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Improving the Art of Interviewingwith John Kador
Presents
1 Cambridge Center, Cambridge, MA | 800-903-1593www.taketheinterview.com | [email protected]
John Kador first wrote The Manager’s Book of Questions in 1997.The book was completely revised in 2009.
IntroductionChoreographing the dance of the hiring process involves asking the right questions, understanding body language, and analyzing responses. From the initial ice-breaker questions to the nitty gritty of past professional experience, recruiters should remember that the most rewarding interviews are those that flow like conversation. Perfecting the art of interviewing typically takes even the most motivated recruiters and hiring managers years, but not anymore.
John Kador, author of The Manager’s Book of Questions,
provides the resources interviewers need to excel. He notes that while interviews rarely give a perfect picture of a candidate’s future success, it’s the only method at hand. He says, “Interviewing is the best tool we have available for evaluating candidates, so it’s important we learn how to do it correctly.” Here, Kador shares his best tips for making the interview process easier and more efficient.
What inspired you to develop interview questions?During my experience as a business journalist, I noticed while interviewing executives that some questions worked better than others. I began keeping a list of effective and superior questions. McGraw-Hill later asked me to write a book, so I pitched the idea of a book on great career questions for interviewers to use, which became The Manager’s Book of Questions.
Tell us about your process of developing and grouping interview questions?
I interviewed more than 200 human resource professionals, recruiters, staffing specialists, and people with experience in interviewing. I asked all these people what questions they found to be most effective and learned most recruiters will ask the same 3-5 questions over and over. In my book, I incorporated these top tier questions and created interview scripts for people to use as a resource in case they don’t have time to develop their own questions.
Q&A with John Kador
What are your top interview questions? I believe behavioral questions are the best; past experiences are the best predictor of future behavior. I especially favor questions of the form, “Tell me about a time when…” These are often a good gateway to natural conversation. Some of my favorites include: • Tell me about a time you had a huge success • Tell me about a time you had a set back • Tell me about a time you learned something on the job
A particularly revealing question is, “Tell me about a time when you made an investment in your career development that your employer did not pay for.” Appropriate answers might be taking a language course, interning, or volunteering. How can candidates expect employers to make investments in them if they fail to invest in themselves?
I also like questions about personal ethics such as, “On what occasions are you tempted to lie?” A question like this is designed to see if the candidate is listening because it’s about the temptation to lie, not the actual telling of a fib. An ideal response might be, “I’m tempted to lie when I’ve made a mistake, but I never do because I’ve learned facing setbacks and learning from them is by far the best thing to do.”
In The Manager’s Book of Questions, you break up the questions into seven categories: • Icebreaker and background questions • Behavioral questions • Determining fit questions • Core Competency questions • Ethics questions • Brainteasers and Business questions • Closing questions
Do you think any one category is more important than the others?
They all work in conjunction to create an interview narrative. The best interviews are set up like conversations to allow a give-and-take to flourish. These conversations should allow for a good picture of a candidate’s strengths and weaknesses to emerge as well as paint an honest portrait of the organization.
What are some ideal responses for “Tell me about yourself?”
Candidates should tell me something I don’t already know, something not on their resume. Ideally, they would reveal something about being a team contributor, their resilience, or their work ethic. I suggest that candidates be interesting (talk about an unusual recognition in their industry), upbeat (an achievement or honor), and open-ended, so a conversation easily follows.
What is the future of interviewing? I think interviewing will become much more direct and much less sentimental. There’s still too much of an emphasis in painting over flaws and imperfections, both on the part of the candidate as well as the hiring organization. The process is not well served unless it’s possible to have frank conversations about the strengths as well as the weaknesses of both parties. I’d like to see the choreography of the interview be more honest.
No one is comfortable talking about salary in an interview. What’s your advice?
What’s stopping us from being honest about salary and money issues? The reality is that no one wants to bring up the money question first. The money conversation is one of the most important aspects of an interview, yet it is invariably the last thing addressed. I’m not suggesting that money become the very first question, but it also shouldn’t be the very last. I think candidates should be allowed to ask questions about money, benefits, and compensation topics without being labeled greedy or self-centered.
Whether you’re hiring your first candidate or your 1,000th, learning the art of interviewing is crucial. John Kador’s The Manager’s Book of Questions provides a detailed description of the types of questions you should be asking - and even in what order they should be asked. Next time you’re prepping for an interview, grab a copy of his book to help evaluate your crop of candidates or log on to Take the Interview and experience the power of five of his abbreviated scripts.
Conclusion
John Kador is an interviewing expert. Leverage his scripts to hire the best candidates.
Kador has published, co-written, and ghost-written over 15 books, including 301 Best Questions to Ask On Your Interview and How to Ace the Brainteaser Job Interview. In the expanded edition of the The Manager’s Book of Questions, Kador provides 1,001 tough, effective questions to find the perfect candidate for the job. He received his undergraduate degree in English from Duke University and went on to graduate school at The American University for Public Relations. Kador started his writing career with a high-tech advertising and public relations agency, then went on to found Kador Communications, which provides editorial assistance to corporate and media clients.
About John Kador
About Take the InterviewTake the Interview is a cloud-based video interviewing software that: • Lowers interviewing costs. • Reduces screening time. • Allows you to evaluate more candidates. • Helps you hire with ease.
Sign up for a free trial with Take the Interview to use John Kador’s questions to screen your next batch of job candidates.
1 Cambridge Center, Cambridge, MA | 800-903-1593www.taketheinterview.com | [email protected]
