Recruiters' 'night out' test serves an important role in finding the best candidates for the job

Recruiters might have to try out different techniques to choose the right candidates for various job roles. While some roles call for candidates with great interpersonal skills, others might demand a robust technical foundation. So, it's up to the recruiters to see if a person can handle the challenges that come with the job. Turns out, hiring managers often follow "secret" methods to hire the best candidate. When u/CherrySlurpee asked the "managers of Reddit" about their secret "special tests" to screen the candidates, many intriguing responses came in. One that stood out was the "night out" test shared by u/karnim.

The Reddit user mentioned that they found out about this "night out" test from a company that had interviewed them. This particular test was used to hire sales engineers and the interview often starts out like any other interview. "They would go about the normal interview, but that evening, they would all go out for drinks and try to pump the recruits full of alcohol," they explained. The recruiters did this to test the candidates' level of self-control. "It was meant to be fun but was also a test of whether the person can either know their limits and politely decline or hold their own after a lot of drinks. Apparently, drinking is a big part of sales," they added.

It looked like this test is quite common among recruiters. Another Reddit user had also faced something similar. "We were out to lunch, presumably as a friendly thing, but also as a way to see how a person handles themselves in a semi-casual/professional social situation," they explained. "One of the senior guys starts telling a story about getting way too drunk and acting a fool. I think it was a test to see whether I would respond with my own ridiculous story of debauchery or try to maintain professionalism." Guessing that this might be a test, the individual chose not to respond with any "drinking stories" of their own.

These scenarios teach us an important lesson. One should be vigilant while going for a night out right after the interview. Many individuals backed up this "night out" test in the comments. "Getting the other person drunk while seeming not to try to get the other person drunk while not getting drunk yourself is extremely useful for getting a better price or larger order/contract," said u/brown_felt_hat. "When I do expense reports for work trips, one of my categories for transactions is 'business alcohol.' Unfortunately, I am a service tech. Only sales guys and management get to use that one," added u/db88uke.

Speaking of secret tests used by interviewers, a hiring manager using the "hobby test" has gained the internet's interest. u/RocketSquid3D explained in the comments of a Reddit post how the test works out in choosing the right candidate. "I would ask about hobbies and then ask an uninformed but hopefully not insulting question about their hobby, even if it was one I was into myself," they said. The candidate's success in the interview depends on how they answer. Those who try to make the interviewer look stupid for not knowing about it are sure to get rejected. The ones who politely explain or better, try to get the interviewer interested in the hobby get the job. "I had to find some way to guarantee that they weren't going to inadvertently insult the founder or CEO," they added.