What to say if interviewer ask ‘do you have any questions for us’: Techie shares what you shouldn’t say
He has successfully completed every round of interviews for a new startup in the used car industry, chief product officer Karan Gogna said in a LinkedIn post. According to him, the human resources team had already requested his documents to move forward with the recruitment process.
CEO requests one last meeting
Gogna said that later that day, the HR team informed him that the company’s CEO wanted to have a final meeting before moving forward with the offer.
He said he approached the meeting determined to perform well and felt the meeting with the CEO went smoothly. However, the interview took an unexpected turn towards the end.
The question led to an unexpected answer
According to Gogna, the CEO asked if he had any questions before ending the interview. Hoping to pose a thoughtful strategic question, he asked whether the company planned to enter the two-wheeler market.
Rather than answering directly, the CEO responded by asking Gogna whether he believed the company should expand into this segment.
Gogna said the company has made extensive preparations for its four-wheeler business but has not explored the two-wheeler market. As a result, he found it difficult to give a convincing answer. “I had done my homework on four-wheelers but had nothing on two-wheelers. I clumsily came up with an answer with no real perspective behind it,” he wrote.
The company chose another candidate
Gogna said HR notified him the next day that the company had decided to move forward with another candidate and that his profile would remain in their system.
Reflecting on the experience, he said that he believed the meeting went well overall, but felt that the final meeting affected the outcome.
He advised candidates to prepare not only for the interview questions, but also for the questions they intend to ask the interviewers. A candidate’s closing question can be the ultimate indicator of how they think and therefore should be approached with equal seriousness, he said, while also being prepared in case the interviewer turns the question back on himself.
Social media users share mixed opinions
The LinkedIn post generated responses from many professionals, some of whom shared similar interview experiences.
One user said they could relate to Gogna’s experience and recalled once asking a startup founder if the company was still getting funding in a tough market. The user later said he realized the question could be perceived as disrespectful and acknowledged the challenges of starting a company.
Another user disagreed with Gogna’s conclusion, suggesting that he evaluated how the interviewer handled the uncertainty after the question was redirected. Responding to an unexpected situation during a live interview reflects a different skill than simply asking thoughtful questions, the user said.
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