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Unusual Interview Practices For Checking Culture Fit

Determining Culture Fit

Before we begin, here are a few off-beat questions that have been asked by companies that lead the globe in varied verticals.

Can you recite your resume by heart?

Tesla

 Tell us how whacky you can be, on a scale of 1-10.

Amazon

Would you be able to define empathy for me?

Apple

Above are some examples of the unusually interesting interview practices. HR Managers all around attest to the efficacy of this kind of practice as it helps them create a simulation that tests not just soft skills of potential candidates, but also helps them determine the amount of creativity they might possess.

The time is evolving at a rapid pace and so is the way employers conduct interviews. Owing to the massive competition in the industry at any given point of time, it becomes important for you to find out a perfectly assembled yardstick to test the potential of candidates that walk in the interview door.

While many still follow run-of-the-mill practices, there is an increasingly growing breed of new-age employers who take the unusual route. This route comes with its advantages as it helps them determine whether the person sitting in front of them is a good fit to their work culture or not.

Here are a three unusual interview practices that employers can follow in their next interview.

BRING UNPREDICTABILITY TO THE TABLE

Often times, when teams enter into the thick of certain unfavourable situations, they may have to take decisions that don’t come with any pre-set guidelines. It is important for you to ensure that your candidate can handle such a situation when unpredictability strikes. For instance, you can ask a question like – If I were to speak to your best friend now, what is that one quality that they would want you to work on?

Collaborate with your HR team to create a pattern of unpredictable situations that have the potential to throw the candidate off their game. It could be anything from assigning them a task and interrupting it by asking them to change the work system they are working on to asking them to sit with a ‘sit in front of a panel of members’ right when they think the interview is coming to a close.

MAKE THEM UNCOMFORTABLE

There is an interesting case study that reports a lot of times when hiring for senior management positions, employers start an impromptu fire drill. The candidate, who is unaware about this drill, assumes that the fire is real. The ensuing reactions from them help the interviewers understand how they will prioritise their team under crisis.

This is one such exercise that can be followed to push the candidate out of their comfort zone. Other practices that can be followed are continuously making wrong assumptions, interrupting the candidate when they are explaining something important or just straight up giving them the answers while asking questions. This helps employers understand if the candidates might face attitudinal issues or get easily annoyed in future.

PUT THEM THROUGH A TEST

This practice works best if the interview is being conducted in a more informal setting. For instance, you can ask your interviewee to meet you in a restaurant or a café. Before the candidate walks in, ask the management of the establishment to ensure that whatever dish they order, must be badly cooked. Once the orders are placed and the dishes arrive, you will get the perfect opportunity to test how the candidate reacts to not just the dish but also the management.

Other examples of putting your candidates through a test would be to turn up late for the interview or give them an irrelevant test. This will help employers find out how the individual will be able to navigate their way through different situations and find a solution that suits them best. The best solvers are usually the ones who come up with multiple solutions and could be a good cultural fit.

While many of these surprising situations won’t be compatible with all candidates, they can help you gauge their reactions. Even if it so happens that they don’t become measures to evaluate the candidate, these practices are sure to keep them engaged.

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