Thank you for being part of this newsletter. Each week, I share playbooks, case studies, stories, and links from inside the startup marketing world. You can click the heart button ๐ above or below to share some love. And you can reach out to me anytime at hello@kevanlee.com. Iโd love to hear from you.
Links that are worth your time:
How to set diversity OKRs that make a real difference, Part One
Diversity OKRs, Part Two
Further proof that paid ads arenโt the only way to grow: Netflix ranked fifth in ad spend among streaming competitors in 2020
โBehind-the-newsletterโ interview with Delia Cai who writes one of my favorite curated roundups, Deez Links
At Polly, weโve been talking recently about this Twitter thread re: company culture โฆ

Hi there ๐
My first days at Polly have been full of hiring, go-to-market planning, and marketing strategy. Iโll be sure to share lots more on the latter two pieces in coming weeks โ including the marketing strategy template I use to keep things on track. But in this newsletter, Iโm happy to share a resource that Iโve used time and again on the hiring front: all my favorite interview questions. Hope it comes in handy for anyone whoโs building out a team or looking to get hired somewhere new.
Wishing you a great week,
Kevan
My 27 go-to interview questions
Full list available here in Notion. Feel free to copy. โ๏ธ
Whenever I have the privilege of hiring new teammates, I try to be as thoughtful, fair, and organized as can be. (Usually โorganizedโ is the first attribute to go out the window.)
I want every candidateโs experience to be similar.
I want to remove as much of my own bias as can be.
And I found that one of the best ways to do this is to be prepared for each interview with
A list of questions, ideally the same ones you ask of each and every candidate
A sense for what youโre looking for with each question (โwhy am I asking this?โ)
A framework for ideal answers and pause answers, so Iโm not just going with my gut
Less gut, more planning. ๐
To help me make progress toward these three goals, Iโve spent the past few years jotting down my favorite interview questions. They are all here in Notion, and youโre welcome to have them.
In addition to the questions themselves, if you scroll further down the page, youโll see:
What it tells you โ A section explaining the โwhyโ behind the question
Ideal answer & pause answer โ A hopefully more objective way of measuring a candidateโs response to the question
Big thank yous to my friends at Buffer who helped me be a better interviewer and hiring manager. I still have a long way to go, so any advice or feedback is very welcome. Hopefully this Notion doc is a good start, and hopefully it may be helpful to you and your next hires!
About this newsletter โฆ
Each week, I share playbooks, case studies, stories, and links from inside the startup marketing world. If you enjoy whatโs in this newsletter, you can share some love by hitting the heart button at the top or bottom.๐
About Kevan
Iโm a marketing exec who specializes in startup marketing and brand-building. I currently lead the marketing team at Polly (weโre hiring!). I previously built brands at Buffer and Vox.
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