Don’t Ever Ask These Five Don’t Ever Ask These Five Interview QuestionsInterview Questions

Dianne Shaddock

Business owners, who have the responsibility of hiring staff, want to know as much as possible about their

potential new hire

We all have a natural need to know not just about the applicant’s work experience…

…but also their personal interests as a way of determining whether the candidate is a good fit for the company

There is a thin line between learning more about your candidate…

…and asking questions that are considered inappropriate or illegal to ask during an interview

It is critical to be aware of not only the best questions to ask in an interview, but also the

wrong questions to ask

Questions to avoid Questions to avoid during an interview during an interview

include…include…

“Are you married/divorced?”

“Do you have children?”

“Are you single?”

“What church do you attend?”

“Your name sounds very unusual. What ethnicity is it?”

“How old are you?”

“What year did you graduate ?”

Any question that does not relate to the Any question that does not relate to the job or experience needed or that are job or experience needed or that are

personal in nature may leave a candidate personal in nature may leave a candidate wondering if the reason that they were wondering if the reason that they were not hired had not hired had less to do with experience less to do with experience

and and more to do with your opinions about more to do with your opinions about their culture, personal life, or beliefstheir culture, personal life, or beliefs

Job candidates who perceive that they were treated Job candidates who perceive that they were treated unfairly may be more likely to complain about your unfairly may be more likely to complain about your

hiring process.hiring process.

Before any interview, write down the work and skill set related questions that you will

want to ask your candidates in order to determine their overall experience relative to

the job

Remember:

Review your questions and make sure that you are not asking any questions that have no bearing on the job that you are hiring for.