What Questions to Ask an Interviewee

As an employer looking to hire that just-right person for your open position, it can feel like picking through a haystack looking for the proverbial needle. There could be plenty of people applying, but how can you narrow down your options to the select few? One key way is to work with a staffing agency in Cleveland that specializes in your field. Another way is to ask the right questions during the job interview process.

At Technical Search Consultants we help local businesses find the perfect candidate for their administrative, engineering, industrial, and IT positions. After years of experience, these are the questions that we find to be the most revealing when working with job candidates.

Why are you leaving your current job?

This question isn’t meant to dig up dirt on the candidate or their previous employer, but instead can help you to get a feel for the kind of person they are. If complaining and blaming are their go-to responses, it could give you some insight into how they’ll react in less-than-ideal situations as part of your company. If they speak poorly about previous employers and coworkers now, they’ll eventually do the same to you when they decide to move on. And on a practical note, if they complain about certain types of tasks that you know are part of the position they’re applying for, you can know right from the start that this likely isn’t a good fit for them. On the other hand, a positive, thoughtful explanation of why they’re leaving can be an indication of 

How do you think your most recent employer could improve operations?

On a similar but more positive note, this question can clue you in to whether the candidate can see beyond themselves and their daily tasks. Now if they weren’t in a position to know the ins and outs of the company’s operations, then this may not be a good test. But if they had a position of management or supervision or if they are just a particularly observant and insightful person, they may have some constructive thoughts to share. Again, complaints and blaming aren’t what you’re looking for here. You want to see critical thinking and the potential for high level ideas.

How would your friends and/or coworkers describe you?

This can be a tough question for some to answer. For others it’s a fun diversion in what can rightfully feel like an otherwise very serious process. It’s a step away from skills and the position and a focus on personality instead. But while it could feel silly or unrelated, personality can play a huge part in whether a person fits easily into your company culture and whether they are well suited for the position that’s up for grabs.

What professional accomplishment are you most proud of?

This could be a single project or task or anything that the applicant considers to be their most significant professional accomplishment. You may want to ask them to walk you through the plan behind the project, explain how they managed it, dig in to the successes and failures, and more. This behind-the-scenes look can be really helpful in deciding whether a person is or isn’t a good fit for the job. It gives you a clear view into their way of thinking and whether their idea of success meshes well with what will be expected of them in the position they’re applying for. You can get a good sense of their motivations and passions, and whether they’re well qualified for the role.

Who is the smartest person you know? Why?

You aren’t looking for a celebrity or industry mogul here–you’re looking for an everyday person that the applicant knows well. There’s no right or wrong answer, instead what the candidate reveals about who they view to be smart can help you to gauge their values. It can also give you an insight into their strengths and weaknesses, since we often look up to those whose strengths complement the areas in our personalities that we see as deficits. If this is a hard question for a candidate to answer, then perhaps they aren’t great at looking outside of themselves. That kind of clue could let you know whether they will or won’t be a good fit for the position you’re trying to fill. 

Why did you apply for this position?

This seems like a pretty straightforward question, but it can reveal some things about the candidate. Their answer can help you to gauge whether they are excited about your company and the job, or if they just applied for any and everything available. There’s nothing wrong with simply needing to pay the bills, but, ideally, you’d like to see some interest in the position itself.

Why are you a good fit for this position?

If an applicant has a hard time with this question, that’s a clue that maybe they didn’t do very much research on the position or on your company. Ideally you’d want to hear from the applicant how their interests and skills align with your company and the tasks they’ll be required to perform in this position. This can be a great place to learn more about skills that a candidate doesn’t necessarily list on a resume, but are important to who they are. It can also be eye-opening, because if a candidate doesn’t know why they’d be a good fit, maybe things won’t work out and you could be left searching for a new employee sooner rather than later.

Where do you see yourself in the next 5 years?

Yes, this is one of those super common and potentially cliche interview questions. But it gets asked so often for a reason. This question gives you a good barometer of how enthusiastic or ambitious the candidate is. Ideally, a person with goals and aspirations can be a long-term asset to a company. It can show that they’re dedicated to success and committed to excellence, which are two things that any company could benefit from in their staff. This isn’t to say there’s anything wrong with folks who aren’t super ambitious. Again, it’s up to you as the employer to know what you want and need in your staff.

If the position required it, would you be willing to…?

It’s only fair that, from the outset, an applicant is made aware of the potential need to travel, relocate, or start as soon as possible. Their answer and level of excitement about a major change can be a clear gauge of whether this position is for them, or not. It’s also a good way to bring out any potential hesitation or reluctance, which can ultimately benefit both parties if they realize that this is, or isn’t, the right fit for them.

What questions do you have for me?

An attentive, insightful, active listener will have questions for you. An interviewee who is well prepared and genuinely interested in the position will have questions too. From details about the role they will be asked to fill to inquiries about team structure or following up on previous topics, a candidate with questions is a good thing. It’s also a nice way to turn the attention to you and your business, and offer a more lighthearted ending to what can feel like an intense and intimidating process. All the while though, you’ll be learning more about the person you could end up hiring.

Technical Search Consultants Is Your Staffing Agency in Cleveland, Ohio

There are so many more great questions to ask in an interview–we simply couldn’t cover them all here. From asking “What is the most recent thing you learned?” to the classic open-ended “Tell me about yourself” there are plenty of ways to get to know whether a candidate is made for a job opening. Situational, behavioral, professional, job specific and skill related questions abound and can help you to discover a candidate’s motivation, assess their mastery, and determine if they’d be a good fit for your company.

At Technical Search Consultants we know that this can be a tough process. That’s why we specialize in finding the ideal, highly skilled candidate for your company, and we handle all of the tedious upfront work for you. Contact us today to learn more about our services, to post an open position, and to see how we can help you find that perfect fit you’ve been searching for.