Questions to Ask Yourself After Each Interview
You need to ask yourself questions about how each interview went right after each interview. Take notes every time. You will need to refer to these notes before each follow-up interview with the company. Please don't try to rely on your memory. Hopefully, you will have so many opportunities you are pursuing that you will get confused about which one is which if you don't take good notes.
So, right when you get to your car, after the interview, jot down your immediate impressions of the interview and how you did. When you get to your desk, ask yourself these questions:
Who did I interview with? Is she a real decision maker or an intermediary?
What was her position?
Did I make a "connection" with her?
What are the most important things the interviewer was interested in finding out?
Did I communicate those well enough?
Who is the real decision maker?
What are the names and titles of all of the people I talked to today?
How much input does each person I talked to have in the decision?
What was the job I was interviewing for?
What seemed to be the two or three most important requirements of the job?
Can I do the job?
In light of the job requirements, what are my most unique attributes?
Was I clear about my unique features, advantages, and benefits?
Was my presentation clear, concise, and smooth?
What questions could I have answered better?
Could I have asked better questions?
Do I have a clear understanding of the job?
Did I ask for the job like I should have?
Did the interviewer(s) like me personally?
If I am in the shoes of the interviewing authority(ies), how did I do?
From their point of view, what are my greatest strengths?
If I interviewed with more than one person, with whom did I "connect" the best and who is most likely to support me beyond this interview?
From this person's point of view, what are my most prominent weaknesses (objections to hiring me)?
How would I overcome them in subsequent interviews?
Who else did I meet, office administrators, potential peers, etc?
Based on this interview, what are the risks in hiring me?
Am I clear about the next steps in the process?
What can I do now to further my candidacy?
What aspects of my experience or background should I emphasize in a follow-up email to the interviewing authority?
Based on what I know and feel, will I be invited back for subsequent interviews?
Do I know the interviewing and hiring process?
What are the next steps and what can I do to move them along sooner rather than later?
Do I know who else I will interview with next, if I am called back?
The grade I would give myself on the interview based on a scale of 100%_.
If put in percentages, my odds of moving to the next step in the interviewing process are_%.
Put in percentages, my odds of getting this job offer is_%.
Summary:_
Answering all of these questions at the time right after the interview will give you a great idea of exactly how you stand and what you need to do next to get the job.
Questions to Ask in Interviews Beyond the Initial Interview
I have often referred to these interviews as the "second season." They are like the playoffs in sports. It is really time to bring your A+ game. Win or go home! It's that simple.
These kinds of interviews can be anywhere from a short, casual interview with the hiring authority's boss, to an elaborate, all-day meeting with "corporate" people (my candidates have experienced as many as nine individual interviews in one day). If you asked the right questions of the hiring authority, you will know what to expect. But never take for granted any information you may get.
I have seen many hiring authorities totally underestimate the process beyond them. Keep in mind you are dealing with people and things change. When you are ready for one thing, you will get something else. Just be prepared.
Normally, interviews beyond the initial interview with the hiring authority at the most will be two. Most of the time it will be with the hiring authority's superior. Sometimes, you may go beyond that to the superior's boss.
The kind of questions you will ask each of these people will be similar. Just remember that the further removed the person is from the day-to-day function of the job, the less he or she may know about it. This is especially true if the superior or his or her superior is in a distant office or new to the company, etc.
Again, if you asked the right questions, you will have an idea of the situation. Keep in mind that you are still selling yourself up the interviewing ladder.
We will cover one-on-one interviews first, because they are the most predominant in the interviewing process. I will address peer and group interviews at the end of this chapter. They can be very treacherous if you aren't ready for them. Fortunately, they don't happen as much.
Once you have completed most of the interview with the superior, you will want to ask many of the same questions you asked the hiring authority.
