Interview Questions for Everyone

Whether we are hiring an intern, an employee, a contractor or a vendor we ask similar questions of everyone we work with.  Whether you are the interviewer and doing the hiring or the interviewee and wanting to join the organizations, these questions make a difference and can give you insight into the person.

If you are doing the hiring use these questions:

1. Who is someone who influenced your career and how did they influence you?
2. can you tell me about the most successful person you ever hired and what exactly they did to be successful? (you may want to follow up with where is this person now?)
3. What is your managerial style?
4. Can you tell me about a time that you and your directs did not agree and how you dealt with that situation?
5. How do you like your employee to check in with you about projects?
6. what is the one soft skill or competency you would say is critical for success in this role?
7. What do you most appreciate from your direct reports or team?
8. Can you tell me something about this role or your expectations from the person who gets this role that is not on the Job Description?
9. What does success look like in this position?
10. What does failure look like?
11. What are the initial goals for this position? 6 months? one year? five years?
12. How do you support professional development?

For the interviewee, be prepared to answer these questions:

1. Who is someone who influenced your career and how did they influence you?
2. Can you tell me about the most successful person you ever worked with and what exactly they did to be successful? (you may want to follow up with where is this person now?)
3. What is your working style? How do you like to manage projects (one at a time or multiple at once?)
4. What do you most appreciate in a manager?
5. What do you want from professional development? How are you doing this on your own (reading, taking classes, getting graduate certificates, etc.)

Things to note about yourself:
I thrive in an [TYPE such as independent, structured, consistent feedback, etc.] environment where I’m entrusted to complete jobs and deadlines [independently, with supervision, as a team, etc.].  I don’t thrive at all in a position in which I am at all [left alone, micromanaged., etc.]

There are other questions that will give you insight into an organization or a prospective employee, but these are a good place to start.