Why Do You Want To Work Here?

This is a question that thousands of individuals, like myself, are answering these days. How should one really answer this question?

What you want to say: “I’m desperate and you responded to my application with a request for an interview. I really don’t care if you are in the widget business or the swidget business.”

What should you say: “My ultimate objective is to rise to a leadership position in <Enter field>, and I know having the opportunity to grow my experience and improve upon my skills will help bring me closer to achieving that goal.” (from Indeed.com)

Applying for new positions can be a chore. It does not just consist of completing mundane applications and constantly updating your resume to fit the position that you are currently applying for and such a perfect fit for. You are constantly facing a new existential crisis when the stranger across the desk or on the other side of a video call poses the question to you, “Why are you here?”

Why, indeed? No, not Indeed.com — that’s just the website where you found this new object of your affection: that potential new job.

Re-Inventing Yourself or Sociopathic Tendencies?

When companies want to hire their new associate, they want people to fit into their organization. We, as employees and job seekers, take this fact as natural and just “go with it”. We format and re-format our resumes, tailor that cover letter “just right”, and answer questions to how we think they should be answered. Why can’t we just be ourselves?

Perhaps an answer to this question should be called the corporate paradox. On one end, companies say they want to hire people who think for themselves and practice individualism while being a good “team player” and do whatever is best for the team, In studying management, we learned about the enemy of productivity is a concept called group think. Group think is “the practice of thinking or making decisions as a group in a way that discourages creativity or individual responsibility”.

Sounds messed up, right? Companies want productive individuals to just go with the flow and do whatever the manager decides for the group. Definitely a corporate paradox.

How does the corporate paradox relate back to the question of why you want to work for the company interviewing you? You cannot answer this question completely as yourself. You need to either re-invent yourself to answer that question, or answer the question in a way that would make a sociopathic person feel proud. The hiring manager does not want to hear truthfully why you want to work for him. He or she wants you to stroke their ego and tell them that you want to work for them to make them look better by helping to increase profits or look like a miracle worker by completing all projects early and under budget.

So Why Do It?

Capitalism. You need money, and the company needs to hire people to make them more money.

As you seek new employment and go on countless number of interviews, let’s go against the corporate paradox. When the hiring manager asks, “why do you want to work here?”, let us answer with the truth: “I need money. You need me to get the job done so you look good to your boss that we are coming in early and under budget. Everyone is happy. So, do I get the job?”