The questions listed below are some that you might want to consider asking. Many of the questions are job specific (such as those included for someone seeking a human resources position), but others apply to jobs in general.
Questions Related to Performance on the Job
- Would you describe the duties of the job for me, please?
- Where and how does this job fit into the organization?
- What are the most important characteristics you are looking for in the person who holds this job?
- What are the most important skills for success on this job?
- What would be the ideal experience for this job?
- Was the person holding this position promoted? To what?
- Is this a new position? If not, why are you looking for someone? How many people have been in this position in the last three (or more) years? If several, why so many?
- Are you satisfied with the performance of the department staff?
- What is the size of the personnel (engineering, accounting, planning etc.) department?
- Will I have a staff? How large is this staff? Will I be allowed to hire and fire, or otherwise make changes in this staff?
- How much autonomy would I have to make decisions?
- What is your single greatest expectation of me in this job?
- Would you like to see this position expanded? Improved? How?
- What might a typical day be for me in this position?
- How do you think a person in this position should function?
- Where would you like to see the person in this position five or ten years from now?
- What is the company's philosophy about how a human resources (engineering, accounting, planning, purchasing, etc.) department should function?
- What is the biggest problem facing the department staff now?
- What unusual demands does the job have that I should know about?
- Have there been outstanding results produced by people in this position? This department? This staff?
- What are my opportunities for growth from this position?
- May I have a copy of the company's annual report? May I see a copy of the company's policy manual?
- Are the company's personnel records on computer?
- What is the company's philosophy on training? Do you encourage and pay for learning within the company and within the personnel (engineering, accounting, etc.) department?
- What in-house training programs do you have?
- What is your policy on funding outside training and learning programs?
- Do you find membership in local or national organizations pertinent to this position?
- Does the company have written guidelines for expense reimbursement?
- Because this is a private company, I was unable to find any published financial information. Is the company profitable? Are the sales and earnings trends upward, level or down? What is your relationship with your suppliers and vendors? Are you paying your sales commissions on time?
- What are your stated long-term and short-term goals? Do you have a written mission statement?
- Do you have a written business plan? Do you operate from a budget? Do your managers have an opportunity to contribute to the development of the budget, and do they know what budgetary amounts they control?
- Who will I report to?
- What kind of manager is the person I would report to?
- Would I be expected to consult with my manager every step of the way?
- Would my manager prefer to be kept informed as I go along?
- Would my manager expect me to make decisions and act upon them independently of him (or her)?
- Would my manager prefer to make the decisions himself (herself)?
- To whom in the company does the job relate most importantly? Any unusual problems in these relationships?
- May I talk with the person who held this job? Other members of the staff?
- What is your concept of teamwork? Do you practice participatory management? If yes, discuss how you practice it.
- What salary range are you considering for this position?? Would I have a secretary or administrative assistant?
- What financial assistance do you provide for relocation?
- What productivity aids will I have available to me? Does that include a personal computer? Where is it located?
- What type of financial incentives would I have in this position for top performance?
- (You are not in agreement with the dollar amount of the salary offered, but you like the position, and are definitely interested.) Could you provide a company car? A performance bonus? Membership in a local club? Extra life insurance? Stock options? Profit participation? Extra vacation time?
- (You would have to relocate.) Would the company provide assistance in selling my current home and buying a new one? Would you provide (or make arrangements for) a low-interest-rate loan to purchase this new home?
- Are you facing challenges in the area of waste/quality/scheduling/market share/motivation/public relations/customer service/maintenance, etc.?
- Have you thought about...? (Some strategy to solve the problem)? Are there substantial factors preventing this course of action?
- Are you considering the new...(Machine/process/system/approach)?
- How is the current program going?
- Would this approach produce good results?
