Interview with a CEO

Question

What kind of interview should I expect when I have an interview for a senior position, and the interview will be held by the company's CEO?

Answer 1

The assumption is that you've already been vetted by his underlings and are only getting to meet with him because you are under serious consideration. If that is the case, you probably just need to keep from pissing on yourself and you'll be fine.

Answer 2

A lot of company mantra, definately not alot of technical questions.

http://www.davidgrant.ca/50_most_common_interview_questions

Answer 3

A tough one!

Seriously though, it's probably going to be slightly development oriented, but probably skim the surface quite lightly. Unless the CEO happens to be / used to be a dev. It will more likely be about your future career progression. Where you see yourself, what the company can offer etc. That's certainly my experience from the same thing.

Answer 4

Don't let the title scare you. I am a CEO myself, but as the sole officer and employee of my corporation, I hold very little sway over others.

Answer 5

No idea, being a CEO doesn't really put him into a box one way or another. Have an open mind. Standard interview etiquette still applies.

The better question is if he's a technical or non-technical person.

Remember, interviews work both ways, you want to make sure that this company is as good of a match for you as you are to them.

Good luck!

Answer 6

Don't forget that the interview should be a two-way street and that you should have a few questions ready for the CEO to show that you really want the job, plus that you do care about getting something out of this. For example, how close to a director or CTO would this position be? What other roles are you hiring to support what I'd do? How are things normally done in this company? If you can show that you have interest, this can make you look good.

Answer 7

A CEO is interested in the firm as a whole

Certainly there are firms where the org chart is flat enough that the CEO is involved in operations, especially in tech. The larger the firm, the less that tends to happen. And there are notable exceptions.

So if it's a large firm, you may be asked very little or nothing about software.

Expect to be asked about your knowledge of and interest in the firm. If you are not asked, it could be helpful to reveal it, if you can do fit it into the conversation in a natural way.

Ask questions about specific aspects of the firm that you have identified that distinguish it from its competition, and listen for understanding to the answers.

Ask about specific challenges that you know the firm faces (Your background research has discovered some of those challenges, right?). If you have ideas about how those challenges might be addressed, ask if your ideas have been considered.

You want to convey the message that you have researched the firm, you are thinking about its future, and you recognize that this is not enough experience for you to think you have anything like definitive solutions.

Relevant characteristics: Curiosity. Interest. Action. Self knowledge. Social skills.