Best questions to ask when interviewing someone

Conducting an interview is as much an art as it is a science. All candidates are different and it's your job as the interviewer to draw out the best answers to help you make an informed decision on who would be the best fit for the role. No two interviews are alike, so coming up with the right questions to ask can be a challenge.

In this article, we’ll explore 10 of the best questions to ask when interviewing someone that will help you assess their strength and suitability to a role as well as whether they are the right fit for your company.

Question 1: What do you know about our company and why do you want to work here?

This is a good icebreaker. Interviews are understandably a nerve-racking situation and it's a good idea to open with a question that allows your candidate to warm up.

On top of that, this question allows you two key insights that may make or break the interview right from the start. The first is whether they are willing to do their homework and research your company before coming in. The second is whether they have taken the time to understand what makes your company unique and how they as a person would gel within the company culture.

Question 2: Name a work accomplishment that makes you proud?

Again, this is a multi-pronged question. On the one hand, you're asking about their work experience and how they fared in previous roles. You get a glimpse into the work they've done in the past and see how that translates to the work they'll be expected to do in the future.

But, perhaps more important than that, this question provides the candidate an opportunity to show their spark. What drives them to wake up in the morning? What makes them passionate about their working skills? Are they motivated by intrinsic goals like personal growth or something more extrinsic like customer satisfaction.

Question 3: How do you handle situations where you need to work with someone who has a different opinion than yourself?

This is one of the best questions to ask a potential employee if you're looking for someone who truly understands the collaborative nature of being part of a team. It's important for your candidate to be able to work with others, even in situations where they may not always agree.

This helps you gauge their level of experience and insight when it comes to working in a team setting, and their ability to bridge gaps between opinions and come up with solutions that benefit everyone. It also shows you how they cope when faced with difficult choices and how they prioritize the overall goal of any project.

Question 4: What is your biggest weakness?

Known as the classic interview question and for good reason. Asking someone to reveal their biggest weakness can be a daunting task but it's often one of the best questions you can ask during an interview as it gives you an insight into the self-awareness of a candidate.

Candidates want to focus on their positive traits but forcing them to dwell on the negative can be really illuminating. Do they understand their limitations? Are they able to recognize their own areas of improvement? Are they open to receiving feedback and learning from their mistakes? It's so important to understand how well a candidate can self-reflect and use that insight to take ownership over their own development. As such it is one of the best questions to ask employee during interview.

Question 5: What skills and strengths do you bring to this position?

This question allows the candidate to direct the conversation and showcase what they can bring to the table. It also gives an opportunity for them to show off their knowledge and passion for the role and how it fits into their professional development.

Most importantly, this question allows you to assess how well they understand the job requirements and how they would apply their unique set of skills. It's a great way to determine if they are the right fit for your company and the open position.

Question 6: Tell me about a time when you resolved a conflict in the workplace

This is a classic STAR question (Situation, Task, Action, Result) and it allows you to delve deep into a candidate's experience with problem-solving. While no-one ever wants problems to arise at work, the reality is that they often do, and it's so important to understand how a candidate would handle such a situation.

You can get an insight into how they plan, strategize and ultimately solve conflicts. This question can help you determine if the candidate is a proactive problem solver or whether they are more of a reactive one. It's also a great way to assess their communication and collaboration skills and get an understanding of how they would handle any future conflicts.

Question 7: Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

This one can be a very tricky one to answer but it's a great way to understand a candidate's career aspirations and long-term goals. It also provides you with an insight into how motivated and ambitious the candidate is as well as how much focus they put into their professional development.

It's important to get a sense of where the candidate sees their career going and how it fits into your company's vision. This question can help you determine if they would be a good fit for the role and how they plan to grow with your organization over time.

Question 8: Tell me about your current role and responsibilities

This is another dual-purpose question as it allows the candidate to talk about the day to day work at their current company, as well as giving you an insight into why they are leaving their current role.

A good candidate should be able to highlight both what they did in the past as well as how they're experience makes them suitable for a new role in your team.

It's also important to pay close attention to the way they talk about their old job and look out for any potential reasons for why they want to leave. This can give you a good indication of their work ethic and how they may fit into your culture.

Question 9: Describe a time where you went above and beyond for a customer

Customers are the lifeblood of any business so this question allows you to really get at the heart of a candidate's approach to customer service.

It's important to understand how well they can deliver an exceptional customer experience and whether they can think outside the box when it comes to solving customer issues. This question is a great way to assess their communication skills, creativity and problem-solving skills and get an understanding of how they would handle customer interactions in the future.

Question 10: Do you have any questions for us?

Finally, it's always best to finish off by putting the ball in their court. By allowing them to ask questions, you show that you value their opinion and are open to hearing what they have to say.

It's also a great way to determine how well they prepared for the interview and how much research they did into your company. Their questions can give you an indication of their interest in the role and how critically their mind works. A successful candidate should ask thoughtful, illuminating questions that demonstrate a genuine interest in the company and the position.

Summary

You can have all the tools and recruitment systems in the world, but if you really want the best possible candidates for your open job role, then you need to get the interview right. It's an opportunity to truly understand the quality of a candidate, their suitability for a role and the compatibility of their character with your company culture. And once armed with these ten questions to ask when interviewing someone, you can rest assured that you'll have all the information you need to make an informed decision.