Hiring the Best: 29 Must Ask Interview Questions

Transcription

1 Hiring the Best: 29 Must Ask Interview Questions National Institute of Business Management Presented by: Paul Falcone Date: June 23, 2009 Time: 1:00-2:15 p.m., ET 1

2 Presentation Overview Building a case for the candidate: 4 criteria for selecting your next hire Traditional, holistic, achievement-anchored and pressure-cooker interviewing queries Interviewing by discipline: Exploring the sales interview 2

3 Overview (cont.) Behavior-based interviewing techniques: a prism through which you can see the future Questions make the candidate Post-interview debriefs: Assessing candidates interest levels 3

4 Overview (cont.) Pre-empting the counteroffer: Steering candidates clear of temptation Making the offer and closing the deal Q & A session 4

5 Building a Case for the Candidate 4 Criteria for Selecting Your Next Hire: 1. Longevity People tend to repeat patterns of change in their careers over time. 5

6 Building a Case (cont.) Scenario A: The Layoff / RIF How many people were laid off simultaneously? How many people survived the cut? How many waves of lay-offs did you survive before you were let go yourself? 6

7 Building a Case (cont.) Scenario B: Orchestrating Your Own Moves What does growth mean to you? What would have to change for you to stay put? What would be your next logical move in progression at your present employer if you stayed there? 7

8 Building a Case (cont.) Criteria for Selecting Your Next Hire (cont.) 2. Progression Through the Ranks Walk me through your progression with your current employer, leading me up to what you do now on a day-to-day basis. How have you had to reinvent your job over time in light of your employer s changing needs? 8

9 Building a Case (cont.) Criteria for Selecting Your Next Hire (cont.) 3. Technical Skills Match On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being a perfect match for this position, how would you grade yourself from a technical standpoint? [Example: 8 ] What would make you a 10? (Gap!) 9

10 Building a Case (cont.) Where will you need the most support, structure or direction in your first 90 to 180 days? (Where should our focus lie in helping you transition smoothly into this role?) Why would this be a good move in progression for you from a career-development standpoint? (What are you adding to your resume?) 10

11 Building a Case (cont.) Criteria for Selecting Your Next Hire (cont.) 4. Personality Match How many hours a week do you find it necessary to work to do your job? Tell me how you prefer to accept constructive criticism? Do you pride yourself on your tough hide, or should I be more sensitive to your feelings? 11

12 Building a Case (cont.) Do you prefer more structure, direction and feedback on a day-to-day basis or an environment with more autonomy and independence? What pace do you typically prefer in the office: (a) moderate, controllable and predictable; (b) fast pace with deadline pressures; (c) hair-on-fire, hyperspace, floor of the New York Stock Exchange? 12

13 Building a Case (cont.) Are you more quality- or quantity-driven? Will you slow down to dot every I and cross every t, or are you a volume hound who s just going to out-produce everyone else in the office? In defining your own work style, do you adhere strictly to your job duties or do you constantly go outside the box and attempt to reinvent your job? 13

14 Building a Case (cont.) Is your management style autocratic and paternalistic or is it geared more toward participation and consensus-building? Grade yourself on your follow-up abilities, listening skills and inclination to confront problem situations head-on. What would your references say? 14

15 Critical Mass Queries Traditional, Holistic, Achievement-Anchored and Pressure-Cooker Interviewing Queries 15

16 Critical Mass (cont.) Traditional Interview Questions What was your favorite position, and what role did your boss in play in your career at that point? What was your least favorite position, and what role did your boss in play in making it so? 16

17 Critical Mass (cont.) Where do you see yourself in five years? What s your greatest weakness? Where should I be prepared to give you the most support in your first 90 days? 17

18 Critical Mass (cont.) Holistic Interview Questions What are the broad responsibilities of a (title)? What aspects of your job do you consider most crucial? 18

19 Critical Mass (cont.) How does your position relate to the overall goals of your department or the organization? How much of your position would you say is strategic as opposed to tactical? Give me three adjectives to describe yourself. 19

20 Critical Mass (cont.) Achievement-Anchored Questions What makes you stand out as a rarity among your peers? What have you done on your present/last position to increase your organization s topline revenues, to reduce expenses or to save time? 20

21 Critical Mass (cont.) Why is your current employer a better place for your having worked there? Tell me about your reputation at work: What are you known for? What did your last performance appraisal say? 21

22 Critical Mass (cont.) Pressure-Cooker Questions Tell me about your last performance appraisal: In which area were you most disappointed? Tell me all about me: What can you glean from my interviewing style and the questions that I m asking? 22

23 Critical Mass (cont.) From an interpersonal standpoint, where do you disagree with your boss most often? What would your most respected critic at work say about how you deal with others? Now that you ve had the opportunity to research us in the library or on the Internet, what do you know about our organization, and why do you want to work here? 23

24 Interviewing by Discipline Exploring the Sales Interview What are the two most common objections you face, and how do you deal with them? How do you rank competitively among other account executives in terms of your production? 24

25 Interviewing by Discipline (cont.) Tell me about your quality ratios: How many prospects do you typically see before closing a sale? Describe your average profit-per-deal ratio. 25

26 Interviewing by Discipline (cont.) Role-play with me, if you will, presenting yourself to me over the phone as if you were a headhunter. Convince me that this product you re selling is worth my time. How much does production vary from desk to desk in your office? 26

27 Behavior-Based Interviewing Techniques Situational Queries Give me an example of a time when Tell me about the last time that Self-Appraisal Queries What is it about you that makes you? 27

28 Post-Interview Debriefs Assessing Candidates Interest Levels Initial impression: Tell me how the meeting went. What interested you most about the opportunity: the people you met with, the nature of the job or the organization itself? 28

29 Post-Interview Debriefs (cont.) On a scale of 1 to 10, how qualified are you for the position from a technical standpoint? What would you have to add to your background to make you an even stronger fit? What questions do you need answered? What other information do you need to come to an informed career decision? What concerns or hesitations do you have about the position? 29

30 Post-Interview Debriefs (cont.) Salary-wise, did you discuss your minimum requirements or the position s range? Again on a scale of 1 to 10, how interested are you in making the transition? (If a 10, ask: Why are you a 10? If anything less than a 10, ask: What would make you a 10?). What do you see as the next step in the process? 30

31 Pre-empting the Counteroffer Steering Candidates Clear of Temptation Tell me again why the position you re applying for meets your career needs or why working for our organization is so important to you. On a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being that you re really excited about accepting our offer), where do you stand, interest-wise? 31

32 Pre-empting the Counteroffer (cont.) What would have to change at your present position for you to continue working there? An employment offer is very emotional, and candidates shouldn t let emotions cloud their better business judgment. If you gave notice to your boss right now, what would s/he say to keep you? 32

33 Making the Offer and Closing the Deal What s changed since the last time we spoke? (Remember to control all the variables before extending an offer!) If you had to choose among three factors -- (1) the organization, (2) the position you re applying for and (3) the people you d be working with -- which would you say plays the most significant role in your decision to accept our offer? 33

34 Making the Offer (cont.) If we were to offer you the job, tell me ideally when you d be able to start. How much notice would you need to give your present employer? Don t pressure candidates to start earlier than would be appropriate; recommend an additional week off between jobs whenever possible. 34

35 Making the Offer (cont.) If we were to offer you the job today, when would you be in a position either to accept or reject it? Red Flag: Candidates who ask for more than 24 hours may be delaying their commitment to you because of another offer on the line. 35

36 Making the Offer (cont.) Your Response: Janet, I ve found that people who suddenly need more time at the finish line usually have another offer on the table. If that s the case, that s OK. Still, I d like to know where we stand relative to your other offer. 36

37 Making the Offer (cont.) Lesson: Don t try to convince a candidate that your offer is superior. Her focus is definitely on the other offer; otherwise, you would have heard an I accept! already. Always place the candidate s career interests above your own; otherwise, you ll weaken your negotiating power. 37

38 Making the Offer (cont.) Share with me what final questions I can answer for you to help you make an informed career decision. At what dollar level would you accept our job offer, and at what point would you reject it? 38

39 Making the Offer (cont.) Caveat: Interest/Demand Barometer Ideally, candidates will close themselves at lateral moves to their current base salaries. 39

40 Making the Offer (cont.) Candidates will more commonly peg an increase to a percentage of their base pay -- often 5% to 20% -- depending on their interest in the job and their perception of their market worth. Assuming that this is in your salary range, you re safe to extend the offer. 40

41 The Negotiation Scenario 1: The Malleable Candidate Smooth negotiations because of reasonable expectations on the candidate s part and a satisfactory budget/internal equity analysis on the employer s part 41

42 The Negotiation (cont.) Scenario 2: The Law of Inverse Gravity Beware of mentioning salary ranges to candidates who will typically hear only the tops of the range. You ll be upside-down in the deal if the candidate feels you re being cheap. 42

43 The Negotiation (cont.) The Internal Equity Defense Issue: What if the department hiring manager lets the cat out of the bag and mentions the top of the salary range? An explanation of the internal equity concept will always help you defend your offer because it s objective: 43

44 The Negotiation (cont.) We don t make salary offers in a vacuum. What s in budget is one factor; slotting a new hire s years of experience, skills and knowledge to the tenure and abilities of our existing staff is equally important. This offer closely matches the salary benchmarks of the existing employees in the group, and that s why we feel it s fair and objective. 44

45 The Negotiation (cont.) Scenario 3: Offers for Newly Created Positions (when you ve got discretion and flexibility) Key: Involve the candidate in creating the total compensation package! 45

46 The Negotiation (cont.) Janet, now that you ve studied our annual report and met with the key players, and you understand the key aspects of the role you ll play if you join us, help me: You tell me how to best develop an overall compensation plan relative to your position s impact on the corporate bottom line and I ll take it to our compensation committee for approval. 46

47 The Moral of the Story Retain control of the negotiation until all of your most critical questions have been answered. As an employer, you wouldn t expect a candidate to accept an offer without all the information necessary to come to an informed career decision. 47

48 The Moral of the Story (cont.) Expect no less of yourself -- for a candidate s behavior during the actual offer negotiation may in itself strengthen your commitment to bring that person aboard or cast doubt on his/her ultimate suitability. 48

49 The Moral of the Story (cont.) As in all negotiations and communication, be open and honest, and put the other person s needs above your own. You ll find that in most cases, people will respond in kind and will appreciate your honesty and openness. What a great way to begin your new employment relationship! 49

50 Question & Answer Session Have a question for the speaker? Press Star and then 1 on your phone to enter the queue. If, during the Q&A, your question has been answered, or you wish to remove yourself form the queue, press Star and then 2. The moderator will introduce you by first name and state when it is your turn to speak. For more information regarding NIBM s newsletters, forums, audioconferences and books, visit: We d love your feedback regarding the conference and other topics you d like to hear about! Contact Heather Rice at: hrice@nibm.net Thank you for attending! 50

51 Additional Resources 101 Tough Conversations to Have with Employees: A Manager's Guide to Performance, Conduct, and Discipline Challenges, $ Great Interview Questions to Ask Before You Hire, $17.95 The Hiring and Firing Question and Answer Book, $ Sample Write-Ups for Documenting Employee Performance Problems: A Guide to Progressive Discipline and Termination, $ Phrases for Effective Performance Reviews, $10.95 These AMACOM books may be purchased online at