Hire people who will push back; reject the ones who say you're the boss.

technique — attributed to Seth Moulton

Moulton's interview question for new staff is direct. How would you approach me if you disagreed with the position I was taking. The conciliatory answer (you're the boss, we do what you want) disqualifies the candidate. He hires the people who answer with a method for pushing back. The senior members of his team already know the expectation; he has to pull it out of the junior ones explicitly. The principle is that a team designed for dissent produces better thinking than a team designed for compliance, and the hiring process is where the design gets enforced. Compliance hires compound into bad decisions.

For senior leaders building teams whose value depends on intellectual sharpness. The question works as a screening device when used consistently across the candidate pool.

hiring, interview-questions, dissent, team-design