Don’t you love these posts… what is THE most important interview question?
I think it depends on the company, industry, culture, and unfortunately the person asking the questions. I say unfortunately because in my experience they are untrained, whimsical, and filled with prejudice and bias. There’s nothing like going into an interview totally prepared and interviewing with a knucklehead who doesn’t know what he is doing.
And then there are list of hundreds of interview questions, like this one on Job Mob. Four hundred and forty four? I can’t even remember fourteen. That list is just too overwhelming for me.
One of my favorite headhunters, Ask the Headhunter Nick Corcodilos, has his answer to what the most important interview question is, and it contradicts one of his colleagues. On this post you’ll see the question from his colleague, and you’ll see Nick’s favorite (most important) interview question.
The real problem with Nick’s question, or Lou’s question, or Jacob’s 444 list, goes back to the human being asking the question. If they are an idiot then maybe no question matters. It might be how you connect in other ways.
That pesky human element is the monkey wrench that makes interviews so unpredictable.
(having said that, still prepare for your interview!)
“It might be how you connect in other ways.”
Bingo, Peter! Great point! No question is useful if the interviewer doesn’t know what he or she is doing. Thanks for pointing this out — there is no magic question.
Thanks for posting. Hope all is well.