Using Subjective Or Arbitrary Criteria
Rather than “screening out” candidates based on an initial gut feeling or on unpredictive criteria such as GPA, the address on a resume, or the sound of a name, the interviewer should make sure that the evaluation process is as structured, job-specific and objective as possible. This will give them the chance to hire great people they might not have even considered otherwise, said Michael Burtov, founder and CEO of GeoOrbital.
Choosing The Best Questions To Ask During An Interview
Right questions?
Absolutely. You want to make sure the questions youre asking are targeted and fall into specific categories.
Like favorite animals and if they were stranded on an island, who would they want to be stranded with?
No. Serious job related questionsquestions that can ultimately make or break your desire to accept the job should it be offered.
Questions that cover every aspect of both the job and the companyand help to ensure that the decision you make to take or leave the position is a 100% educated one.
What if you are offered the job but dont realize until you start that its awful? Nobody wants to do a job they hate or work in a place where theyre miserableand the fastest way to make sure you end up in work hell is to NOT ask questions.
Nooo!
Remember, this is a lot like dating and you need to know what youre getting yourself into. So, put on your thinking cap and sharpen your pencilits time to get started.
Long Interview Thank You Email
In the long version, you have more opportunities to explain your skills in detail . This is appropriate after an in-person interview or other meaningful interactions during the hiring process.
Subject line: Thank you for your time
Dear Mr. Jefferson,
Thank you very much for your time yesterdayit was a pleasure speaking with you about the account executive role. From our conversation, its clear that ABC Inc. has the energetic and hardworking environment Im seeking.
I especially enjoyed discussing your need for someone who can create value and insight during client conversations. Its an interesting challenge, and Ive continued reflecting on it since our meeting. Over the last few years, Ive encountered many of the same roadblocks we discussed: tightening client budgets and lengthy decision-making processes. Prioritizing the quality of the conversation over simple information delivery has been one of my most successful tactics in overcoming those roadblocks and one reason Ive routinely exceeded my quotas.
In my relationships with clients, I focus on building trust and boosting credibility, and Im excited about the prospect of bringing that skill set to ABC Inc. If you need any further information, please feel free to contact me by email or phone.
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What To Do After An Interview
After a Job Interview
And breathe. The interview you prepped so hard for is over. What next?
Attending an interview is often a nerve-wracking experience. Its easy to leave the room, let out a sigh of relief and simply wait for your prospective employer to call. However, the next bit isn’t just a waiting game. The steps you take now can boost your chances of securing the position, and can even help you do better in future interviews.
This is the ideal time to reflect on exactly how you performed in the interview, assess what went well and consider what could’ve been improved. Use the post-interview period to reconnect with your prospective employer, remind them how great you are and demonstrate that you’re eager and interested. Thank them for meeting you and keep yourself fresh in their mind.
From how to email after an interview to turning down a post that simply isn’t right for you, our post-interview etiquette guide talks you through the next steps in securing your next job.
Introduction
Qualities Responsibilities And Expectations For Role
1. “Can you explain the daily responsibilities of this role?”
They often mention the daily responsibilities in the job ad, but hearing from someone who works at the company can help you discover those responsibilities in more detail.
2. “What expectations do you have from someone in this role in the first three months?”
Knowing what your employer expects from you will help you have a more focused strategy at the job. It will show which areas you need to improve the fastest.
3. “What specific challenges are associated with this role?”
This is one of the best questions you can ask about the role. Once you know the major challenges, you can create a plan to work on those once you begin the job.
4. “What one piece of advice would you give to someone who is about to start in this role?”
This is your chance to get the best and most practical advice in advance. Their answer might even clarify what not to do, should you get the position.
5. “What factors and metrics will you use to measure my success in this role?”
It isnt uncommon for employees to try to impress their employers with things that dont matter much.
An answer to this question will clarify the metrics that you should pay attention to for getting noticed, appreciated and promoted.
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If You Were To Hire Me What Might I Expect In A Typical Day
This shows your eagerness about the position, Harrison says, and it gives you a better idea of what the job would be like on a daily basis so you can decide whether you want to pursue it.
“A frank conversation about position expectations and responsibilities will ensure not only that this is a job you want, but also one that you have the skills to be successful in,” he says.
Questions About The Role
This is a great opportunity to learn more about what you’ll do if it hasn’t already been thoroughly covered in the earlier part of the interview. Questions could include:
- Can you share more about the day-to-day responsibilities of this role? How would you describe the pace of a typical day?
- If I were hired for this role, what would you want me to achieve in my first two months?
- What mechanisms are in place for performance reviews and when would I receive my first formal evaluation?
- In your opinion, what is the single most important indicator of success in this role?
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You Gain More Knowledge You Can Use For Future Interviews
Interviewers have a unique point of view that you’ll find valuable. Through them, you can find out what you were missing, which gives you a greater chance of success in your following interview. Allowing your interviewer to share their knowledge could return sound interviewing advice from someone actively hiring in your sector of interest. You can improve and promote such traits during future interviews if you know what the hiring manager was searching for and why they chose another candidate.
Two More Tips For Following Up
If you follow the advice above, you will have great emails to send after any interview from a phone interview to a final stage in-person interview.
However, there are also a few other tips I can share that will make the process easier and help you get the job:
Tip 1: If youre still not 100% confident about your emails after reading the information above, have a friend or family member look at your follow-up email to give feedback.
They can double-check everything and tell you if it sounds polite and clear, or whether something sounds off!
Tip 2: End each interview by asking when you can expect to hear feedback. Simply say, When can I expect to hear feedback, and who will be in touch?
Sometimes its normal for it to take one to two weeks for a response after your job interview. For example, maybe you were the first person they interviewed and they need to talk to a couple of other candidates before making a decision.
So this tip will save you a lot of stress because youll know whether its time to follow up or not, and you wont be worried if youve gotten no response after a couple of days.
While you wait for feedback, you can read these signs your interview went well or badly.
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Final Questions You Should Ask In Your Interview
It’s important when leaving an interview for both parties to feel confident and informed. Many candidates can blow a potential new role by bamboozling an interview afterwards to find out how they did and this can come off as erratic and distracting leading a hiring manager to focus on other candidates. So before leaving be sure to ask:
Tips For Creating Questions To Ask After An Interview
Here are a few tips to help you create interesting and intelligent questions to ask after an interview:
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Focus your questions on the companys needs. Ask questions that show how you can benefit the company.
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Keep your questions concise and specific. If you have a question about a big or complex topic, break it down into short individual questions, and ask the interviewer one at a time.
-
Ask questions about multiple topics. Instead of asking questions about just one subject, ask questions about a range of topics to show your interest in all aspects of the position and the company.
-
Keep your questions professional. Unless the interviewer opens up the conversation to subjects like personal interests and hobbies, keep your questions focused on the company and the position.
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Get A View Of The Future
Asking questions about the growth of the company and its employees is a good idea for two reasons. I always ask what a company’s goals are for the next five to ten years. It gives a good perspective on what their values are and how I may or may not fit with a company, says Diane Kulseth, another young professional. Plus, asking about the future of the company and opportunities for your own growth shows that youre committed and eager to learn. You can ask:
- Where do you see this company in the next few years?
- What can you tell me about your new product or plans for growth?
- What training programs are available to your employees?
- Are there opportunities for advancement or professional development?
What Else To Do While Waiting For Interview Feedback
Keep in mind that delays happen and the hiring process takes time. So the best thing for you to do while waiting for a status update is to apply for more jobs and try to get more interviews scheduled. You shouldnt stop doing this until youve signed a job offer!
No matter how well you write your follow-up email, it isnt going to get a company to move its process faster, bypass delays, skip over other candidates, etc.
This is why you should keep applying for jobs until youve signed a job offer. No exceptions. Because you never know if a company is interviewing 10 other people, considering promoting an internal candidate, or any number of other things that could cost you the job even if your interview went well.
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Questions To Ask A Pharmacist Interviewer
‘is There Anyone Else I Need To Meet With/is There Anyone Else You Would Like Me To Meet With’
Hoover said knowing if they want you to meet with potential coworkers or not will give you insight into how much the company values building team synergy. In addition, if the interviewer says you have four more interviews to go, then you’ve gained a better sense of the hiring timeline as well, she said.
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More Questions To Ask Your Interviewer
Well give you plenty more options of what to ask during or after an interview, but theres no way youll actually get to ask a hiring manager or recruiter all all of these. Browse through and choose a handful that you think are most important, or just use this as a tool to brainstorm valuable questions of your own.
Question #: Is There Anything About My Background Or Resume That Makes You Question Whether I Am A Good Fit For This Role
This question displays that youâre highly invested in the job and committed to understanding your prospects as a candidate. Plus, it will also allow you an opportunity to respond to any potential concerns. Lastly, this question is best to ask at the end of the interview to gauge where you might stand within the job process.
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Ask These Questions To Learn About Co
If the person would be a co-worker, learn more about how things look from this persons level by asking questions like these:
- How often is this job filled?
- How long have you worked for this employer?
- How long have you been in this job?
- Are you glad you took this job? Are you happy to be working here? Why?
- What makes someone successful in this job?
- Have you received any training here or taken any classes this employer paid for?
- Have long do people typically stay in this job? How many coworkers have left? Where did they go?
Understanding more about the person will help you choose the next questions to ask, and also help you keep their responses in perspective.
Moving On With Your Search
Not hearing back from a role that you were invested in can feel demotivating. Unfortunately, there are employers out there who wont come back to you. While it can be disheartening, its important to roll with it and move on.
It takes time to find a job that fits your skill set and fulfils you. So, try not to get despondent and instead invest your energy in finding the role thats right for you. Go back to your post-interview evaluation and create a strategy to work on your weaknesses so that youre ready when the next interview comes in.
If you get the chance to speak to the employer, now is a good time to ask for feedback. This will give you closure as to what, if anything, went wrong and highlight any areas you should work on.
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‘what’s One Of The Most Interesting Projects Or Opportunities That You’ve Worked On’
“I like this question because it gets me thinking about my own experiences, and my response changes depending on what I was or am working on and in theory, should always be changing if I’m challenging myself and advancing,” Brown previously told Business Insider.
Brown said that by asking for a specific example, candidates can get a better picture of what the job entails and how people function in certain roles.
“I always liked getting this question because it would make me reflect on what experiences I was excited about or proud of at the time, and it would make me want to create more of these types of opportunities and experiences,” she said.
Can You Tell Me What The Career Paths Are For This Department And What Sort Of Advancements I Could Work Towards
This question can give you a solid idea of the mobility within the company. Again, as weve said over and over again, the ultimate goal of any job you take is to help advance you on your career path and the last thing you want to do is take a dead end job with no hope of ever moving forward or growing.
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What’s Your Timeline For Making A Decision And When Can I Expect To Hear Back From You
This one tells them you’re interested in the role and eager to hear their decision.
“Knowing a company’s timeline should be your ultimate goal during an interview process after determining your fit for the position and whether you like the company’s culture,” Hoover says. It will help you determine how and when to follow up, and how long to wait before moving on.
Youll Likely Only Get Part Of The Story
Keep in mind that even employers who share feedback will likely not tell you all of the deciding factors. If part of their decision was because of your attitude, personality, or cultural fit, youll probably never know.
For example, I once posted a job on Upwork and selected a few top candidates. Then, I hired them for short-term projects to see the quality of their work and their communication styles. When I told one of the candidates he wasnt chosen, I explained that another candidate had stronger writing skills and specific certifications that could help my business grow. I didnt tell him that throughout our interactions, he came across as pushy and put off by my hiring method. I doubted we would work well together. While his push back played a role in my decision, I only shared facts that would not lead to a potential argument.
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What Is The History Of This Position
This is an important question to ask during the interview process because if you are offered the job, you will have to work in the environment affected and shaped by your predecessor.
Perhaps this opening was recently created to support company growth. If that is the case, ask a follow-up question about who owned the responsibilities up to this point, and how the duties will be transitioned.
If you are interviewing for a position left vacant by someone’s departure, get a sense for what happened. Why did the predecessor leave the job? Was he or she promoted or internally transferred? If the predecessor left the company, ask about the circumstances.
On the same note, it is usually fair game to clarify whether the company is considering internal candidates for the position.
