Musigma Interview

 Brief Background

I have 29 months of experience in IT(TCS), 26 months of experience in core sales(Rak bank- Dubai) and 6 months of experience as a Marketing Manager for a publishing company. I  believe that It should never be about 'I am good and you should hire me' but it should always be about 'I am good FOR THIS JOB and you should hire me'. This subtle difference makes a huge impact.

Interview Example to Highlight the above Fact.

I will just brief you with my journey of Musigma, which mostly takes a stress interview, and thus it is a perfect example to highlight the above fact(I am good for this job), as Technical questions anyhow depend on one's knowledge of required technology. The most important thing when we prepare for an interview is to connect with a lot of present employees, as we really need to know what is the work culture of the company and what the company expects from us when we will be working for it. Below are the following points I noted while speaking with people plus reading about the company, and I tried to align all the answers around these points only.

1. Musigma expects you to very honest and its 'ok' to fail but not 'ok' to lie
2. I would be required to handle a team of youngsters(aged between 21-25), and I would be required to assign the tasks to them according to their capabilities and specialization
3. I need to get client requirements and I would be doing problem-solving for them(example why their product/service has failed and what needs to be done)
4. You have to be on your toes and handle a lot of pressure 

After knowing these facts I noted down all the important points from my background(experience)

1- Failure: I use to weigh a 100kgs and was bullied and I almost lost my (Rak Bank- Dubai) job due to low targets achievement

2-Yes I have I a managerial role where I made the schedule for people under me (though this was hardly 20% of the work I use to do being a manager, I made sure this sounded like 80% of my role)

3- I use to gather requirements of clients while working for TCS as well as while working for the Bank

4-I have worked in sales, where I had a huge target, which required me to handle a lot of pressure

Brief of Interview

I am just putting up the general questions and not the 'Problem solving/Technical' questions which were asked, in order to maintain the topic of discussion.

Round 1

Q-1    Please elaborate about your Job in Dubai?

A- (I tried putting up the above points in order to come up with company ready answer) Sir, I was working for a bank named - Rak bank also known as the National bank of Ras-Al Khaimah. Ras al Khaimah is an emirate(city) such as Dubai (I highlighted this point to portray that bank worked in large ). So, I worked for their branch in Dubai. I had a target of 2 million Dhirams(INR  3.5 crores) monthly (highlighting numbers is of utmost importance). I use to gather the requirements from clients, my clients were SMEs and a big corporate house. My job gave me the privilege to interact with a lot of people from various nationalities such as European, Asian, and American.

After the answer, I thought I have given a satisfactory reply but got asked a shocking question in return.

Q-2 I do not think we can give you such an existing job as over here you will have to work more on the desk, mainly solving problems for the client, so do you think you should consider this job?

A- ( I had to pause for a second, as I thought the interviewer will like my past experience, but he more disappointed, So I tried explaining that the JD is very exciting for me and I have researched enough, so that he agrees to the point that I am very much interested in the job)

Sir, Problem-solving is something that I have always wanted to work on, and Musigma works on Big data analytics, which is something everyone is talking about. I feel at this point in time I wanted to work on exactly something like this which not only requires technical but also managerial skills.

Q-2 Have you ever faced failure?

A- (Every interviewer will like to hear some of the failures, as to be frank it is  impossible that a person has not faced one) Yes, sir I have faced some big failures - such as being bullied for weighing 100 kgs and not doing much about it, and I even lost my job(Dubai), as I failed to achieve targets, though I was given two more months to perform even after getting fired . I overcame those failures by reducing almost 30 kgs and by overachieving my targets in the next 6 months, making me complete my yearly target in 6 months.

Again I thought I have given a good reply but shocking reverts never stopped coming !!!

Q-3 So how can you manage a Team if you keep on failing.

A- Sir, if we do not fail I think we become stagnant and we stopped learning, so, it is fine to fail if you can come back stronger than ever and learn quickly.  At present, I do fail in things but those things are quite big enough and I have already failed and recovered from things that have made to hone skills that will require to manage a team.

Q-4 You have very low academic scores (10th -75.6, 12th- 68.6, B.tech - 65.26 and 3.0(CGPA IN PGPM)) .

A- (I believe each and every one us has some activities or hobbies that we can say at such a situation) Sir, I have been part of the literary committee in my college and a placecom member presently, so I believe in maintaining average marks and doing other things besides studying.

Q-4 It still does not justify, as one should maintain good academic scores

A- Sir, I have agreed to the fact that I cannot score high, as I am always inclined towards extra-curricular activities. Being a member of committees in college has really made me learn how to manage time, which I do not think I could have learned just by studying, and I have marks which can be considered average. I am happy maintaining average scores with other activities.

Q-5 I do not think you can fire a person !! (Not a question but a statement provoking me to say 'yes sir I can fire people at my own will')

A - Sir I do not believe in firing, as I believe if someone does not want to work then he/she will leave the job anyhow. I am/want to be a manager, who believes in making a personal connection with the team, being very gentle most of the time, and being as much as pushy a person can be when a work is required to be done under a short timeline.

Q6 - have you ever managed a team?

A- (I aligned my answer with the requirement of Musigma) Yes sir I have managed a team, which mainly consisted of youngsters aged between 21-24, and I use to make the schedule for them, basically guiding/directing them with what needs to be done or what is the need of an hour.

Q-7 why did you leave your job in Dubai?
A- I got a better position/profile offer from a company, so I took up the job.

Q-8 So will you go ever go back to Dubai?
A- Sure sir, If I get a better position/profile I will surely think of it.

Q-9 Now you are contradicting yourself. If that is the case then why you came back?
A- (This question was just meant to see if I am very much sure of what I am saying, as I think my past answers clearly stated why I came back or why will I go back, but I remained calm and answered with a smile) Sir as stated I came because a better profile/position was offered, I will go back if a better profile/position is offered to me over there.

Q-10 What do you like about Musigma?

A- (I Tried to say each and every fact, which musigma feels proud of) Sir I am a person who believes it is ok to fail if you recover quickly and well which aligned with the thinking Musigma wants its employees to have, and I have spoken to alumni and I have got to know that over here we can go to any person and learn from them, and each and everyone is ready to help you out(This insight came from interacting with the alums, so as said it is very important to speak to a present employee).

Q-11 Any questions for us?

A- Always ask a question, which will be difficult or not possible to find over the internet or on the companies website. So, one should be very much prepared with this question, as it clearly tells if you have searched enough about the company or not.