First, it’s an easy and open-ended way to start the conversation.
Your interviewer is hoping that this question will get you talking. This question is almost always asked first, perhaps right after some chit chat about traffic and the weather.
Therefore, your answer will dictate the interviewer’s first impression of you, and will set the tone for the entire interview, letting you lead with your strongest selling points.
Secondly, the ultimate goal of the interviewer is to get to know you better. Professionally, not personally.
In other words, your interviewer want to know:
- What are your motivations and what drives you?
- Which problems you had to solve and how you solved them?
- How do you deal with people?
- What impact have you had in the past?
