The best questions to ask of the interviewer / hiring manager and the most effective way of closing out an interview
Usually by the end of the interview, the interviewer should leave about 5 / 10 mins to allow you to ask any questions and perhaps also discuss the next steps in the process. Even if they don’t remember to give you the option to / forget to give you the time to ask questions, it is imperative that you come prepared with good, thoughtful questions to ask at this stage.
Remember, a job interview is a two-way street; its as much about you figuring out whether the organisation is fit for you, as it is about them looking to see if you are a good fit for them.
In preparation for the interview, its important that you research the company, the role and if possible see if you can research the likely interviewers (via LinkedIn as an example - remember they wouldn’t be on LinkedIn if they didn’t want their profiles to be found).
Your questions should really be tailored to areas where you want to find out more about, where perhaps sufficient information isn’t available or you might want the interviewer to paint more of a colour for you. This can range from finding out more about the team split by grades and where you might fit in, to perhaps probing more to see what the organisation and the team do for Corporate and Social Responsibility (CSR) days - and a whole host of other topics in between.
Put yourself in the interviewer’s shoes - they want to see how interested you really are in the job; and your choice of questions will tell a thousand stories. A well thought out question, that would be relevant to your future role / helping you to make your decision on whether to accept the role or not (assuming you feel that the interview has gone well and you feel confident of an offer) will be well received.
I would also advocate active listening during the interview and be able to recall some of those details within you question - it will demonstrate that you have truly been listening to the interviewer and again goes a long way to showing that you care about the job and the people within the organisation.
Top Tip: Almost everyone loves been given some airtime to talk about themselves. With that in mind, there is no harm in asking a few questions which might be aimed at the interviewer, such as “what attracted you to the organisation”, “as I had mentioned earlier that I think x or y will be my biggest challenge in the new role, but from your perspective is there something else I should be considering?”
Your last question should almost always be a prompt to give the interviewer the chance to explain the next steps. Whether you think you aced the interview or not, finding out the process is always helpful in easing your own worries. And if you don’t think it went so well, don’t be afraid to ask for feedback - every interview is a learning process in preparation for the role that’s just right for you.
Good luck in your interview and if you have found this useful or if you have any further questions, please don't forget to leave suggestions on the website.
