5 Questions Recruiters Should Ask At the Interview

A skilled HR professional knows how to ask the right questions in interviews to pinpoint the most suitable candidates. There is an almost endless list of questions that interviewers can ask, but what are the main ones that they should make sure to include? 

1. What Is Your Best Professional Achievement?

This is a great question to fit into the interview at some point because it allows the candidate to focus on a positive achievement for which they were responsible. This will demonstrate to you how aware they are of their abilities, and it will also provide you with a good idea of whether they can really deliver results for you. If they struggle to think of any professional achievements, this could be a warning sign for you.

2. How Have You Learnt from a Mistake?

As well as focusing on a positive achievement, it is also a good idea to ask candidates about a mistake that they have made. In many cases, this can be more telling than an achievement. It is important that candidates are able to recognise their own mistakes, but also that they are able to overcome and learn from them. No one is perfect, and seeing how candidates react to this question can be very revealing.

3. How Have You Improved the Workplace?

This is a question that allows candidates to demonstrate their initiative and their value to the organisation for which they are working. It gives them an opportunity to display their problem-solving abilities and their skill at forming a solution and improving their surrounding area.

4. What Is An Example of Your Ability to Work in a Team?

Most positions require people to work well in a team, and your organisation is probably no exception. Many candidates will claim to be good team workers, but anyone can say this. Instead, you want them to provide you with an example of how they performed in a team. Look for a real example from their last place of work, such as a situation that they dealt with and added their input in a group setting, and this should demonstrate a lot to you about how well they really work with other people.

5. Why Do You Want This Job?

This is a fairly simple question, but the answer that the candidate provides can be very revealing. Do they provide a basic, prepared answer that doesn’t reveal anything? Or does it seem like they really do want the job? Their answer can help to demonstrate their values, what they expect from the position, their preparation for the role and why they think they are right for the job.

Find the Best Candidates

These five questions are some of the most important that HR professionals should ask when they are interviewing candidates. These five questions alone can help to provide a good insight into the character and abilities of the candidates, so you may want to include them, or variations of them, in your next round of interviews.

This is a guest post from CIPHR, which provides a range of software solutions to help companies better manage their employees. Find out about getting cloud HR from CIPHR by visiting its website at www.ciphr.com.