As CEO, I am often asked to be part of the interview process at Catapult Systems, even when the position does not report to me directly.
I tailor my questions to each role and situation, of course, but always conclude the interview by asking the candidate to share the most recent nonfiction book they’ve read in their field — and then something they learned from it. Depending on the job they are interviewing for, I might ask them for the most recent book they’ve read on management, leadership, sales, marketing, human resources, etc. This is a perfectly reasonable and innocuous question since, after all, this is the candidate’s professed field of expertise. How could any professional not want to stay current in their chosen line of work? I’ll even broaden the question to the most recent article, blog post, or column they’ve read.
Sadly, I am always amazed by how many people stumble on this question and can’t come up with a decent answer. And while failure to answer this question might not disqualify a candidate completely, it’s a pretty big red flag in my book.
Read more on my Business Journal Column…
