What does the comment “very good” mean at the end of the interview?

Hi there,

I suggest you don't read too much into it as the “very good” expression depends a lot on the personalities of your interviewers. Some use it extensively as a general figure of speech to say “we're done”, while others only use it when they want to give praise.

In the context of your interview, your interviewers usually want to see you display the core casing skills - which include problem-solving, maths, communication, insight generation, among others. You need to display a good balance of these without any red flags to move forward.

On the math part that didn't go smoothly, as long as you showed good active listening and you reacted well to new input, you should be fine. Mentioning proactively the “so what” is definitely the right thing to do as it shows you're driving the thinking - well done!

Most important is to ask for feedback once you receive an update on your status - whether it's a move-forward or a rejection. Either way, doing so will help you learn the weaknesses/areas for development that you need to address for your upcoming interviews.

Hope this helps!

Rami

Hello,

I wouldn't read too much into the “very good” comment, it could be anything from a generic thing people say at the end of an interview to a comment on any part of your performance.

Also, don't be too discouraged about the math part not going perfectly. It's perfectly normal to have a part of the interview that doesn't go super smoothly - don't forget that you will be assessed on the basis of your whole performance, so even if everything doesn't go perfectly, you may still advance to the next round.

At the end of the day, the interview is now complete, and there is nothing you can do at this stage to influence the outcome. I know it can be quite nerve-wracking, but you just need to hang in there in the meantime! Best of luck!

Hi there,

Q: What does the comment “very good” mean at the end of the interview?

I don’t think you can derive anything from a “very good” in terms of passing or not, regardless of what the person was referring to. 

In general, it is very difficult for candidates to self-assess themselves. I coached several candidates that believed they did not do well in the case and they actually passed the interview. The other way round also happens. That’s because most candidates can’t assess their performance objectively.

Overall, the only person who can tell you something now is.. the interviewer. Your impression may be biased, and any external person cannot really judge. So, although annoying, the only thing you can do is to (i) prepare for other interviews/ apply for other companies and/or (ii) wait for the results.

Good luck!

Francesco

Hi there, 

To be honest, it doesn't mean much. But it does mean that you didn't do horribly. :) If you did, they wouldn't be lying to you. 

Overall, don't have the expectation that you should be doing everything perfectly. I made mistakes in my interviews and still passed. Nobody feels like they did everything perfectly. The important thing is to keep your head up and strive to do better for whatever comes next.

Best,

Cristian

Hi,

the following are possible:
either 1st: you did a good job and you are just more critical to yourself but convinced the interview partner

or 2nd: you did not do a good job. Now you are asking yourself “why did he say very good?”. Sometimes interviewers are doing that to not confuse you. They also want to get you to know who you are as a person and the way you are thinking. Assume you did not do a good job and he would tell you that it´s not enough. Your motivation would be at level 0.

So in general you cannot say what “very good” means. 

cheers, Ajmal

It will depend on the interviewer.  In general, interviewers are not supposed to give feedback during or at the end of the interview and so I wouldn't read into it.  I personally use fillers like “very good” to boost the candidate's morale during the case.

Probably about the last question, and probably not a good indicator of whether you passed or not. As an interviewer, I would say it just to move on to the next question / stage of the interview, and keep the candidate motivated (I want the candidate to have a good experience… leaving frustrated is not a good experience)…

Hi there,

It means nothing - please don't try to read into this!

Thinking about the interview after the fact, won't help/change anything. Keep networking + applying to other firms and keep prepping for your interviews!

Hello!

:) I know you can´t help it, I am exactly the same, but the answer is none knows! Could have been both, and we will have to wait until we hear back. 

What was your overall impression? I find that often times, those are very accurate indeed. 

Cheers, 

Clara