[I Are Baboon]

Just wondering if any 's are in a position where you interview and hire people. Do you mind doing interviews? Do you totally hate it? What have your experiences been like?

I've got two positions to fill, and four people to interview this week (all for the same position). I've gotten maybe a dozen resumes in the past week. I am actually looking forward to the interviews because the end result will be that our department is stronger and the workload easier on the rest of the staff. It's been maybe five years since I've had to interview anyone (two jobs ago I was a supervisor, my last job I was an analyst, and I have just been put in charge of this department).

If I am not mistaken, there are a couple of recruiters on RM. They must have lots of good info to share...

 

[Snacks]

I do, and I hate it I dislike interviewing people, if feel it's a total waste of time. Or maybe it's the canidates the HR dept. finds for me to interveiw.

 

[beestiboy]

I never really liked doing interviews. My solution was to ask them questions that kept them talking. I found that is the only way to seperate the BS from the real deal. So often people give this canned answer that could be completely legit but it gives you no clue as to how and who they really are.

Have fun dude. Not for me any more

 

[binary visions]

I am actually looking forward to the interviews because...

...you have a "casting room couch"?

 

[MTB_Rob_NC]

Think of a good standard set of ?'s to ask ALL your candidates. This is actually a very good HR practice. If you come up with 5-10, that should net you a very good interview once you get done with all of the tangent conversations.

 

[Velocity Girl]

My past 3 out of 4 jobs I've been involved in the interviewing process, and it still sucks! The only benefit it being able to have somewhat of a say in who gets hired (I have never been the hiring manager). I find it's easier if you try and ask the same set of questions to each candiate so you can compare easier.

Here are a few questions I like that should be applicable to any job:

-Give me an example of a project you worked on that was a sucess and why?
-Give me an example of a project you worked on that was a failure and why? What did you learn from it?

-What is your biggest strength?
-What is your biggest weakness?

If people have never had a failure or have a weakness I am very very suspect. We all have 'em, you just gotta own up to 'em.


And along the same lines :
-How would your friends would describe you?
-How would your enemies describe you?

Now this one is a beat off the beat and path, but it's intended to see how they handle different situations, how they think on their feet, and if they have a sense of humor (important part for the cultural fit of places I've worked)

-Tell me a joke. (Any joke no matter how funny, silly, or lame)

You'd be suprised how many people can't come up with a simple knock-knock joke or how did the chicken cross the road.

 

[kizzi77]

I never had to interview but my boss and I had a deal worked out where she would interview and then send potential hires to work with me for a while. They would get paid the whole time and think they had the job. Of course there is a 3 month probation period so nothing was for sure. I had to decide whether or not they had what it took to work for us. I guess they just saw me as another employee. It really sucked because the company has high standards. I didn't want to be responsible for hiring someone who can't work up to par. But I always hated having to be the one who decided that the person had to go. And I had to do that a bunch.

 

[johnbryanpeters]

Yes, I interview people. I don't mind it. It helps a little in the crapshoot of employee selection.

J

 

[Shyrmp]

I do interviewing every day and I actually enjoy it quite a bit. If you need any help feel free to ask me any questions. Here are some standard questions that might help get you started....

-Describe yourself.

-What are your long-range goals and objectives?

-What are your short-range goals and objectives?

-How do you plan to achieve your career goals?

-What are the most important rewards you expect in your career?

-Why did you choose the career for which you are applying?

-What are your strengths, weaknesses, and interests?

-How do you think a friend who knows you well would describe you?

-Describe a situation in which you had to work with a difficult person (another co-worker, customer, supervisor, etc.). How did you handle the situation? Is there anything you would have done differently in hindsight?

-What motivates you to put forth your greatest effort? Describe a situation in which you did so.

-How do you determine or evaluate success?

-In what ways do you think you can make a contribution to our organization?

-Describe a contribution you have made to a project on which you worked.

-What qualities should a successful employee possess?

-Was there an occasion when you disagreed with a supervisor's decision or company policy? Describe how you handled the situation.

-What two or three accomplishments have given you the most satisfaction? Why?

-What have you learned from participation in extracurricular activities?

-In what kind of work environment are you most comfortable?

-How do you work under pressure?

-Describe a situation in which you worked as part of a team. What role did you take on? What went well and what didn't?

-Why did you decide to seek a position with this organization?

-What two or three things would be most important to you in your job?

-What criteria are you using to evaluate the organization for which you hope to work?

Hope that helped.

 

[Westy]

I have interviewed about 5 people in the last year. Some of them were horribly painful, one interviewee couldn't even tell me what company he was trying to work for despite it even being written on my business card I had just given him. My boss does the initial screening and I do the first face to face, my boss does a horribly job at the first screens.

 

[douglas]

I do on occasion... I dont like interviews regardless of which side of the table I sit on.

 

[I Are Baboon]

I am the hiring manager, therefore I skip all of the standard "what are your strength/weaknesses....what are your five year goals...what are your biggest challenges"...etc kind of questions. I am more interested in their practical knowledge of what the job functions will be. I'll let Recruitment ask all the standard interview questions. While their personality is important, I care more about what knowledge they'll bring to the job. I always hated answering those general questions when I was being interviewed, so I won't subject a candidate to that torture.

 

[Shyrmp]

I don't typically ask the standard questions either, but I don't think you want to ask your applicants the questions I have to ask mine (i.e. laundry list of criminal convictions, etc.)

Good luck with your interviews.

 

[I Are Baboon]

I don't typically ask the standard questions either, but I don't think you want to ask your applicants the questions I have to ask mine (i.e. laundry list of criminal convictions, etc.)

Good luck with your interviews.

LOL!

Hmmm...hearing about their criminal convictions could be fun!

 

[narlus]

just remember that a bad hire can be a tough decision to live with.

consider strengths which pertain to technical features of the position, and personality traits which can impact the existing team structure.

 

[MTB_Rob_NC]

I don't typically ask the standard questions either,

If you can skip the standard ?'s thats great, but just be sure to ask all the applicants the same ?s so you have a good basis for comparison.

 

[Westy]

What is the average speed of an unladen swallow?

 

[sanjuro]

I am the hiring manager, therefore I skip all of the standard "what are your strength/weaknesses....what are your five year goals...what are your biggest challenges"...etc kind of questions. I am more interested in their practical knowledge of what the job functions will be. I'll let Recruitment ask all the standard interview questions. While their personality is important, I care more about what knowledge they'll bring to the job. I always hated answering those general questions when I was being interviewed, so I won't subject a candidate to that torture.

I would have to agree. After going through 3 rounds of interviews with 14 different people, the technical questions have 2 advantages. Besides determining what I know, you can see how I might solve a problem.

Two interviewers wanted me to write code on the spot. One guy made me actually type it out and execute it. While I did not get it right, I got it close (included double quotes when I should not), and I would think staying cool was good enough.

On the other hand, asking me personal questions won't tell you much, especially from an accomplished BS'er like me. For example: what is my biggest weakness? My desire to complete all my work by deadlines affects my family life.

 

[I Are Baboon]

I can't imagine why anyone would ask each candidate different questions. It just seems logical to me to ask everyone the same thing.

 

[splat]

What is the average speed of an unladen swallow?

African or European ??

 

[Shyrmp]

If you can skip the standard ?'s thats great, but just be sure to ask all the applicants the same ?s so you have a good basis for comparison.

I only get applicant's that my clients have decided to proceed with, so they have already asked the standard questions. My interviews are more "investigational". I have asked the standard questions when making hiring decisions for people who are applying directly with my company though.

 

[narlus]

there is one essential litmus test question you should ask:

Do you hate MMike?

 

[Velocity Girl]

The joke would take me by suprise and I dount I'd be able to think one up on the spot. That is a very subjective one.

That's the point of it though. It's not a typical question you would expect at an interview. It's not an answer you have rehearsed (unless you've been asked it before!) Weather or not you acctually come up with a joke isn't the most important point. What it's intended to do is see how a person handles an off the wall situation? Do they maintain their composure (sp?) or just melt down? Can you think on your feet? In most of the companies I've worked for if you can't handle something coming at you from left field without a melt down or completely losing your cool, you're most likely not going to be able to cut it. And in all fairness, I was asked that question during an interview...and yes, it took me totally by surprise.

 

[Shyrmp]

LOL!

Hmmm...hearing about their criminal convictions could be fun!

It can be mentally draining at times, but overall I love what I do.

 

[Nick]

You should begin with a startled look on your face and ask "how the hell did you get in here?!?"

With type/field of work do these positions involve exactly?

 

[blt2ride]

My primary job was employment (interviews and recuitment) for almost 3 years, before I was promoted to another position. All together I have about 5 years of employment under my belt. It's kind of a love and hate relationship. It feels good when you hire someone who works out, and you hate it when you hire someone who doesn't work out.

Nonetheless, I have probably interviewed more than a 1000 people--we hire A LOT of people. Luckily for me, I started working in employment when I was really young, so a lot of the candidates were basically my age. In my opinion, the only way you will get an honest answer from someone is to make them feel comfortable. There were certain questions that the company made us ask, but basically I just talked to applicants. I made them feel comfortable with me, and then they started to spill their guts. Once someone lets their guard down, they'll tell you anything...

 

[JimmyTwoTimes]

I interview consultants for contract jobs (Oracle). I find the interviews quite boring and redundant. I basically just give them the 'sniff test' to see if they really know Oracle and can actually pronounce English words before passing them on to a client.

 

[Austin Bike]

I used to interview hundreds of people but thankfully haven't had but a 2-3 in the last year or so.

Here's a post from another board with interview gotchas:

http://www.bikemojo.com/speak/showpost.php?p=157086&postcount=16

 

[JRB]

I typically hate it, but this last round, it was cool. It was too bad I didn't have 3 spots to fill. My newest started on Monday, last week.

 

[I Are Baboon]

OK, so I have done two interviews today and they each lasted no longer than 25 minutes. Am I doing something wrong? For some reason, I feel like I should be talking to them longer.

Ah well, they are only initial interviews anyway.

 

[MMcG]

OK, so I have done two interviews today and they each lasted no longer than 25 minutes. Am I doing something wrong? For some reason, I feel like I should be talking to them longer.

Ah well, they are only initial interviews anyway.

Are they only interviewing with you - or is their a group of you involved in the search?

 

[I Are Baboon]

Are they only interviewing with you - or is their a group of you involved in the search?

Well, I am the hiring manager, so I decide who gets the job. But they talk to me, they talk to recruitment, and the final candidates talk to my boss.

 

[MMcG]

Gotcha - we have to have these search committees here - hiring is a PITA!

 

[I Are Baboon]

Gotcha - we have to have these search committees here - hiring is a PITA!

Well I suppose it also depends on the position that is being filled. A payroll clerk doesn't exactly need to go through a difficult screening process and a series of tough interviews. When I hire for my former position though, it'll be at least three interviews and they'll also have to speak to our technical experts.

When i was being interviewed for this place, I had a two hour interview with the recuiter, four hours of interviews with my boss and team members, and another four hour lunch interview with a director and VP.

 

[Austin Bike]

OK, so I have done two interviews today and they each lasted no longer than 25 minutes. Am I doing something wrong? For some reason, I feel like I should be talking to them longer.

Ah well, they are only initial interviews anyway.

Honestly, you can usually get a feel for the person in the first 5 minutes and you spend the next 20 trying to make sure that the impression you got is accurate.

Time is immaterial if you can get right to the meat of the matter and dispense with the small talk.