Interview Questions to Ask Before Hiring

You need to hire smart. Bringing on the right people will set up your business for success. Bringing on the wrong people will drag you down. But how do you know whether you’re hiring the best people for your business?

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Well, the first step is to make sure you give the hiring process the time and attention it deserves. This is especially true in the interview process. Unfortunately, there’s a tendency to just walk into interviews with candidates blind (we get it, you have a business to run). But you have to prepare—which means coming ready with a list of questions you want to ask.

But what are the best questions to ask in an interview? It all depends on the nature of the role—so you should think hard about the qualities the person will need to succeed. If you need someone to be self-motivated, then ask for examples of times they have shown initiative. If you need a problem solver, you’ll want to find out how they’ve dealt with tough situations in previous jobs.

Having trouble coming up with a list of questions to bring into interviews? Here are a few to get you started.

  1. Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
  2. Why do you want to work for us?
  3. In what types of work environments do you thrive the most?
  4. What types of work environments hamper you down?
  5. Who was the best manager you ever had? Why?
  6. If I were to contact your references, what do you think they’d say about you?
  7. If you could start from scratch, what would you have done differently in your career?
  8. What’s the toughest work situation you’ve ever been in? How did you resolve it?
  9. What’s your work style? How do you collaborate with others?
  10. Why did you leave your last job?
  11. What are the three most important skills or traits you’d bring to this job?
  12. How would your past coworkers describe you and their interactions with you?
  13. Where do you see yourself a year from now? Three? Five?

Good luck! With a bit of interview prep and a list of questions ready to go, your search for a star employee should be a success. What interview questions do you like to ask prospective employees? Let us know on Twitter @SquareCanada.

Once you hire the perfect candidate, learn how Square Employee Management can help managing employees easier.