Questions to Ask a Potential Employee in an Interview

Whether you are in the Human Resources department of a large company or an owner of a small business that employs just a few people, hiring the right kind of people is key to the continuing success and growth of your company. Hence, you need to interview potential employees wisely in order to identify their weaknesses and strengths, determine their job skills, and get a feel of their ability to cooperate and work in a team.

However, that does not have to mean that you need to subject yourself and the candidate to boring questions like – "How do you work in a team?" You can use cleverly worded questions that will not only elicit the answers you need but also provide a lot of background information, which often form an important basis for hiring people.

Check out the following questions, and you will find that answering them divulges more about the candidate than they might want to reveal about themselves:

Tell me what this kind of a job involves and what you might dislike or like about the work? – This will tell you whether the applicant has done his/her homework or not, while also giving you an insight about his/her approach to the job.

In your previous job(s), was there any time you spotted room for improvement in a process or some area of your work, which could bring in more efficiency, and what you did to bring about change? – This is a probing question which is meant to find out how highly motivated the applicant is.

Here is a scenario I want you to consider: An irate customer calls complaining in a vociferously loud voice about redressing a defective product, about which he/she had complained three days back, for which he/she had got no response. How would you deal with it? – The answer to this will display the candidate’s attitude to customer service.

Describe a time where you were required to perform a task that you did not know how to do, in your previous job. What was your response? – This will tell you about the candidate’s problem-solving abilities, of course. But additionally, the response will give you a peek into his/her character. Most job interviewees are loath to admit ignorance about anything to do with work.

Tell me about a conflict you have had with other members of the staff and how you managed to resolve it. – This will not only tell you about the candidate’s conflict management skills, but also give you an inkling about his/her strength of character. It takes courage to admit having a conflict in the workplace.

Tell me about an occasion when you were asked to perform conflicting tasks by two of your superiors. How did you deal with this dilemma? – Yes, this is a tricky one, the response of which should be interesting. Basically, it will tell you how the candidate deals with priority management.

A co-worker sounds off to you about some of the procedures and policies of the office or complains about the manager. What would be your response? – This is a common scenario that happens in most offices. It will tell you about the candidate’s ability to deal with office gossip and politics.

Which are the areas you would be most interested in getting additional training? – Again a probing question to not only elicit job capabilities, but to see how the candidate responds. Does he/she try to squirm out of it, or does he/she take it head on.

What is it that you think you have that makes you stand out from the others? – Again, taking this head on in a reasoned way is indicative of a person who has courage and a certain amount of self-esteem.

What do you think is your greatest accomplishment? – Again, the response to this indicates quick thinking. It is not easy for most of us to talk about ourselves in superlative terms. Any candidate who can narrate an anecdote displaying his/her accomplishments will tell you that he/she will be mentally nimble when required.