Posted on 12/29/2011 6:16:52 AM PST by LibWhacker
"If Germans were the tallest people in the world, how would you prove it?"
That was the head-scratcher asked during a job interview for a product marketing post at Hewlett-Packard.
Technology firms featured heavily in this year's list of the 25 most oddball questions compiled by the US employment website Glassdoor.
Careers experts said the questions were intended to make a candidate display a thoughtful approach to problem-solving.
As well as HP's brain-acher, interviewees at other companies were asked:
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.co.uk ...
I interviewed for an Electronics Technician job back in 1998 at Tracor, which is now part of BAE Systems.
I was instructed by the interviewer, to “draw a radio.”
I drew a block diagram from memory of a UHF transceiver that I had worked on extensively during my first enlistment in the Navy (I’m retired Navy).
He recognized the diagram because he had also repaired those radios. He told me that one guy actually drew a picture of a radio.
I got the job........
“If Germans were the tallest people in the world, how would you prove it?”
“This is a marketing job I’m applying for, right?”
“Yes.”
“I’d put an IQ test in their bathrooms.”
“What would that prove?”
“Nothing about their height, but we could see if their waste was capable of working at Hewlett Packard because you evidently hire stupid s&%$s here.”
Hadn’t thought of weight distribution or least amount of material.
Nice going ...
This is my favorite of all the interview questions I’ve been asked, as it caused me to sit back and think.
Interview questions
That is my favorite example of a classic Algebra mistake. I love that one.
Also love the Bob Barker (?) quiz game where there are 3 curtains (A, B and C) and 1 car hidden behind one of the 3 curtains. You chose curtain “A”, the host opens a curtain”B” and exposes a ‘wheelbarrow’; leaving you with your origional curtain “A”, and an unknown curtain “C”. The host then offers you a chance to change your mind from Curtain A, to Curtain C).
Are your odds of winning the car better, worse or the same if you change your mind? If you do the math, if you don’t change your mind - you have a 33% chance of winning; if you consistently change your mind you have a 66% chance of winning the car.
"Why did you spend all that money developing the TouchPad, only to promptly discontinue it?"
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