Tomorrow, Daniel Osgodby, 27, will start his new job – as a Carlsberg beer taster, billed as probably the best job in the world.

He will be escorted to work by a private chauffeur. Then at work, he will get to enjoy the company of some of his friends. He will also get to tuck into free-flow of Carlsberg beer in retail outlets and on social media, undertaking the role of a Carlsberg ambassador. Osgodby will report to “work” at SC Food Station, a coffeeshop in Serangoon Central and Hannibal European Grill & Bar at Robertson Quay.

This one-off 4-hour “work” stint will earn Osgodby S$10,000.

The interview may be over, but there’s still plenty of Carlsberg to enjoy!

Successful applicant in Carlsberg’s Probably the best job in the world campaign

This is because Osgodby, a social media manager, had been the winning applicant in Carlsberg Singapore’s Probably the Best Job In the World campaign, which had concluded on 15 December.

This campaign was initially launched on 23 November and had attracted an overwhelming response and garnered over 10,000 entries in just two days. The hype around the dream job had culminated in 22,630 entries by the closing date of 7 December.

Said Osgodby on his success, “Oh my goodness. I am completely elated. I didn’t expect to win at all. I just took everything in my stride throughout the interview process. I feel really happy and excited that I was selected.”

An unconventional interview with Carlsberg

Osgodby, together with four other shortlisted candidates, had undergone an unconventional interview with a four-man panel from Carlsberg. These were General Manager Jimmy Toh, Marketing Director Jolene Yeo, Human Resource Director Tan Poh Chen and Carlsberg Malaysia’s Supply Chain Director David Bidau. Allan Wu was also there to host the session.

The interview is underway.

The contestants they had been were assessed on a variety of factors such as personality, conversational ability, a knack for Carlsberg’s trademark wit and humour, as well as a passion and love for the beer.

His competitors who had been vying for the same job, were physical education teacher Rayson Soh, advertising firm art director Melvin Ho, lawyer Petrina Lee and law undergrad Siaw Hui.

Comprised of three engaging rounds of interviews

The interview process comprised of three interesting rounds. Prior to that, there was a personality quiz, whereby the candidates had to introduce themselves and shared how they developed their love for Carlsberg beer.

The interviews started. The five were blindfolded and given three types of beer – these were Asahi Super Dry Black, Carlsberg and Kronenbourg 1664 Blanc. Contestants had to determine which one of the three was Carlsberg beer.

“This was definitely my favourite part!” quipped Lee, 31, who had been one of the four who had correctly identified the Carlsberg brew.

The beer drinking was Lee’s favourite segment.

The only contestant who had got it wrong had been Soh, who later admitted that it was because his taste buds had been confused by prior drinking before the taste-test session.

The second test had been to demonstrate their love for Carlsberg by coming up with a set of wedding vows to the mug.

For Lee, this section had caught her completely by surprise. She said, “Oh my god. I am not even prepared to propose to a guy, let alone a beer. I think I was nervous and stumbled for a while, but at least i managed to pick it up towards the end.”

However, Osgodby had begged to differ, though. He said, “Proposing to the Carlsberg beer was a great opportunity to show my creative flair in speaking and how passionate I was about beer! I just spoke from the heart.”

And then finally, candidates had to successfully role-play and sell Carlsberg beer to tough “customers”, which included a person who knew absolutely nothing about beer and a Frenchman who preferred red wine. These “customers” had been played by the Carlsberg panel of judges.

This third and last section was apparently Osgodby’s favourite part of the entire process. He said, “I had to think on my feet – and I loved that. My scenario had been that of a cheap “ah beng” in a coffee shop asking me why he should drink Carlsberg and I had apparently nailed it. When I got the scenario, I was telling myself how should I relate to this guy and bring myself down to the level whereby I could talk to him and clinch the sale.”

Contestants and judges say ‘cheers’ over a beer.

However, fellow contestant Siaw, 24, was star-struck by this segment. He said, “I was star-struck as I had been drawn to speak to Allen Wu! But I did my best and i think that we had some good rapport by the end of the session.”

The contestants had enjoyed the interview process thoroughly

Though the entire interview, Osgodby admitted that he had enjoyed every single bit of it. He said, “The interview was so much fun. This is definitely the best job interview in the world. With so many interesting scenario questions and beer tasting included, what else could I ask for? We need to go for more proper interviews like this – the classic job interview is so yesterday!”

Agreed fellow contestant Siaw. He said, “I liked the concept of the interview process. Even though it had been packaged like a regular interview, it was put in a fun way that reminded me of a reality show. It was so spontaneous and I got to meet other like-minded people too. We clicked immediately – though I didn’t win, this is the greatest takeaway that i got out of the whole experience.”

According to the judges, all the five candidates are winners, for having made it this far. Said Yeo, “Our five finalists have demonstrated an incredible sense of spontaneity, wit and honour throughout their interview process. Having shone over 22,000 hopefuls and qualified for this final phase of the selection process, we believe the candidates can walk the talk of the Carlsberg brand identity of always doing things better. We were very impressed by the passion and spontaneity demonstrated by the shortlisted candidates today.”

Osgodby (second from left) can’t believe he’s won.

What does Osgodby think had clinched it for him in the end, though? He said, “I came in with the mindset that I needed to be myself. I did just that, and I feel that my natural personality was what the judges had been looking for. I think that’s why I had won.”

Looking forward to meeting new people tomorrow

And he is definitely looking forward to what will be awaiting him tomorrow when he gets picked up for work. Said Osgodby, “I am excited. Personally, I love meeting new people and interacting with individuals from all walks of life. I would love to see how I can demonstrate that – I am super looking forward to it!”

And what tips does Osgodby have for potential beer tasters? He said, “Just be themselves and be passionate about the thing that they are talking about, which is beer in this case. Ultimately have as much fun as they can and when you do that, your natural personality will come out. That is exactly where you want to be.”

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