Job Interview Questions

What Questions to Ask in a Job Interview

Do you have any questions for me? That one sentence provides relief to every nervous interviewee since it signals that the interview is over and they can high tail it out of there! So the standard response of “No, I think you answered everything.” follows quickly after.

DO NOT fall in to this trap. Job interviews are not only a time for a company to see if you will be a good fit but also for you to make sure that you feel the same about them. It is important to sit down before the interview and craft a list of questions, at least four in case some are answered throughout the interview. Write the questions down on a notepad and put them in a portfolio to take with you so that you don’t have the possibility of forgetting them.

The questions to be asked will depend on what you want to know. They should all be facility based questions to help you form a well-rounded view. Make sure you think about what information you want to gather and prepare accordingly. Here are a few generic questions:

• Who do you think would be the ideal candidate for this position, and how do I compare?
• Who held this position previously? Why is he/she leaving the role?
• What do you like most about working for this company?
• Can you walk me through the typical day of someone in this role?
• How do you evaluate success here?
• How would you describe the company’s culture?
• Will I have an opportunity to meet those who would be part of my staff/my manager during the interview process?
• Can you tell me what steps need to be completed before your company can generate an offer?
• What distinguishes this company from its competitors?
• Is there anyone else I need to meet with?/Is there anyone else you would like me to meet with?
• What’s your timeline for making a decision, and when can I expect to hear back from you?

Keep in mind that you SHOULD NOT ask about pay and/or benefits at this time, that conversation should be left to when a job offer is extended.

The interviewee asking questions not only helps them to get a concrete vision of what working for that company would be like, it helps change the dynamic of the interview and information is shared that might otherwise not have been.

What do you ask about in a job interview?