CEO reveals surprising answers to interview questions that won't get you the job

A CEO revealed an answer to a common interview question that will stop him from hiring you.

When candidates for a new job are asked when they can start, they guess the sooner the better.

But Gary Shapiro, chief executive of the US trade association Consumer Technology Association (CTA), argues that too short a deadline is a major red flag.

If you answered less than two weeks, that's a big number from Shapiro.

“They don't get jobs, because they're going to treat us the way they treated that former employer,” Shapiro told CNBC this week.

He said he wants employees with “a level of commitment” to their company that means “they won't hang their employer” — even if they don't like the job.

He said one candidate who became CTA's chief operating officer said it would take up to six weeks to finish with his previous employer, and he didn't see that as a negative.

Shapiro has headed the CTA for more than three decades.

The boss expresses questions that he will not ask the employees

Earlier this year, another CEO went viral online for sharing a common workplace question he never asks his employees.

Tom Hunt, CEO of UK-based B2B podcast company Fame, revealed that he doesn't care where his employees work from or why they work.

On LinkedIn, she shared a story about a team member who asked her if she could work from another country for six weeks.

“He went on to explain why … I snapped: 'It's all good; I don't need to know why.' You decide how to act,” he wrote.

“In different countries every month? All good. Work from the garden? All good. A few hours off for a doctor's appointment? All good. Work from Wetherspoons after dropping the kids off at school? All is well.”

Hunt explained that he doesn't think employees have to explain to their workplace why they need flexibility.

Flexible working arrangements, including working from home, are currently a hot topic as bosses increasingly reintroduce in-office days for remote workers.

In a memo issued to employees on September 26, Dell gave employees four days' notice before returning to the office five days a week, with the change starting on September 30.

Similarly, flight center workers have been ordered to return to their offices or shops five days a week except for travel.

A memo shared with Australian staff earlier this month pointed to a video with the Brisbane-based chief people and culture officer, who claimed that “a core part of our culture is the ability to connect together in person”.

It follows similar directives from major companies such as Amazon and TabCorp, with an announcement from NSW Premier Chris Minns announcing the end of remote work facilities in August.