It’s the end of your #interview; what do you do? Do you have a list of questions prepared or do you hover awkwardly on your chair until it is time to go? Preparing a list of questions is essential for giving employees a lasting after-impression of yourself. Ask the right questions, and create the right memories. Create 5 top questions in order to ‘interview the interviewer’; put them through their paces and make your interview memorable.
1. How would you describe the company culture?
Could you give 5 words to describe the working environment? Let’s start off with an easy one; get them to impress you. Have a list of the top 5 values you would like to see in a company. What would make it unbearable for you to work there? If they say 3 out of your top 5 (allow for synonyms!) then consider it a tick in your mind. Any concerning qualities: ask them to elaborate.
2. What types of training opportunities do you offer? Could I expand on skills X, Y, Z?
Be wary of the ‘on the job training’ approach. Structured training programmes mean they truly value their employees, whereas the ‘leave you to it’ approach rarely bodes well. How are you meant to learn without at least a few days mentoring? Make a note of this; also if there are any skills you would like to develop (software training, sales techniques, etc.) ask if you would have an opportunity to expand upon these on the job.
3. What is your favourite part of the role? What do you find the biggest challenge?
Double whammy; they can’t be honest and say that they love everything about the role, this would come across as pretty fake. Put them through their paces; it might remind them of the last time they were interviewed!
4. What are the opportunities for professional development and promotion within the organisation?
Subtly different from training question, yet importantly so! If they vaguely suggest some time in the far future for promotion, you might want to be worried. Like training, there should be some form of structured progression to entice new employees.
5. How long before I can expect to hear from you? Are you conducting any further interviews this week?
Getting a feel for how a company conducts interviews is fairly similar to getting to grips with the structure of their organisation. How they manage candidates should be how they conduct initiation processes, training and overall company frameworks.
Good luck with your interview! Don’t forget to ask those questions; they may be the key to your success!
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