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11/14/09
The riddle was, "you have 9 coins of the same size. One of them weighs more than the rest. Using only a balance, how do you identify the heavier coin in the least number of weigh-ins?".
I got the answer after a few minutes. It can be accomplished with 2 weigh-ins.
The answer is to separate them into 3 stacks of 3 coins. Then you weigh two of the stacks. If the stacks balance, you know the 3rd stack has the heavier coin. You then put one coin from the third stack onto each side of the balance. If those coins balance out, you know the remaining coin is heavy. If one of the stacks in the first step is heavier you know that stack has the heavy coin and you continue to the second step to weigh that stack. #googleinterviews
11/14/09
11/14/09
11/13/09
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11/13/09
Most of the questions were boilerplate, but then, the manager tosses out, "What would you do when the rabid wolverine we keep in the closet escapes?"
Without missing a beat, I responded, "I'd throw mashed potatoes at it, because everyone knows they love orange juice."
I was able to say it with a straight face and he continued on as if the question and answer never happened.
I ended up getting the job. A few weeks into it, my manager told me it was that answer that got me the job. Everyone else got flustered and stumbled over their response, or asked him to repeat himself. I was the only one to just toss anything out there. He wasn't looking for an answer...he was looking for a reaction to an unusual situation.
Although, he did admit he liked my response.
In the corporate world, sometimes it's not what you know, it's how you do it. I was interviewing for a critical job in the data center, and had to make snap decisions on the fly. Sure, they weren't all that critical, but, I proved I could think on my feet.
So, enjoy your unusual questions. Sometimes the interviewer is an idiot, but, most likely, there is a good reason for asking them. #googleinterviews
11/13/09
But the reader suggested answer demonstrates an entirely different way to go about answering the question (based entirely on assumptions and guesswork).
I wonder what kind of questions they ask when they're interviewing for an industrial organizational psychology job?
Something like, "How many seemingly strange questions does it take to cause a interviewee to mentally break down?" #googleinterviews
11/13/09
I once interviewed for Bain....I got the to final round and was asked two case questions. The first was "how many pieces of mail does the US postal services process every day." Somehow, i nailed it, and actually got to a number close to the actual number (although i don't remember exactly how i arrived at it). The second case was about an airline company where I was given a couple of facts and was told to give my reasoning why the company was losing money. I asked all kinds of questions to see if I could find out something that would indicate the problem, but at the end of the day, I didn't hit on the exact reason Anyways, didn't get the job. oh welllll. that was 5 years ago. #googleinterviews
11/13/09
"How many times a day does a clock’s hands overlap?"
You really have to ask the clarifying questions, like does the clock have a second hand?
If so, does it count as a 1 or two overlaps when all three hands intersect? #googleinterviews
11/13/09
11/13/09
At Google just about everything is done by engineers/developers or people with that mindset. Sometimes even basic decisions are made using algorithms rather than design or marketing knowledge.
Many designers/marketers find this concept horrifying, but it often works quite well for Google. They can push out a variety of different solutions to different customers, and then use the one that works the best in the end. #googleinterviews
11/13/09
11/13/09
11/13/09
when it comes down to it, though, i'd rather work for apple.
11/13/09
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11/13/09
"Maybe…$70,000?"
Something tells me that it wasn't that the questions were hard, but this person wasn't being particularly bright at the time. #googleinterviews
11/13/09
While we're being fair, the "I vowed to switch to Yahoo for life" was childish, moronic, and frankly if I were Google, that alone would confirm I shouldn't have hired her. Sorry, toots. Looking for a job is tough business. You don't get to start your own little boycott at every rejection. And a high-profile company isn't evil just because the interview is hard. That's how they get high-profile. #googleinterviews
11/13/09
10/13/09
Good find!
10/13/09