Good Questions To Ask At The End Of The Interview

An interview is an opportunity for the company to understand whether you would perform well in the role, as well as a chance for you to understand whether you are a good fit for the company. It is important for you to ask good questions and figure out whether this business would be one you would enjoy working for.

All interviewers give you an opportunity at the end of your session to ask questions. Remember to have a series of questions prepared that you can ask at the end of your interview. In this article, we talk about some great questions that you can ask, that will give you further insight into the job.

The best kind of questions to ask are ones you are genuinely interested in knowing the answers to. What do you want to know about this position? What would you like to know about the company? Ask questions that you honestly want answers to and would help you figure out if you’d enjoy working for the business. If any of these questions below seems like it is not your style, then do not use it.

1. How long have you worked for this company?

Much of the interview is about building rapport with the other person. The manager has already asked you to tell them about yourself. Now it is your turn to ask them about themselves. This is a good question to start off with, because it keeps the conversation light and casual.

You still need to pay attention to what they say in their answer. In the best case scenario, they will talk about the long industry career they have had, and the gradual progression that lead them to where they are now.

The manager should sound enthusiastic in their answer. Asking how long they have worked for the company can provide important insights. The manager may have worked there for several years. Or you may learn that the person interviewing you has only been there for a handful of months – a red flag.

2. What does a typical day look like?

Sure, you have read through the responsibilities of the job description, but it can be difficult to understand from that what a typical day looks like on the job. Ask the hiring manager to clearly explain what your daily routine would look like. You may discover from this that your idea of the job was a lot different than you pictured it to be. Or you might learn that you really enjoy the sounds of the job, and are eager to start.

3. Is this a new position? If not, what happened to the last person in this position?

There are many reasons why a business will have a job opening. Asking why this job opening is happening will give you better insight into the company. Sometimes it is a completely new position: the business may be growing and have a new department, or they might be restructuring and just opened up a new role.

Other times, an opening is happening because somebody left the position. They may have been terminated from the position. They may have quit the position on their own terms. You may find out through the grapevine that the last 10 people to have this job at the company have quit within six months of hire. Some hiring managers are forthcoming with information, while others are not. You should not press for these kinds of details, but it is important to pay attention, because it provides clues as to the work environment of the company.

4. What opportunities for professional development are there? What opportunities for advancement exist?

It is important for there to be professional development and promotions available within your company. You don’t want to be working in the same job, for the same pay, for the rest of your life. You need to be in a company that is concerned with making sure its employees grow professionally.

How often does the company have trainings and conferences? Do they offer coaching or mentoring? Will the company pay you to get additional certifications or degrees in your field?

Take time to ask about the people at the company. Do they apply to one position and remain there, or is it the type of business where people move up through the ranks?

5. What are the biggest challenges that someone in this position would face?

You need to understand what you will be dealing with on a daily basis. It is important to ask for honest answers from your hiring managers.

• What types of challenges and issues is the company facing?
• What will somebody in your role be expected to deal with?
• What challenges have there been in the past that the company has not been able to solve?

You need to have a clear image of this so you know what is expected of you, and whether you will be able to handle it.

6. Thinking back to employees who have been in this position before, what has differentiated the people who were good from the ones who were really great?

This question shows that you aren’t interested in merely being good – you are interested in being a great employee.

You want to know what it takes to become one. Your hiring manager’s answer will provide insightful clues into what it takes to succeed in this role. Think about the strengths that they list, and how they apply to your own experiences.

7. What is your favorite part about working here?

You are looking for a hiring manager who sounds enthusiastic about their job and loves what they do. When asked this question, they should eagerly point out all of the things they love about the company, its staff, and its culture. A red flag would be a manager who pauses when asked this question, and needs time to think about something they love about working at the company.

8. Tell me more about the work environment.

It is important to learn about the environment you will be working in every day. You might be in a role where you will be mostly by yourself, working in an office. Or you may be a manager, taking many phone calls throughout the day, and having employees come to you with issues that need attending. It is important to understand the general feel of the environment you will be working in.

9. Describe the company culture.

The culture is the personality of the company. It is how the company feels and what it is like to work there. It incorporates the mission and values, the work environment, and the company organization. Businesses have different kinds of cultures. Some coworkers love to go out after work for drinks. Some offices have potlucks and parties every week.

There are businesses that allow you to bring your dog to work. There are companies that do events, such as local marathons or volunteering for a neighborhood charity. Figure out if the company culture is something that coincides with your own personal values.

10. What are the next steps in the hiring process?

If there is one question you should ask on this list, it would be this one. After you get done with the interview, most people go home and become stressed out, anxiously wondering when they are going to hear back. Don’t let that happen to you. Directly ask the hiring manager what the next step in the process is, and when you should expect to hear back from them. That way you will know to keep yourself occupied over the next few weeks.

A few more tips for asking great questions during the interview: Remember to only ask a handful of questions. You can ask perhaps five at maximum. Yes, you may have 20 questions that you truly want to ask, but the interviewer does not have time to sit there and answer all of them.

Ask the questions that are most important. There will be time in later interviews to ask more questions.

Do not ask about salary, vacation, or benefits at the end of an interview.This makes it seem like you are only interested in how much you are getting paid, or you are already planning your time off, before you even have the position. Wait until the hiring manager approaches these subjects.