Ace the "Why This Company" Question. Here's How to Go from 4/10 to 10/10.

You're likely to hear this question in most interviews. Most people pass by with an 'okay' answer. Here's how to use the opportunity to actively advance your case - with 5 live coaching calls.

After “tell me about yourself,” the #2 most frequently asked question you will get in interviews for product management and tech roles is: “why this company?”

I’ve heard it myself at every job I got at least once along the process:

• Why Affirm?

• Why thredUP?

• Why Epic Games?

Every interviewer may not ask you it, but just about every company is going to want to suss out your opinion on this answer.

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The Data Shows It

In a survey of 100 PM hiring managers that I conducted in June & July, 41 hiring managers chose “interest in the company” as one of their top 3 reasons for hiring someone.

What are the top three things you look for when hiring a PM candidate? (choose 3)

It’s actually wild to consider that. For >40% of hiring managers, your interest in their company is one of the top factors.

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It’s Easy to Miss This

It’s human nature. I’ve done it, too. We are so worried about ourselves and our interview performance that we forget this important dimension: conveying our interest in the company.

I’ve actually had several offers not given to me in prior job searches, where the hiring manager or HR manager was willing to hop on the phone and explain that.

They’d say something like this:

“With your brand name company background, some folks were concerned on the panel if you would join our little startup.”

“It wasn’t clear to us why you would accept this role.”

You may have heard similar feedback yourself.

I know several of the mentees I’ve been chatting with recently have experienced it.

So how do you flip the script and take away any doubt in the company’s mind that you want to work for them? That’s today’s post…

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Today’s Post

Words: 5,719 | Est. Reading Time: 25 mins

I’ve worked with several folks to completely eliminate this objection. Through the example of 5 live coaching calls, plus the key frameworks I give you all the tools to do so yourself.

1. The First Principles

2. 5 Live Coaching Calls

   • College Junior

   • Founder Aspiring to be PM

   • Early Career PM

   • Mid-Career PM

   • Later-Career PM

3. Synthesizing the Lessons

4. Most Common Mistakes

5. Framework to Improve Yourself

6. How to Go From Knowledge to Mastery

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1. The First Principles

Why This Company is not the most important question, but your answer can make it the most important factor in why you got hired.

Let’s build a first principles understanding of what you need to be able to do:

The interview is not about facts. It’s a sales call.

The details you include need to be personal, specific to that company, advances your positioning. I describe it as at the intersection of 3 Circles:

• Personal: something only you can say, no one else

• Flip your weaknesses into strengths: it has to be aware of your positioning

• Showcase your PM craft: they shouldn’t apply into any role

Going deeper on point 2, you really want to flip your weaknesses into strengths. This is another space for you to help them put more context about you behind the person. You are mostly answering ‘why this company’ but subtly ‘why this role.’

Consider a 3-point structure to address different areas. This is because you often want to make variety of points. But you need to clearly sign-post between points. It’s best to state all 3 in the intro and talk about them in the conclusion.

Along the way, you need to reinforce your strengths. For example, if you have something the competition doesn’t, how you weave that in so it’s what’s memorable about you.

When it all comes together, you want to go for 2 minutes with a strong energy and fast pace.

So what does this look like in practice? Let’s go through 5 live coaching calls to go much more in depth on what this looks like. We’ll then end with more theory-crafting for you to walk away ready to crush this question.