Conor McGregor, A Masterclass in Personal Branding
Looking at the definition of an interview, “a formal meeting in which one or more persons question, consult, or evaluate another person”. The main misconception in this interactive process is that the questions are only directed from the person or business offering to the job to the applicant.
Many job seekers focus so hard on answering interview questions well that they forget something very important: You are there to ask questions, too. Asking the right questions at an interview is important for two reasons:
First, when done correctly, the questions you ask confirm your qualifications as a candidate for the position. Second, you are interviewing the employer just as much as the employer is interviewing you. This is your opportunity to find out if this is a company where you want to work.
Here are the top 3 questions that you may like to ask from your interviewer in a job or position interview:
What are my future prospects in the position? There are always positions within a company that are “no progression” and once employed, you would remain in the same position for the rest of your job employment. It is important for any job applicant to understand his or her growth potential in a particular position. A little enquiry into the history of the job, you are applying for would give you a good understanding of the future prospects that you may have in a particular position. Beware of the “no progression positions” and do ask a “future prospect” question from your job interviewer. What successful employees did in the past on the same position to earn their success and what made their job experience pleasurable or otherwise. All these facts would help you in “internal personal assessment” about your suitability of the job.
What is expected from me and what are the position targets for the next 6 months for the job I have applied for? Perhaps the most basic question that you must ask from the interviewer is the expectation of your perspective employers from you in a particular job position. You might already be given a few clues in the form of job description but they may be “too generalised” to conclusively understand the job requirements and the employer expectations. Leaving general understanding of the job requirement and employer expectations apart, there might be time specific position related achievements that need to be satisfied. You may as well like to enquire about any such time specific goals to have a better understanding of your specific “job pressures”. Similarly, you can ask question about any “job specific challenges” or any special demands that the particular position places on you. What makes the business or company loved by its employees? It may be one of the tricky questions to ask from your interviewer or a potential employer but it would give you a clear insight about your chances of a successful career with your interviewer or his company / business. A good and efficient business would give you many reasons for its employees to love working with them. A few affiliated questions may be; why is the position vacant? What was the reason of the last employee resigning etc.
Remember to do your research on the company before the interview – this is very important for you to gain some knowledge of the company background also. You will be able to ask in the interview for further information on anything which you weren’t clear on, showing your perspective employer how interested you are in the company and what they do.
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