Foster Alumni Share What They Listen For When They Interview Job Candidates
Every fall and winter, MBA students gear up for behavioral interviews with an understandable mix of anticipation and anxiety. We spend hours coaching them on frameworks, stories, and delivery. But nothing beats hearing directly from the people on the other side of the table.
On this encore episode of Conversations on Careers and Professional Life, I brought together four Foster MBA alumni—now at Accenture, Google, Walmart, and Goldman Sachs—to share what they actually listen for when evaluating candidates. I spoke with each of them separately, but their messages converged with remarkable clarity.
Here are the big themes.
1. Preparation isn’t optional—it’s the floor, not the ceiling.
Every alum highlighted the same point: the “Tell me about yourself” question is guaranteed. If you can’t deliver a clear, structured, thoughtful answer, it signals a lack of intention.
Adam Schmidt (Accenture) put it plainly: “This is a question you know is coming.” Preparation demonstrates respect for the interviewer’s time and respect for your own story. It’s the discipline before the performance.
2. Authenticity beats perfection.
Several alumni talked about sensing whether an answer felt honest, grounded, and human. Authenticity arises from knowing your stories well enough that you can speak naturally—not recite.
Skylar Brown (Goldman Sachs) shared that authenticity often shows up in how candidates pause, think, and connect their experiences to the role. Over-scripted answers flatten your personality; thoughtful ones reveal how you’ll show up as a colleague.
Stoic reminder: focus on what is within your control—your preparation and your presence—not the outcome.
3. Your impact matters more than the résumé lines.
At Google, Sam Eid looks for patterns that reveal how a candidate operates on a team. One of his sharpest insights: candidates who talk only in “I” form look self-centered, but candidates who talk only in “we” form leave interviewers wondering what they actually did.
He advises framing a story around:
- The opportunity or challenge
- What the team achieved
- Your specific contribution
- What wouldn’t have happened without you
That last piece is gold. It’s also how Google evaluates internal performance.
4. “Why this company?” must show you’ve done real homework.
The alumni were unanimous: generic answers tank candidates. You should be able to articulate:
- What differentiates the company
- How its mission or values connect to you
- Who you’ve spoken with and what you learned
- Why this role aligns with your future trajectory
Claire Herting (Nintendo, ex-Walmart) noted that specific, thought-out answers signal maturity and genuine motivation—not simply chasing the brand name.
5. Cultural fit isn’t code for conformity—it’s awareness.
Companies want to see that you understand the environment you’re entering and how you’d contribute to it.
Whether it’s humility, customer obsession, collaboration, or intellectual curiosity, your stories should reflect the behaviors that matter most at that organization. Not by forcing it, but by choosing experiences that naturally align.
6. The biggest mistakes happen before the interview.
One of the most useful insights came from Skylar Brown: many candidates cast too wide a net. When you’re interviewing for 20–40 roles you don’t genuinely want, your answers sound hollow.
Depth beats breadth. Focus creates authenticity.
The bottom line
Across industries and roles, alumni interviewers value the same things:
- Clear thinking
- Genuine enthusiasm
- Self-awareness
- A structured approach to storytelling
- A real understanding of the company and role
Behavioral interviews aren’t about trick questions—they’re about surfacing who you are, how you work with others, and how you make an impact.
If you’re preparing for interviews this season, the wisdom from these alumni is a powerful compass.