When you hire business professionals, you may only have 30-60 minutes to learn as much as you can about them. Are you getting the most out of these interviews? Crafting well-targeted interview questions will maximize your ability to make the right hiring choice.
Finding the best talent represents a crucial task for the long-term health of your company. But, despite the importance of the goal, you often have to make decisions with limited information. You have a resume, a few brief interviews, and some supplemental details. With that, you need to select the ideal candidate for your organization.
To accomplish this, you need to get the most out of every step in the process. Identifying high-value interview questions plays into this strategy — getting as much actionable data you can out of your meager time with an applicant.
With that in mind, here are the top interview questions to ask business professionals:
What appeals to you about the industry?
This question provides a helicopter view of the candidate’s personality. They could have chosen any number of career paths. What made them land on this one?
The information will give you a glimpse into their values and preferences. At the same time, it opens up a conversation about their deeper background. You’ll get to know your potential employee in a more complete way.
What process do you use to stay up to date on legal and regulatory changes?
You can assume that your candidate has a good grasp of the current state of play in their respective industry. They likely wouldn’t have made the interview stage if that fact wasn’t obvious. However, you want a team member who can contribute over the long haul.
That longer-term status will involve staying current with any changes that take place over the coming years. Here, you can gauge how dedicated they are to that goal and judge the strength of their process.
What additional skills do you think would be key for this position?
For the most part, your candidates will have a similar mastery of certain abilities needed to perform the job. Sure, you might find a standout genius. But, generally speaking, you’re likely going to weigh other traits to choose the ideal addition to your team.
For that, look beyond the skills that tie directly to their sector of interest. Find out what else the candidate brings to the table. Meanwhile, the framing of the question lets you determine what kinds of softer skills your potential hire values. At the same time, you can see how well they have grasped the needs of the position at hand.
What professional software do you prefer?
In the modern economy, any professional will need a close working relationship with technology. Most positions require a cyborg approach — humans plus machines to get the job done.
You’ll want to interrogate how well your candidate performs in this aspect. By asking for specific software they have used, you can gather information about their tech background. Meanwhile, their answer will show their level of knowledge and judgement in this important part of their profession.
Need Help Finding The Right Talent?
Finding the professional talent helps build the right foundation for your organization. A top recruiter, like Elby Professional Services, will bring you the candidates you need to take your team to the next level.
Contact Elby today to learn more.
