71 Crafting Effective Interview Questions (6.2.2)
Verna Johnson
The following are some steps to take to craft interview questions that will help you accurately assess a candidate’s fit for your team and the specific position you’re looking to fill.
Consider the Company’s Needs
Consider your company’s culture, the job description for this position, and ways the new hire could benefit the team.
Assess the Job Opening
Assess the details of the position, such as the functions, goals, tasks, and qualifications.
Identify the Ideal Candidate
Consider which qualities the ideal candidate would have. For example, if the job will require the ability to learn new software and duties quickly, you will probably want to select a fast learner.
Use Open-Ended Questions
Use questions which cannot be answered with a simple “yes,” “no,” or another one-word response. Open-ended questions encourage the interviewee to engage with you and provide more insight into who they are and how they think.
Prepare Follow-Up Questions
Engage in productive conversation with the candidate by asking follow-up questions related to their resume, cover letter, or an answer to a question.
Reflect on Your Question
After preparing your questions, analyze them carefully and consider how well they may serve their purpose and how they may be received by candidates. Review the questions to ensure they’re respectful and that you have an appropriate number of questions to collect the information you need.
The reading below provides further details on creating good interview questions and examples of each question type. It also lists 20 example interview questions.
References
References are at the end of this chapter.
