You Asked What?! The 5 Interview Questions You Must Ask.

For many organizations, interviewing just isn’t very fun. It can be a long, costly and tedious process. But, interviewing is essential to making good hires, and successfully augmenting your team.

Asking the right questions is essential.

Improve your interviews and make better hires by asking these five questions in every interview:

1. How about this weather? That’s right, be sure to ask something casual during your interview. It can be about the weather, sports, television – the point is, you should put the candidate at ease, so that the rest of the interview goes smoothly. So don’t stress about the hard questions, until you’ve asked a “lightweight” one.
2. What is your previous compensation? Getting a thorough compensation history will help your business prepare a competitive salary package, and it can help you refrain from bringing in potential hires who are outside of your target salary range.
3. What are your short- and long-term career goals? All applicants should have an idea of their ultimate career goals. Understanding candidates’ ultimate goals will help you ask the right follow-up questions, and can also help you determine whether a candidate is a good cultural fit for your organization.
4. Where else are you interviewing? If you’ve identified your top candidate and are ready to make an offer, it’s a good idea to know ahead of time whether a candidate has been interviewing with another company. Imagine spending all that time interviewing and screening candidates, only to have the rug pulled out from under you when you discover your top candidate has already accepted a position somewhere else.  Ask up front whether a candidate is interviewing elsewhere, and even if they are anticipating an offer (or two). It can save you in the long run.
5. What was it like working for your previous employer? Let’s face it, a candidate could have the most pristine and stellar professional background imaginable, but if there isn’t a cultural fit, you can classify that hire as a bad one. Culture is an integral part of your business, and can factor heavily on a new hire’s chances of success. Take the time to learn about your candidates, and determine whether they would be a good fit for your office.

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