If you’re a recruiter, hiring manager, or an HR professional, you probably spend a good deal of your workday interviewing job candidates. And you already know that you must optimize the time you spend with each candidate by asking the most “telling” questions you can possibly formulate.
Personally, I’ve conducted more job interviews than I can possibly count (or even remember!), and I definitely have my favorite questions, which I’m going to share in today’s blog. You may be surprised by my list, because I tend to choose simple, direct questions. None of those “if you were on an island with ten people and had only enough food and water for three of you…” or “Describe the time when you were most ashamed of yourself…” I prefer to see the candidate in “friendly visit mode” rather than “threatened survival mode,” because I think it gives me a better idea of the real person I’m interviewing.
So, let’s jump right in. Here’s my short, simple list:
1. Tell me a little about yourself. For starters, I wasn’t sure I even wanted to mention this age-old question—not because I don’t like it (I actually love it and I always use it), but because I assume everyone on the planet already asks it and understands its value. But just in case you might be considering jettisoning this question (“because it’s too clichéd,” you’re saying), here’s why you should still use it: it allows the candidate to “freewheel” for a while! Basically, candidates can decide how long they want to talk, exactly what they want to reveal, and the order in which they want to disclose their information. Furthermore, they can decide whether they want to speak only about their professional lives, or to bring in a bit of the “I like to collect cat figurines” stuff. I love to sit back and see where people go, and I always learn a ton—especially about whether they’ll fit into the company culture.
Sure, it’s the most expected question in the interview book, but that’s not such a bad thing, either. Why start off by terrifying the candidate with the most difficult question ever invented? There’s nothing wrong with helping the candidate to relax. I guarantee that you’ll learn a lot more when you manage to disarm the candidate, and make them feel comfortable to speak freely. Clichéd or not, this question’s always a good leadoff.
2. Tell me about your current (or most recent) boss or supervisor. I love this one, because it gives me a chance to see how the candidate relates to authority. I can evaluate the candidate’s current (or most recent) relationship with their boss, and hear what words they choose to describe their association.
It also gives me the chance to see whether the candidate will violate the all-important interview rule of “don’t badmouth your current employer.” Even if the candidate is unhappy with their current situation, there are definite ways to answer this question without going into anything negative—and I’m hoping the candidate will choose to take the high road.
And if the candidate likes their current boss, it’s all the better, because the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior. (That’s a verifiable behavioral fact.) If the candidate is happy with their current boss, it’s highly likely they’ll be happy with the next one, as well.
Some candidates will answer this question by describing the “official” relationship with their boss: “I report to Bianca, the head of operations. She gives me my weekly assignments and tells me what calls I need to make.” Others immediately go to the more personal side: “Oh, I just love Mark. He’s so funny. He checks in with me every day and always has something hilarious to talk about.” Again, I like to listen and see where the candidate takes the question—these types of open questions are sort of like a Rorschach* test, only more accurate. Will candidates speak only of the formal employee/employer relationship, or will they weave the personal human relationship component into their answers?
*In case you’re not familiar with Rorschach: a Rorschach test is that famous ink blot test, where a subject is asked to report whatever they perceive in random ink blot patterns, which the tester then analyzes to determine whether the subject is actually bonkers. (And, by the way, it doesn’t really work!)
3. Tell me about the people you currently work with. This is obviously the companion piece to question #2. In this case, I have the opportunity to see how the candidate forms relationships and relates to the co-workers within their current (or most recent) position. I can hear whether they describe their co-workers in a purely work-related way: “I’m on a team with six other people, and we staff the east wing of the children’s ward from 7am to 5pm.” Or whether I hear a more personal connection: “I’m part of this really great group of people. We work in customer service, and we’re always having these fun contests to see who helps the most customers in one month.” This gives me insight into what the candidate values most in their current work environment (processes, relationships, friendships, work output, etc.).
And once again, I can listen to see whether the candidate might slip into badmouthing their current situation—a big no-no in an interview: “I don’t like the guys I work with right now. They’re lazy and they screw around too much…” Minimally, I want to hear an objective report of the candidate’s relationship with their peers; preferably, I want to hear something human and personal—something that makes me think this candidate is capable of forming lasting bonds with their co-workers. But what I definitely don’t want to hear is grousing and complaining! For me, that’s an instant disqualification.
4. What questions would you ask me if you were interviewing me for this same position? This one’s a fun one, and it always reaps some interesting insights. I once had someone say that he’d ask me whether I’m honest and whether I can be trusted. (And he wasn’t applying for a job where this seemed to be a huge issue.) We did a more extensive background check on this guy after his interview, and lo and behold, he had a pretty impressive criminal record! Talk about tipping your hand. But aside from this spectacularly wild example, I usually find that this question brings about some really great responses—things that help me understand the candidate’s personal goals and values. It forces them to shift gears—they actually must become me in order to answer the question—and I can often observe what kind of person they are: empathic, logical, gentle, forceful, passive, aggressive, etc.
And if they’re interviewing for any sort of managerial or supervisorial position, this question also lets me see what they value in their own employees: “Are you neat and organized?” “Do you finish your work on time?” “Are you a good problem solver?” From these sorts of answers, it’s not difficult to know what the candidate will expect from their own employees, should they be hired for the position.
In general, no matter what questions we ask when we interview a candidate, we must pay serious attention—to everything! Here’s a little secret: I’m thoroughly convinced that an astute interviewer could ask, “What’s your favorite color,” “Who’s your favorite superhero,” and “What did you have for breakfast today” and still come away with the information they need to match the candidate to the job. So, in a way, I guess it’s not so much what questions we ask, but how good we are at understanding—and then applying—what’s behind the answers being proffered.
And here’s a final thought. When I interview someone, I keep in mind that if I hire the wrong person, I’ve done a disservice to both my company and to the candidate. No one wants to fail, and I consider it my job, as much as humanly possible, to ensure a successful match between the candidate and the position. When interviewing, it’s essential that we observe every last detail of a person’s overall presentation—personal appearance, body language, voice tone, eye contact, as well as their actual words—in order to make the right hiring decisions for all involved.