Not to long ago, someone I knew was going through some rounds of interviewing at some major tier one companies. She had a great skill-set, personality and I definitely saw her fitting in both roles and getting offers from both. Both jobs had extensive interviewing procedures which made her work through group and individual assessments.
During her interviews with the first company, being the amazing team player she was, she constantly used "we" when in group situations, and shared credit with the team. Turned out she didn't get that job because one of the leaders at that company didn't like that she didn't really use "I" enough.
With the second company, she went through the same thing, learning her lesson from the past one and used "I" and "we". Turned out that the company didn't like the use of "I" at all.
I hope you don't get stuck in a situation like this in your career. Not knowing what to expect can be rough on you. All the preparation that you would usually do studying the company website, probably won't get you minor cultural details like this one. But instead, try catch a hold of some of the potential leaders in the organization and ask them what's the make or break thing that you can say. Hopefully, you'll use it in your favor and land the gig.
PS. She's doing great now...and found her place where she is respected for both her "we" & "I".
During her interviews with the first company, being the amazing team player she was, she constantly used "we" when in group situations, and shared credit with the team. Turned out she didn't get that job because one of the leaders at that company didn't like that she didn't really use "I" enough.
With the second company, she went through the same thing, learning her lesson from the past one and used "I" and "we". Turned out that the company didn't like the use of "I" at all.
I hope you don't get stuck in a situation like this in your career. Not knowing what to expect can be rough on you. All the preparation that you would usually do studying the company website, probably won't get you minor cultural details like this one. But instead, try catch a hold of some of the potential leaders in the organization and ask them what's the make or break thing that you can say. Hopefully, you'll use it in your favor and land the gig.
PS. She's doing great now...and found her place where she is respected for both her "we" & "I".
