interviewing an employer at interview

the_pen_turner

the employer will often ask all kind of personal and wierd question of the potential employee to see if they are suitable for the job

what can or should the employee ask to see if the employer is worth working for.

Gra11

the_pen_turner wrote: »

the employer will often ask all kind of personal and wierd question of the potential employee to see if they are suitable for the job

what can or should the employee ask to see if the employer is worth working for.

You could ask what a typical day looks like?
What challenges you might encounter?

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I asked why I should work for them. I got the job but found out they lied at the interview:)

seannash

Dont just ask questions for the sake of it. Very rarely will something a candidate has asked me in an interview make any difference to their chances. If you have no questions tell them that everything has been explained to you and you feel no questions are necessary at this time.


I think the "Why should I work for you" doesn't have as much impact as people once thought. Years ago it was a ballsy move that made you look like you were super confident in your abilities and the company would be lucky to have you, now its been done so much its not the curve ball it once was perceived as being.

Riva10

seannash wrote: »

Dont just ask questions for the sake of it. Very rarely will something a candidate has asked me in an interview make any difference to their chances. If you have no questions tell them that everything has been explained to you and you feel no questions are necessary at this time.


I think the "Why should I work for you" doesn't have as much impact as people once thought. Years ago it was a ballsy move that made you look like you were super confident in your abilities and the company would be lucky to have you, now its been done so much its not the curve ball it once was perceived as being.

Of course not many employers would feel comfortable telling a prospective employee that he was coming to a sweat shop where he was expected to thank God that he was given this opportunity to serve unquestionably and that the position which he was being offered required him to supply his own K-Jel.

Berserker

OP, I tend to ask them three of the following questions, if I'm interested in proceeding further :

- What do you think are the most important qualities for someone to excel in this role?

- What are your expectations for this role during the first 30 days, 60 days, year?

- Describe the culture of the company?

- What are the biggest opportunities/challenges facing the company/department right now? (*)

- What is the typical career path for someone in this role? (*)

- What are the next steps in the interview process?

The questions marked (*) really throw some interviewers for some reason.

Silas Thousands Taurus wrote: »

I asked why I should work for them. I got the job but found out they lied at the interview:)

Mate of mine, senior developer, asks to see their code base. He's not the type to mess around if the job doesn't meet his requirements. He left one job after two weeks.

seamus

It is pretty standard at this stage for employees to ask questions about what a day looks like, what the "culture" is like, etc etc.

Ask questions that you actually want to hear the answer to as opposed to stuff for the sake of it. e.g. don't ask about what kind of social life exists at the company if you don't go to company functions anyway.

Probing questions are rarely going to trip up an interviewer. "How did this role become vacant?" is never going to be answered with, "The workload here is intolerant so the last guy fell out with management and just walked out".

If it's a small company, it's always worth asking higher-up people (where you get near a final interview) what they see as the future of the company. Bonus points for doing some research and being able to talk about the challenges coming down the line.

If they talk passionately and at length about it, then you've got a company where ideas and energy are more valuable than steady and reliable work. If you get a fairly boilerplate response, marketing speak, then it's a more relaxed company that focuses on its core products and the work is more methodical and steady.

troyzer

People really should be asking their employers more questions in interviews. The amount of people who leave because the job wasn't what they expected hurts both employees and employers.

Jim2007

the_pen_turner wrote: »

what can or should the employee ask to see if the employer is worth working for.

Ask to use the staff bathroom, you can tell a lot about your future colleagues and the company by the way they leave the toilets. Advice I was given by a college professor about 30 years ago and now 30 years later and may employers later, I tend to agree with him

the_pen_turner

its a tricky one.
you need to sus them out but cant ask anything too directly or you wont get the job.

i dont think they would like if you asked them some of the stupid ones they ask us like
if you were a fruit what type would you be.

Emmersonn

the_pen_turner wrote: »

its a tricky one.
you need to sus them out but cant ask anything too directly or you wont get the job.

i dont think they would like if you asked them some of the stupid ones they ask us like
if you were a fruit what type would you be.

Brilliant start in any new position. It's called "Brownnoseing"

Berserker

troyzer wrote: »

The amount of people who leave because the job wasn't what they expected hurts both employees and employers.

Employers need to be more open and honest about the role and the organisation. I've interviewed for roles where the manager has lied through their teeth about the role, the challenges therein and the organisation as a whole. Recall having a conversation with one manager where I asked her if she was going to tell potential employees about certain challenges in the role and her reply was "Oh God no, don't mention that."

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