Imagine that you are sitting in a job interview, you have answered all the questions and the hiring manager asks you do you have any questions. The worst thing you can do is to respond with "I don’t have any questions, you have covered everything". This type of response gives the interview panel the impression you are not very enthusiastic about the role.

The purpose of your questions is to find out if this job is a right fit for you. You want to dig deeper to establish if the is the type of organisation that you would like to work in. The interview process is a two-way exchange: it is a selling and buying opportunity.

By asking questions you will gain key information about the company, that is not available on the company's website. Have at least 3-4 questions prepared. The downside of only preparing one question is that the hiring manager might answer your only question at the beginning of the interview and you have no questions to ask. I am going to walk you through seven great questions to ask at a job interview.

Role Related

• How has the vacancy come about? Is this a new role or has the post holder retired?

• Could you tell me about the typical day to day duties for this role?

• Tell me about the priorities for the first six months for this role? What training will I receive during the induction period?

• Team: how long has team worked together? This would give you an idea of staff turnover.

Strategy & Culture of the Organisation

• What challenges will the organisation face for the next 6-12 months?

• Ask about culture at organisation. To get a general feel about the company , ask the interviewer "what is it like working working here?"

Interview Outcome

Many candidates skip this question. There is nothing worse than attending an interview and not having any idea of how they will contact you: this creates additional stress for you every time your phone rings. In my experience, panels tend to contact the successful candidate at the end of the interview day and then contact the unsuccessful candidates in 1-3 days after the interview. Ask the interviewer when they will contact you with the interview outcome and confirm if this will be via email or telephone.

I had a couple of job interview experiences where the hiring manager did not contact me for several weeks. I remember a colleague and I had applied for the same internal role and we both had the same frustrating experience. Although I had asked the the interviewer for an idea of when I would be contacted, I did not receive a call. After one week of waiting I contacted the human resources department who informed me that hiring manager had gone on two weeks annual leave after the interview. Some hiring manager are not very efficient at contacting unsuccessful candidates. You will spend a great deal of time and effort preparing for interviews and it extremely important that you ask this important question.

End your Interview on a Positive Note

Thank the panel for inviting you to interview and let them know if you are really interested in the role.

You can use my examples to begin drafting the questions you plan to ask at your next job interview. If you have been searching for a job for a while and have have not had any success or you are not get getting interview call backs, book a free consultation: email sandra@purpletransitionspersonalgrowth.co.uk

I have also created a Free Interview Checklist and Templates to help you prepare for your job interview.