For most of the job seekers I talk to, AI interviewing just feels like another hurdle to jump over as they navigate their way through an impossible job search. I mean, have you seen some of the videos on TikTok? I thought technology was supposed to improve the experience until I saw this video. But the more I talk to people who are actually interviewing with the bots in recent weeks - specifically former DoD employees, students attending grad school, and career counselors from big name universities - I get why it feels like they need a whole new guide to navigate the AI interview process. 

This technology is different for a lot of reasons. As someone who has watched and written about trends in recruiting since 2008, I haven’t seen one particular technology in recruiting get as much attention as AI, well, ever. But as much as it’s sold as an opportunity for efficiency to recruiters in these morning news stories, candidates struggle. We, the people, haven’t been taught how to show up when there’s not a human on the other side of the interview. 

I believe our struggle to show up in response to machines during an interview is social and emotional. Type-A overachievers hear “interview” and will always show up overly formal and stiff. Without a human there to break the tension or remind them to relax, that qualified candidate may get rejected. Socially, there are different expectations when we’re interacting with a machine. Some folks hear “AI interview” and treat it like a conversation with a chat bot, leading to overly casual and incomplete answers to interview questions. We show up differently when we think there’s a person on the other side of a call. 

How To Answer AI Interview Questions

Unfortunately, a human on the other side is becoming more rare. So how do we get better at talking to machines? You practice answering interview questions for machines. Bonus: it’ll help you answer questions for the humans, too. 

In all the interviewing I’ve done, the number one mistake most people make is that they don’t answer questions completely. The benefit with a human is that they can ask the follow up. With a machine, there’s no one there to say “that’s not enough information,” so you need to practice this skill.

To answer an interview question completely, reference the following things every time you answer a question. 

• Repeat the question with a clear answer to the question. For example, “Tell me about a time you…” - I would respond clearly, “I have done this. So when I worked on the project, ...” then add the next pieces. Clearly state "yes, I did it" so the machine isn’t left to determine patterns.
• Autonomy - Did you do it by yourself? Did you get help? Say things like, “I worked with a team” or “I worked by myself.”  
• Aptitude - Tools used and functions utilized.  Be explicit about the tools you used. If you have any certifications, mention that. 
• Leadership - Were you the boss? Say that and mention how big the team was.  
• Teamwork - Who did you work with? What departments? What were their titles? This is an area where people sometimes go into way too much detail. If there are a lot of people, focus on the most senior title in the group and what department they were in. 
• Scope and Scale - Include at least one set of numbers. 

So, let’s say they ask me this: Tell me about a campaign you ran. Tell me the tools you used and the results you delivered. This is what I might say from early in my career when I worked at Monster.com: 

Yes, I worked as a social media ninja at Monster.com. There were 5 people on my team including the VP of PR. I focused on conversations with candidates while my peer helped employers. We used Facebook, LinkedIn, and email. I wrote all the emails myself. I also worked cross functionally with sales and partnerships to extend the reach of other marking campaigns. In one case, I helped take a campaign from 1,000 impressions to over a million with my Twitter and email strategy. 

Be sure to practice before you go into the call, too. There are a ton of situational based interview question examples. Your confidence, even if you’re talking to an AI interviewer, will be reflected in just how many times you’ve said these things out loud.