Ask These 8 Questions in EVERY Job Interview!
The most important part of any job interview is asking the right questions.
It's basically your only opportunity to drive the conversation and gain insights about the organization. And most times, the questions you ask dictate whether or not you actually get an offer.
How do I know this?
As an engineering manager, I’ve interviewed more people than I can even remember. And I want to share insights from my experience - so that you can take control of building the career you deserve!
In this article, I explain the 8 most important questions you need to ask on every job interview, along with:
When, why, and how to ask them
What to listen for in their answer
How you should respond
The typical format of an interview begins with introductions followed by the interviewer, providing you with some background information about the company and an overview of the position itself.
Quick sidebar, if you wanna learn how to make impactful first impressions through your introduction, then you should check out my previous post. - “The Best Way To Introduce Yourself In Any Setting”. You’ll learn the best way to introduce yourself in any setting.
From there, the interviewer basically rattles off questions for a while, and at the very end they give you the opportunity to ask them any questions.
Most people waste this opportunity because they either don't know what questions to ask, or they're exhausted from being cross-examined for 30 minutes.
So they just wanna get out of the interview. But you gotta find a way to suck it up a little bit longer, because this is the most important part of the interview.
To understand why…
Let's take a step back and clarify what an interview is because there's some misconceptions out there.
Yes, the interview is your chance to put your best foot forward by showcasing all your unique skills and making a good impression with the hiring manager.
But you shouldn't look at interviews like a tryout where you're just hustling to make the team.
Instead, look at it like a 2-way street - because the interview is your only chance to learn about the company culture, along with the people you'll be working with and for.
It's your only chance to gauge things like…
Would I be a good fit at this company?
Would I enjoy working at this company?
Would I like working for the person who's interviewing me?
The most efficient way to gauge these things is by asking the right questions - and there’s 4 types of questions you should be asking.
1 - Connector Questions
With these questions, your goal is to establish a connection with the interviewer by finding a shared or common interest.
Doing this makes the interviewer feel like you're personable and relatable - and more importantly, it gets them to open up to you and view you in a different light.
Instead of viewing you objectively, they actually develop a positive bias towards you, and it's all subconscious - they don't even realize it's happening!
Asking these two questions should be your first priority in the interview.
Sneak them in near the beginning of the interview so that you can establish the connection and spark that positive bias in your favor.
The first question you want to ask is…
How long have you worked at this company and what brought you here?
This question gives you some perspective about the interviewer and the company.
They'll most likely tell you about their background and their experience - which gives you the opportunity to find something that you have in common.
For example - if they joined the company because they're looking for more opportunities to grow, you can establish a connection by saying something like:
I can certainly relate to that!
I'm at a similar stage in my career where I'm really looking for more room to grow, and that's what has me excited about this opportunity with this.
The next question you want to ask is,
What do you enjoy the most about working here?
This question will give you more perspective on the interviewer on a personal level - giving you another chance to establish that connection.
For example - if the interviewer says,
My favorite thing is that this is a small family owned business where everybody knows each other very well. We're not just coworkers, we're friends! In fact, most of us spend a lot of time together outside of work.
You could say,
That's great to hear, because I also place a high value on working in that type of environment! I think it's really important to actually like the people you're working with because you're spending so much time together.
It's important to ask both of these questions, because when you're making a connection with someone - it needs to be genuine and authentic. But when they answer the first question, you might not hear anything that's relatable to you.
For example - if you're a very private person who likes to keep your personal life separate from your work life. Then you most likely won't share the interviewer's appreciation for spending time together outside of work with coworkers.
In fact, it might make you question if this company is even a good fit. because you'll constantly feel compelled to fit in.
Plus if it's a small family owned business, then there may not be too many opportunities for you to grow - and you might be competing against nepotism.
The next type of questions you want to ask are…
2 - Company Culture Questions
With these questions, your goal is to gain insight into what the company culture is so that you can gauge whether this company will be a good fit for you.
The first question you want to ask is…
Who's your most successful recent hire - and why have they been so successful?
Their answer will help you understand what type of person is being recognized by the company as a high performer.
Listen closely to their answer - do these characteristics sound like you?
If it does, that's a sign that this company will be a good fit!
However, if these traits don't sound like you - this should be a red flag!
For example - if the interviewer says,
The person who had the most success worked 15 hours of OT throughout the first year
If you like working overtime, then this could be a good fit for you.
But if you prefer sticking to 40 hours a week and keeping healthy work-life balance, then this should be a red flag.
The next question to ask is basically the inverse of the last question…
Tell me about a recent hire who struggled or who didn't work out - and tell me why?
Similar to the previous question…
As the interviewer is describing the type of person who struggled - consider if this person has any skills, traits, or characteristics that are similar to you.
If they are similar to you, there's a good chance that you'll also struggle in this role or this environment as well. Which means it's probably not a good fit for you.
The third type of question you want to ask is…
3 - Burning Pain Questions
The goal with these questions is identifying the company's biggest challenges, and what issues are keeping the hiring manager up at night right now.
This gives you the opportunity to gauge if these are the types of challenges that you want to be working on. It also gives you a chance to gauge if your skills are a good fit for these challenges.
The first question to ask is…
What is your biggest challenge this year, and how will my position help you overcome it?
Asking this shows you understand your role in the company - and it also shows you're a team player who's focused on the team first.
For example - if the interviewer tells you that the company's biggest challenge is developing formal processes and procedures.
And if you are the type of person who's looking for a stable environment - with clear structures, processes, and systems already in place - then this company probably isn't a good fit for you.
The next question to ask is…
How is my performance measured, and how do I know if I'm having a positive impact on the company's biggest challenges?
Asking this shows you're the type of person who takes full ownership of your work - and every manager loves hearing this!
It also gives you the chance to see if there's actually opportunities for you to grow within the organization...
Because if the interviewer stumbles to answer a very straightforward question - like “how is my work measured” - it basically means they don't have a clear way of measuring your performance.
This should be a HUGE red flag!
Imagine how difficult it will be for you to get promoted when the company doesn't even have a clear way to measure your performance - or how you're making an impact on helping the company solve its biggest challenges.
The fourth type of question is…
4 - Closing Questions
There's three goals for these questions!
The first goal is to address any of the interviewer's concerns.
You don't know if you've answered every question correctly - and you don't know what their assumptions are, either.
The interviewer could be making assumptions about an unclear answer you gave, earlier in the interview. Which is why you want to address their concerns - if they have any.
The second goal is for you to leave on a high note.
People always remember the first impression - and the last impression in an interview - so you always wanna leave on a high note.
The third goal is to make sure you're clear on the next steps!
And asking these next 2 questions helps you accomplish all 3 of these goals.
The first question to ask is…
Is there any reason you wouldn't consider me for this position?
This is by far the most important question you can ask in an interview!
First - it shows your awareness.
You're letting the interviewer know that you understand you're not the perfect candidate for the job.
Second - obviously the interviewer is measuring you up throughout the interviewer - but you never really know if you've answered each question correctly or clearly.
Asking this question remove the guesswork - because it gives the hiring manager a chance to tell you if there's any skills or experience where they feel like you're lacking.
This also gives you the chance to address these concerns by sharing more about your background and experience - instead of letting the interviewer speculate and make assumptions.
The last question you want to ask is…
What are the next steps from here?
One of the biggest mistakes people make in interviews is leaving without being clear on what the actual next steps are!
Get them to tell you when you should expect to hear back - and if there will be a 2nd round of interviews.
If they tell you when they're gonna follow up with you - and if they don't follow up with you by that said date - this gives you a valid reason to follow up with them….
Instead of stressing over how soon is too soon to reach out to them.
As an engineering manager who's conducted hundreds of interviews, trust me, you need to ask these 8 questions in every single job interview.
But I didn’t explain the very first step in the interview - which is delivering an introduction that makes a positive first impression!
