Tips And Mistakes To Avoid When Asking Questions In Your Interview
First, dont ask extremely basic questions about the company. Spend 5-10 minutes researching the company so that you know a bit about the industry and the products/services that the company offers. Then you can ask more advanced/impressive questions, likeI was on your website and saw ___. Can you tell me more about ___?
Next, dont emphasize the future too much. Looking for growth is great, but you dont want to seem like youre only interested in taking a position so that you can advance beyond it within the first year. The hiring manager is interviewing for one specific job and they want to know that job interests you, along with future growth.
Next, save questions about salary, dress code, and other company policies for after you know the company wants to offer you the job. Its especially important to avoid asking these questions in a first interview. This can get you rejected and Ive seen it first-hand.
In a first or second interview, you really want to focus on asking questions about the work, the role youll play within the company and group, etc. You want to seem motivated to come in and quickly get up to speed in this role. So ask questions in your interview that demonstrate this.
Why Are You Interested In Working At This Organisation
Why employers ask this: Have you done your homework? This question shows how much research you have done, demonstrating motivation for the job and providing recruiters with an insight into your own values to ensure they align with the hiring organisation, McInerney says.
How to respond well: Take some time to identify your values, then be prepared to talk about how these align with the company and what it does. If you can build a connection with the organisation’s people, strategy and values and your own values and aspirations, you will show the potential employer why youre an ideal fit, McInerney says.
Tip: Learn what you can about the companys values and aims. Many businesses include this sort of information via their websites About us page.
Tell Me About A Time You Disagreed With A Decision What Did You Do
No one agrees with every decision. Disagreements are fine it’s what you do when you disagree that matters.
Show that you were professional. Show that you raised your concerns in a productive way. If you have an example that proves you can effect change, great — and if you don’t, show that you can support a decision even though you think it’s wrong .
Every company wants employees willing to be honest and forthright, to share concerns and issues, but to also get behind a decision and support it as if they agreed, even if they didn’t.
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What Happens If You Dont Ask Questions In Your Interview
Here are some of the bad things that happen when you dont ask intelligent questions in a job interview:
- You risk being perceived as unprepared or disorganized.
- You will appear disinterested and lazy. Why would a hiring manager consider you for a job that you dont even seem excited about?
- The other 5 candidates that interviewed for the position all appeared excited I can almost guarantee it in this economy. The one or two that didnt arent going to get to the second round of interviews.
So we need to avoid this by asking a few good questions in every interview.
How Did You Learn About The Opening
Job boards, general postings, online listings, job fairs — most people find their first few jobs that way, so that’s certainly not a red flag.
But a candidate who continues to find each successive job from general postings probably hasn’t figured out what he or she wants to do — and where he or she would like to do it.
He or she is just looking for a job often, any job.
So don’t just explain how you heard about the opening. Show that you heard about the job through a colleague, a current employer, by following the company–show that you know about the job because you want to work there.
Employers don’t want to hire people who just want a job they want to hire people who want a job with their company.
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Why Are You The Right Fit To Succeed In This Role
You should use the interview as an opportunity to say something interesting about your skills and experiences that relate back to the role at hand. Remember that interviewers will be looking for you to demonstrate key skills that match the job and behaviour that align with the organisation’s culture, so prepare examples in advance that you can call on when required.
Examples of the key attributes employers look for include:
- Project management skills
Focus On The Employer’s Needs
Though the question “Why should we hire you” seems like the focus is on you and your wants, it’s really not. Your personal career goals are certainly important, but this question is an opportunity to explain how you’ll bring value to the company.
To prepare, research everything you can about the business’ agendaread its website, social media, quarterly reports, company profiles on Monster, press releases, and recent news stories about the company. What are their goals? Where do they see themselves headed in the future? How can your talents help get them there?
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Prepare For The Question
Since this question is common at the end of every type of job interview, it makes sense to plan for it in advance and be prepared. Develop a list of questions that you want answered and keep in mind that your questions may change slightly based upon your interviewer.
If you’re meeting with someone from human resources, for instance, your questions might focus on the interviewing process or on the overall organization of the company. If you’re meeting with the person who will be your manager, you might ask specific questions about your intended role or about the hiring process for new employees.
Prepare several questions, as many of them may be addressed during the interview.
Are You Willing To Relocate
While this may sound like a simple yes-or-no question, its often a little bit more complicated than that. The simplest scenario is one where youre totally open to moving and would be willing to do so for this opportunity. But if the answer is no, or at least not right now, you can reiterate your enthusiasm for the role, briefly explain why you cant move at this time, and offer an alternative, like working remotely or out of a local office. Sometimes its not as clear-cut, and thats OK. You can say you prefer to stay put for xyz reasons, but would be willing to consider relocating for the right opportunity.
Read More:The Best Responses to Are You Willing to Relocate? Depending on Your Situation
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What Do You Think Of The Last Company You Worked For
You should only discuss the positive aspects of your last company, unless they ask you further details on why you are leaving. The goal is to explain what you liked in your previous job that this company also has to offer you.
Pro tips:
- Tell them about the training you received that will be useful for the tasks you will have to accomplish
- Talk about the work related experiences you have gained that will be useful for the position
- Focus on the tasks you found interesting and that you would be able to continue in this new role
- Highlight the benefits that both companies have
What Not To Say
Dont share too much or too little information. The interviewer doesn’t want to know everything about you, but disclosing too little can make him or her wonder why you aren’t more open.
Avoid potentially contentious subjects such as political or religious leanings, unless you are absolutely positive that your opinions would be well-received by your interviewer.
Dont talk about a hobby that might seem to be more important to you than your career. No employer wants to take a chance on hiring someone who will miss a lot of work or ask for extensive vacation time to pursue their passions outside of work.
Avoid sharing personal information about your family. There is no need to discuss spouses, partners, children, or any other strictly personal information.
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A Bank Of America Exec Says She Likes To Ask Job Candidates About Times They’ve Showed Initiative Here’s How You Should Answer
Bank of America.
- Insider asked Bank of America exec Katy Ingle what question she asks during job interviews.
- Ingle said she is very focused on what “initiative” an applicant can show.
- That’s often about what you do outside of work, such as playing sports or volunteering, she said.
A lot of executives have a favorite interview question for prospective employees.
Virgin founder Richard Branson has said that asking people “what didn’t you get the chance to include on your CV?” helps him gain a better understanding of a candidate. Oprah Winfrey’s “What’s your spiritual practice?” aims to bring out a person’s “inner relationship with themself.”
The aim is the same: to find out whether a candidate is a good fit.
Insider asked Katy Ingle, Bank of America’s head of diversity and inclusion for Europe, Middle East, and Africa, what questions she asks during interviews, and what applicants should know if they apply for a role at the bank.
Ingle said that she was very focused on what “initiative” a person has shown. That’s not necessarily about their work experience, but about the skills that they can apply to their future job, she said.
“So for me it’s around, can you talk about your outside activities, your outside interests, your passions. What can you bring to the table?” said Ingle. “That can be a good question for asking young people.”
If people don’t have that, they can use volunteering as a way of showing initiative, she said.
Questions To Ask Interviewers At The Start Of The Interview
At the start of the interview, understanding the people who are interviewing you will help you provide answers appropriate to the persons role in your work life. You will also become a bit more comfortable talking with the interviewer, hopefully turning the interview into a discussion rather than a series of questions and answers.
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Are You A Risk
This ones pretty tricky, as the answer here depends on your profession and field.
Ask yourself – is risk-taking a valuable skill for the job?
If youre a pilot, for example, the answer should be a strict No!
If, on the other hand, youre a day trader, then risk is an essential part of your job.
So, depending on how valuable risk is for your job, answer accordingly.
You could also give a more strategic answer. Lets say, for example, you work in investment banking. You need to be a risk taker to an extent, but being too risk-friendly might make the entire company go bankrupt.
The strategy in such a case would be to show that youre all about calculated risk. Youre willing to take chances, but only when the odds are in your favor.
As with most interview questions, you should give examples of situations where you had to take risks, and what the end-results were.
Possible answers:
- Sample Answer 1:
Yes, Im a risk-taker. I believe that to achieve real results, you always need to be willing to take a certain level of risk.
Pretty much any marketing initiative you launch is tied to risk. You can plan everything from beginning till the end, but no matter how well you plan it out, things might just not work out.
Its just part of the job – in order to succeed, you need to take launch risky campaigns on a regular basis, and hopefully, one in every 5 is going to bring you massive results.
- Sample Answer 2:
The Interviewer Hands You Their Card And Number
If the interviewer hands you their card with their phone number, it suggests that they want to keep you engaged in conversation, whether for this position or a future one. They may have more questions about you and your preferences or just want to make it easy for you to follow up with them during the remainder of the hiring process.
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Best Questions To Ask An Employer In An Interview
Remember that each interview is unique and you will need to tailor your questions appropriately. You most likely do not need to ask all 18 questions but you will find there are other questions you should ask based on how the interview is going.
How Do You Deal With Tight Deadlines
For interviewees, their most ideal answer should be a version of this: I review a list of tasks and analyze what are the most urgent and critical matters. I put the most urgent ones on top of the list.
Next, I focus on each task with complete concentration until I finish it before moving on to the next urgent task.
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What Does Customer Service Mean To You
If youre applying for a public-facing role, an employer may ask this question to determine what aspects of customer service are most important to you. . A good answer will align with the companys values, which you can glean through researching their customer service policy, understanding their products and clientele and reflecting on your own experiences as a customer. Your answer can either come from the perspective of a customer or a customer service provider.
Example answer:In my experience, good customer service involves taking responsibility when something goes wrong and doing what you can to make it right. For example, on a recent flight, I had pre-ordered my meal only to discover they didnt stock enough of my dish. Instead of simply stating the facts, the flight attendant apologized sincerely and offered me a free drink or premium snack. To me, this apology went a long way in smoothing things over. The freebie was a bonus that made me feel valued as a customer and choose the same airline for my next flight.
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Why Is There A Gap In Your Work Experience
In most cases, a gap in your work experience doesnt really mean anything. You probably have a very good reason for it.
The interviewer, however, will definitely ask about it, and you should answer adequately.
Theres no secret sauce to answering this question, just let the recruiter know about your situation, whatever that may be:
- Maternity leave
- Caring for a sick family member
- Time off to pursue further education
- Relocating to a different city
- Working on a personal project
Whichever the case may be, just explain the situation in brief and move on.
One thing to keep in mind, however, is that if you were laid off at work, or you quit and had trouble getting a new job, you should be very subtle about it.
If the interviewer knows that youre struggling to find a job, youre going to give them the upper hand in salary negotiations.
Possible answers:
I had a baby and had to take maternity leave.
- Sample Answer 2:
My father was sick, so I had to be the one to take care of him full-time over a few months.
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Signs That You Got The Job After An Interview
Here are several signs that indicate you’ll get the job after the interview.
Can You Explain Why You Changed Career Paths
Dont be thrown off by this questionjust take a deep breath and explain to the hiring manager why youve made the career decisions you have. More importantly, give a few examples of how your past experience is transferable to the new role. This doesnt have to be a direct connection in fact, its often more impressive when a candidate can show how seemingly irrelevant experience is very relevant to the role.
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