HOW TO HIRE THE BEST

Sign up for the

41 of Google's Toughest Interview Questions ✕
Inc. This Morning newsletter
The technology giant has a reputation for giving brainteasers to job candidates.

EMAIL ADDRESS SIGN UP

By Maya Kosoff Business Insider @mekosoff

GETTY IMAGES

Google has a reputation for asking difficult, brainteaser interview questions that challenge how you act under pressure.

Most of them require you to think quantitatively and broadly, and test the way you tackle problems on the spot.

Google probably switches up its questions over time, but career website Glassdoor provides a glimpse of the types of
brain-stumping puzzles Google has asked in the past.

Not all of Google's tricky questions are necessarily meant to be brainteasers--some of them sound simple but turn out to
be difficult to answer in a concise way.

1. What is your favorite Google product, and how would you improve it?--Associate product
manager, January 2016
Source

2. If you wanted to bring your dog to work but one of your team members was allergic to dogs, what
would you do?--Associate account strategist, December 2014
Source
3. If ads were removed from YouTube, how would you monetize it?--Associate account strategist,
January 2016
Source 
Sign up for the ✕
Inc. This Morning newsletter
4. What do you know about Google?--Administrative business partner, February 2015
EMAIL ADDRESS SIGN UP
Source
5. Design an evacuation plan for the building.--Business analyst, November 2014
Source

6. Which do you think has more advertising potential in Boston, a flower shop or a funeral home?--
Account strategist, October 2015
Source
 
7. A coin was flipped 1,000 times and there were 560 heads. Do you think the coin is biased?--
Quantitative analyst, September 2015
Source

8. What does "being Googley" mean to you?--Product specialist, December 2015

Source
9. Name a prank you would pull on x manager if you were hired.--Google applications support
engineer, June 2014
Source 

10. What is your opinion on whether or not individuals should be required to use their official name
when opening a Gmail or Google + account?--Administrative assistant, April 2014
Source

11. What would you want to do if you didn't have to work?--Interaction designer, September 2014
Source

12. What scares you?--Business analyst interview, September 2014

Source

13. How many ways can you think of to find a needle in a haystack?--Business associate, May 2014
Source
14. Estimate the number of tennis balls that can fit into a plane.--Intern, December 2015
Source
15. If you could be remembered for one sentence, what would it be?--Associate account strategist,
March 2014
Source 

16. If you could only choose one song to play every time you walked into a room for the rest of your
life, what would it be?--Associate account strategist, March 2014
Source
 
17. How do you think the digital advertising world will change in the next three years?--Creative
director, January 2016
Source

18. What three things would you change at your university/workplace if you were CEO today?--
Account strategist, April 2014
Source
19. Describe AdWords to a 7-year-old.--Associate account strategist, December 2014
Source
 
Sign up for the ✕
20.
Inc.You have anewsletter
This Morning grocery delivery service (similar to Amazon Fresh) that delivers food within 24 hours.
Estimate how many trucks you need to operate this service.--Product manager, November 2015
EMAIL ADDRESS SIGN UP
Source

21. How would you explain cloud computing to a 6-year-old?--Product manager, November 2015
Source
22. Tell me what you think about Google charging users $1 per month to use Gmail.-- BOLD
candidate, October 2015
Source 

23. How many haircuts do you think happen in America every year?--Business associate, May 2014
24. List six things that make you nervous.--Android support level III, July 2014
Source 

25. Tell me something about you that isn't on your résumé.--Associate account strategist, March
2014
Source
 
26. What is the market for driverless cars in the year 2020?--Product manager, November 2015
Source

27. Model raindrops falling on a sidewalk (sidewalk is 1m and raindrops are 1cm). How could we
know when the sidewalk is completely wet?--Software engineer, January 2016
Source
28. How would I explain the importance of HTML 5 to Larry Page and then to my grandma?--Creative
specialist, January 2016
Source

29. Tell me a joke.--Executive assistant, March 2014

Source

30. Do you prefer earning or learning?--Software engineer, January 2016

Source

31. If I gave you $10 million right now, what would you do?--Associate account strategist, May 2014

Source

32. Define a service that would allow you to travel to the future.--Interaction designer, December
2015
Source

33. Would you remove the link to an extremist piece of writing?--Legal assistant, December 2015
Source
34. How could you solve humankind's biggest crisis given $1 billion and a spacecraft?--Database
administrator, December 2015
Source
 
35. You have a colony on Mars that you want to communicate with. How do you build a system to
communicate with them?--Associate product manager, November 2014
Source
36. How many cars travel across a bridge each day?--Advertising interview, September 2014
Source

37. ✕
Inc.IfThis
you had newsletter
access to a bank's database, how would you use that information to design an ATM
Sign up for the
Morning
for elderly people?--Associate product manager, February 2015
38. How would you improve a shoe factory?--Field operations specialist, November 2014
EMAIL ADDRESS SIGN UP

Source 

39. Design a mobile social app for a chain of local orthodontist offices.--Product manager,
November 2015
Source

40. What is the number of new book titles published in the U.S. each year?--Product manager,
November 2015
Source
 
41. How would you solve homelessness in downtown San Francisco?--Product manager, November
2015
Source

Lisa Eadicicco contributed to an earlier version of this story.

This story first appeared on Business Insider. 

PUBLISHED ON: JAN 21, 2016

More from Inc.

Sponsored Business Content

3. If ads were removed from YouTube, how would you monetize it?--Associate account strategist,
January 2016
Source 

4. What do you know about Google?--Administrative business partner, February 2015

Source
 Sign up for the ✕
Inc. This Morning newsletter
5. Design an evacuation plan for the building.--Business analyst, November 2014
Source
EMAIL ADDRESS SIGN UP

6. Which do you think has more advertising potential in Boston, a flower shop or a funeral home?--
Account strategist, October 2015
Source
 
7. A coin was flipped 1,000 times and there were 560 heads. Do you think the coin is biased?--
Quantitative analyst, September 2015
Source

8. What does "being Googley" mean to you?--Product specialist, December 2015

Source

9. Name a prank you would pull on x manager if you were hired.--Google applications support
engineer, June 2014
Source 

10. What is your opinion on whether or not individuals should be required to use their official name
when opening a Gmail or Google + account?--Administrative assistant, April 2014
Source

11. What would you want to do if you didn't have to work?--Interaction designer, September 2014
Source

12. What scares you?--Business analyst interview, September 2014

Source

13. How many ways can you think of to find a needle in a haystack?--Business associate, May 2014
Source
14. Estimate the number of tennis balls that can fit into a plane.--Intern, December 2015
Source
15. If you could be remembered for one sentence, what would it be?--Associate account strategist,
Sign up for the ✕
March
Inc. This2014
Morning newsletter

Source 
EMAIL ADDRESS SIGN UP

16. If you could only choose one song to play every time you walked into a room for the rest of your
life, what would it be?--Associate account strategist, March 2014
Source
 

17. How do you think the digital advertising world will change in the next three years?--Creative
director, January 2016
Source

18. What three things would you change at your university/workplace if you were CEO today?--
Account strategist, April 2014
Source

19. Describe AdWords to a 7-year-old.--Associate account strategist, December 2014

Source
 
20. You have a grocery delivery service (similar to Amazon Fresh) that delivers food within 24 hours.
Estimate how many trucks you need to operate this service.--Product manager, November 2015
Source

21. How would you explain cloud computing to a 6-year-old?--Product manager, November 2015
Source
22. Tell me what you think about Google charging users $1 per month to use Gmail.-- BOLD
candidate, October 2015
Source 

23. How many haircuts do you think happen in America every year?--Business associate, May 2014
24. List six things that make you nervous.--Android support level III, July 2014
Source 

25. ✕
Inc.Tell me something about you that isn't on your résumé.--Associate account strategist, March
Sign up for the
This Morning newsletter
2014
EMAIL ADDRESS SIGN UP
Source
 

26. What is the market for driverless cars in the year 2020?--Product manager, November 2015
Source

27. Model raindrops falling on a sidewalk (sidewalk is 1m and raindrops are 1cm). How could we
know when the sidewalk is completely wet?--Software engineer, January 2016
Source
28. How would I explain the importance of HTML 5 to Larry Page and then to my grandma?--Creative
specialist, January 2016
Source

29. Tell me a joke.--Executive assistant, March 2014

Source

30. Do you prefer earning or learning?--Software engineer, January 2016

Source

31. If I gave you $10 million right now, what would you do?--Associate account strategist, May 2014

Source

32. Define a service that would allow you to travel to the future.--Interaction designer, December
2015
Source

33. Would you remove the link to an extremist piece of writing?--Legal assistant, December 2015
Source
 Sign up for the ✕
Inc. This Morning newsletter

EMAIL ADDRESS SIGN UP

34. How could you solve humankind's biggest crisis given $1 billion and a spacecraft?--Database
administrator, December 2015
Source
 
35. You have a colony on Mars that you want to communicate with. How do you build a system to
communicate with them?--Associate product manager, November 2014
Source

36. How many cars travel across a bridge each day?--Advertising interview, September 2014
Source

37. If you had access to a bank's database, how would you use that information to design an ATM
for elderly people?--Associate product manager, February 2015
38. How would you improve a shoe factory?--Field operations specialist, November 2014
Source 

39. Design a mobile social app for a chain of local orthodontist offices.--Product manager,
November 2015
Source

40. What is the number of new book titles published in the U.S. each year?--Product manager,
November 2015
Source
 
41. How would you solve homelessness in downtown San Francisco?--Product manager, November
2015
Source

Lisa Eadicicco contributed to an earlier version of this story.

This story first appeared on Business Insider. 

 Sign up for the ✕
Inc. This Morning newsletter

EMAIL ADDRESS SIGN UP

|
3 Oddball Interview Questions You Need to Ask

PUBLISHED ON: JAN 21, 2016

More from Inc.
THE AI IN INSURANCE REPORT: How forward-thinking insurers are using AI to slash costs and
boost customer satisfaction as disruption looms
THE AI IN INSURANCE REPORT: How forward-thinking insurers are using AI to slash costs and
boost customer satisfaction as disruption looms
THE AI IN INSURANCE REPORT: How forward-thinking insurers are using AI to slash costs and
boost customer satisfaction as disruption looms
THE AI IN INSURANCE REPORT: How forward-thinking insurers are using AI to slash costs and
boost customer satisfaction as disruption looms

Sponsored Business Content