Inside Metric: Our Favourite Interview Questions

Metric is building a team of talented humans who love what they do. We call them “A Players” because that’s who they are: the best of the best, at the top of their game, and always working to get even better. This philosophy is important to us because it helps us deliver top quality work for our clients – but also because it’s the most fun to get to play with other “A Players.” 

How do we find these people? We take our interview process seriously. We want to take the time to really get to know you – and just as importantly, for you to get to know us. 

Hear about some of our leaders’ favourite interview questions to prep for your upcoming opportunity to join our team.

Are you a person who excels at creating and developing plans, or are you more interested in implementing already-made plans?

This is a pretty easy and straightforward question – with no wrong answer – but it really helps me determine if you have applied for the right kind of role on our team, or if we might have a place for you that would be a better fit.

Dinaz (Digital Advertising Director)

Can you tell us about a time when you messed up at work? How did you respond? What did you learn?

This question is really all about character. It shows me whether someone has the humility to be honest about the mistake, whether they could step up and take responsibility for it (and not blame others), and if they have the willingness to accept and learn from failure. No one is perfect and mistakes are a part of being human – what really counts is what you do next. 

Justin (COO)

What do you really love doing in your current job? What part of your job is not your favourite (but you know it has to get done)?

This question steers away from that typical ‘tell us your strengths and weaknesses’ question that everyone rehearses, and it really allows the candidate to talk about the things they are passionate about. We find so much more value in learning about what they love, what they’re good at, and why they think they’re good at it. We are also genuinely interested in getting to know what they DON’T enjoy doing, or ways they don’t like to be managed – this is so valuable, especially if they end up joining our team, because we can help craft a job and a work environment that really works for them and allows them to do their best work. 

Erin & Rannie (Metric’s HR Team)

How would your best friends describe you?

I find this question helps me understand more about their personality and what it might be like to work together. It’s interesting to see how honest people can get about this (for the record, the more honest the better – so please don’t overthink this one).

John (CEO)

Tell us about the last time you had to learn a brand new skill (or new tech). Why did you need to learn it? How did you go about learning it?

I like this question because it gives me a good sense of your willingness to learn new skills, and how you approach challenges like this. I appreciate the chance to learn more about your openness to change, your attitude around innovation, how you tackle something new, and how you approach something that’s at least partially self-directed.

Meg (Digital Director)

If you were responsible to design your work duties based on what you love to do, what would your job look like?

This question always gives me insight into a candidate’s passion. It also helps me to gain a better understanding of how they’ll fit into the team – and into the specific role.

Topu (Director of Project Management)

Tell me about a past job where you were extremely successful.

We’re Metric Marketing – so asking about past success and looking for measurable answers goes with the territory. When I’m interviewing for an analytically-minded role, I really want to see an answer with specific measurables. A great answer is: “I was successful here, this is how my success was measured, and that’s how I know.” A REALLY great answer goes to goal setting and exceeding or missing targets. A just kind of okay answer explains success, but not in a measurable way.

Kevin (CAO)

What questions do you have for us?

I’m going to flip this question on its head (#sorrynotsorry) and say that my favourite interview question is the one our candidate asks. I think that curiosity is a critical quality for anyone who works in creative and strategy, so I’m always hoping that you come with a question or two (or more). I might be interviewing you, but I hope you’re interviewing me too – and making sure that Metric is a place you can really see yourself. If you know what you need in a work environment, in a manager, in the type of work you love to do, then you should definitely ask us questions to make sure that you’ll find that here.

Lindsay (Creative Director)

Our core values make Metric a great place to work, and a great agency partner to help you reach your marketing goals. We analyze performance data and use that information to create effective and unique advertising campaigns across North America - working with private and independent schools, credit unions, and other industries.

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