What a hell of a question. They cannot be serious, can they? I mean, who would not want to work at Google? Nobody pays the engineers and managers as much as Google does. Their working environment is renowned, and you may share the office with some of the brightest minds in the Silicon Valley. What’s more, you’ll work on products billions of people use, all across the globe. And once you have their name on your resume–GOOGLE, you’ll never ever struggle again to get an interview with any tech company in the world.

To sum it up, for a typical corporate rat, and especially for an engineer, working for Google represents a pinnacle of one’s professional career. All of these things should be obvious to hiring managers at Google. So why do they ask you the question? Well, they have different motives. First of all, they want to see if you have a particular product or division on your mind, something you’d like to work on while with the company, and a good reason for your choice. Secondly, they want to hear what matters the most to you–the salary offer, company reputation, chance to work with extremely smart people, or even just having their name on your resume.

Let’s have a look at 7 sample answers to the question. I included on my list also some unconventional answers. Remember that interviewing for any job at Google (unless it is a senior role or a an extremely specialized IT position), you will compete with dozens or hundreds of other applicants. You should try to stand out with your answers. It doesn’t mean that you have to come up with an unexpected answer to all of their questions. But you should definitely try to do so with at least two or three of your answers, and this question is a great opportunity to say something they will remember. Let’s proceed with the answers.

 

7 sample answers to “Why do you want to work at Google” interview question

  1. To start with, I consider you the leading player in technology, innovation, and overall the leading player online. In my book, considering the variety of products and services you offer to both individual and corporate users all around the world, Facebook and Amazon are no match to you. Secondly, I believe I’ve been through enough in my career up to this point, working in several startups, creating innovative solutions, to be a good enough candidate to join your team. And last but not least, I still believe I can grow both as an engineer and as a leader, and I see no better place to do so than here at Google.
  2. I’m fascinated with your driverless cars. I’ve been following your progress for years, and I see a huge potential in the revolution you try to bring to the automotive industry, and to the roads of the United States. What is more, I’ve been working on an autonomous car in my last job with XYZ, in the programming team, and really feel that my experience and passion is a great match for the job with you. Needless to say, I know that your budget is almost unlimited, and that you won’t stop the project of driverless cars anytime soon. As a programmer I can work on the next big thing with you, and that’s extremely motivating to me.
  3. Well, I think a better question would be why anyone would refuse working at Google. Look, the remuneration packages at Google are second to none. You have the brightest minds onboard, including some geniuses, people everyone would love to work with. What is more, every single engineer, and every single person in the world for that matter, strives for recognition. It is enough saying to someone that you work for Google, and they immediately start to listen to you. Honestly I see no reason why someone would not want to work here, unless we talk about entrepreneurs or professional athletes, of course. But I am an engineer, and in my eyes Google personifies everything I’d like to achieve in my professional career.
  4. I feel it is the next step in my professional career. Looking at my track record, the things I’ve achieved as a leading manager in my previous occupations, I feel that I’ve proven to anyone that I can work for the best company in the world. Sure enough, I realize it won’t be easy here, and some weeks we may work up to 80 hours–if not longer. And I know that the challenges awaiting me here, and the expectations, exceed anything I’ve been through up to this point in my career. But I feel ready to face the challenge, deliver, and make something big happen for both Google and my professional career.
  5. I want to work at Google because I want to be a multi-millionaire. Honestly, I crave a lavish lifestyle, and I am ready to sacrifice a lot to make my dream come true. But I am no entrepreneur by heart. Sure enough, I enjoy solving problems and coming up with new ideas. But in my heart I am an employee, and prefer to work for someone. Google has created many millionaires over the years, including some billionaires. Why couldn’t I become the next one on the list? I am definitely ready to do everything to make it happen.
  6. Speaking honestly, names and monikers mean a little to me. What I focus on when looking for a job is the job description. Things I will work on, team I will belong to, impact I can have in my employment. And reading the job description for the position in your Google Analytics team, I found a perfect match to my expectations, strengths, and personality. Without a doubt, it is better working for a big company, just for the sake of job security and career growth options. But honestly, I would apply for the job even if someone else advertised it, because I find it a perfect match to everything I’ve done up to this point in my career, and to everything I would like to achieve in the next few years.
  7. My main driving force is the sheer impact I can have working for you, working on products billions of people use all around the world, on a daily basis. The second thing are your agile teams, and the working culture at Google. I’ve been a part of an agile team in the past. The things I learned during this period, and the results we managed to achieve, are unmatched with anything else I’ve done in my professional career. Last but not least, you treat your engineers very generously, and I’d earn with you more than I’d earn in any other place.

 

Try to be specific while explaining your choice

Probably the best way to stand out with your answer is citing specific reasons why you want to work for Google. It can be referring to certain product you want to work on, or a certain team you’d like to belong to, or even matching particular experience you have (working on a certain product or using certain technology) with the job you try to get with them, explaining how the experience will help you to deliver in your new role.

Remember that the more specific you are, the better your chances to succeed in an interview with Google. Ensure the hiring managers that you weren’t attracted only by the name of the company on the job offer. On the contrary, you’ve found a deeper connection, a perfect match, and now you are ready to explain it in your interview. The fact that you’ll work for Google–one of the most successful companies in the world, paying crazy-high salaries to their engineers, is just a nice bonus in this case…

Do not be afraid to try an unconventional answer–especially when you have nothing to lose

You should look at your job application with a critical eye. Do you consider yourself one of the favorites to get a job with Google, or are you rather an underdog, considering your experience and education?

If you find yourself in a position of an underdog, you should definitely give some thought to unconventional answers. 95 out of 100 applicants will heap praise on Google and the managers in their interviews. Maybe you can try to stand out saying that name of the company actually doesn’t matter to you (check sample answer no. 6 on my list). You focus on the job, the type of work you will do and the technologies you will work with, and do not care whether it is advertised by Google, or Gogol, or Olgoog, or whatever company.

You can take it even one step further, betting on brutal honesty. You dream of a lavish lifestyle–big house, expensive cars, exotic holidays, you name it. Sure enough, you can become the next multi-millionaire working for Google–especially if you deliver on their expectations. Check sample answer no. 5 on my list to see how to express this attitude.

Needless to say, if you consider yourself a favorite in the interviews, or at least someone with a pretty good chances to succeed, it is better going for conventional answers, such as number 1, 2, 3, or 7 on my list. If you have nothing to lose, however, your best bet is saying something they will remember for a long time, simply because no other candidate will give them a similar answer…

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Matthew Chulaw
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