The Executive Suite Blog

What are the top six job interview questions?

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  Whether you are a job applicant or hiring manager you can use best practices in the job application and job interview process – with a little attention to detail and practice.  The job application and job interview process is often the most important and the most overlooked portion of the hiring process, by both parties.  This is understandable – most business owners don’t have the time or the expertise to develop a thorough process - and most job applicants only know a little bit about how to present themselves.

Best Hiring Practices

What if you could you use these best hiring practices however, to form a variety of effective and powerful job application questions and job interview questions that relate specifically to the talents, behaviors, and values you have or a company needs for an open job?  If you can ask the right job interview questions, and you had a good sense of the appropriate answers to the job interview questions, chances are you will be able to make your job interview process (and your application and hiring results) more successful.

The 6 Questions!

Here is my list of the top six kinds of job interview questions to ask.  As you review these, write down several job interview questions and answers for a position in your company or a position you want to apply for. Some of these will seem basic – it is the analysis of the answers I am asking you to now consider.

• For instance – as the employer asking about experience – look for an answer that shows how the applicant made use of one of their strengths – LISTEN to hear if they talk about strengths.  As the applicant - LISTEN to the question - and talk about your strengths.

• For Opinion questions I suggest you look for answers that show their self-awareness – especially their CONFIDENCE level in themselves.  Do they have any weaknesses to which they will admit?  Applicants - are you CONFIDENT enough to discuss your weaknesses?

• Applicants please note - the following is from the employer perspective.  Read carefully.

1. Credential verification – ask and expect accuracy. Example – “How long were you at…?”
2. Experience verification – these verify experiential features of his background. Example – “What were your responsibilities in that position?” Look for an answer that shows how such experience made use of one of their strengths.
3. Opinion – this is an opportunity to subjectively analyze how an applicant would respond to a scenario, and gauge their level of self-awareness.  Look here for their confidence level in their self-awareness.  Example – “What would you do in this situation?”
4. Dumb Questions – yup, this gets past their pre-programmed answers to find out their capability of original thought.  Example – “What kind of animal would you like to be?” It also tests their ability to think on their feet. Look for an answer that goes with their gut, is light and not too serious.
5. Behavioral – these anticipate predictable future behaviors based on past responses. Example – “Can you give me a specific example of how you did that”?  Look for a reply that demonstrates how they used skill strength to accomplish the task.
6. Competency –these identify alignment of past behaviors with specific competencies required for the position (problem solving, leading, initiative, etc.).  Example – “Explain a way in which you sought a creative solution to a problem.” Look for a reply that identifies HOW their strengths (understanding others, concrete organization, leading others) are used to answer the question.

Answering job interview questions in relation to specific job functions will help determine if an applicant’s answers are appropriate for your job openings. Need help figuring out your talents for your next hiring or interview session?