The coffee cup test in job interviews. It's a mind game
A director uses a strategy called the "coffee cup test" in job interviews.
He claims that candidates who don't offer to wash their coffee cup after the interview will not be hired by the company.
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The video in which the director explains how his job interviews work has gone viral. An internet user criticized him, saying that this test is a "profoundly disturbing psycho-social game".
Trent Innes, a director at SiteMinder, appeared on The Venture Podcast with Lambros Photios in 2019 when he was still the CEO of Xero Australia. He presented his own employee recruitment strategy.
Innes stated that he hires people only if they offer to take their coffee cups to the kitchen at the end of an interview.
In the podcast, Innes explained that during interviews, he always takes candidates for a walk to the kitchen to offer them a drink, whether it's water, coffee, a cup of tea or a soft drink.
"Then we get back, we conduct our interview, and one thing I always look for at the end of the interview is the person's willingness to take their empty cup back to the kitchen", he said.
"You can develop skills, gain knowledge and experience, but it all comes down to attitude", Innes told Photios.
"I tried to find out what the lowest-level task is and which, regardless of what you do within the organization, is still very important", he explained.
Most candidates offered to take their cups to the kitchen, but only a few of them actually did it, according to Innes.
The episode from that podcast has now resurfaced on social media and has been shared on TikTok. Some users say that Innes's strategy is manipulative. The TikTok video has gathered over 24,000 likes.
"It seems strange to wash your own cup at an interview when you're invited there. I would rather ask what they want me to do with the cup", one internet user commented.
"It's good to know. If an employer plays such mind games, it's an immediate red flag for me. I would end the interview right there", wrote another, according to Insider.
Although Innes' hiring method seems harmless in theory, social media users are convinced that it indicates a toxic work environment.
