Job Questions for Interview of Candidate Employees

In the marathon that is small business ownership, entrepreneurs don't all start at the same starting point...and they don't always have the same smooth course to run. Many who have decided to start their own businesses lack the skills to hire new staff. In this article, we'll show you how.

Although the business plan may have predicted it, it always seems to be a shock when the successful entrepreneur realizes that they have to hire staff in order to grow their business. Yes, they want to grow it, but for months or years, it’s been “their baby” and now it’s time to help the business grow legs and walk.

Unfortunately, not all of us gained years of human resource (HR) interviewing experience before we struck out on our own. That makes us a lot like a marathon where the runners don’t start in the same spot! When you need to hire extra help, use these skills to help you interview your first candidates.

  1. Know the laws in your area. First and foremost, you need to know what the law says about interviewing in your area. There are standards which include questions you are not allowed to ask. The following questions should be appropriate in all areas, but you’ll want to double-check, first.
  2. How are they on interview day? Everyone is going to be nervous in a job interview, so you’ll have to take that into account. Otherwise, how are they dressed? (I once interviewed someone who wore jeans and sneakers to an interview for a professional position). Were they prompt? Do they seem positive? Do they look you in the eye when they talk? If they had to wait, did they seem put off?
  3. Look beyond the resume. Start with their resume and read through it. Feel free to make notes on it before they come in, but don’t just stick with reviewing their resume when they’re sitting across from you. Look beyond it. If they have work experience in your industry, ask them about it. If they have a history of switching jobs, ask them about it. If they seem to have never worked in your industry before, ask them about it. There may be good reasons for any questions you have about their resume but you need to ask them. Involve them in a conversation about some of their more recent jobs, to tell you more about what they did there. That will help you know the level of their experience and if they were entirely accurate on their resume.
  4. Tell me about a time when… Once you’ve talked about their resume for a while, you’ll get a feel for their level of experience and expertise in the areas you want them to work in at your company. Now it’s time to turn to the softer skills, such as customer service, crisis management, sales, etc. This is where you ask them to tell you about a time when… in order to see how they act in certain situations (such as “tell me about a time when you had a difficult customer. What happened and how did you handle it?”).
  5. Ask them to tell you a story. It’s good to throw them a curveball in the interview. Don’t do anything too outrageous. One good thing is to ask them to tell you a fairy tale or something like that. They may not be good at telling stories, but that’s not what you’re looking for. You are more interesting in seeing how they react to an unexpected situation: does it “faze” them?
  6. Invite them to ask questions. Lastly, invite them to ask questions. Someone once told me that he would never hire anyone if they didn’t ask a question in the interview. And the more questions asked with deeper insight, the better.

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