February 16, 2022

Google is known for its innovative and cutting-edge approach to business. So getting a job at the company is no easy task. However, applicants still submit their applications despite the low acceptance rate since the rewards are great. It's a tough job market out there! So, how you plan for your interview and prepare in general will evaluate your chances of landing a job at Google. 

To get past Google's hiring process, you will need to be prepared for several interview types. This includes the Leadership Principles Interview (LPI). The LPI is one of many different interviews you must pass before getting a job offer. This blog will go over the types of questions asked during a Leadership Principles Interview, what to expect, and how to best prepare. 

What Does It Mean by Google Leadership Principles?

Google leadership principles are values and guidelines that the company uses to make decisions. They were created to ensure that all employees understand how the company works and what to expect from them. The principles help guide employee behavior and decision-making, which ultimately impacts the company's culture and success. 

Before, it was a survey that was being conducted to obtain feedback from Googlers on their managers. However, the following behavioral skill set, as defined by Google Leadership Principles, has emerged over time, especially for software engineering roles which includes below:

• You are a strong decision-maker

• You can collaborate across Google

• You are a good coach

• You communicate and listen well

• You can make connections across Google functional areas

• You possess key technical skills to help the team

• You have a clear strategy/vision for the team

• You have a good understanding of your business and Google's overall strategy

• You get things done in the face of obstacles

• You can prioritize well

• You are a strong individual contributor to Google's products/services

You may believe that a software engineer who isn't aiming for a managerial position shouldn't be concerned about leadership principles, but Google doesn't think so. These leadership qualities are not limited to any particular designations, and Google has been testing them for all roles. 

Whether you are preparing for a software engineer interview or leadership principles interview, the Google leadership qualities should matter to you as they do to Google. Senior recruiters define leadership at Google as "being able to impact others and inspire followership for your ideas."

Google is known for conducting in-depth interviews, a combination of testing your leadership skills, behavioral skills, and technical skills. Unlike behavioral interviews aimed at determining whether you are a good fit for Google's culture, these questions focus on how you react, collaborate, and act to challenges.

What to Expect During Google Leadership Principles Interview

The Google leadership principles interview focuses on testing the skills and qualities that the company has identified as important for its employees. There are no one-size-fits-all answers, but there are some general tips that you can follow.

Whether you're a seasoned coder or a fresh college graduate, the following are some of the things that Google leadership principles interview questions will focus on:

Getting Through Complex and Ambiguous Situations: 

As a software engineer at Google, you'll need to apply your skills to solve complex challenges. Google wants to understand how you handle ambiguity. They want to know if you can work through any challenges that may come your way and remain productive in the process. Thus, you must have an eye for the broader picture and identify the demands of various stakeholders.

Leadership and Communication style: 

Leadership is about inspiring others to act and follow your ideas. It's important that you can articulate your ideas and thoughts clearly and concisely. In order to do this, you must be able to listen attentively and understand the needs of others. In addition, the recruiter wants you to demonstrate your communication abilities and examples from your own life to show that you can transmit and receive information efficiently.

Vision: 

Good leaders must have a clear vision for themselves and those they lead. They need to identify the end goal, set achievable milestones, and work towards it efficiently. Google wants to know if you can see beyond the present and think long-term with your ideas.

Productivity and Efficiency: 

Google is a tech giant that excels in productivity. It is to determine whether you can keep up with the fast-paced environment of google. You should have an eye for detail and identify any flaws or bottlenecks that may come your way to avoid getting derailed from your goal.

Working with the team: 

Google is a company that believes in teamwork. They want to know if you can work well with others and be an effective team player. This includes taking feedback positively, working collaboratively towards a common goal, and being open-minded. You won't be working in silos as a software developer, so it's important that you can demonstrate your teamwork skills.

Delivering results: 

This is perhaps the most important quality that google looks for in their employees. They want to know if you're able to take ownership of your work, see it through to completion, and be accountable for the results.

Common Google Leadership Principles Interview Questions

Google Leadership Principles Interview Questions follow a two-pronged approach:

1. The interviewer asks the employee a scenario and questions. These are typically the sorts of situations that you'll encounter at Google.

2. The interviewer will ask you a series of follow-up queries based on your initial response to know if you are suitable for the position.

The ultimate objective of Google leadership principle questions is to learn more about a candidate's decision-making and reasoning process and skills. The questions are set up so that your technical abilities alone aren't enough to answer.

Here are the top Google leadership principle questions based on the experiences of past candidates. This is only a sample to help you understand what to expect.

1. How do you prioritize tasks?

2. What is your biggest weakness as a leader?

3. How do you tackle a problem that has no obvious solution?

4. What steps do you take to gain team commitment?

5. How do you handle team conflict?

6. What's been your most satisfying moment as a leader?

7. How would you describe your leadership style?

8. What were the most challenging tasks you've ever faced, and how did you complete them?

9. Describe your biggest failure as a leader. What did you learn from this experience, and what could have been done better?

10. Tell me about when you took on a leadership role, even if you were not expected to do so.

11. How do you persuade others to follow your ideas as a leader?

12. When was the last time you came up with a unique solution to an issue?

13. What would be your first step in leading a new team?

14. How do you manage difficult conversations with your boss or senior members of the organization?

15. How have you dealt with the conflict among team members in the past? What was the outcome, and what could have been done better to avoid it altogether?"

16. When was the last time you had a major problem in your current job? How did you go about solving it?

17. Do you think of yourself as a risk-taker? If so, can you give me an example of when you took a chance, and it paid off?

18. What are your thoughts on failure? Can you tell about a time when things didn't quite go to plan and how you coped with the situation?

19. How to maintain good relationships with colleagues when there is a lot of pressure in the workplace?"

20. What do you like about being in charge of others?

21. What can you do to keep your team on track?

22. What qualities do you believe a good leader should have?

23. Tell me about a time when you had to deal with an interpersonal or technical problem in your current job.

24. What do you do when someone you're in charge of doesn't fulfill their obligations?

25. How do you motivate your team members?"

26. Describe a scenario when you had to handle criticism from a senior staff member. How did you deal with it, and what was the outcome?

27. What would happen if there were many tasks to complete and not enough resources available? Which ones would be prioritized over others and why?

28. What is your experience of working in a matrix management structure?

29. What are your thoughts on change? Can you give an example of a time when you had to adapt to new circumstances in the workplace?

30. How do you handle stress while leading a team?

How to Prepare and Answer Google Leadership Principles Questions

Google's recruiters use a standard interview approach to select candidates, asking the same questions and grading them on the same scale. The follow-up questions are used to help the interviewer look for attributes that were not addressed in response to the first question. The key to answering these questions is practicing and familiar with the leadership principles.

If you want to stand out from the crowd, you'll need to provide adequate proof of your skills in complex situations through examples that demonstrate how you've handled tough circumstances. You should explain how you went about making judgments and decisions while answering Google Leadership Principles Interview Questions.

Remember that technical skill isn't enough on its own to impress recruiters; you'll also need to demonstrate your ability to solve problems. Many questions are left open-ended, so it's best to take a storyteller's approach and break down each response as follows:

1. Highlight the difficulties you encountered

2. Tell us about your options and the choice you made

3. Talk about how things turned out and what you learned from this experience

Recruiters also want to know how you've grown as a leader over time. So don't forget to discuss your progress so that they can see your real development.

Things to Avoid While Answering Google Leadership Principles Questions 

There are things you should avoid while answering Google Leadership Principles Interview Questions. Google interview questions can be challenging, and even the best applicant might make mistakes. Here are some mistakes to avoid during an interview:

• Sounding too scripted: Don't memorize your answers. Instead, learn how to tell your stories by heart.

• Talking too much: It's important not to ramble on about things that aren't relevant because you may lose the attention of your interviewer and miss out on an opportunity for a follow-up question that would have been more useful. 

• Giving "too much" background information: Don't feel the need to go into great detail about every little thing. Stick to the highlights that are relevant to the question at hand.

• Being defensive: Avoid sounding like you're always right, and everyone else is wrong.

• Making excuses: Don't try to justify your mistakes; own up to them and explain what you learned from them.

• Being unprepared: Don't let your nerves get the best of you, and make sure to prepare beforehand by practicing with a list of Google Leadership Principles Interview Questions. 

• Not asking for clarifications: If you're not sure what a question means, don't be afraid to ask for clarification.

• Don't forget the importance of body language: Confident body language is vital because it shows that you are secure in your abilities and ready to take on new challenges. Remember to smile and maintain eye contact with interviewers throughout the interview process.

Ready To Ace Your Google Leadership Principles Interview?

You may be wondering how to answer Google Leadership Principles Interview Questions. The key is preparation! Even the most capable software engineers who pass technical interviews fail during leadership interviews because they do not prepare adequately.

You must understand and learn the leadership principles from scratch before you impress your interviewers with a great response that shows your abilities as an effective leader in any situation. Here at Recruitmently, our top-rated recruiters will assist you in getting prepared for interviews.

They can also help with other resources such as resume writing, cover letter tips, and job interview advice. So what are you waiting for? Book a recruiter today to get started!