There are 3 interview questions that I ask every job applicant:
- What did you do?
- What were the high and low points?
- Why did you leave that job?
The goal is to help me understand if:
- The candidate is able to articulate his or her work clearly and without fluff.
- The candidate is proud of his or her achievements and can talk about things that didn’t go well.
- The candidate left due to a good reason (a new opportunity to move up) rather than a bad reason (was fired for poor performance).
The purpose of an interview is to evaluate candidates. Because interviews capture a snapshot of a candidate, it can be difficult to assess if they’re a fit for your company. Thus, I try to gather as much information about a candidate before making a decision.
Each question should help you learn about a candidate’s:
- technical skills,
- background and experience,
- communication style,
- collaboration preference, and
- emotional and behavioral aptitude.
Hiring is expensive if you don’t have a plan. Moreover, hiring someone who’s not a fit is always worse than passing on someone who’s good. So use these questions to determine if a candidate shares the same values as your organization, as it’s easier to teach someone skills than to teach them how to act.