As managers, we’ve all been interviewed for new positions many times. I’ll bet you’ve all been asked the classics:
- Where do you see yourself in five years’ time?
- What are your strengths and weaknesses?
- Have you ever had to fire someone or make them redundant?
- Why do you want this job?
- What qualities do you think will be required for this job?
- What can you contribute?
- Why do you want to work for this company?
- What do you know about this company?
and so on. And I’ll also bet you have an answer ready to go for each of them! Most “interview tips” sites will give interviewees that list, some will even have you ask questions that may be illegal in some countries, such as questions about age. It shows how common those questions are.
What those sites don’t tell hiring managers is WHY you ask questions such as those, or how to interpret the answers. I’m going to have a go at answering that, and to try to give you an idea as to how you can interview more effectively (and maybe even take less time and enjoy it a bit more!).
Preparing your job specificiation
It should be stating the obvious to say that you need a clear job description before you even advertise a role, but I’ll state it anyway: the job description MUST make sense to an outsider, not just to you. Using acronyms, shorthand and local colloquialisms doesn’t make you look clever, it just eliminates candidates from different backgrounds who don’t use those terms. Yes, some acronyms are useful as a filter – there’s no point in advertising for an ITIL practitioner who doesn’t know what ITIL is – but even some you use daily will make no sense to others. In the ISP world I’ve heard the thing I call a “local tail” be referred to as “local loop”, “CAC – customer access circuit”, “OLO tail – Other Licensed Operator” and more. Also, ensure that you are explicit about the scope of the role. Again, terms like “customer service centre”, “helpdesk”, “network operations centre” can overlap in scope. If you want to save yourself time and hassle, be clear.
Preparing your interview
So, you have your job description, some CVs have come in, you’ve shortlisted the best candidates, and you’re ready to interview. But how are you going to evaluate and compare candidates?
I’d recommend that you prepare for yourself an outline set of questions, but don’t be bound by it. Allow your conversation with the candidate to go off track, explore avenues of discussion and even have a bit of a laugh if that’s your style. You will see more of the real person behind the interview facade that way.
You should also prepare a description of the company and the role, remember you’re selling your company as well. Don’t just trot it out, see if you can get enthusiastic about what you’re doing. If you can’t maybe you should be looking for a new role!
When you prepare your set of questions, ask yourself WHY you’re asking that question. Look again at the list at the top of this article – what’s the point of asking where someone sees themself in the future for a PA role? So, just for fun, let me give you my list of favourite questions and an example of the reasoning behind asking them.
Favourite questions
(I would like to give credit for some of these to my former colleague, George. One of the best interviewers I’ve ever seen, I learned a great deal from him)
- How do you think this company is different to your current employer?
The company I work for is high pressure, fast delivery, JFDI (just f***ing do it), needing self motivated and pushy people. Typically I’ll see candidates for technical roles from larger organisations, consultancies or outside of the industry sector entirely. I’m looking for an understanding that in a small company revenue is king, time-to-market is critical and so sometimes we need to be expedient rather than perfectionist. I don’t want to hear a focus on technology, but on how IS can support a business goal. This ensures that a new hire can grow with the company, absorb and contribute to the company ethos and thrive without frustration.
- If you were an animal, what would it be?
This is borderline awful, but if you have a good rapport with an interviewee it can be worth a go. It takes them away from their rehearsed answers, and can be surprisingly revealing. If there IS a right answer, it’s probably “wolf”, as a packanimal that can operate on it’s own. I tend to think “dog”, as I value loyalty and the ability to lick myself (sorry, couldn’t resist). It’s worth following up by asking for an explanation, to see if the candidate can produce a considered and structured thought process to an off the wall question.
Here’s one for anyone involved in an analysis role:
- Imagine there’s a man outside digging a hole in the road. Can you list the roles (or processes if you prefer) involved?
I admit that this is my favourite. Answers vary between about 5 roles (typically the man himself, a works coordinator, a project manager and so on). A colleague and I came up with many tens of roles (the baker who makes the bread for his sandwiches, the van driver who delivers them, the mechanic that services his van and so on). Clearly one can go on for ever until a complete economy is described! The reason for asking this is to see whether the candidate can see the implications of his work on other areas and vice versa. Try it yourself, it can be illuminating. Of course, you can change this to be more relevant to your business.
- What was the last argument you had at work?
I’m not sure there’s a correct answer for this, but I like to find out whether the candidate will stand up for their views, how they deal with conflict and whether they are good at sidestepping. In some ways it’s similar to asking about weaknesses, but I find I’m less likely to get a prepared answer.
Admin questions
I’m lucky enough to work with a good HR interviewer who handles the admin questions like notice period, salary, motivation for change. I often probe these areas myself, looking for career gaps, rapid changes of role, inconsistencies in the story and so on, then checking after the interview with my HR colleague to see if we got the same answers. If you’re not in that position, list out your admin questions and check with HR to make sure you don’t cross legal or ethical guidelines.
Good luck with your interviewing, and let me know what you think!