Before You Meet: 5 Hiring Manager Interview Tips

Much of a hiring manager’s job takes place before he or she meets any job candidates. There is recruiting, for example, and preparing for interviews. But there is also is social media outreach; in fact, according to Blogging4Jobs, 96 percent of recruiters use social media to source job candidates. Below, you’ll find five tips to help you better prepare for a hiring manager interview.

1. Review a Job Candidate’s Information

Set aside at least five minutes before each interview to go over the next candidate’s resume, cover letter, and other application materials. Try to come up with at least a couple of candidate-specific questions from the material—for example, a question about an exceptional project. You’ll want to be able to identify a candidate’s goals in order to determine whether or not they’ll be a good fit for the position.

2. Develop a List of Standard Questions

A standard list of questions for all candidates ensures you are never caught without anything to ask and allows the hiring team to assess all candidates’ responses and body language to the same questions. Examples of such questions may include, “What has surprised you recently about this company?”

3. Sell Your Company

This is a step that many hiring manager interviews neglect, as some recruiters forget that interviews are a two-way street and they also need to sell their company to job candidates. For example, you could illustrate the workplace culture to ensure compatibility with the candidate. One way to do this would be through a tour of the business. You’ll also want to make sure that the candidate is comfortable, and try not to sound too intimidating.

4. Research the Company and the Position

You must also be able to accurately answer candidates’ questions about the company and the position. This entails conducting research into the position, perhaps by interviewing an employee or even shadowing them for a day or part of a day. Ensuring cultural fit really is important, so both sides need to have an accurate understanding of what the other is like and has to offer.

5. Prioritize

Technical skills may be more important for some jobs than soft skills are. Likewise, a person’s potential could be paramount. Prioritize key skills or attributes, and ensure that they will be adequately covered in a hiring manager interview.