Interview Questions Asked By Hiring Manager

Possible Answer To Whats A Time You Disagreed With A Decision That Was Made At Work

In my job as a finance assistant, I was in charge of putting together reports for potential company investments. It was important to get the details and numbers right so that leaders had the best information to make a decision. One time, my boss asked me to generate a new report on a Wednesday morning and wanted it done by Thursday at 5 PM. Because Im committed to high-quality work and I wasnt sure my boss fully understood what goes into each report, I knew I needed to speak up. At her next available opening, I sat down with my boss and explained my concerns. She was firm that the report would be completed by Thursday at 5 PM. So I decided to ask if there was anyone who could help out. After thinking about it, my boss found another assistant who could put in a few hours. While it was a tight timeline, we got the report done, and the committee was really pleased to review it at the meeting. My boss appreciated my extra efforts to make it happen and I felt good that I hadnt let the quality of the report slip. It was a good experience of being a team player but also knowing when and how to ask for help. And once I explained how much time and work goes into each report, my boss was careful to assign them further in advance.

What Do You Want My Hiring Manager To Know About You Specifically

This question is a variation of Why should I consider you for this role? However, it is usually so unexpected that the responses are pretty telling. You quickly see what candidates value in their own experiences and gain a little more insight.

Jill Chapman, 30+ years of recruiting experience, Twitter: @jsilmanKingwood, Texas

Do You Know Anyone Who Works For Us

The purpose of this HR interview question and its answer is tricky and most of the interviewees these days fail to give an appropriate answer.

Your interviewer wants to find out if you have relatives, friends or acquaintances working for the organization.

From a psychological point of view, they want to know if you already have a mentor within the organization.

So it is recommended that you frame a positive answer while facing your round of HR interview questions and answers.

Also Check: Interview Questions For Diversity And Inclusion Manager

Tips For Preparing Your Great Answer

• Talk about your time management skills.
• Include your prioritization method for various tasks.
• Try to include managing stress or working under pressure.
• Be cool and confident when you answer so that your explanation about your multitasking ability matches your body language.
• Try to include references to recognized management methods.

Are You A Team Player

Wherever youre applying, the answer to this question should be a Yes!

Even if youre applying for a completely solo role, chances are, youre still going to have to work in a team occasionally.

Wed recommend being very specific about your answer here – dont just say yes. Give the interviewer an exact example of when you excelled at working with a team.

• Sample Answer 1:

Im much better at working in a team than alone, actually. Thats what I love about working in advertising – everyone has their own specific type of a creative spark, and when you combine it all, magic happens!

Im good at both leading and following in terms of creativity and brainstorming. Im also super receptive to others ideas, and do my best to help them execute it without nay-saying or criticism.

• Sample Answer 2:

Yep, definitely. I excel at team-work.

This one time while working at , I was assigned to an existing team working on a web application for a business process management company.

They were working on a tight deadline, and needed help on the API side.

I optimised their development cycles and oversaw a team of three developers while collaborating with the other two dev teams.

Everything went pretty well, and we managed to finish the project on time.

Also Check: How To Crack Amazon Data Scientist Interview

Final Thoughts: Hr Manager Interview Questions

HR managers are responsible for your companys most important resource, its people. These HR manager interview questions are a great way to assess the areas of strength for your candidates, as well as their weaknesses. Check out our webinar to learn how you can leverage your recruiting process to attract diverse talent and hire the best HR managers.

Further reading

Describe A Time In Which You Hired Someone Who Wasnt Right For The Role What Went Wrong And What Did You Learn From The Experience

Not every hire is a home run. Bad hires are a part of the job recruitment business and an expensive part at that.

Having a candidate acknowledge their recruiting mistakes can give you important insight into what kind of employee theyll be. Do they own up to their missteps or pawn them off on others? What lessons did they learn from the experience, and how did they apply them to similar scenarios in the future? The answers to these questions can offer you a glimpse into how a candidate might leverage failure.

Also Check: What To Write In A Thank You After An Interview

Why Havent You Gotten Your Masters Degree/phd

As a start, keep in mind that the interviewer isnt judging you for your decision.

After all, if they were looking for someone with a better degree, they wouldnt have invited you to an interview. The degree is not the dealbreaker here, but your answer to the question might be.

When asking this question, the interviewer is trying to see your reasoning for pursuing a career instead of getting another degree.

Heck, theres a chance that if you give them the right answer, theyre even going to like you more than someone with 3 Phds!

So, simply explain why you didnt think that another degree was the right thing for you at the time.

Dont say you were lazy or didnt feel like it, or that its a waste of money .

Instead, give compelling arguments, such as

• You wanted to see whether your field was the right one for you.
• You didnt have the financial resources at the time.
• You wanted to get some practical work experience before committing to another degree.

• Sample Answer 1:

At this stage of my life, I decided to pursue my career instead of further education. On the one hand, I want to make sure that Marketing is what I want to do with my life.

On the other hand, I believe that in my field, practical work experience is a lot more valuable than academic.

So far, my decision has paid off pretty well – Ive already gotten a lot of experience doing online marketing for 3+ companies and delivering awesome results to boot.

• Sample Answer 2:

Hr Manager Interview Questions For Admin And People Operations

Administrative tasks make up a big enough portion of HR tasks that any candidate you decide to bring in for an interview should be experienced with them. Use these questions to learn how your HR manager candidate deals with the administrative and operational aspects of their job.

• What is your preferred system to you use for talent management? Why?
• With a combination of both strategic and day-to-day administrative tasks making up your work week, how do you prioritize your various tasks?
• How do you motivate yourself when faced with repetitive or tedious tasks?
• If you were faced with an employee grievance that required your immediate attention, what would be your process for investigating and resolving the situation?
• If a situation with a toxic employee was brought to your attention, what steps would you take to address the situation? And what would you do if a separation was inevitable?
• Tell me about a time where office politics threatened to derail a project and you had to intervene. What did you do and what was the outcome?
• What do you think are the most effective strategies for reducing employee churn?

Also Check: How To Successfully Interview Someone

How Do You Motivate People

EXAMPLE ANSWER:

Motivation isnt a one-size-fits-all solution, so I like to really get to know my team on an individual level. A few years ago, I was overseeing a sales team. While our numbers were good, they werent great, partially because one of the members of the team was dealing with a child going through cancer and chemo. Because of the gravity of the situation, I decided the team needed a good reward to get them excited about selling. I promised, if they broke the previous years record, I would shave my head and donate a portion of my salary to a local cancer charity. This didnt just motivate the team it completely re-energized them! We not only broke the previous years record, but fifteen of the employees joined me in shaving their heads, and we collected and donated over $5000 to the charity.

How Do You Prioritize Your Work

Your interviewers want to know that you can manage your time, exercise judgement, communicate, and shift gears when needed. Start by talking about whatever system youve found works for you to plan your day or week, whether its a to-do list app you swear by or a color-coded spreadsheet. This is one where youll definitely want to lean on a real-life example. So go on to describe how youve reacted to a last-minute request or another unexpected shift in priorities in the past, incorporating how you evaluated and decided what to do and how you communicated with your manager and/or teammates about it.

Read Also: What To Say During A Phone Interview

Questions About Skills And Credentials

You already know that you meet the criteria for this role. Still, questions about skills and credentialsâsurrounding processes, training, and toolsâallow you to go a bit deeper into the day-to-day movements you can expect. If you have direct experience with some of the areas mentioned, you can highlight that, or you can express specific interest in learning the new technical skills youâll develop.

Examples include:

• What tools or programs do you typically use?

• What are the typical learning curves for new team members?

• How do you describe your ideal candidate to fill this role?

What asking these questions may say about you: A hiring manager may interpret your interest in the technical aspects of this role as a desire to set yourself up for success. Asking these questions can show that you care about doing a good job and that you are prepared to learn what you need to know to make that happen.

Before You Begin The Potential Manager Interview

You’ll want to make sure your candidate ticks off all of the requirements on your list before you schedule that interview. You want to make sure the person is motivated, a people person, and a results-oriented leader.

Furthermore, you need to hire a candidate who is experienced and able to work well under pressure. Finally, you want to talk with a candidate who is approachable, personable, works well with a team, and has a great attitude.

There are two types of questions you’ll want to askthose that focus on the candidate’s experience, and those that provide insight into his or her behavior and personality.

You May Like: Do I Need An Interview To Renew Global Entry

Q: How Can Hiring Managers Prepare For An Interview

A: There are a few things that hiring managers can do to prepare for an interview. First, they should review the job description and requirements to ensure that they are clear on what the role entails. Second, they should come up with a list of questions that they want to ask the candidate. Finally, they should practice interviewing by role-playing with a colleague.

Describe Who You Are Or Tell Me About Your Background

In a job interview, you can be asked to describe who you are, Describe yourself in one word or Describe yourself in 3 words, but all such questions essentially mean that you talk about your skills and qqualities.

In an HR round, you will surely face this question among all other HR interview questions and answers asked to you, and I am sure you treat it as the easiest of all questions.

Well, its not!

Never underestimate the possibility of scoring better points with a crisp answer, if you feel confident.

It can become a fate-changer for applicants having fewer than 5 years of total job experience.

If your degree is obviously related to the job youre interviewing for, you can give this answer.

You May Like: What Question I Should Ask In Interview

What Other Jobs Are You Considering

For the most part, candidates should be looking for jobs in similar fields. It doesnt matter if theyre looking at other companies or even other niches within a specific skill set.

What might raise a warning flag would be if theyve applied for non-managerial jobs as well as the manager position in your business.

Why Do You Think Youd Perform This Job Well

An answer to this question gives you insight into what the candidate has to offer and is essential for making an informed decision.

Asking why they think they would perform well as a manager in your business helps you understand their unique strengths, skills, and level of experience.

Armed with that knowledge, you can choose the best candidate that most closely matches the unique needs of your company.

The valuable thing about this question is that it often elicits a response that, while similar to the biggest management strength question, is different enough that it provides a more complete picture of the individual you are interviewing.

Also Check: How To Answer Manager Interview Questions

Possible Answer To What Should I Know Thats Not On Your Resume

Well, one thing you wont find on my resume: the time I had to administer emergency CPR. Last year, I was at the lake when I saw a young girl who looked like she was drowning. I was a lifeguard in high school, so I swam out, brought her to shore, and gave her CPR. Although this washopefullya one-time event, Ive always been able to stay calm during stressful situations, figure out a solution, and then act. As your account manager, Id use this trait to quickly and effectively resolve issues both within the team and externally. After all, obstacles are inevitable, especially in a startup environment. And if anyone needs CPR at the office beach party, well, Im your woman.

Possible Answer To Whats Your Management Style

Management style is so hard to put your finger on, but I think in general a good manager gives clear directions and actually stays pretty hands-off, but is ready and available to jump in to offer guidance, expertise, and help when needed. I try my best to make that my management style. I also go out of my way to make sure I know when my team needs help. That means plenty of informal check-ins, both on the work theyre doing and on their general job satisfaction and mental well-being. I remember one project in particular at my most recent position that involved everyone working on a separate aspect of the product. This meant a lot of independent work for my team of seven people, but rather than bog everyone down with repetitive meetings to update me and everyone else on progress made, I created a project wiki that allowed us to communicate new information when necessary without disrupting another team members work. I then made it my job to make sure no one was ever stuck on a problem too long without a sounding board. Ultimately, despite the disparate project responsibilities, we ended up with a very cohesive product and, more importantly, a team that wasnt burnt out.

Recommended Reading: How To Send Thank You After Interview

What Do You Like To Do Outside Of Work

Interviewers will sometimes ask about your hobbies or interests outside of work in order to get to know you a little betterto find out what youre passionate about and devote time to during your off-hours. Its another chance to let your personality shine. Be honest, but keep it professional and be mindful of answers that might make it sound like youre going to spend all your time focusing on something other than the job youre applying for.

Possible Answer To What Type Of Work Environment Do You Prefer

I really like the environment in my current position. My manager is a great resource and always willing to help out when I run into an issue, but they trust me to get my work done so I have a lot of freedom in how I schedule and prioritize, which is very important to me. Everyone has their own cubicle, so its often pretty quiet to get our work done, but we all get lunch together and our team has a lot of check-in meetings and communicates frequently via Slack so we still get a lot of opportunities to bounce ideas off each other. So I like both individual and more collaborative work. How would you describe the mix here?

Also Check: How To Respond To Interview Schedule Email

Why Do You Want To Become A Manager

EXAMPLE ANSWER:

One of my core reasons for wanting to transition into management involves my success as a project lead. In my past role, I had the opportunity to oversee several high-visibility projects, coordinating teams of no less than five members. While I relished in the opportunity to put my skills to work, what was most rewarding and was ultimately an area where I shined was coaching others toward success. I feel my experience as an individual contributor gives me an advantage in that regard, as I understand the perspective of the team. Plus, my active listening, delegation, and communication skills help eliminate obstacles and resolve conflicts, and I believe I could do the same in a management role.