Marathon interviews

It doesn't seem as if the answer to this question actually answered the question. The LW is concerned about how to answer questions throughout the day if those questions are very much the same interviewer to interviewer. I agree with Pattie that a smart hiring manager will have arranged an interview so that such repetition would not occur -- but rarely have I been on this type of interview without getting some seriously repetitive questions.

Pattie's answer contains a brief line that seems like a clue -- a manager may plant a few repetitive questions in there to look for authenticity and consistency. Don't worry about repeating yourself-- just be honest. If you say the same thing, so be it. They won't have cause to doubt your stories that way.

If they interviewers are all asking the same questions - tells the interviewee they have not discussed or shared their interview questions prior. You should always anwser honestly and completely even if that means repeating the answer 7 times! They asked, you answered!

Agree with #1, did Pattie read the question or just spew a canned answer after she saw "marathon interview"? If I was interviewing Pattie (Job Doc) and she answered my question with her answer she wouldn't get the job!

My company does marathon interviews, one candidate all day long. No one compares notes on whether he/she answered the identical question the same for each person. It's an up or down vote. Use your best answer with each interviewer, don't worry about repeating.

But you will probably learn something about each manager you are interviewing with and it is possible to quickly tailor your answer for each person, even if essentially the same question.

I would agree that this didn't answer the question. I think the answer to the repetition issue depends. Personally, I have a few really great examples of my best work and tend to go back to them. Consistency matters. That's not a problem if you have a new audience for each interview. Often there are holdovers however, especially if you're doing the kind of public interviews they have in colleges and universities. One way to manage it is to make it clear that you know you're repeating yourself like "sorry for repeating this" or "my apologies to those who have heard me say this but it is such an important point..." Another way to manage this is to make something of a joke of it - "stop me if you've heard this before" (directed at the holdovers) or that kind of thing.

Tough crew. Thank goodness I am gainfully employed! Phew. :)

Pattie Hunt Sinacole

Think about it this way: why do you care if the questions are repeats? It may seem boring to you, but for each interviewer, it is a fresh question. Don't forget--you are the candidate and not the other way around.

Let me point out another danger of marathon interviews. I once had an interview that ran from 8:30 AM to 2:45 PM, with only short breaks in between. I expected that one of the interviews between 12-2 would be at the employee cafeteria or somewhere else where we'd get lunch, but I was wrong. By 1 PM was was feeling a bit tired, and the last interview at 2:00 was really difficult. I could deal with the hunger, but I was running low on sugar and the brain was ready to shut down (I had to wake up early for the drive, too). After that, I have never been to an interview without a candy bar. I'd advise you to remember this if you are called in for a marathon interview and the itinerary does not specify 'lunch'

I'm the person that posed the question -- thanks, Nancy G -- your strategy seems good. I survived the interview of 5 managers, one hour each, but unfortunately did not get the job. It was my third round of interviews with that company. They all pretty much asked the same questions and I prepared an arsenal of varied responses except for points on which I really wanted to be consisted. By the end of the day, I was physically exhausted.

still looking,

i am one of the interviewers. after meeting with my peers we determined that you did not give us consistent enough answers to the same questions. that was planned and your answers were simply troubling. there seems to be more to your story than you want to share. you'll need to be more honest if you plan on getting a job in this economy.

Interviewer #3:

Perhaps the problem is that your company's interview style resembles police officers grilling a suspect in the hopes that they will confess or otherwise slip up. When you create such a hostile environment during an interview, is it any wonder that the candidate's responses are not ideal? Remember that an interview goes both ways; canny candidates will take the opportunity to determine what the working environment would be like. You most likely made the candidate feel like a criminal. People who get treated like that generally don't want to work in such an environment and will turn down the position based on that.

I'm assuming that Interviewer #3 is just messing with Still Looking. How could you possibly know that you were one of the interviewers without any identifying information? I know a number of people who have had this type of interview in the last few days.