How To Answer, “How Long Do You Plan On Working Here”

James Waruinge says he has been through a lot of interviews before but he has never been asked…. “How long do you plan to work for this company?” Last week though when attending an interview with one of the leading event organizing companies in Kenya, the question was posed to him. “I said three years and I didn’t offer any further explanation.”

Like a lot of job seekers, he wonders how he should have answered the question. “I feel my vagueness may have hindered my success for that job,” he wrote in an email.

Although it may seem like a trick question, this interview question is often asked to understand your career goals and is similar to the “where do you see yourself in 5 years?” question.

The reason interviewers often ask this question is to get an understanding of what you want from your career and to learn more about what you want to get from working at their company. It can seem like a difficult question because you don’t want to sound like you’re going to leave as soon as another opportunity pops up, but you also want to be honest about your future job goals.

The interviewer wants to hear about your ambition and what you want to achieve whilst working for them. You might already know the answer to this question, you may not. It’s a good idea to prepare for interview question beforehand so you can be confident in structuring your answer in a way that helps you move onto the next round in the interview process.

But how?

Here are the best possible answers to this interview question

1. As long as it takes…..

Make sure you back this up with a factor that will be of the benefit to the company.
Talking about your performance and the time you want to stay will do it,

Sample Answer: ‘I will stay as long as it takes and my performance will continue progressing for the greater performance of the company’

2. As long as there are growth opportunities.

When answering the question, also make sure that you also consider what you are looking for in the company.

Sample Answer: “I would like to work for you as long as I can grow professionally and that I get exposed to more challenging tasks.”

3. Friendly work environment.

This is the time to show that you are really interested in working for the company, tell them about the background search you have done on the company.

Sample Answer: “According to my research, I have found out that this company provides a friendly work environment and I find that it’s going to be a good place to work at, I am looking for a long term career here.”

4. Till the company and I are satisfied.

An interviewee should emphasis on the satisfaction of both the company and themselves.

Sample Answer: I plan to work here as long as my services are needed by the company.”

5. As long as the company has everything I am looking for.

Sample Answer: “I am looking for a long term position and if there are opportunities for advancement and growth here then I want to stay for a long time.”

A word of advice to candidates preparing for interviews is to expect this type of question beforehand and avoid been caught by surprise and giving answers such as ‘I will work here till I die’

Struggling in interview preparation? Talk to an interview coach here.