Former Career Development Program Manager at Google, Entrepreneur and Author, Jenny Blake reveals her five favourite questions to ask candidates.
Well-versed on empowering and coaching individuals on how to excel in their careers, Blake has published a book titled “Pivot” to aid individuals in making strategic decisions in their next career move.
In an interview with CNBC, Blake revealed which interview questions employers and hiring managers should ask to attract highly motivated candidates.
1. Tell me about a time where you solved a particularly interesting problem.
Blake said that this question delves into the candidates problem-solving and critical-thinking skills, which are increasingly important in today’s business world.
2. What are you most excited about learning?
She advises to use this as a better way to gauge candidate’s motivations: “I don’t like the question, ‘Where do you see yourself in five years?'” she said. “Because things are changing too quickly, it is totally irrelevant.” She recommends that employers are better off getting a sense of what a person is eager to work on and which skills they want to develop.
3. What skills or talents seem totally unrelated to your career but that you enjoy pursuing on the side?
This question uncovers what candidates are passionate about. “I think this one is really interesting,” she said. “I’ve talked with people at Google who raised chickens on the side.”
4. What kind of impact are you most excited to make?
“High net growth individuals want to feel challenged, collaborative and like they are able to make a positive impact within their organizations and outside of them,” she writes.
5. When was a time things didn’t go as planned, and how did you handle it?
“I do think it’s good to try to frame something up around how someone handles uncertainty or even mistakes,” Blake said. Everyone makes mistakes, but seeing how they recover and rectify them is important.
You can find the original article here.