What to ask in an interview

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The Best Question To Ask At The End Of A Job Interview



As a job seeker, the questions you ask in a job interview are as important as your answers to the questions you get asked. Why is that? Well, the quality of the questions you ask shows how much research you've done, how interested you are in the opportunity, and how knowledgeable you are about the job.

But of all the questions you can ask, there's one last question you should ask before you close out any job interview...

"Can You Please Tell Me The Next Steps In The Process?"


@j.t.odonnell 1 Question To Ask It The End Of EVERY Job Interview! 💪#interviewquestions #interviewtips #interviewtipsandtricks #interview #interviewprep #interviewskills ♬ original sound - J.T. O'Donnell

At the end of every job interview, ask the hiring manager what the next steps are in the interview process. This is the best question to ask at the end of a job interview (one you don't want to forget to ask) because you don't want to leave the interview wondering when you will hear from them.

Knowing the answer to this question will also help you figure out how many other people are being interviewed and when it is okay for you to follow up.

Here's an example of what asking this question could look like...

You: "Can you tell me the next steps in the process?"

Hiring Manager: "You're the first of five interviews and we are going to be doing this for the next three weeks."

You: "Fabulous. Would it be okay then for me to proactively follow up with you in one business week to see where everything is?"

Hiring Manager: "I think it would be best to give us two weeks before following up."

Now you have a better idea of where they are in the interview process and when you will be able to contact them.

Why is this important? Well, I work with a lot of job seekers who forget to ask this question at the end of a job interview and they're left sitting in limbo, not knowing what to do. They're in paralysis because they're waiting to hear from the hiring manager, but they don't know when that will be.

When you ask, "What are the next steps in the interview process?" at the end of a job interview, you know exactly when you're going to hear from the employer and when you can follow up. And that means you can get back to looking for more jobs because you should never be job-crushing. You should never be waiting around on one job. You should be looking for plenty of other job opportunities just in case the current opportunity falls through.

So, don't forget to ask this question at the end of your next job interview. You'll not only impress the hiring manager but also help yourself out in the days following the interview.

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5 Things To Ask In A Job Interview



“Do you have any questions for me?"

This is typically the final question you will be asked in a job interview. Ask the wrong questions and you might look like a bad fit. Ask no questions and you might look indifferent, inexperienced, or uneducated about the position.

Asking the right questions—aside from proving yourself to the hiring manager—is one of your best (and last) chances to determine whether the job and company are a good fit for you. Here are five questions to consider:

Why Is The Position Open?


This is actually an extremely important question that should be asked during every job interview because the answer will provide important insights that, should you get an offer, will play a major role in your decision to take the job.

Jobs open up for a variety of reasons—some positive, some negative. Was the job created because the company is expanding? Was the previous person promoted? Or did they quit or get fired? Are you replacing a high performer, or a poor one?

The employer's answer will help you determine whether the job has room for growth or a high turnover rate, and give you a better idea of how to manage expectations.

What Is A Typical Day Like For This Position?


A job seekers asks the recruiter a question during a video interview

Most job postings list the position's responsibilities without saying how much time is allocated to each responsibility. You want to know this information for two reasons.

First, if your typical workday includes spending hours doing something you dislike, you may want to reconsider whether it's the right job for you. Second, by discovering which job functions are most important to the employer, you can tailor the remainder of your interview to those areas and include them in your interview follow-up email.

How Would You Describe The Company Culture?


Company culture and how well coworkers collaborate with each other are important factors for job seekers

It's always good to get a sense of a company's culture and whether you fit into it. The employer's response to this question will help you understand what it's like working there day-to-day, what the company values are, how colleagues interact with one another, and so on.

Another good way to get a sense of company culture is to ask this question:

Can you tell me about one of your most successful employees and what makes them successful?

If the answer includes an employee who takes on a lot of extra work and works way more than 40 hours a week, this could be a red flag where the company's values are only grounded in work. Ultimately, you want an answer where the response includes a combination of hard work, creativity, and character.

If you're going to spend the majority of your waking hours on the job, you should make sure the company culture is a good fit.

What Are The Company's Goals Over The Next Five Years?


An HR manager listens to a question from a job candidate during an interview

Actually, a more specific question you could ask is:

What are the goals of the company over the next five years? How does this position and this department factor into those goals?

This question demonstrates your goal-oriented nature and suggests that you won't job hop right away. An informed response will give you insight into the organizational structure and how your position fits into it. An uninformed response suggests the hiring manager is out of touch with the organization, the organization does a poor job communicating its goals to employees, or the organization is not thinking long term. None of these are a good sign.

Here's another way to ask this question:

What is the company's biggest challenge in the coming years, and how does this position help you overcome it?

Do You Like Working Here?


Job seeker asks HR manager about her experiences at the company during a job interview

It's unlikely the hiring manager will say "no" but you can still infer a lot from their response. A moment's hesitation followed only by, "Yeah...I do," might be a red flag. A smile and explanation of why they like working there, on the other hand, signifies a more genuine response.

A few other ways to ask this question include:

How did you come to work here?

What do you like most about working here?

If you interview with multiple employees during your job interview, ask them each similar questions. This is particularly helpful when it comes to subjective questions (e.g. "How would you describe the company culture?" and "Do you like working here?"). Doing so will help you paint a more complete picture of the organization, which will help you make the best decision once you're offered the job.

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This article was originally published at an earlier date.

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