Curated Questions

GETTING STARTED

1. What can I do in the first 60 days for the boss to sleep better at night?

2. How will you measure the person’s success in this position?

3. What metrics or goals will my performance be evaluated against?

4. What challenges do you anticipate your candidate to encounter?

5. What are the most essential qualities for someone to excel in this role?

6. What has differentiated the good from great in this job?

7. Why did the last person leave this position?

8. What do you want to accomplish with this hire that is different from the incumbent?

9. What departmental goal will be the most challenging in the next six months?

10. What are the critical elements of a typical workweek?

11. What is the quality of stakeholder relationships, and what changes are you desiring?

12. What are the strengths of my direct reports and the team's most significant challenges?

13. What would a perfect day look like for the candidate?

14. What on my resume prompted you to want to talk with me?

15. Is there anything about my background that makes you hesitant to move me forward in the interview process? (Liza Kirkpatrick)

16. How do you give feedback? What are some examples of when people have disappointed you, and how did you handle it? (Tim Ferriss)

COMPANY

1. What are the most significant opportunities facing the company/department today and in one year? (Should have an idea from research)

2. What do you like best about working for this department/company?

3. What is the department/company attrition rate in the last six months?

4. What sets this company apart from anywhere else you've worked?

5. What was the department’s most significant achievement in the last year?

6. What does diversity look like across the organization (age, race, gender, etc.), and what changes have been recently implemented?

GROWTH

1. How does the company use mentoring, and how are leaders grown from within?

2. How often will I have access to leadership?

3. How do you define loyalty in this position?

4. What are the most important values of this department?

5. What is an example of how departmental values were challenged in the last six months?

6. What is the career progression from this position?

7. How does the review/promotion process work? What is one enhancement you would like to see?

8. How much freedom do I have to make this position my own? What is a recent example of how this freedom has been demonstrated in this department?

9. What is your favorite part of working in this department and for the company?

WRAPPING UP

1. What question would you ask if you were interviewing for this position?

2. What do you anticipate will be my most significant challenge upon starting?

3. Do you have any reservations about my qualifications?

4. Is there anything I have said that causes you to pause in extending me an offer?

5. What is the timeline and next steps to fill this position?