What does the Tesla Company do? This is a company that designs, develops, manufactures, sells, and leases electric vehicles and energy generation and storage systems, and offers services related to its sustainable energy products.
Below are the top 20 interview questions and answers that you could be asked when attending a Tesla interview. Also, there are sample answers that will guide you on how you are supposed to answer the questions.
1. Why Are You Interested In Working For Tesla And Not Any Other Car Company?
In this question, the interviewer expects you to tell them why you would choose to work for them and not any other company. Talk about your main interest in their company.
Sample Answer
“Firstly, I must say that I have loved this company’s cars since it was started in 2003. The use of technology to manufacture zero-emission cars must be an interest to many. I want to be part of this team that is producing and designing these cars. Again, I am still young and energetic, I still have room to learn and improve my skills in this field as well. Lastly, I believe that I have all the qualifications to work in your company. I have worked in other companies and I believe that I have the right experience to work in Tesla.”
2. How Can You Manage Projects From Start Till The End?
The interviewer wants to know how you can manage the projects assigned to you by the company. Make sure that you show them how you are capable of doing projects with minimum supervision.
Sample Answer
“I must say that I am a well-organized individual. To make sure that I am a well-organized person, I usually use spreadsheets to ensure that everything is going as it should. Also, I use both project management platforms and Excel sheets to manage a project depending on what the company wants me to do. It is very important to use these tools since they can be used by other colleagues as a place to keep them in the loop on any deadlines or shifting obligations. In addition, it helps you manage each and every task assigned to you from the start till the end and follow up on deadlines for the projects.”
3. What Qualities Do You Think Fits A Tesla Staff Employee?
The interviewer wants you to tell them what attitudes and focuses should a Tesla employee have.
Sample Answer
“Of course, Tesla Company is one of the leading manufacturers of electric designed cars, and their employees must be innovative, driven, and a team player. Again having room to learn from others and pull together ideas is very crucial while working for Tesla. This company is capable of innovating and implementing new ideas day by day as technology advances. The employees must be ready to learn that and cope up with the rapidly growing technology. Lastly, a Tesla employee should be focused on helping the company achieve its mission, which is to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.”
4. Tell Us About Your Experience Working In A Closely Related Field
The interviewer wants you to talk about your previous work experiences. Talk about where you have worked and for how long.
Sample Answer
“After completing my university degree in energy management, I was employed in a car store as an engineer. Here I interacted with a lot of seniors from whom I learned a lot. I was able to gain experience in this field. It was all about inspecting the condition of all the cars in the store and ensuring that their energy was fit. I worked for this car store for six years and my contract expired. Having gained six years of experience is all that this role needs. Especially in the energy management sector that Tesla needs to manufacture electric cars. I believe that I will give the company my best towards reaching its goals. I hope that you will consider my experience as an added advantage to me.”
5. What Is Your Biggest Strength
The interviewer wants to know what it is that you think that you are best in. Talk about any quality that you think it’s relevant to this role.
Sample Answer
“As far as my biggest strength is concerned, I would prefer saying that working as a team is my biggest strength. I always prefer working with hardworking people and having one major goal to attain a certain goal. This makes me feel that there are people backing me up towards the success of the company I am working for. I always work best in teams.”
6. What Is The Biggest Challenge That You Foresee In This Role
Since you have experience or knowledge in this role, the interviewer might ask you these questions to see whether you can research and predict future challenges. Talk about a big challenge that you think might affect this field negatively.
Sample Answer
“Tesla Company uses technology to design, manufacture and sell their cars. In today’s world, technology is developing day by day. Everything is changing. In the future, Tesla Company may experience a challenge in trying to cope up with the fast advancing technology. They have to make sure that their cars are designed in the last updated forms to ensure customer satisfaction. This may be a challenge in the future if the Tesla Company does not venture into technology level monitoring.”
7. How Do You Stay Motivated In Your Work?
The interviewer wants to know what your daily motivation is. Consider talking about achievements and meeting your expectations as your motivation.
Sample Answer
“Helping my company achieve its goals is all that motivates me. Every time I get to work, I have to remember that I am working towards a certain goal and so I should get motivated to work towards it. Nothing motivates me more than meeting my company client’s expectations. Whenever I see businesses increasing their profitability due to the strategies that I have put in place, I always feel that I am doing a great job that is helping my company grow. This always makes me feel that I want to do it again and again.”
8. Describe A Time When You Failed In This Role And The Lessons You Learned.
The interviewer knows that you must have made a mistake at some point and led to poor performance. They are asking you this to see how you can learn from making mistakes. Talk about a time when you made a mistake in your role and the lesson you learned from it.
Sample Answer
“As we all know, mistakes are there to be made. And we learn from our mistakes. At my entry-level, I could rush into projects without keenly reading and understanding each guideline provided. This is a mistake that many people make. Of course, the results were not as expected. I had to redo the work following the guidelines. I felt that I had wasted more time redoing the work. I came to realize that it is very important to make sure that you understand all the rules and guidelines given for a project.”
9. Why Do You Feel You Are Most Suitable For This Role?
The interviewer is asking why you feel that they should choose you over the other candidates. Talk about the unique qualities, experience, and achievements that you have.
Sample Answer
“It is my understanding that this role needs a well-experienced individual who knows what they are doing and what they are supposed to at a certain time. Having worked at a busy business with a lot of focus on meeting their goals and objectives, I think I am the candidate you are looking for. In addition, the strategies that I have learned from my previous role will help in offering the best services to your company. Since I already know what is expected of me, a few pieces of training will be required. I hope that you will consider the experience that I have received.”
10. Tell us about what you know about Tesla and the founders.
Your interviewer wants to know your knowledge about the company you want to work for. Tell them a brief background history of Tesla Company.
Sample Answer
“Tesla Company is a company that designs, develops, manufactures, sells, and leases electric vehicles and energy generation and storage systems, and offers services related to its sustainable energy products. It was founded in 2003 by a group of engineers who wanted to prove that people didn’t need to compromise to drive electrically – that electric vehicles can be better, quicker, and more fun to drive than gasoline cars. Tesla believes the faster the world stops relying on fossil fuels and moves towards a zero-emission future, the better. Its mission statement is to create the most compelling car company of 21st century by driving the world’s transition to electric vehicles.”
11. How Would You Deal With A Complaint From A Customer?
The interviewer wants to know how you would help the company solve complaints raised by customers. Tell them how you would attend to the complaint professionally.
Sample Answer
“Whenever there is a complaint from a customer, I would be very careful while handling it. This is the procedure I would use;
- Stay Calm. It might be extremely difficult to do, you must stay calm when handling a customer complaint.
- Listen. Frequently, if a customer comes to you with a problem, it means that they want to be heard.
- Be Kind.
- Acknowledge the Issue.
- Apologize and Thank Them.
- Ask Questions.
- Make It Speedy.
- Document Their Responses.
- Follow up.”
12. Have You Ever Solved A Problem With Little To No Information And How Did You Do It?
The interviewer wants to know a time when you were assigned a project with very little information about it but still you were able to compose yourself and do the project as expected.
Sample Answer
“At my entry-level in the company I was working for previously, the chief marketing officer assigned a project that she gave very little information about how it should be done. Instead of asking the chief marketing officer many questions, I reached out to someone from the marketing operations and asked for samples of previously done work about projects assigned by the boss. He gave me five samples where I was able to get a picture of what my boss wanted. I got into work and I was able to deliver very good work and the boss was very happy. This is a problem that I solved by doing my own research and strategies to complete quality work. ”
13. How Would You Change The Culture Of Tesla Company?
The interviewer wants to know how you would use your skills to change the culture in Tesla. Talk about how you would use them to better the company.
Sample Answer
“Tesla Company has a good culture that needs to be embraced and improved by the employees. To start with, I would use the skills and experience that I have gained from past experience to better the company’s performance. Secondly, I will use the knowledge that I have gained from my college and university studies to develop the culture of Tesla Company. This would be a great way to improve the performance of the company. Lastly, I would employ new techniques and strategies that may help in improving the culture.”
14. What Is A Car?
The interviewer wants you to define what a car is. Give a clear definition of a car.
Sample Answer
“A car is a four-wheeled vehicle that is powered by an engine and it is able to carry a small number of people.”
15. What Are The Advantages Of Using An Electric Car?
The interviewer wants to know whether you are aware of the benefits of the cars that they are producing. Mention five key advantages
Sample Answer
“These are the advantages of using electric cars.
- No Gas Required – Electric cars are entirely charged by the electricity you provide, meaning you don’t need to buy any gas ever again. …
- More Convenient – It is easy to recharge and you will no longer need to rush to gas stations
- No Emissions – They are eco-friendly
- Safe to Drive – An electric car is safer to use, given their lower center of gravity, which makes them much more stable on the road in case of a collision.
- Cost-Effective – The mass production of batteries and available tax incentives further brought down the cost, thus, making it much more cost-effective.
- Low Maintenance – Electric cars run on electrically powered engines, and hence there is no need to lubricate the engines, anything related to the combustion engine or a ton of maintenance tasks that are usually associated with a gas engine.”
16. Give Us A Small Background History Of A Car
The interviewer wants to know your level of knowledge concerning the car’s history. Give background history of cars including when and where they were invented.
Sample Answer
“Cars came into global use in the 20th century and developed economies depend on them. 1886 is the year that is believed to be the birth year of the car when German inventor Karl Benz panted his Benz Patent-Motorwagen. Cars began to be rapidly adopted in the US but in Europe and other parts of the world did not increase its demand for cars until after World War II. Car features continued to develop adding more features in a car. Most cars were propelled by internal combustion engines, fuelled by the combustion of fossil fuels. Electric cars became available in the 2000s.”
17. What Is The Main Difference Between Electric Cars And Standard Internal Combustion Cars?
The interviewer wants to know whether you are aware of the differences between electric cars and standard internal combustion cars. Mention the key difference between the two.
Sample Answer
“The most crucial difference between the two is that electric cars are powered by electricity while standard internal combustion cars are powered by gasoline.”
18. Which Cars Are Battery Electric Vehicles?
The interviewer wants to know your knowledge of cars.
Sample Answer
“These are fully electric vehicles with rechargeable batteries and no gasoline engine.”
19. What Are The Three Main Types Of Electric Vehicles And Their Examples?
The interviewer wants you to tell them the different types of electric vehicles. Give the main types and examples.
Sample Answer
“The main types of electric vehicles are;
- Battery electric vehicles – Tesla Model S, Tesla Model X, BMW i3
- Hybrid electric vehicles – Toyota Prius Plug in, Toyota Camry Plug in , Honda Civic Hybrid
- Plug-in hybrid – Chevy volt, Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid
20. What Is An Electric Vehicle Tax Credit?
The interviewer is testing your knowledge on what you must know before entering into an electric car company.
Sample Answer
“This is an incentive given by the U.S. government to consumers who buy electric cars. This credit is meant to help offset the higher cost of fully electric vehicles and encourage more people to buy them and therefore help improve the environment.”
Conclusion
Tesla Company is one of the companies that are providing job opportunities across the world. I am sure you want to be an employee of Tesla Company. All you have to do is answer the questions with confidence and show them that you are determined in helping them achieve their goals. All the best.
