Top 10 Tips for Interviewing Your Interviewer
Are you ready to interview your interviewer? Candidates usually arrive at an interview ready to articulate their strengths and discuss their resume. However, it’s equally important to prepare for the interview by gathering information and perspective in order to thoroughly evaluate the job.
The questions you ask will provide you with the chance to showcase your knowledge of the company, your thoroughness, and your motivation to secure the position. Add to that the opportunity to establish a positive connection with the interviewer, and it is easy to see why you should spend some time preparing to interview the interviewer.
Here are tips for asking questions that will cement your interest in the job, build a rapport with the interviewer, help you decide if this is the right job for you, and ace the interview.
10 Tips for Interviewing Your Interviewer
1. Do your homework.
Read everything you can that sheds light on opportunities, challenges, and developments at the company. Review the content on the organization’s website and in press releases. Go beyond that to seek out information and perspective online and on social media.
2. Ask questions related to your research
Pose questions that build upon information that you have gathered through your research. For example, if you have noticed a recent commercial that seems to reframe their brand.
Example Question: You might say, “I have noticed your current ad featuring a woman with a young child. Does that represent an expansion of your consumer targeting?”
3. Ask questions that probe for information not readily available.
Asking more than the standard questions will show that you have done your homework and are genuinely interested in the organization.
Questions you can ask include the interviewer’s perceptions of the strengths of the corporate culture, mechanisms for training, their take on specific developments in the organization, opportunities for professional development, challenges of the job, priorities for the position, and what they are looking for in the ideal candidate.
4. Focus your questions on areas that are of genuine interest to you.
Take the time to show the interviewer that you’re seriously interested in the job and the question. Your interviewer will notice if you don’t really seem interested in the topic.
5. Don’t mention money (yet)
Don’t ask questions about salary, benefits, vacation, flex time or anything related to what you will derive materially from the job. There will be plenty of time to iron out these details once you are offered the job.
6. Be careful when you discuss the future
Exploring career pathways that flow from the job for which you are interviewing can be a legitimate area of questioning. However, make sure you have established your interest in the position for which you are interviewing. Don’t imply that you are looking beyond that job now.
Example Question: You might say. “I am very excited about the possibility of applying my writing, event planning, and presentation skills to your public relations representative position. If I were to excel in that role for an extended period, what might my next position entail?”
7. Listen and follow up
Listen carefully to any answers given; show that you have understood by nodding and paraphrasing. Ask follow-up questions about the information you gather, and try to keep the conversation flowing.
8. Show some personal interest in your interviewer to establish a positive rapport.
Be prepared to make small talk to make a strong connection before and after the substantive segment of the interview. Ask about their commute, the area where they live, how long they have been with the organization.
Steer clear of any questions that might be too personal—marriage, religion, and politics are all potentially controversial topics. Make sure your nonverbal behaviors indicate that you are interested in what the interviewer is sharing. Conclude your interview with a warm and genuine expression of your gratitude.
9. Be ready for follow-up questions.
Be prepared for the interviewer to ask you questions that flow from the questions you have posed. Anticipate topics which might be triggered by your line of questioning. For example, you might ask about the priorities for the job at hand. The interviewer might mention the ability to bounce back quickly from setbacks, and then ask you about situations where you had setbacks and how you handled them.
10. Try to keep the discussion conversational and engaging.
The more rapport you can establish with the interviewer, the better your chances of moving ahead in the interview process. Be careful though, about what you discuss.