Your interviews shouldn't be a one-way street with employers asking all the questions and you providing the answers. You must ask questions as well. Below are several reasons why:
- By taking an active role in the interview, you demonstrate the importance you place on your job and career. If you don't ask any questions, an interviewer will feel that you have little interest in your work life and the position.
- Asking questions is another way to convey your capability. The questions you choose indicate your depth of knowledge of your field as well as your general level of intelligence.
- Asking questions will enable you to break down the formal interviewer/job-seeker relationship, establish an easy flow of conversation, and build rapport. The matter of rapport can't be emphasized enough. Often it's as important as having the technical capability to perform the job. Since interviewers like to hire people they enjoy talking to and can relate with, the more rapport you establish, the greater the likelihood of being selected for hire.
- Your questions can serve as tools to exercise control over the conversation. If there's something you want to discuss, ask the interviewer how this matter relates to the position. This automatically steers the conversation in the direction you wish. This is an especially effective technique to inform an interviewer of an important strength or accomplishment. Just ask a question about the area in which you have excelled; after the interviewer gives you his answer, tell him about your related experience and successes.
- You can also use a question to divert an interviewer's line of thought. For example, if you sense he's leading up to a subject that you want to avoid, ask a question about another topic. After a lengthy exchange, the interviewer might not return to his original line of questioning. However, make sure it doesn’t seem like you are purposefully avoiding the subject, as this can irk a potential employer. Last, by asking questions, you'll learn that much more about the position and the company. You'll be able to make an intelligent decision whether or not this is the right job and organization for you.
- If you're seeking a senior-level responsibility, it's especially important to ask questions. An interviewer will judge you as much on the inquiries you make as he will on the responses you provide to his own questions. In addition, if you don't ask questions, you won't demonstrate the initiative and leadership qualities that a senior-level position demands.
Thus, before each meeting with a company, prepare questions to ask the interviewer. These questions, however, must concern the position and the company (or department). Inquiries regarding issues such as salary and benefits should be deferred until after you've been made an offer.
Learn About the Interviewer
Always obtain the name and title of the person who will be interviewing you. Also, try to learn something about this individual before the meeting. There's no telling what the two of you might have in common that will enable you to "break the ice" and build rapport. It could be people you both know, where you grew up, where you currently reside, a school you both attended, a company you've both worked for, or hobbies and interests. In addition, it's helpful to know the type of personality you'll be meeting. Being forewarned that someone can be hard to get along with will prepare you for a possibly difficult session.
If your appointment is with an executive, his background might be described in one of the following publications:
The vast majority of the time, however, interviewers will not have been written up nor will you be able to learn anything about them before the meeting. Therefore, upon entering someone's office, make a point of noticing the pictures on the walls and personal objects on the desk. They might reveal interests you have in common. Throughout the interview, you'll have opportunities to build rapport by initiating discussions along these lines.
Also, many job-seekers have a false impression of their relationship with interviewers. They consider the interviewer to be in the position of strength and see themselves in a subordinate role. This causes feelings of intimidation and apprehension and makes the interview situation a difficult one.
The fact of the matter is that interviewers have qualms about these sessions as well, especially when they're the hiring manager.
First of all, a manager is under greater pressure to hire someone than you're probably aware of. In fact, the only reason he's conducting interviews is because there's something lacking in his department: he has work that must be done and no one with the required experience to do it. Until he hires the right person, his optimum performance is being held back. On top of this, his manager is constantly evaluating how well he's doing his job.
Second, most managers aren't skilled interviewers. They have little training in this area, and their expertise lies in performing their functional specialty, not in interviewing.
Third, most managers don't enjoy interviewing. They regard it as an intrusion on their time that prevents them from attending to their primary responsibilities. They see interviewing as downtime.
As a result, a manager hopes you're the person to hire. If you are, he'll be able to fill his opening and bring this burdensome and unwelcome process to an immediate and successful conclusion.
Instead of being apprehensive about being interviewed, think about all the experience you have, how well-qualified you are for the position, and how vital your background is to an employer. You're on much stronger ground than you imagine.
