When I was a recruiter, I noticed that managers would reject candidates who didn’t ask any questions during the interview. This taught me to coach job seekers to always have at least two or three pre-written questions ready. If you’re wondering what questions you should ask, here are some options to consider.
Ideal Factors
Recently I recommended an exercise for identifying your most important wants and needs (Read: The Ideal Factors Exercise). What you learn from that exercise should naturally produce several ready-made questions for your interviews.
These are the questions which must be answered before you know an opportunity is the right one. For example, let’s say one of your main priorities is to work for a company which offers advancement opportunities. Ask something like, “As I grow with the company, what are the possible places to go from this position?”
If it’s a small company or a relatively young company, asking this question more indirectly might be a better option. In that case, you’d ask questions about the anticipated growth of the company, and based on the hiring manager’s answers, you’d be able to determine whether or not there’s a long-term future for you there.
Phrase your questions so that your motives are clearly understood. Be sure that you are communicating what you mean. Even when we share a common language, certain words can conjure up different meanings and concepts for different people.
When you say you’re interested in advancement opportunities, does that mean you want to move up the corporate ladder, gaining titles as you go? This is probably the most common definition, but what about another possibility?
Let’s say, you are ambitious but don’t want the headache of being a manager. You’d rather advance your knowledge and your realm of influence. Some jobs offer only that type of advancement or maybe they only offer a modest growth scenario with the opportunity to take on more challenging projects. Many people find career fulfillment that way, especially in small and mid-sized companies or in companies with flatter organizational structures. While they are not shooting up a career ladder, they are advancing their career responsibilities, broadening their experience, and moving through a career lattice instead.
So, you’ll want to be clear in expressing your meaning about wanting advancement just like you’ll want to be clear when you frame other ideal factors into questions. Be sure to prepare these questions before the interview so you can gather the information you need about your important non-negotiables in case the interviewer doesn’t bring them up.
The Company And The Position
You should also be prepared with questions about the company and the position. I’m sure you’ve heard that you should research a company before you interview with them. Well, it’s great advice – do it!
Read their website and surf the internet for news about them. Search the interviewer’s name on the internet. Don’t worry. They’ve probably looked you up online too.
While doing this research, it’s wise to take notes to keep things straight in your mind, especially if you’re looking at a number of companies in your job search.
When your questions show that you cared enough to learn a thing or two about the company, they will be impressed. On top of that, even if you only have a vague idea of what the job entails, knowing more about the company will give you more confidence and lead to making a better impression.
5 Good Questions To Ask
As I’ve mentioned, revisiting your wants and needs in the Ideals Factor Exercise is a great source for figuring out good questions to ask, and asking questions about the company and the job is a good idea too. But if you’re still stuck on what to ask, here are some more good ones:
How does the company support and promote personal and professional growth? This is one way to ask how the company supports healthy work/life integration. If ongoing professional learning is important to you, this might trigger a good discussion about the topic.
What attracted you to this organization? or What do you like most about working here? People like to talk about themselves and what they do. You’ll get to know your possible future manager better while learning about their company’s values and culture.
How would you describe the experience of working here? Another variation of the last question, this one goes to the interviewer’s experience of culture.
How would your direct reports describe your management style? Instead of asking directly, this indirect approach may bring to light any issues that may be incongruent with your work-style or values.
What are a couple of misconceptions people have about the company? Managers are often frustrated by the way he or she thinks the world sees the company. Here is your chance to get two pieces of critical information: 1) how the hiring manager thinks the world perceives the company and 2) what he or she believes to be true.
If You Can Only Ask One Question, This Is It
If you are only able to ask one question during the entire interview, then this should be the one: What’s the most important thing I can do to help within the first 90 days of my employment?
This is my favorite question to ask. It’s psychologically compelling because it projects you into the mind’s eye of the manager. There’s a strong chance that he or she will think of you as already being on board and working as they answer your question: “You would do this…” and “You would do that…”
Also, imagine knowing what is expected when you’re hired – you’ll be set up for success!
If possible, it’s best to ask this question early on in the interview because when you do, you can use the interviewer’s response to frame all of your answers during the rest of the interview. You can speak from a place of knowing what success will look like once you’re hired.
However, this question is still very effective if you’re in a more formal interview process with an employer who only allows you to ask questions near the end of the interview.
Raising Objections
As the interview is winding down, there’s one more very effective question to ask – and this is my second favorite interview question to ask: Is there anything about my qualifications and background which would cause you to hesitate in moving forward with me as a candidate?
We call this “raising objections.” If you’ve ever done sales or received sales training, you’ll be familiar with this concept. Basically, objections are the reasons why buyers (hiring managers) won’t buy (hire you).
Why do you want to raise objections? Because if the interviewer is willing to open up and share any concerns, you are now in the best position to see where you stand in the selection process and to answer any concerns.
For example, what if you learn by asking this question that they prefer a certain certification you lack. If you have no intention of obtaining that certification, then you’ll at least know why they might not call you back. If you are interested in or have already started the process toward becoming certified, this would be the ideal time to bring it up, and, therefore, handle the objection.