INTRODUCTION over the world. Scared and frustrated, employees still fortunate to have a job are staying put, decreasing opportunities for career advancement. For organizations, the stakes for making the right hiring decision are higher than ever before. Business moves more quickly today than ever before. Organizations are leaner and more networked. If a criti cal task is not performed, the whole operation is at risk of falling apart. Often a critical hire is all that stands between organizational failure and success. Organizations today have no guarantee of second chances. They must get it right the first tim RAISING THE ANTE FOR JOB SEEKERS In their struggle to survive, increasingly lean organizations are making decisions that also raise the ante for job seekers. Companies today are putting a premium on human productivity. They want to hire people who can add significant value from day one. Any job candidate who cannot demonstrate his or her value proposition within a few minutes into the job interview cannot be expected to advance. Few organizations today are content to hire merely qualified formers capable of acceptable performance. In a buyer's market, they feel they dont have to settle for anything less than superstars at every level of the company. These organizations look for individuals who can demonstrate consistently outstanding results as well as the ability to stretch well beyond traditional measures of performance. These are the movers and change agents who can apply thought leadership to the challenges of the organization. Interviewers today want to see immediate evidence that you are ac tion-oriented, engaged with the long term, committed, zestful, and cu- rious. These are the attributes that will get you a job. If you act passive disengaged, short term-driven, self-centered, and apathetic, you'll be passed over. Your ability to ask meaningful questions will tell the in- terviewer if you project the first set of attributes or the latter. Does the contemporary job interview seem like a high hurdle to jump? It is. And you wont get more than a few minutes to demonstrate that you are a world-class contributor Organizations have beefed up the entire employee selection process to weed out the amateurs, impostors, and other wanna-bes. The job XVI
over the world. Scared and frustrated, employees still fortunate to have a job are staying put, decreasing opportunities for career advancement. For organizations, the stakes for making the right hiring decision are higher than ever before. Business moves more quickly today than ever before. Organizations are leaner and more networked. If a critical task is not performed, the whole operation is at risk of falling apart. Often a critical hire is all that stands between organizational failure and success. Organizations today have no guarantee of second chances. They must get it right the first time. RAISING THE ANTE FOR JOB SEEKERS In their struggle to survive, increasingly lean organizations are making decisions that also raise the ante for job seekers. Companies today are putting a premium on human productivity. They want to hire people who can add significant value from day one. Any job candidate who cannot demonstrate his or her value proposition within a few minutes into the job interview cannot be expected to advance. Few organizations today are content to hire merely qualified performers capable of acceptable performance. In a buyer’s market, they feel they don’t have to settle for anything less than superstars at every level of the company. These organizations look for individuals who can demonstrate consistently outstanding results as well as the ability to stretch well beyond traditional measures of performance. These are the movers and change agents who can apply thought leadership to the challenges of the organization. Interviewers today want to see immediate evidence that you are action-oriented, engaged with the long term, committed, zestful, and curious. These are the attributes that will get you a job. If you act passive, disengaged, short term–driven, self-centered, and apathetic, you’ll be passed over. Your ability to ask meaningful questions will tell the interviewer if you project the first set of attributes or the latter. Does the contemporary job interview seem like a high hurdle to jump? It is. And you won’t get more than a few minutes to demonstrate that you are a world-class contributor. Organizations have beefed up the entire employee selection process to weed out the amateurs, impostors, and other wanna-bes. The job INTRODUCTION xvi
INTRODUCTION interview has received more than its share of attention as a critical ve- hicle to achieve organizational goals. If you have been interviewing you know that employers have developed dramatically more sophist cated interviewing and selection techniques. You see evidence of these developments in every aspect of the selection process, from the job in- terview to exhaustive background checks and drug testing. This bool gives you a shot at understanding what you will be up against in the new world of job interviews Many job hunters think their primary goal is to get to the job inter view. Wrong! If you think the primary goal of the job hunter is to get a job offer, you are getting warmer, but you are still a day late and dol- lar short. In reality, the primary goal of the job hunter is to get an offer for a job that is a good fit with his or her short- and long-term re- quirements-in other words, a position that is sustainable for both the job hunter and the employer To succeed at this part of the job hunt requires the job terview the interviewer. By this point in the process, the chemistry between the employer and job seeker should be pretty good. If there are any remaining candidates, their abilities should be fairly similar, so you are now competing on softer issues. If you are still in the running, chances are the employer wants to hire you at least as much as you want to be hired. Now the tables are turned, and it is your opportunity to determine if this is the job thats best for your career. Now you get to interview the interviewer, and in doing so you have another oppor tunity to reinforce your desirability as the best candidate for the job This book shows you how To ground the book in reality, I've asked hundreds of recruiters, job coaches, and hiring managers for the most memorably good and bad questions they have heard from job candidates. Some of these ques tions are brilliant in their insight, depth, and elegance. Others are just as effective in terminating the interview with extreme prejudice Whether the questions are memorably good or memorably bad, learn from the former and avoid the latter The best of these memorable questions, with comments from the recruiters, are peppered through- out the book and are separately indexed in the back
interview has received more than its share of attention as a critical vehicle to achieve organizational goals. If you have been interviewing, you know that employers have developed dramatically more sophisticated interviewing and selection techniques. You see evidence of these developments in every aspect of the selection process, from the job interview to exhaustive background checks and drug testing. This book gives you a shot at understanding what you will be up against in the new world of job interviews. Many job hunters think their primary goal is to get to the job interview. Wrong! If you think the primary goal of the job hunter is to get a job offer, you are getting warmer, but you are still a day late and dollar short. In reality, the primary goal of the job hunter is to get an offer for a job that is a good fit with his or her short- and long-term requirements—in other words, a position that is sustainable for both the job hunter and the employer. To succeed at this part of the job hunt requires the job seeker to interview the interviewer. By this point in the process, the chemistry between the employer and job seeker should be pretty good. If there are any remaining candidates, their abilities should be fairly similar, so you are now competing on softer issues. If you are still in the running, chances are the employer wants to hire you at least as much as you want to be hired. Now the tables are turned, and it is your opportunity to determine if this is the job that’s best for your career. Now you get to interview the interviewer, and in doing so you have another opportunity to reinforce your desirability as the best candidate for the job. This book shows you how. To ground the book in reality, I’ve asked hundreds of recruiters, job coaches, and hiring managers for the most memorably good and bad questions they have heard from job candidates. Some of these questions are brilliant in their insight, depth, and elegance. Others are just as effective in terminating the interview with extreme prejudice. Whether the questions are memorably good or memorably bad, learn from the former and avoid the latter. The best of these memorable questions, with comments from the recruiters, are peppered throughout the book and are separately indexed in the back. INTRODUCTION xvii
INTRODUCTION AN INTERVIEW BETWEEN THE READER AND THE AUTHOR AUTHOR: Thank you for opening the book. Did you have any trouble finding it? READER: No, the directions you gave me were great. The book was right there in the Career Section, just where you said it would be AUTHOR: That's great. Well, I appreciate your interest in my book. Please make yourself comfortable. Can I get you a cup of coffee? READER: Thank you, no Maybe later AUTHOR: As you know, we will be talking to you about buying this book. This book gives you a powerful approach to job interview- ing by teaching you to ask questions that put the candidate in the best light possible. By asking the right questions you can quickly demonstrate the unique value proposition you alone offer and high light why you can immediately ease the business pain of the com- pany you are interviewing with READER: A problem-solution approach. Sounds promising. Do you mind if I take notes? AUTHOR: Not at all. Now, we hope to use this exchange to get to know each other better. Maybe you can start by telling me about how you expect this book to advance your career objectives READER: In my job interviews, I want to be ready to ask questions of such intelligence and elegance that they knock the interviewers socks off and immediately set me apart as a force to be reckoned AUTHOR: I like the way you put that
AN INTERVIEW BETWEEN THE READER AND THE AUTHOR AUTHOR: Thank you for opening the book. Did you have any trouble finding it? READER: No, the directions you gave me were great. The book was right there in the Career Section, just where you said it would be. AUTHOR: That’s great. Well, I appreciate your interest in my book. Please make yourself comfortable. Can I get you a cup of coffee? READER: Thank you, no. Maybe later. AUTHOR: As you know, we will be talking to you about buying this book. This book gives you a powerful approach to job interviewing by teaching you to ask questions that put the candidate in the best light possible. By asking the right questions you can quickly demonstrate the unique value proposition you alone offer and highlight why you can immediately ease the business pain of the company you are interviewing with. READER: A problem-solution approach. Sounds promising. Do you mind if I take notes? AUTHOR: Not at all. Now, we hope to use this exchange to get to know each other better. Maybe you can start by telling me about how you expect this book to advance your career objectives. READER: In my job interviews, I want to be ready to ask questions of such intelligence and elegance that they knock the interviewer’s socks off and immediately set me apart as a force to be reckoned with. AUTHOR: I like the way you put that. INTRODUCTION xviii
INTRODUCTION READER: I want my questions to reinforce the reality that I am con- spicuously the best person for the job and then to ask for the job in a way that the interviewer will want to endorse my application and recommend making me the strongest offer possible AUTHOR: This book will certainly help you do that. At this point, allow me to describe the book to you in terms of its content and how structured it to help you make an immediately favorable impression at job interviews. In this way, you will have the information you need to make a determination about whether purchasing this book will advance your career objectives. Our book-buying philosophy here at McGraw-Hill is that either a book-buying decision is a good two-way fit, or it's not a fit at all. How does that sound? READER: It sounds great. May I ask a question? AUTHOR: Yes of course. READER: You asked me about my requirements. What are your re quirements? AUTHOR: My requirements are simple. do you have $12.95? READER Yes AUTHOR: Youve satisfied my requirements READER: $12.95? Is that all? I would have thought a book of this earth shaking value would cost a lot more AUTHOR: I appreciate the flattery, but this book is not about sucking up. Sweet talk is not going to advance your career. Questions framed with intelligence and presented strategically will. So let me give you a quick description of what the book offers. The book has three sections. Part I discusses the rules for asking the best ques- tions. Chapter 1, Why You Have to Question, reviews why it is imperative to have questions and offers some guidelines for asking questions in the strongest way possible. Chapter 2, Questions You Should Never Initiate, tells you what subject areas to avoid. Chap-
READER: I want my questions to reinforce the reality that I am conspicuously the best person for the job and then to ask for the job in a way that the interviewer will want to endorse my application and recommend making me the strongest offer possible. AUTHOR: This book will certainly help you do that. At this point, allow me to describe the book to you in terms of its content and how I structured it to help you make an immediately favorable impression at job interviews. In this way, you will have the information you need to make a determination about whether purchasing this book will advance your career objectives. Our book-buying philosophy here at McGraw-Hill is that either a book-buying decision is a good two-way fit, or it’s not a fit at all. How does that sound? READER: It sounds great. May I ask a question? AUTHOR: Yes, of course. READER: You asked me about my requirements. What are your requirements? AUTHOR: My requirements are simple. Do you have $12.95? READER: Yes. AUTHOR: You’ve satisfied my requirements. READER: $12.95? Is that all? I would have thought a book of this earthshaking value would cost a lot more. AUTHOR: I appreciate the flattery, but this book is not about sucking up. Sweet talk is not going to advance your career. Questions framed with intelligence and presented strategically will. So let me give you a quick description of what the book offers. The book has three sections. Part I discusses the rules for asking the best questions. Chapter 1, “Why You Have to Question,” reviews why it is imperative to have questions and offers some guidelines for asking questions in the strongest way possible. Chapter 2, “Questions You Should Never Initiate,” tells you what subject areas to avoid. ChapINTRODUCTION xix
INTRODUCTION ters3," When to Question,”4,“ Do Your homework;"and5,“Do You Mind If I Take Notes? "deal with the issues of timing research and note taking, respectively. Part II lists most of the 201 best questions promised in the title hese are the questions you will use to form the basis of the ques- tions you ask in your next job interview. Some questions are most appropriate for different types of interview situations. Chapters 6, Questions for Headhunters, Recruiters, and Staffing Agencies, 7, Questions for Human Resources, "and 8, Questions for Hiring Managers, list the questions that each of these groups will find I hope you find Part Ill especially useful. It deals with the most common job interview scenarios and recommends killer questions for each. For example, Chapter 9, Exploring Questions, " looks at questions that demonstrate your interest in the job and the company Chapter 10, Defensive Questions, " helps protect you from taking the wrong job. Chapter 11, " Feedback Questions, focuses on ques- tions that allow the interviewer to identify objections so you can deal with them. Chapter 12, Bid-for-Action Questions, " suggests phrasings so you can actually ask for the job, an important step that most candidates miss READER: I especially appreciate the questions in Chapter 13, Ques tions for Superstars. Do candidates really ask such in-your-face questions? AUTHOR: Some do It's a question of how confident you are as a can- didate. Chapter 14, "You Got an Offer. Congratulations! "deals with the happy outcome that you have received an offer and you want the job. Naturally you have many questions. Chapter 15, "You Blew the Interview. Now What? looks at the near certainty that at least some of your applications will be rejected. Dont lose heart. There is still hope, if not for another shot at the company, then at least a power ful learning opportunity So thats how the book is laid out. Any other questions?
ters 3, “When to Question,” 4, “Do Your Homework,” and 5, “Do You Mind If I Take Notes?” deal with the issues of timing, research, and note taking, respectively. Part II lists most of the 201 best questions promised in the title. These are the questions you will use to form the basis of the questions you ask in your next job interview. Some questions are most appropriate for different types of interview situations. Chapters 6, “Questions for Headhunters, Recruiters, and Staffing Agencies,” 7, “Questions for Human Resources,” and 8, “Questions for Hiring Managers,” list the questions that each of these groups will find particularly meaningful. I hope you find Part III especially useful. It deals with the most common job interview scenarios and recommends killer questions for each. For example, Chapter 9, “Exploring Questions,” looks at questions that demonstrate your interest in the job and the company. Chapter 10, “Defensive Questions,” helps protect you from taking the wrong job. Chapter 11, “Feedback Questions,” focuses on questions that allow the interviewer to identify objections so you can deal with them. Chapter 12, “Bid-for-Action Questions,” suggests phrasings so you can actually ask for the job, an important step that most candidates miss. READER: I especially appreciate the questions in Chapter 13, “Questions for Superstars.” Do candidates really ask such in-your-face questions? AUTHOR: Some do. It’s a question of how confident you are as a candidate. Chapter 14, “You Got an Offer. Congratulations!” deals with the happy outcome that you have received an offer and you want the job. Naturally you have many questions. Chapter 15, “You Blew the Interview. Now What?” looks at the near certainty that at least some of your applications will be rejected. Don’t lose heart. There is still hope, if not for another shot at the company, then at least a powerful learning opportunity. So that’s how the book is laid out. Any other questions? INTRODUCTION xx