During the interview process, gauging a candidate’s capabilities is a common priority. As a result, you need to ask interview questions that create opportunities to gather the necessary insights, allowing you to separate right-fit candidates from those who may not thrive in the role.
The questions you choose make a significant difference, as some lead to more revealing answers than others. Here are a handful of skill-based questions that are perfect for your next candidate interview.
1. Tell Me About a Time When You Were Given a Task You’ve Never Handled Before
This prompt is a simple way to assess a few key capabilities when interviewing candidates. It allows you to learn about their problem-solving skills, research abilities, self-motivation, discipline, analytical skills, and much more based on how the candidate answers.
Plus, this prompt is customizable. Instead of using the generic “task,” you can focus on activities that directly relate to the nature of their role. With that, you can also learn about technical capabilities that are relevant to the position.
2. Describe a Difficult Task You Had to Complete as Part of a Team. How Did You Handle It?
With this interview question, the answer will showcase how the candidate does when faced with adversity. It’s focused on a challenge they had to conquer, which is often revealing on its own.
However, this question also dives into various teamwork skills. Often, you can learn about the job seeker’s collaboration and communication capabilities, whether they position themselves as a leader or a follower, if they’re the type to step up and assist their colleagues, and much more.
3. Can You Tell Me About a Time When You Had to Resolve a Customer Complaint?
This is a customizable question that can be adjusted to fit the nature of the role you’re filling. For example, instead of “customer,” you can ask about client or stakeholder interactions.
Even with small tweaks, this question lets you find out more about how a candidate responds to negative feedback from a person they’re serving or supporting. Additionally, it can reveal problem-solving skills, showcase customer service capabilities, and demonstrate communication ability. It may also give you insights into their accountability, resilience, and diligence, which are also valuable to learn about during the interview.
4. What’s Your Biggest Professional Achievement?
While this question may not seem skill-based on the surface, the answers candidates typically provide are often skill-oriented. When describing the accomplishment, top talent usually outlines the nature of the situation, discusses the actions they took – including skills they used along the way – and covers the end result of their efforts. As a result, you’ll find out about their capabilities, as well as the potential value they can ultimately provide.
In the end, each of the skill-based questions above is a worthwhile addition when you’re interviewing candidates for a vacant position. Plus, the responses may create opportunities for more in-depth follow-up questions, giving you further insights into what the job seeker brings to the table.
Contact Us Today!
If you’re in need of high-quality candidates to fill your open jobs, GoSource wants to hear from you. Contact us today.
