What's your favorite question to ask during a job interview? Why?
Here are some of my favorite:
1. What would you do if you saw a coworker steal something at work? Like a bag of coffee or a box of pens.
2. How hard-working are you on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten being you have no life, nine meaning you are a workaholic, 7-8 meaning you work above 40 hours a week and 5-6 being that you put in a solid 40 hours a week. 2-4 being your lazy, and a one meaning I shouldn't hire you.
3. Do you think you it's better to work harder or work smarter?
(best answer: do both).
What questions do you like to ask AND WHY?
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M$26 Answers
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M$
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M$
"What weakness has most impacted your ability to succeed at your career?"
If they give a the standard "strength disguised as a weakness" answer, you just found out how candid the candidate is willing to be with you and how much they've been just stringing you along.
If they give a real answer, you find out more about the candidate and how they will fit into your organization. You also know what they need to work on to be successful.
20 years of hiring
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M$
This is a great question. It catches people a little off guard. If the candidate answers timidly or unenthusiastically, run.
If the person enthusiastically and effectively communicates what they're interested in, and makes *you* interested, chances are they're a smart, enthusiastic, passionate person, the type of person you're looking for.
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M$You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
M$
I like this question... it tests if the person knows how to fill the needs of the person asking it. :-)
"If I won the powerball I would take care of my family, certainly... but I would still want to work on a project that I was passionate about. Perhaps instead of just coming to work here I could be an investor AND come and work here. I just love building cool sh@#$%t and winning!"
The question gives the interviewer a glimpse into the motivations, needs, and maturity level of the applicant.
It's based on Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. Let's be candid here, a lot of candidates' initial attraction to a particular company is money, how they can fill those lower levels of need - usually around their "safety" needs. However, I would be looking for an employee who has matured beyond the basic needs (remember, safety does not mean wealth), and is interested in filling their belonging and esteem needs. These more progressed employees will serve you better.
And this question is a start in getting that kind of view into an applicant, and drapes your interaction in valuable context.
If they answer they have not failed on any project in their current role. It tells me they are not pushing the envelope and trying new things. The person is not thinking outside their comfort zone, looking for new and different ways / ideas to increase revenue.
But if they answer something like "Oh well. I tried something new. I hired an email database company to send out 5,000 emails from our company inviting the CEO to this special event we were putting on to showcase our company. Great thing is we gained and a ton of exposure along with a great response rate. Bad part is we have not closed any direct sales from this project yet." This answer is perfect. The candidate is trying new things, is forward thinking, is willing to admit mistakes, and is looking for things to improve so he / the company can pivot and improve. That's a person you have to hire.
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M$
I like this question because everyone fails from time to time, and I completely agree that it's a good indicator of one's ability to take calculated risks and try new things out. If someone is able to be honest about what their failures are and then put a positive spin on what they learned from those failures, that's an A+ right there!
It can also help personalize the interview. It's a general rule that people like to talk about themselves. Give the interviewer that opportunity, and it could work towards your benefit.
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M$
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M$
And oh, for the CFO roles, most of them hate to do taxes!
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M$"What decisions are most difficult for you?"
"What are some of the things about which you and your boss disagreed?"
The candidates who refuse to give answers ("Nothing is difficult for me" or "I've never had a disagreement with my boss") are simply lying. Everyone has something they hate doing (like getting into work early) or has not agreed with their boss on something (perhaps a candidate's compensation package). The unsophisticated candidates only see the extreme situations and believe the answers can only be negative - like a knock-out, drag-out with the boss. The mature and best candidates understand their limitations and feel comfortable discussing them.
I wait to ask these questions either towards the end of the interview session or at the end of the interview day. People do not typically rehearse or prepare answers for these, and if I've provided enough time to develop a rapport with the candidate, the answers are quite revealing.
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M$
I always get new information from this question and the answer tends to be more introspective. It helps reinforce the fact that what's going to matter in the months ahead is who they turn out to be, day in, day out, not who they were during the interview.
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M$Tells you who they admire, and they probably have never thought about it...unlike all the other interview questions that are out there. It can also teach you a thing or two. :-)
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M$
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M$It is an incredibly telling question, and you can pretty immediately get a gauge of the candidate's honesty, ability to take initiative, personal unease with the job responsibilities, etc.
I've found that if the answer to this is "nothing at all" or "I think you've covered everything", this is someone you really don't want to hire because they can't think outside of the framework you've set.
Or at least, the question's worked wonders for me. Your mileage may vary.
You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
M$
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M$work smarter.
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M$There's no right or wrong answer to this. But, it shows creativity, sensitivity to situation, and ability to think on your feet.
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M$
I always ask how they would make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. http://bit.ly/9fB89b I would like to point out, I didn’t think of the interview question. A colleague recommended I ask it, when I told her how I found interviewing challenging. You don’t need to give a lot of background to get someone’s perspective on how they would do it. The PB&J is actually an analogy for managing a project team and delivering a product to market.
Best Regards,
Derek
http://thecriticalpath.info
http://pmprepflashcards.com
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M$
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M$There really is no right or wrong answer here, but I find it very helpful in assessing the persons end game and motives for getting there.
The answers range from completely nebulous to alarmingly precise and everything in between.
For folks with precise visions I try to work out how I can help them, and work with them to figure out if the opportunity at hand is the best option or if there are better options to consider.
For folks with no plan at all, I very clearly outline the pros and cons of the opportunity and let them decide if it is something they want to follow up on.
In either case, the point is to collectively consider if the position makes sense and if so to empower the person to make the decision whether to fully commit themselves or not.
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M$
Certainly all individuals being interviewed have the baseline of skills required. However, the question forces the individual to sell themselves and illustrate the value proposition they provide. If they can't sell themselves to the interviewer how could they possibly "sell" the company they work for. Regardless of someone's position in a company all employees are always "selling" the vision to people outside the organization. It's hard to be a champion for someone else (e.g a company) if you can't first sell yourself.
Mike
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M$
You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
M$
You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
M$
You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
M$You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
M$"Describe yourself using just one word."
The struggle you see on their face to do that, and having to stop people from justifying why they chose it. Pick a word, any word, and leave it at that. There have been some very interesting choices. :)
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M$
Related to this, I like to ask 'What is the last non-business related book you have read?' Gives me some insight into what their interests are outside of work.
Similar, and one that someone asked me in an interview:
"what is your favorite movie, why, and was there anything you would have done to improve it?"
Nice WebBarr! I think this is an interesting way to see how people teach themselves. I would also ask, "What's the most important takeaway from the book you're currently reading?"
Also -
"Which three people in history would you have a beer with?"