Recruiters of some companies claim that job seekers handle coffee cups at interviews and then reflect them in the recruitment results

Fortune, a U.S. economic magazine, reported on the 6th that some recruiters are conducting so-called “coffee cup tests” to check the attitudes of job seekers.

This is used to filter out job seekers who give negative signals after the interviewer checks how they handle coffee cups that they have finished drinking, and recruiters say, “This test actually works,” according to Pocheon.

Trent Innes, executive director of accounting platform Geno and head of hotel accounting platform site Minder, recently introduced the method and principle of this test through the business podcast The Ventures.

He said, “I take the applicant to the pantry for coffee and then bring coffee into the interview room,” and added, “This is called the ‘coffee cup test.’

“Whether you drink coffee black or sugar does not affect the recruitment results,” he said. “You can pass the test even if you drink water or tea instead of coffee.”

What the interviewer confirms is the applicant’s attitude after the interview. He said, “We always check whether the applicant is trying to take the empty cup back to the pantry.”

He explains that even applicants suitable for related tasks are likely to not receive a reply from the recruitment manager if they leave the cup used for the interview.

“The behavior of not cleaning the cup is like a warning light that the person is not suitable for the company’s culture,” Innes said. “You can always get the ability or experience to develop technology, but what’s more important is attitude. Cleaning up used cups shows that you value teamwork, are thoughtful, and care about small things.”

The same goes for global companies such as Amazon and Cisco that pay attention to the attitudes of applicants during interviews. Indeed, numerous CEOs have emphasized that success depends on attitudes.

“How well you do in your 20s depends surprisingly on your attitude,” said Andy Jesse, CEO of Amazon. “A great attitude makes a big difference.”

“Positive attitudes and energy cannot be taught,” said Sarah Walker, CEO of Cisco UK. “This is the most important green flag (positive sign) characteristic that is carefully examined when hiring or promoting employees internally,” he said. “This characteristic is more important than what is written on your resume, especially if you have a short career. People are more important than skills or experience.”

Recruiters also said that the coffee cup test is effective in actual recruitment.

“[The coffee cup test] is one of the many subtle tests I’ve seen in my 20 years of hiring experience, and I think it’s really valuable,” said Luis Mallet, CEO of Bentley Lewis, a global executive recruitment agency. “This small behavior observation gives us a lot of information about the person that we don’t know in official Q&As at the interview.”

In addition, he added, “Many of the hiring is about the suitability of the organizational culture, so this test is an important part of evaluating whether applicants are suitable for the organization,” but added, “However, this test is conducted only for reference because even a good applicant can make mistakes in unfamiliar and tense situations.”

SALLY LEE

US ASIA JOURNAL