| When people begin to prepare for a job interview, | | | | and then craft your responses to future questions in a |
| they often focus most of their time on preparing | | | | way that address these challenges. |
| responses to the questions they expect. This is | | | | 3. How do you like working here? |
| important, but it's only one part of a solid interview | | | | During your job interview, you want to get a clear |
| preparation strategy. Here are the 5 most important | | | | picture of the culture of the organization and a feel for |
| questions to ask at your next job interview: | | | | the types of personalities you will be working with. |
| 1. What would you need to see in the first 90 days to | | | | Some interviewers will be very candid about their |
| know you had made the right decision in hiring me? | | | | frustrations, and others will be very politically correct. |
| This is a very important (maybe the most important) | | | | Either way, you can get a good feel for the working |
| question you can ask at the job interview. You should | | | | environment when you listen to the response. |
| wait to ask it until you've already covered the basics | | | | 4. What would be a typical career path for someone |
| of the job, the day to day routine, and the major goals | | | | in this role over the next 5 years? |
| and challenges of the position. Asking this question | | | | Another very important question to ask at your job |
| achieves a couple of things. For one, it shows the | | | | interview, this shows the interviewer that you are |
| interviewer that you are deadline and performance | | | | focused on longer term goals, not just the position |
| driven. They want to know you are ready to tackle an | | | | you're interviewing for. Always take the opportunity to |
| early learning curve and focus on adding value to the | | | | show that you are thinking about future achievement |
| company as quickly as possible. Secondly, it | | | | and have considered your long-term career goals. |
| encourages the interviewer to tell you what he | | | | 5. What specific concerns do you have about my skills |
| considers to be the highest priority for this role. Often | | | | and experience? |
| these are his "pain points", which you can use to | | | | This is a great way to feel out the interviewer and see |
| emphasize how your skills and experience will make | | | | how you may compare to your competition. You want |
| his life easier. | | | | to make sure you have at least 10 minutes left to |
| 2. What are the 3 biggest challenges facing the | | | | address any concerns and leave the interviewer |
| organization in the next year? | | | | comfortable that you are a great fit for the position. |
| This is a good question to ask at a job interview | | | | Ask this question towards the end of the interview, but |
| because it will help you to identify ways that your | | | | not so late that you don't have time to address his |
| specific skills will add value to the role. Make sure to | | | | concerns. |
| ask this question pretty early in the interview process, | | | | |