Articles From the Team
One of the most important questions at interview, is often the final one, “Do you have any questions?”
I recently spoke with a lawyer who told me his interview had gone really well for 60 minutes until the very last moment when he was asked “do you have any questions?” He froze, his mind went blank… the interview had been a really good, two way process and at that moment in time all his questions had been answered. All that came to mind to ask were questions about social events, office hours and numbers of holiday days. He didn’t feel any of these were appropriate to ask. Instead an uncomfortable silence arose with the interviewer stepping in to bring the meeting to a close. The interviewing lawyer felt that instead of ending on a high the meeting petered out, leaving him feeling like the meeting had finished on a low.
Now there is always the response “thank you but no I don’t have any more questions at this point as the meeting has been very informative…” But it really is best to have a question or two up your sleeve.
Some questions that might not have been covered in the meeting might include:
What is your development programme for employees? This is a good question to show that you are interested in progressing and developing your own skills, which in turn benefits the company that you work for. It also coveys that you don’t think you are ‘the finished article’.
What are the company’s plans for the future? This can be a great question, indicating that you are interested about the business as a whole, and not just concentrating on yourself and the position in hand. It is also an opportunity for the interviewer to convey the exciting times that hopefully lie ahead…
Were any of my answers unclear? Being British we are generally very polite and unless you are being interviewed on ‘The Apprentice’ the interviewer might not stop you if you have given a below par answe. By asking this question not only are you inviting feedback but it also gives you the opportunity to clear up any misunderstandings that might have transpired through the interview process. It also shows you are interested in feedback – always a worthy personality trait.
How will you judge in say 6 months time whether your new recruit is succeeding? I really like this question. Not only does it give you an idea of what ‘good’ looks like in the role/ company but it also gives you an opportunity to understand what will be expected of you. Once you know this you can always sell back how you have achieved this in your role/s to date. Be careful not to oversell, just mention some examples that will convey that you understand what is expected and how you have achieved this in the past.
Why do you enjoy working here? A nice gentle question that allows the interviewer to talk freely about the positives of working in the company – a really nice way to end the interview.
For more information, please contact Mark Levine at BCL Legal.