Googleyness Interview Questions - What is it and how to ace them?
Updated: Nov 25, 2021
One of the interview rounds during the Google interview process is focused on leadership and Googleyness. It is possible to be selected for this interview if you've completed the rounds that relate to your position (Role Related Knowledge - RRK) as well as on cognitive assessment (General Cognitive Assessment - GCA). The interviewer will try to assess if you are the right person to work in Google culture and if you will be able to lead a team in the Google environment.
A common question from the candidates is "How do you prepare for Googleyness?". It would be best to display several qualities that will showcase your ability to thrive in a challenging environment.
In the article below, we'll go into the details of this round's expectations and the best way to answer googleyness interview questions by covering the below topics:
Top tips for answering googleyness interview questions
After you have finished going through the article, you'll be able to attend the interview for leadership and googleyness with confidence and answer questions per the expectations of the person interviewing you.
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"Do the right thing."
"Don't be evil" was part of Google's code of conduct for a long time. In 2015, Alphabet slightly changed this to "Do the right thing". Without any doubt, Google is determined to employ people who are honest and trustworthy. Therefore, the number one googleyness item is to be a good person. The best way to showcase your honesty and goodness always gets noticed through the below two items:
Human Interactions: This is likely to be how you interact with people at various levels during the interview process. It could be the coordinator, recruiting manager, people you meet at the office if it happens to be an in-person interview. It would be best if you were nice to every single person you interact with. Though this is not a new thing, it matters the most in Google.
Interview Responses: Consider being completely open and providing answers that are full of truthfulness.
If you can concentrate solely on these two areas, you'll see great results in showing that you have googleyness.
Top 8 tips for answering googleyness interview questions
Googleyness will be assessed through a unique hiring method as part of all the questions in the interview round. Throughout the interview process, you need to be conscious of the below attributes when responding to any question.
THINK POSITIVE
Google takes pride in employees who refuse to react to anything that isn't positive. It emphasizes how to remain positive throughout all interactions with people. Anything negative can put people down, and so you must focus on the positive side of the words you use. It is possible to change and adapt. Consider changing the word problem to opportunity. Engage in conversation and discuss positive things that happen when you make oversight and consider that as a learning opportunity to change yourself for the better.
BE GENDER NEUTRAL
Don't make the mistake of using gender when you speak about individuals. An easy way to do this is to give some imaginary names. For example, you can choose Tom, Sue and Martha as names. This allows you to communicate with anyone without being gender-biased.
BE DIPLOMATIC
Anything that is not politically correct in your usage of words is likely to be harmful to you from a Googleyness perspective. Google is a remarkably inclusive company in which everyone is welcomed. Ensure your answers are being respectful and ethical.
SHOW FUN AT WORK
Having fun is an unofficial but important motto within Google. Google employees work hard. However, they also have fun. Provide anecdotes where you have encouraged the team to have fun when at work, and it will certainly aid you in acing googleyness
SHOW EMPATHY
The ability to empathize with your colleagues is a very important characteristic to showcase during your googleyness interview. Emotional connect is described as the capacity to comprehend and manage your emotions positively to reduce stress and be more effective in communicating with others. It helps in managing conflicts and in overcoming obstacles.
BE HUMAN
It's tough to learn when you aren't willing to admit that you could be mistaken. Your intellectual ability and humility are likely to be showcased by being humble and acknowledging that you've made mistakes, which has helped identify some areas of growth. This could be as simple as letting another team member take charge or relying on someone more experienced and skilled than yourself. You must always talk about your learnings during the interview even when you are responding to questions related to critical feedback. It's impossible to stress enough this quality.
BE ACCOUNTABLE
Google looks for people who take ownership, not employees who do the assigned tasks. Maintain high standards and do not make any excuses during the interview. Be accountable for everything you say, and be sure to discuss what you can do to improve your skills and how you will improve throughout your career. This could be a continual learning process or connecting with different personalities by engaging in team-building activities.
BE ADVENTUROUS
Show your boldness by quoting examples where you have chosen to take a different path with risks for a better outcome. If asked about an opinion about quitting a job and starting your own company, choose the latter option even if it is risky.
Google Definition
In the Google video about googleyness on their career page, Google defines four things below.
Working Style
How do you perform both as an individual as well as in a group? It would be best if you concentrated on what you've done and what you'd like to do in your career in your responses. In addition, you should also emphasize what your team is good at. They might be direct reports and colleagues at a higher level and could also be others who collaborate with you, such as vendors. Be conscious that everything happens through collaboration.
Helping others
Supporting the team is an important trait of leadership and is why googleyness and leadership usually fall within one interview. Helping and caring for others is a quality that is required irrespective of whether it is an individual contributor role or a people manager role. This doesn't have to be restricted to work life. It would be best if you had anecdotes on how you managed to able step up and help people by listening, being compassionate, and what you've gained from that particular event or event is vital.
Ambiguity
Managing ambiguity is very important as no work comes with total certainty. Googleyness is all about appreciating and accepting the ambiguity. Interview questions can test your ability to think through problems using little information. The important thing is how you react and accept the process of finding your way through unfamiliar territory. Prove that you continue to tackle issues, and even though it may be an uphill battle, keeping your positive tone and tone can be extremely beneficial. It would help if you didn't allow any uncertainty or unanswered questions to affect your decision making and it will be a huge red flag on the scale of googleyness.
Get out of your comfort zone
Challenge yourself to be outside of your comfort zone. It could be books you've read or even courses you've attended. This might be challenging yourself to accept a new responsibility that isn't part of your capabilities at work. Your interview is a good example. You will never be in a comfort zone throughout the interview process, but you get through it.
Conclusion
Leadership and googleyness is a vast topic. Google will assess your decision making process and leadership abilities through this interview round. I have tried to address the key points that you need to know. I have conveyed a wide range of ideas and put together all the information so that you're able to comprehend the puzzle in the first place truly.
You have now understood the different rounds in Google interview and where googleyness will fit in. You also know about doing the right thing and what google means by googleyness. I have also give you the top 8 tips to clear the leadership and googleyness interview. I am certain that you will be able to crack the googleyness interview with these inputs.
Also, go through what google has to offer in terms of interview tips. If still uncertain, please reach out to us, and we can give you a 1-to-1 professional interview coaching session.