Village Insights: Interviewing at Coupa — What to Expect and How to Prepare
Let’s be honest—interviews can be a bit daunting. You’re expected to make a great impression, share your unique story, and size up a massive new career opportunity—all within a short window of time.
Welcome to Village Insights: Your Coupa Career Playbook. In this series, our global recruiting team sits down with you to share practical, tested strategies designed to take the stress out of your job search and set you up for success.
At Coupa, you’re not just considering a career with an industry-leading, AI-driven Total Spend Management platform; you’re exploring a place in a collaborative global community—the Coupa Village. We want you to feel supported, valued, and empowered from day one. That’s why we’ve built this playbook to help you confidently prepare for your interview, ask the right questions, and bring your most authentic self to the conversation.
Here is what you need to know to prepare for a successful interview with us.
Get Familiar with the Process
As you start the interview process, we want to make you comfortable so you can share what you bring to the specific role.
- Your first step will be a brief conversation with the internal recruiter looking to fill the position.
- Next, you should plan on having two or three interviews with the hiring manager, stakeholders, and potentially an executive-level leader.
Before your Interview with the Hiring Manager
Your internal recruiters could be your most invaluable resource. Save the job-specific questions for the hiring manager but let the recruiter share the best advice on the process, company culture and those you’ll be meeting in the next round of interviews.
Get to Know us Before we Get to Know You
Before you meet the hiring manager:
- Research our company and clearly understand what we do and how your experience can impact Coupa and its growth. Coupa.com, our LinkedIn page, and People Stories are great starting points.
- Check out Gartner and other industry accolades
- Coupa isn’t a company that just talks about values but lives and breathes them every day. Our Coupa Core Values inform our culture.
- Get expert advice from our TA Team. Check out our Village Insights: Your Coupa Career Playbook blogs and our Shaping What's Next video series.
Know your Talk Track
Review your Resume/CV before the interview. Be prepared with key message points to quickly give the interviewer a brief overview of your career and elaborate on what’s on your resume.
Review the Responsibilities and Qualifications
Make sure you’ve thoroughly read the job description and highlight how past experiences could relate to the role during the interview. We use behavior-based interviewing questions, so bring relevant examples to discuss during the interview.
Get your Tech in Order
To ensure a smooth virtual interview, install and test the specific video conference platform for the interview. Find a quiet space for the video conference with good lighting, where you will not be distracted, and choose a suitable background. This way, you can focus on the interview, avoid distractions, and have your tech in order.
AMA - Ask me Anything
Finally, we want to work with curious and collaborative people excited to grow their careers at Coupa and who can bring different perspectives to our company. So, come to the interview prepared to ask thoughtful questions and show us your passion for innovation and dynamic problem-solving.
Ready to help shape what's next? Join our vibrant Talent Community and explore exciting opportunities to become part of the Coupa Village.
