Questions to Ask a Potential Employee in an Interview

M.A., SPHR

When looking to expand the staff for your business, organize a list of questions beforehand to ask potential employee during interviews. If you ask each candidate the same questions, it is easier to evaluate them based on their answers after the interview has concluded.

Tips for Choosing Interview Questions

A good policy is to ask questions designed to determine whether the candidate has the necessary skills and abilities to perform the duties of the job in question. Asking the candidate about his or her employment history (as listed on the application form or resume) is a good place to start.

Past Employment

You may want to include such questions as:

What types of jobs have you held in the past?
What was your title at ___________ (name of company)?
What were your duties in that position?
What did you like most/least about the position?
Why are you leaving your present (or past) employer?

Personality and Work Habits

Other questions should be aimed to gather information about the candidate's personality. For example:

What is your greatest strength/weakness?
Can you give me an example of a challenging situation at work and describe how you solved the problem?
How do you deal with stress in the workplace?
What motivates you at work?
Do you work best in a group or independently? Why?
If you had to write a reference letter for yourself, what would you say?
What's the most important lesson you learned from making a mistake at work?

Co-worker Relations

Ask questions that will help you evaluate the applicant's attitudes toward taking supervision and dealing with co-workers.

Can you describe the best supervisor you have ever had?
What did you dislike about your least favorite former supervisor?
How would your previous coworkers describe you?
Can you give me an example of a time you worked through a conflict with a coworker?

Current Opening

The next part of your discussion with a candidate should deal with the current opening in your company. Give the candidate the opportunity to sell him or herself to you as a potential employee by asking:

What do you know about our company?
Why do you find this position to be appealing?
Why do you want to work for us?
What do you expect to gain from this opportunity?

Skill and Qualification Questions

Make sure to verify that the applicant has the skills necessary to perform the job. Even if you plan to administer a skill assessment test, it's advisable to ask related questions during the interview process. Questions you may want to use include:

What is your understanding of the skills necessary to perform this job?
What special training have you completed that qualifies you for this job?
What certifications do you hold?
Can you describe how to ______________________ (fill in with essential job functions, repeating as many times as necessary to get a good idea of necessary job skills)?
This job requires the ability to ______________________ (fill in as stated above). Can you give me an example of a time that you have had to _______________________ (restate requirement)?
An essential function of this job is ___________________ (fill in as stated above). Is there any reason you cannot perform _______________________ (restate requirement)?

Career Goals

You may also want to get a sense of what the applicant's long term goals are. Questions you may want to consider asking include:

Can you describe your ideal job?
Where do you see yourself in five years?
Why should we hire you?

Establishing Criteria

When asking questions of a potential employee candidate, it's helpful to establish or keep in mind the specific criteria that will be most helpful in determining whether an applicant will meet the company's needs. If the company has a pre-determined set of traits and skills that are necessary for the job, utilize that resource. If not, determine what skills and characteristics are most important to the position in question, and ask interviewees questions that will illustrate whether or not he or she has those skills. Open-ended questions are often helpful in this regard. For example, asking candidates to describe an experience that gave them a sense of accomplishment will illustrate their values, motivations, and possibly how they handle challenges.

Questions to Avoid in a Job Interview

Prohibited Topics

U.S. employers are prohibited by law from discriminating against a job applicant based on the following protected class characteristics:

Age
Race
Color
Religion
Gender
Disability
Ethnicity

In some states, family status and sexual orientation are also protected characteristics.

Questions Not to Ask

Avoid asking questions that could provide you with information that cannot legally be used to make hiring decisions. Do not make any inquires during the interview practice that could lead to applicants revealing information about their ethnicity, age, religion, or other characteristics that could pose legal problems if your hiring process is brought into question. It's also important to avoid inquiring about disabilities, family status, and sexual orientation.

Avoid including the following questions, and other similar ones, when interviewing prospective employees:

Do you have any children?
Is English your first language?
When did you graduate from high school?
Where do you go to church?
You are a citizen of what country?
What is your ethnic background?
Do you have any disabilities?
Other similar inquiries

Listen to the Answers

Paying attention to what applicants say in response to the questions you ask is just as important as making the right inquiries. Listen carefully to identify if candidates truly seem to have the skills you are looking for as well as to determine if they have personality characteristics and attitude that are likely to be positive additions to your company's culture.