On the one hand, its your time to show a potential employer everything you bring to the table. On the other hand, clumsy or incomplete answers could easily hinder your chances of being hired.
You can’t be sure of every question a hiring manager will ask, but Suzy Welch, a best-selling author on management and a contributor to CNBC, knows exactly what you should say in those situations.
Below, Welch tells CNBC Make It exactly how to answer seven interview questions that almost all job seekers will face:
Getting hired at Suzy can be competitive, with multiple rounds of interviews designed to thoroughly assess candidates Standing out requires strategic preparation, especially around the most common Suzy interview questions
In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore the top 15 Suzy interview questions, provide sample answers, and share tips to help you craft your best responses. With insight into Suzy’s values, culture, and hiring priorities, you can tackle the interview process with confidence.
Overview of Suzy’s Interview Process
The Suzy interview process typically involves:
- An initial phone screening with a recruiter
- One or more interviews with hiring managers and team members
- A case study or presentation to assess skills
- A final interview with senior leadership
Suzy values candidates that demonstrate strong strategic thinking, analytical abilities, and collaboration skills. They look for innovative self-starters who can contribute creative ideas while working cooperatively
Fit with the company culture is also important. Suzy prides itself on transparency, agility, and a customer-centric approach. Showcasing your alignment with these values can give you an edge.
15 Common Suzy Interview Questions and Answers
Here are 15 of the most frequent Suzy interview questions along with tips for crafting winning sample responses:
1. Why do you want to work for Suzy?
This common opening question allows you to demonstrate your knowledge of Suzy and the alignment between your goals and Suzy’s mission.
Tips:
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Research Suzy thoroughly to reference specific details on their products, services, values and achievements.
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Link your skills, values and passions with tangible examples of how you can contribute.
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Convey genuine enthusiasm for the role and working at Suzy.
Sample Answer: As a data-driven marketer, I’m deeply impressed by Suzy’s use of analytics and AI to deliver real-time consumer insights. The level of innovation and agility evident in Suzy’s success resonates with my own commitment to forward-thinking solutions. I would be excited to join a team of like-minded professionals pushing the boundaries of market research. In particular, I believe my 7 years’ experience driving data-based campaigns and my Master’s in marketing analytics equip me to meaningfully contribute to Suzy’s customer intelligence initiatives. I’m inspired by the opportunity to leverage my skills in a fast-paced, collaborative environment like Suzy.
2. How would you describe your strengths and weaknesses?
Hiring managers want to understand your self-awareness and areas for improvement. Be honest but focus on strengths aligned with the role.
Tips:
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Choose 2-3 relevant strengths backed by specific examples. E.g. data analysis, strategic planning, building partnerships.
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For weaknesses, share skills you’re actively developing. Frame areas needing growth as opportunities.
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Demonstrate how you leverage strengths and mitigate weaknesses.
Sample Answer: My key strengths include data analysis, collaboration and strategic planning. In my current role, I’ve been able to consistently identify trends and insights within large datasets, which informs marketing strategies. Coworker feedback also praises my teamwork and my ability to build consensus around shared objectives. An area I’m actively developing is public speaking. While I’m comfortable presenting to small teams, large audiences require me to continue sharpening my skills. To overcome this, I take every opportunity to speak at company townhalls and have joined Toastmasters International. I also partner with extroverted colleagues to learn from their approaches. By leveraging my analytical abilities while improving my public speaking, I’m able to contribute value as both a strategic thinker and an engaging communicator.
3. How do you prioritize projects with tight deadlines?
This question tests your time management and prioritization abilities – critical skills at a fast-paced company like Suzy.
Tips:
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Outline your systematic approach to assessing urgency and importance.
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Share examples of successfully prioritizing multiple complex projects.
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Emphasize collaboration with your manager to align on priorities.
Sample Answer: When juggling multiple tight deadlines, I leverage frameworks like the Eisenhower Matrix to map out priorities. I start by working with my manager and stakeholders to understand primary objectives and dependencies between tasks. More urgent and important items are tackled first, while less time-sensitive work can be scheduled later. I’m meticulous in documenting deadlines across projects using shared calendars and project management tools. This allows me to sequence tasks efficiently, minimize redundancy, and ensure quality isn’t sacrificed for speed. A key lesson has been proactive communication with my manager to quickly adjust timeframes if delays arise. For example, when unexpected issues caused a project to run behind, I immediately consulted my manager, deprioritized less critical work, and ultimately delivered the project successfully within two days of the deadline.
4. Describe a time you successfully led a team. What approaches did you find most effective?
Leadership abilities and collaboration skills are highly valued at Suzy. Share key principles that guide your team leadership approach.
Tips:
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Illustrate your leadership experience with a specific example/scenario.
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Emphasize listening, inspiring, and empowering team members.
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Discuss setting clear goals, managing diverse perspectives, and catalyzing collaboration.
Sample Answer: As a team lead of 5 junior analysts, I learned that listening and seeking input are cornerstones of engaging leadership. For example, when we were tasked with boosting social media engagement, I actively elicited each person’s insights during brainstorming rather than dictating a plan. This surfaced novel concepts and built buy-in. I also emphasized clear communication of expectations, which I’ve found critical for aligning the team. Each member understood their role in achieving our targets, allowing me to delegate confidently. To support collaboration, I conducted regular check-ins to solve blocking issues. This multi-pronged approach led to a 35% increase in engagement, with the team motivated and empowered through the process. I’m passionate about leading teams in a collaborative, transparent manner where all voices are valued.
5. Have you managed a project that missed a major milestone? What did you learn?
This behavioral question tests your accountability, reflection and ability to learn from setbacks. Be honest while emphasizing problem-solving skills.
Tips:
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Choose an example that showcases lessons learned about planning, communication, or risk management.
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Avoid blaming others; focus on ownership of the situation.
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Discuss process improvements made post-project to prevent recurrence.
Sample Answer: Yes, as project lead on a customer survey analysis, we overlooked a dependency that caused us to miss a reporting deadline by two weeks due to data discrepancies. In hindsight, I should have required more detailed documentation around data inputs from the onset. To prevent similar issues, I now mandate cross-functional data mapping sessions at project kick-off to surface dependencies. I also learned the value of proactive risk management, leading to my current practice of maintaining a risk register and mitigation plan for large projects. Lastly, the experience emphasized the need for transparency. I now provide weekly status reports to stakeholders even on smooth projects, ensuring early visibility to any roadblocks. While missing the milestone was disappointing, the learnings fundamentally improved how I approach project planning and communication.
6. How would you go about improving our brand awareness?
This hypothetical question tests your strategic thinking and analytical abilities within a marketing context.
Tips:
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Ask clarifying questions about the company’s existing brand strategy and challenges.
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Demonstrate a structured approach to identifying growth opportunities.
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Recommend innovative tactics aligned with the company’s brand and target audience.
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Cite examples of successful brand awareness campaigns.
Sample Answer: My first step would be conducting in-depth research on our current brand equity and perception versus competitors. This would reveal potential gaps in awareness among key demographics. Competitive analysis could also highlight tactical opportunities based on our strengths versus rivals. I would analyze past campaign performance to inform future initiatives focused on channels with highest ROI. My approach would balance brand messaging through paid advertising with engaging content that resonates organically. For example, an awareness campaign could leverage influencer partnerships on social media, while SEM and retargeting ads reinforce our brand identity among potential customers already in-market. I would also propose a beta brand tracking survey to measure baseline metrics and quantify the impact of our efforts. My ultimate goal would be developing an integrated strategy that delivers consistent branding across channels while maximizing reach.
7. How do you motivate yourself on projects you find uninteresting?
This question probes your intrinsic motivation and attitude when undertaking mundane tasks.
Tips:
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Demonstrate a commitment to excellence even on routine work.
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Discuss relating the project to larger goals to find greater meaning in your contributions.
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Share tactics for maintaining productivity and accuracy when unmotivated.
Sample Answer: While every project may not seem stimulating on the surface, I remind myself that all work contributes to organizational success in some capacity. When assigned routine tasks, I try to identify their value to the broader team goals and how they fit into the big picture vision. Maintaining this perspective motivates me to execute mundane projects with the same diligence and quality as the most visible assignments
“Tell me about a mistake you made.”
Being asked to discuss your past mistakes in an interview may throw you for a loop. Welch says that many hiring managers ask this question because “they want to know if you take responsibility for your mistakes or if you’re the kind of jerk who says other people are to blame.” “.
She also says that interviewers want to know how you handle things that don’t go as planned. Welch says this is why it’s important to make the right mistake: “big enough to show you have the bumps and bruises of real experience, but small enough to show you are generally very competent.” “.
But even if you know you made the right mistake, Welch says you shouldn’t focus on the bad thing for too long because it could hurt your chances of getting the job. Spend most of your answer to this question talking about what you learned, how you changed, and how you grew after making a mistake,” she says. “.
“Describe yourself in three words.”
When you’re trying to show a hiring manager that you’re a well-rounded candidate, it can be hard to sum up yourself in three words. Welch says that interviewers love to ask this question, no matter how hard it seems, to “see if you’re genuine and self-aware.” “.
She says that the best answer should have something that shows how your mind works, something that shows who you are, and something interesting about you.
