Do You Have Any Questions for Me?

“Do you have any questions for me?”  Don’t get stumped by this common interview question! Answer “no”, and you might as well start looking for another job. So why do interviewers ask if you have any questions? They want to find out three important things:

1. Did you do your homework about the position and the company?
2. Are you really interested in the job?
3. How are your conversational skills and thought processes?

And, since you could possibly be working at this company, it’s in your best interest to ask as many questions as possible so that you know exactly what to expect. Here are some examples of what you might want to ask…

To find out more about the company:

• Where do you see the company headed?
• What will the company be like five years from now?
• Can you describe the company culture?
• How do you stay ahead of the competition?
• Where do you see this industry headed?
• What is turnover like?

Interviewer questions:

• What do you like about working here?
• How long have you been working here?
• If you could change or improve anything, what would it be?

To find out more about your position:

• Is this a new position? If so, why was this position created?
• Describe a typical work week/day in this position.
• How many people work in this department?
• Can you show me an organizational structure chart or give me an idea about the chain of command?
• How will my performance be measured? By whom?
• Will I be given periodic reviews?
• How would you describe the responsibilities of this position?
• What is the management style like?
• What are the opportunities for advancement?
• What is the company’s policy on providing seminars, workshops, and training so employees can keep up their skills or acquire new ones?

Work-life balance and other expectations:

• How much travel is expected?
• What are the typical hours like?
• Is overtime expected?
• Is relocation a possibility?

Follow-up questions:

• If I am offered a position, when would I be expected to start?
• What are the next steps in the hiring process?
• When should I expect that you’d be making your decision?
• Is there anything else that you’d like to know?

And NEVER ask these questions:

• Questions that can easily be answered by checking the employer’s website or any other literature that has been provided to you before the interview.
• Salary and benefit information, unless the employer brings up the topic.

Your job candidate sits down, takes a family photo off your desk and deposits it into her purse. Another one slips off her shoe, pulls out some Johnson’s baby lotion and proceeds to slather it on her foot.

Seriously?

Yes, seriously. Those are real stories from HR and hiring managers who replied to a CareerBuilder survey on the worst interview flubs they’ve ever witnessed.

The nationwide survey, the results of which were released Jan. 14, was conducted online by Harris Poll from Nov. 4 to Dec. 1, 2015, and canvassed more than 2,500 hiring and HR managers. CareerBuilder specializes in HR software.

In addition to sharing stories about strange job interviews, the respondents answered questions about interview behaviors that annoyed or angered them. Lying, answering a cellphone during the interview, appearing arrogant, dressing inappropriately and swearing were among hiring managers’ top 5 deal breakers. Half of respondents said they knew within the first five minutes of an interview if a candidate was a good fit for the position. The survey results have a sampling error of +/- 1.92 percentage points.

“Preparing for an interview takes a lot more than Googling answers to common interview questions,” said Rosemary Haefner, chief HR officer for CareerBuilder. “Candidates have to make a great first impression appearance-wise, have a solid understanding of the target company, know exactly how to convey that they’re the perfect fit for the job and control their body language.”

Strange Interview Behavior

The survey asked HR and hiring managers to share the biggest mistakes job candidates have made or the most unusual things candidates have done during an interview. According to the interviewers, candidates have:

•    Taken a family photo off the interviewer’s desk and put it into her purse.
•    Started screaming that the interview was taking too long.
•    Said her main job was being a psychic/medium and tried to read the interviewer’s palm, despite the   interviewer’s attempts to decline the offer.
•    Said “painter of birdhouses” when asked what his/her ideal job was. (The company was hiring for a data entry clerk.)
•    Sung her responses to questions.
•    Put lotion on her feet during the interview.
•    Replied “My wife wants me to get a job” when asked why he was applying for the position.
•    Started feeling the interviewer’s chest to find a heartbeat so the two of them could “connect heart to heart.”
•    Had a pet bird in his/her shirt.
•    Conducted a phone interview in the bathroom—and flushed.
•    Spread confetti around during the interview.
•    Said she didn’t want to leave her old job, but her boyfriend wanted her to work for the company so she could get discounts on products.
•    Shared a story about finding a dead body.
•    Said he wouldn’t be willing to wear slacks because they didn’t feel good.

Body Language Mistakes

When asked to share interview behaviors that they disliked, hiring managers named the following:

•    Failing to make eye contact (cited by 67 percent of respondents).
•    Failing to smile (39 percent).
•    Playing with something on the table (33 percent).
•    Having bad posture (30 percent).
•    Fidgeting too much in their seats (30 percent).
•    Crossing their arms over their chests (29 percent).
•    Playing with their hair or touching their faces (27 percent).
•    Having a weak handshake (21 percent).
•    Using too many hand gestures (11 percent).
•    Having a handshake that was too strong (7 percent).

Dana Wilkie is an online editor/manager for SHRM. – See more at: http://www.shrm.org/hrdisciplines/employeerelations/articles/pages/interview-mistakes.aspx#sthash.OLPmqPHz.dpuf