So you want a job?

[maddy]

Give me some interview questions to help sort out the good from the bad.

[1nutworld]

I'd LOVE one maddy.........I even do windows.

[osuche]

What type of job you interviewing for? And what are you seeking in terms of criteria for the right job?

[ShadowDancer]

My ALL TIME FAVORITE(insert sarcasm dripping smilie here)..."IN 30 seconds or less, why should we hire you?".....I got that one 3 different times when I interviewed for my current job...once each at all 3 interviews--plus when they called my character references, they asked them that question.

[1nutworld]

Yes that is a good one ShadowDancer.

Another one is: What makes you any better than the OTHER people we have interviewed for the position?

If I KNEW what their job skills and history were.......I MIGHT be able to tell you, WHY I am better.

[PantyFanatic]

...."IN 30 seconds or less, why should we hire you?".......
Wouldn't the answer depend on whether they were hiring a welder, a brain surgeon or a hit man? :confused:

[FallenAngel5]

I always liked the 'spin the negative' questions...
i.e. why should we not hire you? or
what are some of your weaknesses?

You want people to be honest but to turn these questions into positives.

[mayhem1978]

I HATE the "and why should we hire you?" question but it seems to work

[dicksbro]

When I did interviews, I used to always like to ask, "Why, specifically, did you choice our company?" (Let's you evaluate whether they were just looking for a job, or, whether they had seen something speical about your company that they wanted to be a part of), and, since I was in Information Technology usually interviewing College Graduates ... "What aspects of data processing most interest you?" (Suprising to me were the number that didn't realize the range of applications that were open (from accounting to inventory management to engineering to benefit applications to robotics) or the different skills those might benefit from.)

[scotzoidman]

My favorite was "& what makes you think you wanna work for us?"

Since I was applying for cashier at a "stop & rob" convenience mkt, the tone of his question made me ask myself the same...I don't recall my answer, but I must have been pretty good at bluffing my way thru, since i got the job...

[LixyChick]

Can you work under pressure?

followed by...

I'm interested to hear when you experienced pressure on the job.

OR

What is your greatest weakness? (<---insert head in noose here!)

Watch out for the illegal questions...ie: What religion do you practice? Do you plan to have children? etc...

Geezzzzzz...I hate interviews!

[lonelyarmywife]

A serious winner - this was for an administration position at my school.

"What are the first three things you will do if you are hired for this job."

[maddy]

Love 'em! Keep them coming. I'm adding these to my list. I've been doing a bit of searching on the web and I'll share some that I thought might be good later tonight when I have more time.

[WildIrish]

Anything that gets them talking about what's NOT on the resume will yield tons of information. Most candidates have their job experience & education memorized, but "Tell me something that you've had to overcome to achieve a goal?" makes them think.

[wyndhy]

i had "tell me a little about your favorite book and why you liked it so much" once. i thought it was a terrific and unusual question but the man interviewing me was a classic good ol boy (he even went so far as to comment on my interview clothes:rolleyes2) so the imp in me took over and after a brief synopsis of the book, i said—all wide-eyed innocence—that not only was it was a great story but it also managed to intelligently demonstrate how strong a woman is even if she doesn’t have a man in her life, but how especially strong friendships between women are. i don't think i had appreciated that as much as i should have until i read that book :roflmao:


and i always liked the how questions. “how would you…”and then insert some job-specific problem or challenging task, or insert something general like ‘encourage open communication’ or ‘mentor an intern’, etc.

[osuche]

LOL. After reading your question it's unclear to me whether you're interviewing perople, or being interviewed? :D So I'll do some for both...

Good interview questions (if you're the interviewer):
* Describe the type of company you're looking for in terms of culture and values?
* Tell me about a time when you made a mistake at work. What was it? And how did you correct it?"
* Tell me about a difficult decision you made -- what was it, and how did you deal with it?
* Tell me about a situation where you took a risk at work. What happened?
* Tell me about yourself (wait to see what they say, and how quickly they ask for input)
* For a sales job...I once used "Sell me this pen." -- it worked wonderfully.

If you're interviewing for a job (the interviewee):
* Tell me about the culture of the company...what are your values? How do you make decisions? Do you value risk takers? etc
* What types of people get promoted here? How does it happen?
* Describe the ideal person for this job?
* Who filled the job last? Why did they leave? What made them successful in the position? What could they have done better?
* What do you like best about working for this company? What could be improved?


I hope these help...

[maddy]

At the moment I'm looking to be the interviewer... but you never know when I might be sitting on the other side of the table. I left it open as I also want to be prepared for the types of questions I might receive in return.

[alspals69]

why did your last job end.... and its a good idea here not to be negative about your last employer.

[osuche]

Who are our competitors? Based on your research, what do they do better than we do? How do we excel?