What questions should hiring managers ask during an interview?

Q: As a manager I'm always trying to find better ways to evaluate job candidates. What type of questions should an interviewer ask the potential employee in the job interview? Any recommendations?

NICK'S REPLY: First, let me compliment you for asking this question. More employers are reconsidering the traditional interview, and that's changing the nature of hiring. It's a good thing because bad hires are problematic in two ways. Obviously, someone who isn't doing a good job costs a company money. And worse, when a company misses a truly great hire because of a faulty interview process, the company falls even farther behind on the profit curve.

I believe the basic rule should be to give the candidate an opportunity to demonstrate how he is going to do the work you want done. Showing is better than talking. Candidates relax and perform better when the focus is on the work itself. Why ask those "top 10 interview questions" when you can request a demonstration of how the person would do the work? Savvy candidates will relax and reveal their true abilities when you free them from having to explain "what animal they'd be if they could be any animal."

Focusing on the work also helps you see a person's personality and ethics in a more realistic context. Such an interview really opens the door to a useful discussion, and it avoids the gamesmanship inherent in traditional interviews.

Remember that your goal is to hire someone who can do the job, not someone who can answer canned questions cleverly.

Try this question to start: "Please show me -- or outline -- how you would go about doing this job on day one, week one and month one."

Then take the candidate around your facility to meet other employees and to see how your team actually operates. Provide opportunities for the person to share her thoughts, to make suggestions and perhaps to show how she would do the job. (Caution: Don't ask anyone to work for free!)

It's amazing how this approach brings a sharp focus to an interview.

THE HEADHUNTER TIP:

Don't suck canal water.

I use a distasteful image to help people avoid a wrong job. This is one where (a) there's a job description, but it's not clear exactly what work needs to be done, (b) there's no objective measure of performance, or (c) the manager wants a short-term task done but can't say what the job will be later.

It's impossible to succeed because management cannot assess your performance. Your morale suffers, and your career is put at risk. In other words, you're sucking canal water.

To avoid this, ask the interviewer to explain the work in detail. What are the objective measures of success? What's the future of the position? How will the job contribute to the company's profits? If you're left wondering why the job even exists, toss the boss a quarter and suggest he call you when he's got a real job for you to do.

Copyright 2009. Distributed by Universal Press Syndicate

Nick Corcodilos is author of "Ask The Headhunter: Reinventing the Interview to Win the Job" and the host of www.asktheheadhunter.com. He can be reached by e-mail at seattle@asktheheadhunter.com or at North Bridge Group, P.O. Box 600, Lebanon, NJ 08833. Sorry, no personal replies.