Success·The Interview PlaybookRed flag test: CEO explains why he rejects job candidates who say they can start right awayBy Orianna Rosa RoyleBy Orianna Rosa RoyleAssociate Editor, SuccessOrianna Rosa RoyleAssociate Editor, SuccessOrianna Rosa Royle is the Success associate editor at Fortune, overseeing careers, leadership, and company culture coverage.
She was previously the senior reporter at Management Today, Britain's longest-running publication for CEOs.
SEE FULL BIO Saying you can start immediately may be your biggest interview mistake, warns Gary Shapiro, CEO of the Consumer nology AssociationDrazen Zigic—Getty ImagesGary Shapiro, the chief executive of U.S.
trade association Consumer nology Association, has one make-or-break question he asks hopeful new hires—and says he will turn candidates down if they answer it wrong.
Picture this: You’ve spent hours applying for the dream job and sitting through multiple interviews.
Finally, you think you’ve won over the hiring manager when they ask, “when can you start?” You’d be forgiven for thinking the right answer, is “straight away.” After all, you want to seem eager.
But be warned: Shapiro says being available within two weeks is a big red flag that could land you in the rejection pile.
“They don’t get the job, because they’ll treat us the way they treat that former employer,” Shapiro recently told CNBC.
“I want an [employee] with a level of commitment to their organization—even if they don’t love their job—where they won’t leave their employer hanging.” Unless, of course, you’re unemployed—in which case, the pass-fail question doesn’t apply.
Fortune has ed Gary Shapiro for .
The loyalty test applies to exiting employees too It’s perhaps unsurprising that Shapiro values loyalty among workers—after all, the 68-year-old has worked in his current post as CTA’s chief exec for more than three decades.
For Shapiro, it doesn’t matter how senior the spective candidate is, they’ll still be subject to the same test—and the longer their notice period, the better.
Shapiro said he used the go-to question when hiring the company’s chief operating officer.
He recalled being “very thankful” that she said need up to six weeks to adequately transition from her former job. “I said, ‘That’s perfect. You got the job,’” he added.
Although Shapiro didn’t specify her name in the interview, Glenda MacMullin is CTA’s COO according to the association’s website—which means that he’s been using the question for at least 20 years, as she joined the company in 2004.
He even applies a similar loyalty test to employees already in the when they hand in their notice period.
Departing under good conditions, including giving at least two weeks’ notice is often a consideration whenever CTA rehires “boomerang” employees, Shapiro added.
Interview questions have been put under the microscope because of AI Shapiro’s interview test may have stood the test of time, but many hiring managers today are tossing their go-to questions out of the window thanks to AI.
Earlier this month, Elon Musk’s xAI cofounder called out a cheating interviewee on X.
Instead of stumbling through tough questions, the candidate was using large language models to answer them and then reading responses from the side of their screen.
Greg Yang, one of 12 cofounders at Musk’s AI venture, said a “candidate tried to use Claude during the interview, but it was way too obvious.” The job seeker in question even revealed that prior candidates had leaked the interview questions they were asked on websites 1point3acres and Cscareers.
Outside of the industry, employees have been trying to help their peers outsmart the interview cess by sharing thorny questions on the s of Glassdoor: Fortune was able to find many of the quirky riddles Goldman Sachs asks its candidates on the careers platform.
Yang’s post inspired other employers to speak out the way savvy job seekers are abusing AI tools—and how some are scrapping their trusty interview questions in favour of a more conversational apach in response.
One employer even said he now asks the candidate to ask him questions the job: “If they can’t adequately question you, they bably don’t have enough experience.” CEOs, Fortune wants to hear from you: What are your hiring red flags?
Do you have any make-or-break questions? Get in touch Orianna.Royle@fortune.comFortune Global Forum returns Oct. 26–27, 2025 in Riyadh.
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