"Why Should We Hire You?" Interview Question

Post author By Laura DeCarlo

This is a critical question because it will show your success, self-confidence, and preparation.

Employers take this question very seriously, and you should, too.

In this answer, do double-time by selling yourself and by demonstrating your knowledge of the company.

Start by doing your homework on the employer before the interview, even if it is “only” a telephone interview.

That research will likely include visiting their website, Googling their name, and performing an advanced search on LinkedIn long before you ever find yourself in the interview! [Read The Winning Difference: Pre-Interview Preparation for details.]

The question of, “Why should we hire you?” can take a variety of forms such as, “Why do you think you will be successful in this position?”

Like “Why do you want to work here?“ and “Tell me about yourself,” this question is the employer’s invitation to sell yourself as the answer to their needs.

Bad Answers to “Why Should We Hire You?”

An answer that focuses on the benefits to you is a bad answer. So, answers like:

I need the money.
I need a job.
This location is very close to where I live (or go to school or want to move or whatever).
A friend used to work here and said you pay well.

As important as those reasons are to you, they are not the reasons the employer will hire you. Frankly, nice as these people might be, they really don’t care about the benefits to you if they hire you.

Your answer to this question should focus on them, not on you! You are the seller in this situation, not the buyer. So, you need to focus on the benefits (more than one!) to this buyer.

Remember that the goal here is to entice this employer to offer you this job.

Best Way to Answer “Why Should We Hire You?”

Connect the dots between the job requirements and your qualifications. Start by doing a careful analysis of the job’s requirements so you know:

The requirements you meet.
The requirements you exceed.
The requirements you don’t meet.

In today’s job market, employers reportedly find candidates who are a 50 percent “fit” with the job’s specifications to be acceptable, although they prefer candidates who meet more of the requirements. The best strategy is to analyze the job and your fit with it before applying.

Following the steps outlined by recruiter Jeff Lipschultz in 3 Steps to Interview Success: Build Your Interview Checklist will help you analyze the job, determine your fit, and decide how to describe your qualifications in a way that will enable the employer to see you as a good match.

Example Answers to “Why Should We Hire You?”

Embrace that this question as an opportunity to emphasize your value and to demonstrate your knowledge as they work together to show how well you could do the job.

For example, someone applying for a position as an administrative assistant, which requires experience and expertise with Microsoft software, might say:

I have been using Word, Excel, and Outlook since 2001 to maintain both financial and administrative records, to create and distribute internal reports for management, and to create and distribute the internal organizational newsletter which was sent to over 200 staff members twice a month.

The financial reports were created and maintained using Excel, and both newsletters were written using Microsoft Word, using templates that I developed. Those financial reports monitored employee activity and asset usage, used by 4 senior managers including the CEO and COO. They were distributed using Microsoft Outlook.

I have taken several workshops on Microsoft Office products, and have worked with the newest version and previous versions, going back to the 1997 version. So, I am very comfortable with the Microsoft Office suite of products.

Or, in a more traditional situation, here’s what you might prepare to say as a new graduate of a medical transcription training program applying for a job with a cardiology practice:

I believe that I will be successful in this position because I have 900 hours of hands-on training in medical transcription in a classroom environment at the XYZ Institute.

(Get out your portfolio, and open it to a print out of a sample of your work).

Here you can see several examples of medical records, dictation, and reports I have produced in MS Word.

I have also excelled in my terminology courses, gaining a strong base in numerous disciplines.

However, I have always been interested in Cardiology and made it a personal goal to focus on that area. Because of that, I read the Journal of Cardiology to stay up-to-date with changes in the field, names of new pharmaceuticals, and other innovations.

I have an excellent basis in the discipline to transcribe the records of your Cardiologists with ease. Also, I recently joined the American Association of Medical Transcriptionists and am already taking steps to pursue certification.

When I share answers like this, most people react by saying, “That’s so good; I could’t do that.” But, that’s not true – crafting answers like this is just getting to know yourself in advance.

[MORE: Smart Answers to Interview Questions.]

Advanced Preparation to Make Sure You Get Hired

You need to plan to answer questions about why you are qualified and know how to sell yourself above the other applicants.

Realize that you may have the same skillset as other applicants, but much of job interview success revolves around who does the best job at communicating their expertise in the interview!

So, spend some time doing the following:

Listing your skills and strengths.
Writing CAR stories (Challenges, Actions, and Results) about accomplishments for each of your jobs.
Documenting your accomplishments.
Uncovering what makes you special by reviewing letters of recommendation and/or other testimonials you may have from work, school, and volunteering.
Writing down concrete answers to questions like this that give a concrete example to prove you fit the bill!

Bottom Line with Answering the Question “Why Should We Hire You?”

By making getting hired your job and putting in the time to prepare, you can successfully and confidently answer an employer when they ask, “Why should we hire you?” Go get ‘em!

Answering the Common Job Interview Questions:

Questions About You:

Handling Special Career Situations:

Questions About Them:

Questions for You to Ask Them:

Do You Have Any Questions? — choose from 50+ good questions to ask them
5 Absolute Must-Ask Questions for the End of Your Next Interview
The Second Interview: 5 Key Questions to Ask
45 Questions You Should NOT to Ask in Job Interviews

Interview Preparation:

About the author…

Laura DeCarlo is recognized as the career industry’s ‘career hero’ making a difference to both job seekers and career professionals as the founder of Career Directors International. She possesses 11 top-level certifications in resume writing, career coaching, and career management; 7 first place resume and job placement awards; and has written three books on interviewing and job search including Interview Pocket RX, Interviewing: The Gold Standard, Resumes for Dummies,and Job Search Bloopers. Follow Laura on Twitter at @careerhero.
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