How to Become an Expert Interviewer

There are many types of interview questions. From straightforward—“Tell me about yourself,” to intelligence tests—“Design an evacuation plan for the building,*” to oddball—“If you could only choose one song to play every time you walked into a room for the rest of your life, what would it be?*”

Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko from Pexels

*Actual interview questions at Google.

The most effective interview questions are behavior-based, developed using an online job benchmark that identifies the top 7 soft skills the job needs, the top 4 driving forces needed to succeed, and the top four behaviors that help ensure success in the job.  The benchmark shows you what, if the job could talk, it would tell you it requires in a person working in your company.  Our benchmark helps you zero in on a candidate’s skills, knowledge, and temperament—the kind of information you need to pick the right person for the job. It also creates behavioral interview questions that will make you an expert interviewer.

Some examples:

• Tell me about a time when you had to adapt quickly to change.

• Do you consider yourself a risk-taker or do you prefer to play it safe?

• Describe a time you had to sacrifice quality to meet a deadline.

• What strategies do you use when you cannot solve a problem?

• Tell me about a time when your communication skills had an impact.

• Tell me about a time when you changed your plan mid-project.

Interviewing also has a legal component.  To protect yourself from discrimination claims, you need to ask the same questions of all candidates you interview.  I often say people hire for skills and fire for things unseen like attitude, or lack of soft skills such as not being a team player.  Skill requirements change as the complexity of our marketplace changes, so make sure you are hiring for soft skills rather than just the skills you see on a resume.