Ask the Right Questions; Get the Right Job

Navigating the Job Interview to Take Control of Your Career

Edward Barr

• Publisher: Business Expert Press
• Year: 2021
• eBook ISBN:
  9781637421062
• Print ISBN:
  9781637421055
• Subtopic: Careers

Too often people go to interviews prepared only to answer questions. They study the tough questions for days hoping to give the right responses on D-Day. These same people treat the interview as a cross examination; they see themselves on trial, under the spotlight, deer in the headlights. People who are being interviewed need another attitude, an attitude that says, "I'm here to interview you, to see if I want to bring my talents and experiences to your organization." Most people don't know how to do this. However, if armed with a few questions, they can even the playing field and engage in a useful conversation with their hosts.

This book provides a set of questions that are appropriate for any job candidate to ask and allows candidates to participate in a dialogue, a conversation. Experience suggests that only a handful of questions are necessary in most interviews. Review all of the questions. Choose the ones that you believe provide you with the information you need. Learn to interview the interviewer!

PART I

Preparation for the Interview

Do Some Internet Research

Your hard work and patience have paid off! You’re finally scheduled for an interview with WayOut.com. You’ve read 15 books on “How To Prepare For the Interview.” You’ve got the right clothes, conservative but not funereal; you’ve read all the “Questions You May Be Asked” and memorized the right answers, and, you’ve talked to everyone you know about how to survive this right of passage. You might have even been interviewed before or had a mock interview. Now it’s time to think of the questions you’re going to ask at the interview.

You are an ethical, honest human being who wants to work for a company committed to the same virtues. You have studied the right questions and want to know about mission, values, and corporate responsibility.

You can learn the mission, values, and strategic direction of a company simply by visiting their website. Take a look at Dell.com, for instance¹. Click on “About Dell” and you will find “Careers,” “Newsroom,” “Investors,” and “Social Impact.” Scroll down and you’ll also find, “Who we are,” “Our brands,” “Leadership,” and “Sponsorships.” Open “Who we are” and scroll down to “Powering human progress: developing technology to transform lives” and the “Dell Technologies Code of Conduct.” Here you will find some important things to know about the company you may wish to join.

If you Google the founder, you will see that Michael Dell started the company in 1984 with the uncommon idea of selling custom-built computers directly to the customer. Dell Technologies defines itself as having used the power of direct to customers to provide customers with superb value; high-quality, relevant technology; customized systems; superior service and support; and products and services that are easy to buy and use.

When you click on “Commitment,” you’ll find Michael Dell saying: “Integrity matters. It matters to our customers, partners, colleagues and communities. And, it matters greatly to me.” As a result, the company says that it will “…avoid conflicts of interests…engage in charitable contributions and activities…and make values-based decisions,” among other things. It then gives a half dozen or so e-mail addresses where ethics violations can be reported.

When you’re looking for a place to spend at least 40 hours a week of your life, look for this information, among other things:

• Mission

• Values

• Social responsibility

• Diversity

• Community involvement

Questions that you can find answered on the Internet (or in available company publications, such as the annual report)

If you persevere with your search, you can find just about anything on the Internet, but you should be able to find answers to these important questions readily.

1. What is the corporate mission?

2. What are the corporate values?

13. What is the organization’s board makeup and involvement?

15. How is the organization positioned in the market?

16. How do you define the organization’s market and share of market?

17. Who are the company’s main competitors?

Question to Ask for-Profits

Questions to Ask Not-for-Profits (Nonprofits)

Obviously, the motives of for-profits and not-for-profits (nonprofits) differ around the word “profit.” Both are typically responsible to a board, and both must be well managed and maintained financially, but only one is responsible to shareholders to create a financial return for shareholder investment, although the situation is shifting somewhat with for-profits developing community-minded instincts. (Not-for-profits and nonprofits differ slightly but mostly around the bottom line; nonprofits typically show a zero balance at the end of their reporting year.)

What to Ask at a Not-for-Profit (Nonprofit) Interview

Not-for-profit organizations (or nonprofits) usually have a specific mission and target audience. Think of the American Heart Association, the American Cancer Society, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the World Health Organization, Center for Disease Control, and many, many other governmental, healthcare, special interest, and public policy-centered groups.

Mission Versus Margin

Most not-for-profits live by their mission. It’s not that they don’t care about the margin; it’s not their very first priority. A health care organization in my city yearly brags of a bottom line in the billions of dollars; its CEO is paid several million dollars a year in salary. Many say that they act more like a for-profit. They may, indeed, but they return none of their equity to any shareholders. They probably advertise as much as any for-profit organization in this state, but, again, they reinvest most of their money in the organization. They don’t pay dividends and have no shareholders.

If you interview with a company like that, ask them the following questions and remember you are asking them to see if the mission and values are ingrained and alive with the employees, or just hot air spouted on their website and other promotional materials:

1. What is the corporate mission?

2. What are the corporate values?

3. What is the corporate culture?

4. What is the organization’s vision?

5. Does the organization have a strategic plan?

6. What are the organization’s strengths?

7. What are the areas where the organization can improve?

8. What is the organization’s financial projection for the coming year?

Most not-for-profits depend on the donations of contributors to meet their expanses. Some depend on the government or agencies like the United Way. Knowing this, you should ask these kinds of questions: “How dependable is your donor base? Will the government support continue into the next year? If your donations might diminish, do you have plans to make up for the shortfall?”

If you are interviewing at a for-profit, many of the same questions apply, but some are different.

What to Ask at a For-Profit Interview

For-profit companies have been gradually changing, but they still focus on shareholder return to the exclusion of the environment, social issues and governance. In fact, they seem to pay attention to these only in so far as they can make a better profit by doing so. Be that as it may, you should ask the following kinds of questions at an interview with a for-profit company.

3. What is the corporate culture?

4. What is the organization’s vision?

5. Does the organization have a strategic plan?

6. What are the organization’s strengths?

7. What are the areas where the organization can improve?

8. What is the organization’s financial projection for the coming year?

9. What are the company’s core competencies?

Fit the Questions Smoothly Into the Interview

Certainly, any of the questions can be fit in the context of the interview. For example, if someone asks, “What has been your experience managing a budget?” And, I would hope an interviewer would ask a potential manager tha...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half-Title Page
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Description
• Contents
• Foreword
• Acknowledgment
• Introduction
• Getting the Interview
• Employers Want These Kinds of Employees
• Why Should You Ask Questions?
• Stupid Questions
• The Right Questions
• Part I Preparation for the Interview
• Part II The Right Questions
• Part III Exhibit Warmth and Competence
• Part IV How to Answer the Top 10 Hardest Questions You Will Be Asked
• Part V Some Mock Interviews
• Part VI A Case Study
• Part VII Remember These Fundamental Truths About Interviewing
• Part VIII Interviewing By Zoom and Other Virtual Technologies
• Part IX Should I Send a “Thank You Letter” After the Interview?
• Part X Use the Answers You Receive for the Best Results
• Conclusion
• About the Author
• Index
• Backcover