Ask HN: How should I interview candidates to be my new boss?

6 points·xarr··4 comments

I work for a Cyber Security Company, slightly less than 100 employees. We have no clear successor in the company for the CEO position, and we are going to start interviewing candidates for the position in the Washington DC area. This seems like a rare opportunity, and I wonder what we should look for, how to interview them, what questions to ask. Any advice, tips or help would be great.

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A CEO should love the company and the products or services which you offer, so ask questions to find out about his opinion and his passion. You could ask directly or with some indirect questions to get a glimpse. I also would recommend talking about not job-related topics to build a friendly connection between the potential CEO and employees. A good CEO is also interested in his employees and should be on good terms with them, not a real friendship maybe but a respectful connection.

Get all of your technical leadership to talk about what the future of the company should be. Talk to candidates about where they think the industry is headed. Find a good fit.

I'm not sure what you should ask to determine competence at that level, but they should at least share a common strategy.

As long as the current strategy is working. If not, then hopefully new blood can help turn things around.

True, but I didn't say hold a meeting to discuss what they've done in the past. I said hold a meeting to determine a strategy for the future.

If their goal is to bring someone in to pursue a vision that the technical directors of the company don't give a shit about, they might as well all go get jobs in a more stable environment.

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