great developer will usually just answer it. Almost without thinking about it, maybe after a small pause whilst they trawl their memory and after that will almost always go straight into a description of why they wrote it and where they used it without any prompting.

As soon as they are talking about code they know they usually relax and you can go onto have a good interview.

Whereas a poor developer or faker will have almost certainly brushed up on Object Orientated Programming 101 and have some stock answer in his head about "Animals" or "Shapes" and will be able to trot out a text-book response on polymorphism but actually won't understand when he would use those language features or why.

[SueEllen]

"Well yes, I'd be silly to turn down roles that I can commute to daily, but as I said I'm flexible with regards to location"

"We really need someone who works away more often, preferably all the time"

I gave up at this point.

Even if they live right next to the client's location?

[tomtomagain]

Usually from the HR rep: "Why do you want to work for company x?"

How do you politely tell them you don't give a monkey's if they are x, y or z? They just have work you want.

Easy. You tell them you admire their brand, product and have heard great things about their culture and are excited by the prospect of working with them.

It's a lame question, along the lines of "Where do you see yourself in 5 years time?", but if the HR rep is asking it you need to give them a positive answer they understand as they are unlikely to be able to judge you on your technical merit.

[missinggreenfields]

"What are you looking for in your next contract - what excites you?"

What am I looking for? Lots of cash and not much work. That's why I contract.

[westtester]

"Would you mind working away from home?"

"Yes, I've done that a few times and it's not an issue"

"Oh, I see from your CV that you've worked locally for the last six years?"

"Well yes, I'd be silly to turn down roles that I can commute to daily, but as I said I'm flexible with regards to location"

"We really need someone who works away more often, preferably all the time"

I gave up at this point.