Getting past the stock answers
June 24, 2008 by Sam NarisiPosted in: Assessing the right candidate, Interviewing, Latest News & Views
There are some questions all candidates have a prepared answer for. Here’s how to keep them on their toes.
“What’s your biggest weakness?” That question, or some version of it, comes up in a lot of interviews.
Interviewers want to see if candidates are honest about themselves and know where they need improvement. But all that question will get you is a response such as, “Well, sometimes I work too hard.”
Here’s a different question that can pry out the info you want, courtesy of David Marcum and Steven Smith, authors of the book Egonomics:
“What’s the most recent mistake you made, and why did you make it?”
That will get candidates talking about times they’ve failed, what they learned and how they’re improving themselves.
Another way to get an honest answer: Ask, “What would your previous boss say is your biggest weakness?” Then, you can verify the answer when you call the supervisor for a reference.
August 13th, 2008 at 1:04 pm
I recently interviewed a Marketing Manager candidate who did not give me one single sincere answer when responding to any of my questions. She had obviously practiced her responses and practiced them well. It was very frustrating to me and I felt like the interview was a waste of time and that I had failed because I couldn’t draw the real person out. I wish candidates could understand they defeat the purpose of the interivew when they provide “pat” answers. This is NOT selling yourself or presenting yourself well; it’s called acting…and learning all the right lines isn’t helpful at all.
I try to set the tone of the interview by letting the candidate know the purpose of the interview is not to answer questions “correctly” but rather to get to know each other so we can each determine if the fit is right. But one of the other things I try to do is to ask questions in this manner: “What do you do to address your job-related weaknesses?” I don’t always get a relevant answer, but I seem to have fairly good success with this approach. Maybe this will also work for others.