Tip of the Month
Tip of the Month
Three interview questions that will tell you a lot about a person.
As entrepreneurs we are typically no longer the ones being interviewed for a job, but the one doing the interviews. There are many articles that discuss what not to do in an interview, but there are few articles that discuss what to do as the interviewer. As the interviewer we often go off of past experiences, and ask questions that we have been asked in interviews ourselves. In-case you are one of those people who struggle to come up with quality interview questions that will land you the perfect person for the job, below are three questions that will get you started in the right direction.
Question #1
Tell me about a time when you made a professional mistake, and what you would do if faced with a similar situation in the future?
By asking this question you are seeking to find out if the person will take accountability for their actions. If they say they have never made a mistake then that should be a red flag, or if they say they made a mistake and quickly try to blame someone else then that is another red flag. If they blame others for their mistakes they are likely to be quick to make excuses and blame others when they are working with you as well. Ideally, you want someone who will own their mistake, talk about how they fixed the problem, and what they learned from the experience to use in the future.
Question #2
What would your biggest critic say about you?
This question is a more subtle way of asking about an individual’s weakness. You will likely get a variety of answers, and one to watch out for is the person that talks only in positive terms about themselves. If this occurs remind them you are talking about their biggest critic and that everyone has something they can improve upon. A good follow-up to this question is, “Tell me about a time where this issue negatively impacted you.” This will ask them to frame the issue in a real life situation to give you a better idea of the issue you are likely to face when working with the individual.
Question #3
Why should I hire you?
This question asks the potential employee to define what sets them apart from the competition. They will likely list their strengths and talk about what makes them the right candidate for the role. A similar follow-up question applies here as well, “Provide an example of when you used these strengths to get a specific result.”
If the interviewee can answer these questions, along with the other questions part of the interview, they will likely be able to carry that forward and do the same thing for you as an employee.
Carrie Mark, MA, RDN, LD
Chief Acquisition Director for NCES, Inc.
Secretary, Nutrition Entrepreneurs DPG
Write: carrie@ncescatalog.com
Visit: ncescatalog.com
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