Do you feel like you need to challenge your interviewees a little more? Are the stale, cliché interview questions just not doing it for you anymore? We’ve got the answer: nonsensical, irrelevant, weird and wonderful brainteasers! Useful or a complete waste of time? You decide!

1. 7 Tough Brainteasers to Test an
Interviewee’s Critical Thinking
Could (and should) you use brainteasers to
suss out your bright sparks?

2. Why use brainteasers?
• Problem Solving. Can they at least attempt to
solve problems as they arise?
• Analysis. Can they look at the big picture and
analyse all the information to find a solution?
• Creativity. Do they think outside the box?
• Performance under pressure. Can they
keep it together, when faced with the
unknown?

3. Asking questions that
have no relevance
seems like a great
idea…right?

4. Q1. “If you were
a pizza delivery
man, how would
you benefit from
scissors?”
Apple Inc.

5. A2: There is no right
answer!
But….

6. There are certainly good
signs…
A candidate who deliberates, comes up with a
remotely relevant answer and explains their
reasoning…
What is it like to be a pizza delivery man?
How will those scissors come in handy?
Clever sods might even give reasons why you
shouldn’t take scissors, turning your question on its
head.

7. And bad signs…
• Candidates who won’t answer the
question!
It’s an interview…YOU make the rules.
• Candidates who can’t answer the
question!
Where’s the creativity?

8. Q2. An apple costs 40 cents,
a banana costs 60 cents and
a grapefruit costs 80 cents.
How much does a pear cost?
Epic Systems

9. Did you get the right
answer?

10. Take another look…
“An apple costs 40 cents, a
banana costs 60 cents and a
grapefruit costs 80 cents. How
much does a pear cost?”

11. A2: It’s all about the vowels.
If each vowel is worth 20
cents, then an apple would be
worth 40 cents, a banana
would be worth 60 cents and a
grapefruit would be worth 80
cents.

12. If a candidate answers
correctly, in such a high-
pressure situation, you
should be impressed…
So a pear would cost 40 Cents!

13. However…
Don’t be too quick to judge!
Surely there are other answers that
could impress you?

14. Other Good Signs…
Is their answer
sensible, thought-out
and practical?

15. Bad Signs…
Blurting out an answer without fully
considering the consequences
could give you a little hint about
how they’ll make decisions in the
future…

16. Q3: How would you
test a calculator?
IBM

17. A3: There is no right answer!
(But there are plenty of wrong
ones!)

18. Good Signs:
Anyone who offers a method that is…
Strategic
Detailed
Efficient
Systematic
…and that would actually work!

19. Bad Signs…
Anyone who offers a method that is…
× Thoughtless
× Unjustified
× Impossible
× Confused
What does this tell you about their general
organisational skills?

20. Q4: “A farmer needs to cross the river with his
chicken, a sack of corn and a fox.
His boat will only fit himself and one other thing.
If he leaves the fox with the chicken, the chicken
will get eaten, whilst if he leaves the chicken with
the corn, the corn will get eaten.
How will the man get safely across with all 3?
“

21. It’s easy when you know how…

22. A4: The man takes the chicken across and then goes back
for the fox.
He can’t leave the fox and the chicken together so when he
drops the fox off, he picks up the chicken. He then goes
back for the corn.
He can’t leave the corn and the chicken together so when
he picks up the corn, he drops off the chicken.
When the corn is safely with the fox on the right side
of the river, he goes to collect the chicken.
“

23. The REAL question..?

24. Why’s the farmer hanging
around with a fox in the first
place?

25. Other Good Signs…
If you use the question as a team activity during
a group interview or assessment day you can
look out for…
• Leadership Skills
• Team Work Skills
• Interpersonal Skills
…look out for those who sensitively facilitate
the successful completion of the task.

26. Bad Signs…
• Misunderstanding the question
• Reaching the wrong conclusion
• Sacrificing the wolf or the chicken
And – beware of candidates who’ve heard it all
before!

27. Q5. “How many potatoes (in
kg) does McDonald’s sell in a
year in the UK?”
Oliver Wyman

28. A5. 200 Million
KG
(Roughly)

29. There are loads of variations on this
question…
How many square feet of pizza are eaten in the
UK every year?
How many petrol stations are there in the UK?
How many pennies, if placed on top of each
other, would it take to reach the top of Big Ben?

30. Good Signs…
• Any candidate whose answer is remotely close!
• Sensible presumptions and deliberations.
• Evidence of mathematical ability.

31. Bad Signs…
Incorrect mathematical sums, hasty
deductions and unreasonable reasoning…
If you actually care about their
numerical reasoning capabilities that
is…

32. Q6. Tracy’s mum had 4
children. The first child
was named April, the
second was named May,
the third June. What
was the 4th child called?

33. Did you notice the
cheeky little trick?
Look again…

34. “Tracy’s mother had 4
children. The first child was
named April, the second was
named May, the third June.
What was the 4th child
called?”

36. Bad Signs…
Anyone who incorrectly
answers the question!

37. Ok ok… that’s a bit harsh.
We’ve all had those complete mind-blank
moments in the past!
If your candidate is struggling under the
pressure, give them a little hint - re-
state the question!

38. Q7. How do
you know if
the light in the
fridge is on or
off when the
door’s
closed?

39. A7. There is no right answer!

40. You could…
• Use a camera
• Drill a hole in the fridge
• Find the sensor and test it with your
thumb
• Touch the light bulb (carefully)
Be creative and the list is endless…

41. Bad Signs…
No answer at all
implies a sincere
lack of creativity!

42. So…when should
I use
brainteasers?

43. At any stage of the interviewing
process!
From telephone and face-to-face, to panel and
Skype
but they’re most effective during the…
Group Interviews

44. Warning.
Brainteasers are the most
difficult questions to answer
during an interviewer.
(So much pressure…so little time!)

45. Even great candidates
might get put off and
completely fudge the
answer up!

46. At Coburg Banks, we prefer to use a mixture of:
The Basics
Behavioural Questions
Questions to put candidates at ease!
Click on the links above to find examples for you to
swipe and deploy in your own interviews!

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48. Enjoy and Good Luck from
the Coburg Banks Team!