38 Smart Questions to Ask in a Job Interview

Questions about the specific job

  1. What are your expectations for me in this role?
  2. What’s the most important thing I should accomplish in the first 90 days?
  3. What’s the performance review process like here? How often would I be formally reviewed?
  4. What metrics or goals will my performance be evaluated against?
  5. What are the most immediate projects that I would take on?
  6. How long before I will be… [meeting with clients,

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10 Key Competencies Interviewers Often Focus On

These are 10 of the key competencies which interviewers often focus on:

  1. Communication
    Regardless of the position or industry, the way we interact with others is crucial and you need to be able to build and maintain excellent relationships with clients and colleagues.
    Example question: “Tell us about a time you had to adjust your communication approach to suit a particular audience.”
  2. Decision Making
    Good decision making will help you

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10 Best Interview Questions That Find Great Talent

Prospective employees prepare canned responses to the questions they think you’ll ask. Your goal should be to set up a discussion that reveals patterns in their behavior and predicts how they’ll fare in your company. Past behavior predicts future behavior, so make it your goal to collect some honest, thoughtful responses that will give you a better idea of how each candidate will actually perform. … [ Read more ]

The Right Way to Tell Your Out-of-Work Story

Whether you’re in an interview or rewriting your resume, here are some suggestions for managing your professional image in a job search. They’re organized by the reasons you may not have been working, but the advice can be catered to different situations:
If you were laid off
Their objections: “There must have been something wrong with you at your previous job.”
Your messaging:

  • Be careful

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Using Stories

Before you enter the room, decide what three or four messages you want to convey to the interviewer. These should “show the connection between what you have achieved and what is really needed to succeed in the specific job and context,” says Fernández-Aráoz, a senior adviser at Egon Zehnder International and the author of Great People Decisions. John Lees, a career strategist and author … [ Read more ]

Answering the ‘Tell Me About Yourself’ Job Interview Question

When asked at the beginning of a job interview, the “tell me about yourself” question is certainly not a request for a brief personal biography! Your answer to the question definitely should be laser-focused on the specific task at hand: Getting the position for which you are applying! A three-part answer works best Parts One and Two can normally be used from interview to interview, … [ Read more ]

6 Great Questions to Ask on a Job Interview

  1. Who’s in charge? Ask who you’d be reporting to and how success will be measured, suggests executive coach Meg Montford. “It tells them that you are ambitious and not just a time-clock puncher.” If you’re hired, knowing how achievement is measured will help you get off on the right foot.
  2. What’s your management style? If you determine that the interviewer is also your potential manager, try

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7 Great Questions to Ask at a Job Interview

  1. What exactly would my day-to-day responsibilities be? It is essential that you clearly understand your role and the tasks that you would be expected to undertake. It is easy to make assumptions and get the wrong impression of what the work would be so it is vital for both sides that there is clarity in what is expected of you. If the interviewer cannot give

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Better Talking

If you’re nervous about an upcoming job interview, Better Talking can help you practice and smooth out the bumps in your delivery.

Better Talking offers free automated phone interviews. You visit the web site, sign up with your name and email, and you’re given a phone number and a pin number. Call the number and you’ll be prompted with various questions like “What type … [ Read more ]

InterviewUp

So the interview for your next great job is coming up and you’ve got answers for your strengths, weaknesses, and teamwork skills–but can you explain the 5-4-3 rule of computer networking? InterviewUp, a social website focused on industry-specific interview questions, could help you prepare for your time in the hot seat. No account is required to search, post or answer questions asked of candidates, but … [ Read more ]

Interview Cheat Sheet

In the Days Before the Interview

  1. Draw a line down the center of a piece of paper. On the left side, make a bulleted list of what the employer is looking for based on the job posting. On the right side, make a bulleted list of the qualities you possess that fit those requirements.
  2. Research the company, the industry and the competition.
  3. Prepare your 60-second personal statement—your answer

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InterviewTrue

InterviewTrue produces and markets a low-cost Online
Interviewing System? (OIS) that greatly enhances the preparedness, communication ability, screening and assessment process of candidates in multiple environments.

6 Must-Ask Interview Questions

Here are six must-ask questions and why you should know the answers.

  1. What happened to the person who previously did this job? (If a new position: How has this job been performed in the past?)
    You need to know any problems or past history associated with this position. For instance, was your predecessor fired, or was he promoted? Is this a temporary position or

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Arm Yourself with Anecdotes

According to Marky Stein, career coach and author of Fearless Interviewing: How to Win the Job by Communicating with Confidence, candidates should pick six skills that they have and want to pursue in their jobs, such as management, analysis, assembling, building, creating, directing. Then, write these “action verbs” each on an index card. On the other side of each card, write a few reminders of … [ Read more ]

50 (Almost) Questions Recruiters Ask

  1. What are your long range and short range goals and objectives, when and why did you establish these goals and how are you preparing yourself to achieve them?
  2. What specific goals, other than those related to your occupation, have you established for yourself for the next 10 years?
  3. What do you see yourself doing five years from now?
  4. What do you really want to do in life?
  5. What are

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Frequently Asked Behavioral Interview Questions

Behavioral interviewing is still the most popular approach to assessing a candidate’s worth. Essentially, the premise is that past behavior is the best predictor of future behavior. In my work as head of recruiting for a bank, consumer products company, and retail company, and in advising many recruiters while at Stanford, I have found these to be my favorite frequently asked questions across industries:
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Probing Questions

  • Where do you see yourself in five years?
  • When I call your references, what will they say?
  • What accomplishments are you particularly proud of?
  • What motivates you? How do you motivate people?
  • Why are you in the job market?
  • What are the best, and worst, aspects of your current position?
  • Describe your management style.
  • How do you resolve disputes?
  • Have you ever gone out on a limb on a job? Tell me

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Salesperson Interview Questions

  • What do you expect a typical day on this job to be like?
  • On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your “printing product knowledge?”
  • On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your knowledge of selling strategy and technique?
  • How much money will you need to make from Day 1 on this job?
  • How much money do you want to make in your first full

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‘Tell Me About Yourself’ Doesn’t Mean ‘Tell It All’

The following tips can help you provide a memorable and effective response to the “tell me about yourself” question.

  1. Start with the end in sight.
    Despite the deceptive phrasing, the directive, “Tell me about yourself,” isn’t a polite request for your life story. What the interviewer wants to know is, “Why should I hire you?” Knowing this, your goal is to craft a

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Ten Questions You Should Never be Asked in an Interview

There are numerous state and federal antidiscrimination laws designed to assure that employers hire based upon skill, rather than stereotypes. Therefore, there are some things an interviewer isn’t allowed to ask. How do you know what’s fair game? Here are some questions that should raise red flags.

  1. “What’s your race?”
    It is illegal for an employer to ask you questions about race or skin color.

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