Interview Questions to Ask Candidates
For the interviewer's side of the table: questions to ask when interviewing someone for any role, whether you are a seasoned hiring manager or sitting down with a potential employee for the first time. The list follows the order of an interview: opening, experience, behavioral, problem solving, motivation and fit, then closing. It includes the standards every interviewee expects, from 'tell me about yourself' to 'why should we hire you', beside less familiar ones. Each question has a note on what a strong and a weak answer sound like, and the guide covers planning the hour, scoring, and the topics to leave alone.
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The questions
Each question, and why to ask it
Opening
Tell me about yourself.
Why ask it
Nearly every candidate has rehearsed this, which is the reason to open with it: it settles nerves and shows you how they summarize. The answer to hope for takes about two minutes, follows one thread through their work and ends at why they are in front of you today. If you get the resume recited in date order, ask which part of it matters most for this job.
Why do you want this job?
Why ask it
Listen for whether the reason is about the work or about getting out of the last place. The convincing version links something they have done to something this role would let them do more of. Pay, hours or a shorter commute are honest reasons and no mark against anyone, but if they are the whole answer, ask what they expect to enjoy about the work itself.
What do you know about our company?
Why ask it
A few minutes of reading is usually enough to answer this, so a blank tells you how they prepare for things that matter to them. Credit a plain account of who your customers are and what they pay for over your own slogan recited back. To tell reading from understanding, ask how they would describe you to a friend who had never heard of the company.
What has you looking for a new job now?
Why ask it
You are listening for a reason that fits in a sentence or two: the work stopped growing, the company is shrinking, the role they want does not exist there. Be wary of a long complaint about a manager, since that is how you may be described one day. A layoff stated plainly is a complete answer and needs no digging.
What are your greatest strengths?
Why ask it
Ask for two or three, each with an occasion when it changed how a piece of work turned out. 'Hard-working' and 'good with people' are claims anyone can make, so follow up: compared with others who do your job, what are you better at? Then hold their choices against the four or five things you decided this job needs.
What is your greatest weakness?
Why ask it
Everyone has prepared for this one, so the first answer is often a virtue in disguise: perfectionism, caring too much, taking on too much. Ask for a time it cost them something at work. A real limitation, plus what they now do to work around it, is the answer worth writing down.
What caught your attention in the job posting?
Why ask it
Prepared candidates point to a particular line and connect it to work they have done. 'Growth', 'a new challenge' and 'a great company' would fit any employer, so if that is all you get, ask which part of the posting they would most like to talk about.
What did last week look like in your current job, and where did most of your hours go?
Why ask it
One real week gets you tasks, rough proportions and the people they deal with, where 'a typical week' gets the job description read aloud. If the answer is still general, pick one task and ask how long it took. For someone between jobs, ask about the last week of the last one.
What is your understanding of what this job involves day to day?
Why ask it
Ask this early so a mismatch surfaces in minute ten and not after an offer. The best answers are close to the truth and arrive with a question or two attached. If theirs is far off, correct it now and watch whether the interest holds.
Which part of your background matters most for this job?
Why ask it
Whatever they pick is their theory of what the job is. One or two things, each tied to a requirement you listed, means they read the role closely. A tour of everything they have ever done, or a lean on experience the job does not call for, means they have not worked out what you need.
What would you like to make sure we cover in this conversation?
Why ask it
Candidates who have prepared usually have a project or a worry they want on the table, and knowing it lets you plan the hour. 'Nothing in particular' is not a mark against anyone this early. Write down whatever they name and come back to it before the end.
Experience
What accomplishment at work are you most proud of?
Why ask it
Pride shows what a person counts as success: a target hit, a customer kept, a colleague trained, a mess nobody else would touch. Ask what stood in the way and who else was involved, then compare the kind of achievement with what this job rewards. If the proudest moment is ten years old, ask for one from the last two.
What did you like most and least about your last job?
Why ask it
Hold both halves up against your vacancy. When the thing they liked least makes up half of this job, it is kinder to say so in the room than to let them discover it in the second week. A 'least' about tasks or conditions is useful as it stands; one that is all about people needs a follow-up on what they tried.
Which job on your resume taught you the most, and what did it teach you?
Why ask it
Look for a skill or a piece of judgment they can show in use since. Naming the most impressive employer and stopping there tells you about the employer, not the candidate. Their choice also tells you which part of a long resume deserves your next question.
Pick one piece of work from the last two years that shows what you can do. What exactly was your part?
Why ask it
The choice shows what they consider their best, and the second half is where you score. You want their own decisions separated from the team's, with credit given for the rest. If you still cannot tell what they did after two follow-ups, treat that as the answer.
What did you take over when you started your current job, and what state is it in now?
Why ask it
This suits any job with a caseload, a client list, a shift or a system to look after. A candidate who made a difference can describe the before and the after in concrete terms. 'It was a mess and I fixed it' with no detail is weak, and heavy blame for the previous person is worth noting.
How was your performance measured in your last job, and how did you do against that?
Why ask it
You want the measure named, a number or a clear result, and a miss owned if there was one. Not knowing how they were judged is a poor sign in most jobs. When someone claims success with no yardstick, ask: compared with what?
What is the hardest problem you have handled at work, and what made it hard?
Why ask it
The answer marks the ceiling of what they have dealt with so far. Real difficulty sounds like competing demands or missing information, with reasoning they can retrace for you. If the only hard part was the hours, the problem may not have been a hard one.
Where is the biggest gap between what you have done and what this job asks for?
Why ask it
Give most credit to the candidate who names the gap you had already spotted, because they are reading the job accurately, and more if the plan for closing it is believable. 'I can't think of one' earns nothing, and neither does a strength dressed up as a gap.
How would you rate yourself on the main skill this job needs, and what is the most demanding thing you have done with it?
Why ask it
Name the skill for them. The rating means little alone: what you score is whether the example lives up to it. A modest rating with a demanding example beats a nine out of ten backed by a beginner's task.
Talk me through the reason behind each move on your resume.
Why ask it
The moves should add up to a direction, even a winding one. Worry when every exit was somebody else's fault. If a gap turns out to be personal, such as health or family, accept the short answer and move on without asking for details.
What did your last manager rely on you for?
Why ask it
A good answer is specific enough to check: the monthly close, the difficult accounts, training new starters. 'Everything' and 'being a team player' give you nothing to verify. Write down what they say and put the same question to their reference.
What would your last manager say you still needed to work on?
Why ask it
Putting the question in a manager's mouth tends to get a franker reply than asking about weaknesses head on, more so if you mention that you will ask their references the same thing. Listen for something from a real review or conversation, and for what has changed since. 'Nothing comes to mind' deserves a patient second try.
What is the biggest thing you have been fully in charge of, in budget, people or scope?
Why ask it
Titles mean different things at different employers, so this calibrates seniority better than the resume does. Ask for a size, and for what 'in charge' meant in practice. Watch for a large project they stood near but did not run.
How does the work you do now connect to what your employer is trying to achieve this year?
Why ask it
Someone who understands the point of their job can trace a line from their tasks to revenue, cost, risk or the people served. 'I do what I'm assigned' matters more the more senior the role. For a junior hire, count a good answer as a bonus and a blank as normal.
Tell me about a piece of work that was cancelled or never finished. What happened?
Why ask it
Most people with a few years behind them have one. The good version is clear about why it stopped, including their own share, and what was salvaged. Insisting it has never happened, or laying the whole thing on other people, tells you how they will report bad news to you.
What can you do now that you could not do when you started your current job?
Why ask it
Expect a concrete skill and an account of how they picked it up. Struggling to name anything after several years suggests the job stopped stretching them, which may be exactly why they are here, so ask about that directly.
Behavioral
Tell me about a time you worked on a team to get something done. What did you contribute?
Why ask it
Count the 'we's. A good team story still lets you see this one person: the piece they owned, who they depended on and how the group settled who did what. If every sentence is 'we', ask what would not have happened without them, and if every sentence is 'I', ask what the others would say about that.
Tell me about a time you disagreed with your boss. How did you raise it?
Why ask it
What you learn here is how disagreement will reach you. Hope for a case made privately, to the manager, with a reason and an alternative, and then for them to have got on with whatever was decided. Years of work with no disagreement at all is hard to credit, so ask about the last instruction they thought was a mistake.
Tell me about a time you went above and beyond what your job required.
Why ask it
Find out what prompted it: a customer about to be let down, a gap nobody owned, a colleague who was stuck. One occasion with a result you can picture is worth more than a general habit of staying late. When long hours are the whole story, ask what the extra effort changed.
Tell me about a commitment at work you could not keep. When did you know, and who did you tell?
Why ask it
The timing is what you are scoring. In the good version they raised it the day they knew and brought a revised plan. In the bad one the other person found out on the due date, or nothing in the story was ever really their commitment.
Tell me about a time you dealt with an unhappy customer or client.
Why ask it
Follow the order of events: hearing the person out, fixing what could be fixed, then changing something so it would not recur. A story that is mostly about how unreasonable the customer was falls short. For a role with no customers, ask about an unhappy colleague in another department.
Tell me about a time the plan changed late in a piece of work. What did you do first?
Why ask it
Good answers are about re-planning: what they stopped, what they kept and who they told. Weak ones linger on how unfair the change was. If your workplace changes direction often, give this question extra weight and tell the candidate that it does.
Tell me about a time you had more work than you could finish. What did you decide not to do?
Why ask it
The second half is the useful one. You want to hear what was dropped or delayed, and who agreed to it. 'I worked late until it was all done' sounds dedicated but shows no prioritizing, so ask what would have gone if the day had been two hours shorter.
Tell me about a failure that was mainly your own doing. What would you do differently?
Why ask it
Count the sentences of mitigating circumstances before they reach their own part. The best answers own the cause quickly and name a specific change in how they work. Be skeptical of a failure that was really someone else's, and of a lesson so general it could follow any story.
Tell me about a time you had to persuade someone who did not report to you.
Why ask it
What you hope to hear is that they worked out what the other person cared about and argued from there. Going over the person's head as a first move, or repeating the same case louder, is the weak answer. Ask what they would have done if the answer had still been no.
Tell me about criticism of your work that you disagreed with. What did you do?
Why ask it
Can they state the critic's view fairly before explaining where they differed? That is the strong sign, and the best candidates took something from the criticism anyway. Rearguing the case in front of you is the weak one, and a preview of how your own feedback will land.
What is the fastest you have had to learn something new for work? What did you do in the first week?
Why ask it
'I'm a quick learner' is a claim. A method is evidence: who they asked, what they read, what they tried first and how they checked they had it right. Put this to any candidate who is missing one of your listed requirements.
Tell me about a time you were new somewhere and had to earn the trust of people who had been there for years.
Why ask it
Whoever you hire will have to do this with your team, so the story is a forecast. Good signs are asking how things were done and why, delivering something small early and giving credit. Arriving with a list of everything the old hands were doing wrong is the version to worry about.
Tell me about a rule or process you thought was wrong but had to work under.
Why ask it
The answer you want follows the rule while raising the problem with someone who could change it. There are two weak versions: quietly ignoring it, and complying while complaining to everyone except the owner. Ask whether the rule ever changed.
Tell me about a time you were given very little direction. How did you decide what to do?
Why ask it
Three steps make a good answer: setting a target, checking it with someone early, then getting on with it. Waiting to be told is weak, and so is charging ahead for weeks unchecked. Weight this by how much direction the job really offers.
Tell me about a decision of yours that was unpopular.
Why ask it
You want the whole arc: how they reached the decision, how they told people and whether they would still make it. Having no example is unlikely for anyone who has held responsibility. Dropping the decision at the first complaint is an answer too, and not a strong one.
Who is the most difficult person you have had to work with, and what did you try?
Why ask it
Good answers describe what the person did, not what they were, and list more than one thing tried. A character diagnosis is a poor answer however accurate it may be. Check whether the work still got done, since that is the outcome you care about.
Tell me about a time you said no to a request at work.
Why ask it
A good no comes with a reason and something offered in its place: a later date, a smaller version, another person. Someone who never says no tends to end up missing commitments. A flat refusal with nothing offered is the other weak answer.
Tell me about the most pressured period in your working life. How did you get through it?
Why ask it
This is the stress question, asked about a real stretch of time. Credit what they did about the workload, not only how they endured it, and be cautious when exhaustion is presented as the achievement. If the answer drifts to health or home life, do not follow it there: ask what they changed on the job.
Tell me about a time you had to choose between doing something fast and doing it well.
Why ask it
The trade-off should be made out loud: what the deadline was worth, what the shortcut risked and who was told. Candidates who insist they always manage both have not answered. Whichever side they chose, ask whether they went back for what was skipped.
Have you been asked to do something at work that you believed was wrong? What did you do?
Why ask it
If they have a story, look for precision about the request and about how they raised it, including what it cost them. Some honest candidates have no example, so do not mark that down. Give them a hypothetical from your own industry and score the reasoning.
Tell me about a time you explained something complicated to someone outside your field.
Why ask it
You are getting a live sample, because they are explaining it to you now. The story should include finding out what the listener already knew and checking that it landed. If you are lost after a minute, that is your answer.
Tell me about a time you led something without having the title.
Why ask it
Leadership here means other people chose to follow: the candidate organized, decided and took the blame when it was due. Doing most of the work alone is effort, which is a different thing. Worth asking even when the role has no reports.
Problem solving
I am going to describe a real problem from this job. Before you solve it, what would you ask me?
Why ask it
Prepare one problem and give it to every candidate so the answers can be compared. Score the questions that would change the answer: constraints, who is affected, what has been tried. Starting to solve before knowing what the problem is costs marks, however clever the solution.
Walk me through how you would do the main task of this job, step by step.
Why ask it
Name the task for them: closing a sale, onboarding a client, reviewing a contract. Experience shows up as an order, checks along the way and a sense of where it usually goes wrong. Generalities at every step suggest they have watched it done more than done it.
How would you plan a piece of work you have never done before?
Why ask it
Good plans break the work into parts, find someone who has done it and start with the piece most likely to go wrong. A confident 'I'd figure it out' is not a plan. If the answer stays abstract, ask for the last time they did this for real.
How do you stay organized when you are handling several tasks at once?
Why ask it
You are after a system they can show you: a list, a calendar, a board, a habit of writing down what was promised and to whom. Ask what is on it today. 'I keep it all in my head' can hold up in a small job, so ask about the last thing that slipped and what they changed afterward.
Two urgent requests arrive from two different people and you can only do one today. What do you do?
Why ask it
The answer to look for asks what each request is for and what a delay would cost, then tells the person who will wait. Choosing by seniority, or by who shouted loudest, skips the thinking. Doing both badly is worse.
Halfway through a task you realize your approach is not going to work. What happens next?
Why ask it
You hope they stop, tell whoever is waiting and work out what can be kept. Two answers should worry you: pressing on because of the time already spent, and quietly starting over without telling anyone the date has moved.
Tell me about a problem where your first solution failed. What did you try second?
Why ask it
What happened between the two attempts is the part to score. A diagnosis of why the first one failed means they learned something, while simply trying the next idea means they got lucky. Be a little suspicious of a tidy success with no wrong turns.
Tell me about a problem that kept coming back. How did you find the real cause?
Why ask it
Ask what made them doubt the obvious explanation and how they tested the new one. Fixing the same fault four times and calling it persistence is not what you are after. Finish by asking whether it has come back since.
How do you decide when to keep working on a problem yourself and when to ask someone?
Why ask it
Experienced people usually have a working rule, such as a time limit or the point where delay costs more than an interruption. 'I always try to solve it myself first', with no limit, is weak. So is asking at the first obstacle.
Tell me about a decision you made from data. What did the data not tell you?
Why ask it
The first half should produce the numbers and where they came from, and the second half the limits of what they showed. A candidate who cannot answer the second part may have been handed a conclusion. For a role without analysis, ask how they checked a claim before acting on it.
Tell me about a process you changed. How did you know the new way was better?
Why ask it
A before and an after, even a rough one, is what separates an improvement from a change. Listen too for the people who had to be brought along. If nobody else adopted the new way, ask why.
A customer asks for something our policy does not allow, and their reason is a good one. What do you do?
Why ask it
Use a real policy from your business. The judgment you want works out what the policy is there to prevent, looks for a proper route to an exception and keeps the customer informed. 'Rules are rules' and 'I'd just do it' are both weak, in opposite directions.
You have to make a call, and the two colleagues you trust most give you opposite advice. How do you decide?
Why ask it
The good move is finding out why they disagree, which is often a different assumption, then deciding and telling both. Siding with the more senior one, or splitting the difference, avoids the decision. Ask for a time this happened.
What risk did you see coming on a recent project, and what did you do about it?
Why ask it
Credit action taken before the risk arrived, and someone told about it. Spotting it and saying nothing does not count, and a risk everyone could see is not much of an example. Ask how they noticed when others did not.
If you had to cut a third of the time or cost from your current work, what would go first?
Why ask it
People who know which parts of their work produce the value can cut something specific and tell you the consequence. 'Nothing could go' and 'I'd work harder' both dodge the question. For a senior role, ask who would object and what they would say to them.
What would you measure in this role to know you were doing it well?
Why ask it
Good measures are ones the role can influence, offered with an admission of what they would miss. Counting activity, such as calls made or hours worked, with no link to results misses the point of the role. Compare theirs with how you plan to judge the role yourself.
Picture yourself three months into this job. What would you want to have done by then?
Why ask it
The most convincing plans start with learning: who they would talk to, what they would need to see, and one modest result to deliver. An overhaul planned on an hour's knowledge of you should worry you at any level, and so should no picture at all from someone applying for a senior role.
From what you know so far, what is the biggest challenge a team like this one faces in the next year?
Why ask it
You are scoring reasoning, not inside knowledge. A thoughtful candidate builds an answer from the posting, your website and what you have said today, and labels it a guess. 'The pace of change' would fit any team anywhere.
Motivation and fit
What motivates you at work?
Why ask it
Expect 'a challenge' or 'helping people' first, which is where this question starts and not where it ends. Ask which they would keep if they could have only one: the pay, the people, the problems or the recognition, and why. No choice is wrong; the point is whether this job can supply the one they picked.
What are you looking for in your next job that you do not have now?
Why ask it
Where 'why are you leaving' looks back, this looks forward, and the best answer is something this job really offers. Push a vague 'new challenge' by asking what the challenge would look like. If they name something the role lacks, such as a team to manage, say so now and not in month three.
When have you been most absorbed in your work, and what were you doing?
Why ask it
Hope for an activity, not a perk, and for that activity to exist in this job. Answers about the surroundings, such as the office, the people or the brand, tell you less. Ask how much of their week they would want that activity to fill, then compare it with the real figure.
What do you need from a manager to do your best work, and what gets in your way?
Why ask it
Self-aware candidates can give an example of each. 'I can work with anyone' tells you nothing. Compare what they say with how the actual manager works, not with what sounds agreeable.
Describe the working environment where you have been most productive.
Why ask it
Specifics are the point: pace, noise, structure, how much gets written down. 'Somewhere collaborative' is too thin to use. Describe your own environment honestly afterward and watch the reaction, since a mismatch is something both of you should know about.
Do you prefer to work alone or as part of a team?
Why ask it
Nearly everyone answers 'a bit of both', which tells you nothing until you ask for proportions: how much of a good week is spent heads down, and how much with other people? Set that beside how this job really divides. A strong preference in either direction only matters when the job is the opposite, and then it matters a lot.
Where do you see yourself in five years?
Why ask it
Nobody knows, and the candidate knows you know, so hear it as a question about direction. A direction is enough, with or without a job title attached, so long as this role is a sensible step toward it. Do not mark someone down for wanting to stay good at the same job, and say so plainly if the path they describe does not exist here.
What have you done in the past year to get better at your work?
Why ask it
It should be something you could check: a course finished, a skill practiced, feedback sought and acted on. 'I learn on the job' with no example is not an answer. Ask what they did with what they learned.
What do you value most in the people you work with?
Why ask it
One quality illustrated by a real colleague beats a list of five virtues. The answer also shows what they will find hard: someone who prizes directness will struggle on a team that avoids it.
How would your coworkers describe you?
Why ask it
Ask for the words one particular colleague would use, and the occasion that colleague would be thinking of. Three flattering adjectives with no story behind them are a self-portrait. Better answers often include something mildly unflattering, such as being blunt or slow to reply, which is a candidate being accurate.
What have you turned down or walked away from in your career, and why?
Why ask it
Choices that cost something show what a person values better than a list does. Listen for what they gave up and whether they would do it again: a promotion that meant leaving the work they liked, a better-paid offer from a place they did not trust. Having no example is normal early in a career.
Here is the part of this job people find hardest. How does that sit with you?
Why ask it
Name it honestly first: shifts, travel, repetition, being on call, difficult callers. Take practical questions about it, or experience of it, as the good sign. A fast 'that's fine' with no questions deserves a follow-up, so ask what a week of it would look like for them.
What does an employer have to do to keep you for a long time?
Why ask it
Realistic and specific is what you want: work that keeps growing, fair pay reviews, a manager who is straight with them. Check the answer against the reasons they gave for leaving earlier jobs, because a contradiction there is the weak sign. If you cannot offer what they describe, it is fairer to say so.
What pace suits you: steady and predictable, or bursts and deadlines?
Why ask it
Neither choice is better. Self-knowledge with an example behind it is the strong answer, and 'both' is the weak one. Score it against the pace of the real job, and tell them what that is.
Tell me about a time you were unhappy in a job. What did you do about it?
Why ask it
The good version includes an attempt to change things, such as raising it or asking for different work, before leaving. Going straight from unhappy to gone is one weak pattern, and staying unhappy for years in silence is the other. Consider how either would play out on your team.
Closing
Why should we hire you?
Why ask it
Asked near the end, this is the candidate's closing argument, and by now they have heard enough about the job to make one. The strong version plays your needs back with evidence against each: you said you need this, and here is where I have done it. A list of general virtues with nothing from the last hour in it suggests they were waiting to speak more than listening.
Can you work the hours and at the location this job requires?
Why ask it
Describe the real requirement, such as early starts, weekends or days on site, and ask every candidate in the same words. This gets you what you need without asking about childcare, health or anything else at home. If the answer is 'yes, but', find out what would need to change and leave the reason alone.
What pay range are you looking for in this role?
Why ask it
State your own range first if you can, since it saves both sides a wasted second round. A useful answer is a range with a reason behind it. Ask about expectations and not past pay: some places restrict questions about salary history, so check how it works where you hire.
What is your notice period, and when could you start?
Why ask it
Record this as a fact, not a score. A candidate who insists on working out their full notice is showing you how they will leave you one day, which counts in their favor. If your start date is fixed, say so now.
Where are you in your job search, and is there a timeline I should know about?
Why ask it
You are asking so you can move at the right speed, not to test loyalty. A plain account of other processes and deadlines is all you need. Do not mark down someone with other offers, and do not treat a candidate with none as a bargain.
Who should I speak to about your work, and what do you expect they will say?
Why ask it
The good sign is recent managers offered without hesitation, and a prediction with some honesty in it. A list made up only of friends and peers should make you ask why. The fair exception is a current boss who does not know they are looking.
Is there anything you need from us to take part fully in the rest of the process?
Why ask it
Ask every candidate, as an open offer, and do not ask why. It covers changes to format, timing or access without anyone having to disclose a condition. There is no weak answer, so leave it off the score sheet.
Which part of the job would you like to see or hear more about before the next stage?
Why ask it
Use the answer to plan the next round: a look at the tools, an hour with the team, a conversation with the person who is leaving. Candidates who are picturing themselves in the job tend to have one ready. A blank at a first interview means little.
What concerns do you have about this role or about us?
Why ask it
Thoughtful candidates have at least one and say it plainly, which lets you answer it now. 'None at all' usually means they have not thought hard yet or do not feel safe saying it. Raise one yourself to show it is allowed.
Is there an answer from today that you would like another go at?
Why ask it
Nerves cost good candidates their best answers, and this gives one back. Someone who picks an answer and improves it was judging their own performance as they went, which is worth noting. Declining is fine and should not be scored.
Is there anything else you would like me to know about you?
Why ask it
Set questions miss things: a relevant project that never came up, a fixed start date, the story behind a short stay on the resume. Give the silence a few seconds before you move on. Whatever they add goes into your notes like any other answer.
What questions do you have for me?
Why ask it
Leave ten minutes for this, because it is scored too. Questions about the work, the team and how success is judged are the good sign. None at all, or only questions about perks, is the weak one, though at a first interview you can allow for nerves and offer a topic.
Running the interview: structure, scoring and what not to ask
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
Structuring the hour
Decide what you are testing before you pick questions
Write down the four or five things the job most needs, such as a particular skill, judgment under pressure or patience with customers. Choose two or three questions for each from the list and leave the rest. With follow-ups, an hour has room for roughly ten to twelve, not the whole list.
A rough shape for sixty minutes
Ten minutes to settle in, explain the format and ask two or three Opening questions. Ten on Experience, fifteen on Behavioral, ten on Problem solving, five on Motivation and fit, and the last ten for Closing and their questions. Tell the candidate the shape at the start so they know how long to make each answer.
Open by lowering the stakes
Say who you are, how long it will take, that you will be taking notes and that there will be time for their questions. A nervous candidate gives you a worse sample of how they work. The first Opening questions are the ones candidates rehearse, which is why they come first.
Follow up until you reach one real event
Rehearsed answers are general. Ask 'what did you do next', 'what did you say' and 'how did it end' until you are hearing about a single occasion with a date and other people in it. Two follow-ups on one question tell you more than two new questions.
Split the list between interviewers
If the candidate will meet three people, give each of them a group so nobody hears the same story three times. Agree beforehand who covers pay, start date and the other practical questions in Closing, so they are asked once and by the right person.
Protect the last ten minutes
The candidate is choosing too. Their questions are part of what you score, and their impression of the hour affects whether a good one accepts. If you are running late, cut a question from the middle and keep the end.
Scoring answers consistently
Ask everyone the same core questions
Pick the questions that matter most for the role and put them to every candidate in the same words. Follow-ups can differ. Without a shared core you end up comparing one person's best story with another person's hardest question.
Write down what good looks like first
For each core question, note beforehand what a strong, an acceptable and a weak answer would contain. The notes under each question are a starting point to adapt to your role. A standard set after you have met someone you like will bend toward them.
Use a short scale
Four points is enough: weak, mixed, good, strong. With an even number there is no middle box to park a score in. Score each question as you go or straight afterward, while you still remember the answers and not only the person's manner.
Record what was said, not what you felt
'Gave an example of re-planning a launch after a supplier pulled out' can be compared and defended. 'Seemed sharp' cannot. If a score has no note of evidence behind it, treat the score as a guess.
Score alone, then compare
When several people interview, each should score before anyone talks. Once the most senior person in the room has given a view, the others tend to drift toward it. Compare each candidate against the standard you wrote, and only then against each other.
Know your own tilt
It is easy to warm to people like yourself: same background, same humor, same school. Confidence and fluency are also easy to mistake for competence. When a score rests on 'I just liked them', go back to your notes and find the evidence or lower the score.
Questions not to ask someone in an interview
The general rule
Ask only about things that bear on doing the job. In many places it is unlawful to base a hiring decision on personal characteristics, and a question about one suggests you intend to. This is general practice and not legal advice: the rules differ by country and by state, so check with whoever handles HR or employment law where you hire.
Topics to leave alone
Age or year of birth. Marital status, partners, children, pregnancy or plans for a family. Religion and religious observance. Health, disability, medical history and past sick leave. Race, ethnicity, nationality, birthplace, first language and where a name or an accent comes from. Sexual orientation and gender identity. Political views and union membership. In some places arrest or conviction history and previous pay are restricted as well, so find out before you ask.
Small talk is where it happens
Few interviewers set out to ask about religion or age. They ask 'what does your husband do', 'when did you graduate' or 'where are you from originally' to be friendly. In an interview those are still questions about the topics above. Keep the warm-up to the trip in, the role and the work.
Ask about the requirement instead
If the job needs weekend shifts, lifting, travel or a six o'clock start, describe that and ask whether the candidate can do it: every candidate, in the same words. The requirement is your business. The reason behind a yes or a no is not. The same goes for the right to work in the country: ask everyone the same yes-or-no question, never where someone is from, and check locally what you may ask and when.
When a candidate volunteers it
Candidates sometimes mention a pregnancy, a diagnosis or their faith unprompted. Acknowledge it briefly, return to the question you were on, and keep it out of your notes and your scoring. A request for an adjustment to the interview or the job is a different matter: pass it to whoever handles those where you work.
Adapting the list to the interview
A thirty-minute first interview
Use three Opening questions, three from Experience and the practical ones in Closing. The aim is to confirm the basics and decide who gets the full hour. Keep Behavioral and Problem solving for the second round.
Candidates with little work history
Behavioral questions still work if you widen the frame: 'at work' can become school, volunteering, a part-time job or a team. Lean on Problem solving, where a candidate can show reasoning without years of experience behind it.
Senior and strategic roles
Spend more of the hour on the later Problem solving questions: what they would cut, what they would measure, what they would want done in three months and what they see as the team's biggest challenge. Add the Experience question about how their work connects to what the employer is trying to achieve. Ask for the size of what they have run, and follow every 'we' until you know what they personally decided.
A current employee, or someone you already know
An employee applying for an internal move, a former colleague or a friend of the team gets the same core questions and the same score sheet as everyone else. What you remember of them, good or bad, is weaker evidence than an answer you can write down today. It is also the only way the outside candidates get a fair comparison.
Video and phone interviews
Keep the same questions and the same scoring. Allow a little more silence before you follow up, since a delay on the line makes people talk over each other. Do not score the candidate on their room, their connection or their camera.