5 Questions Great Job
Candidates Ask
Many of
the questions potential new hires ask are throwaways. But not these.
Be
honest. Raise your hand if you feel the part of the job interview where you ask
the candidate, "Do you have any questions for me?" is almost always a
waste of time.
Thought
so.
The
problem is most candidates don't actually care about your answers; they just
hope to make themselves look good by asking "smart" questions. To
them, what they ask is more important than how you answer.
Great
candidates ask questions they want answered because they're evaluating you,
your company--and whether they really want to work for you.
Here are
five questions great candidates ask:
What do
you expect me to accomplish in the first 60 to 90 days?
Great
candidates want to hit the ground running. They don't want to spend weeks or
months "getting to know the organization."
They want
to make a difference--right away.
What are
the common attributes of your top performers?
Great
candidates also want to be great long-term employees. Every organization is different,
and so are the key qualities of top performers in those organizations.
Maybe
your top performers work longer hours. Maybe creativity is more important than
methodology. Maybe constantly landing new customers in new markets is more
important than building long-term customer relationships. Maybe it's a
willingness to spend the same amount of time educating an entry-level customer
as helping an enthusiast who wants high-end equipment.
Great
candidates want to know, because 1) they want to know if they fit, and 2) if
they do fit, they want to be a top performer.
What are
a few things that really drive results for the company?
Employees
are investments, and every employee should generate a positive return on his or
her salary. (Otherwise why are they on the payroll?)
In every
job some activities make a bigger difference than others. You need your HR
folks to fill job openings... but what you really want is for HR to find the right
candidates because that results in higher retention rates, lower training costs,
and better overall productivity.
You need
your service techs to perform effective repairs... but what you really want is
for those techs to identify ways to solve problems and provide other
benefits--in short, to generate additional sales.
Great
candidates want to know what truly makes a difference. They know helping the
company succeed means they succeed as well.
What do
employees do in their spare time?
Happy
employees 1) like what they do and 2) like the people they work with.
Granted
this is a tough question to answer. Unless the company is really small, all any
interviewer can do is speak in generalities.
What's
important is that the candidate wants to make sure they have a reasonable
chance of fitting in--because great job candidates usually have options.
How do
you plan to deal with...?
Every
business faces a major challenge: technological changes, competitors entering
the market, shifting economic trends... there's rarely a Warren Buffett moat
protecting a small business.
So while
a candidate may see your company as a stepping-stone, they still hope for
growth and advancement... and if they do eventually leave, they want it to be
on their terms and not because you were forced out of business.
Say I'm
interviewing for a position at your bike shop. Another shop is opening less
than a mile away: How do you plan to deal with the new competitor? Or you run a
poultry farm (a huge industry in my area): What will you do to deal with rising
feed costs?
A great
candidate doesn't just want to know what you think; they want to know
what you plan to do--and how they will fit into those plans.
Source: Jeff Haden, www.inc.com
