As the founder and CEO of Boll & Branch, Scott Tannen oversees the work of some 275 employees — most of whom he’s personally interviewed.
He estimates he’s interviewed upwards of 1,000 people and hired 400 to 500 over the course of his career.
Whether he’s interviewing a prospective intern or someone joining the C-suite, Tannen tells CNBC Make It he always asks one question first: What do you know about Boll & Branch?
It’s a straightforward question that sets the tone quickly and can help him uncover a big warning sign.
“I think when people have not done their homework, that is the biggest red flag,” Tannen says. “You don’t have to know every answer, but you have to have done your homework.”
Tannen says he can tell when a candidate has taken the opportunity to interview seriously and has spent a few hours reading and researching about the business.
“I’m looking for them to at least say, ‘I’ve learned this,’ or ‘I’ve been on your website, and I know you do business this way,'” Tannen says. “If they can’t at least give me back what’s on our Wikipedia page, we probably are not starting off on the best foot.”
The CEO is looking for something beyond the superficial.
“I’ve had people that don’t even know what products we make, within reason,” he says. “They’re like, ‘Oh, you make bedding.'”
A more researched answer might include mention that the company, which Tannen launched with his wife over a decade ago, makes luxury organic bedding as well as linens, sleepwear, furniture and home goods.
Tannen adds that good preparation means coming with questions for the interviewer, as well as confidence, enthusiasm for the role and curiosity about what you’ll accomplish by taking it.
“Tell me what you’re excited about that you think we can teach you, and vice versa, how you can contribute,” he says.
He recalls one memorable interview for a recent intern who applied to a role with the company as a merchandiser. The student didn’t have any merchandising experience, but discussed in her interview how she created her own brand while in college and wanted to learn how Boll & Branch works overall.
“It’s one of the best interviews I’ve ever done,” Tannen says, “because I just felt that she had this incredible desire to learn and this admiration for, at least from her view, how we had built our business.”
That intern is expected to return to the company for a full-time job once she graduates, Tannen says.
Ultimately, he says, showing up and demonstrating that you’re prepared for an interview is “really not a very hard thing to do, but it truly distances the great applicants from everybody else.”
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