Nudge - Marketing Science Simplified
Elon Musk’s Controversial Interview Question
Published: 17 March 2025 at 06:30 Europe/London
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Episode notes
Elon Musk’s hiring strategy goes against conventional wisdom—he asks just two questions and relies on gut instinct. But does it actually work? Today, Prof. Gerd Gigerenzer reveals why Musk’s method might be smarter than traditional hiring processes and explores the psychology behind better decision-making.
You’ll learn:
Why Musk’s hiring heuristic could outperform complex selection methods (feat. insights from Gerd Gigerenzer).
How experienced managers naturally use heuristics to make better hiring decisions.
The surprising downside of having multiple interviewers (feat. findings from a 2014 hiring study).
A smarter way to assess job candidates (that goes beyond endless questions).
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Gerd’s book Smart Management: https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262548014/smart-management/
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Sources:
Reb, J., Luan, S., & Gigerenzer, G. (2024). Smart management: How simple heuristics help leaders make good decisions in an uncertain world. The MIT Press.
Luan, S., Reb, J., & Gigerenzer, G. (2019). Ecological rationality: Fast-and-frugal heuristics for managerial decision making under uncertainty. Academy of Management Journal, 62(6).
Fific, M., & Gigerenzer, G. (2014). Are two interviewers better than one? Journal of Business Research, 67(8), 1771–1779.
