Microsoft

The key to any successful interview is establishing a rapport with the interview guest. If guests are uncomfortable, the interview will feel stilted and only cover surface information. Brad Anderson, Corporate Vice President of Microsoft, demonstrates the importance of establishing a relationship with interviewees in Microsoft’s ongoing video series “Brad Anderson’s Lunch Break.”

The series follows Anderson as he interviews tech leadership from various companies on his lunch break. The videos are a corporate spin on other transportation-based videos, such as Carpool Karaoke and Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee.

Throughout the series, Anderson interviews guests to Microsoft’s Redmond, WA campus as they go to lunch. The interviews not only touch on the guests’ professional accomplishments but also personal interests and lives outside the office. Anderson’s rapport with video guests creates an approachable atmosphere, so the series has the feeling of casual conversations between two friends, instead of formal interviews.