STOP ASKING THE WRONG QUESTIONS FIRST

What should I ask in a job interview?

People ask me all the time.  An interview is your opportunity to demonstrate what you can contribute while gathering the information you need to thoroughly understand the opportunity.

Regardless of your experience or the position you seek, there’s one cardinal rule: Have a plan. 

Resist leading interviews with questions about vacation, PTO and flexibility. Instead, do this: first, show curiosity about the work. Then ask about what comes with the job. 

My 6R Guide for Smart Interview Questions will help you sound professional and smart–if you follow each R in a specific order:

1. Responsibilities: Lead with contribution! What will be expected of you? What are the most important responsibilities of the position? Probe beyond the posted job description. 
2. Reporting relationships: Who will you report to directly? Are there matrixed or dotted-line reporting relationships? Another question that I especially like is: How do team members typically communicate and work with each other? That’s especially important in today’s hybrid work environment. 
3. Results: What outcomes will you be expected to deliver—and by when? What would success look like six months or a year into the job? The more clearly you understand outcomes, the better you can evaluate whether your skills and expectations align with the opportunity. 
4. Reviews: How will your performance be evaluated, by whom and how frequently? You need details on the metrics, rhythm and formality of performance discussions. If professional growth matters to you, find out how coaching and feedback actually happen. 
5. Raises: Now you’re ready to shift to compensation. Rather than simply ask “When do I get a raise?” put the question in the context of contribution and growth. You need to learn how compensation typically progresses based on performance and increased responsibilities.  
6. R&R: Finish with time off. What vacation, PTO and sick-time benefits come with the position? There’s a reason R&R comes last. Yes, time off matters. But don’t make it the first thing you want a prospective employer to know about you.

It’s likely that compensation may come up earlier because the interviewer brings it up. That’s fine. Discuss it. The 6R Guide isn’t meant to prevent you from answering a question because it came up out of order. It’s a plan for you to organize the key questions to ask. 

The questions you ask in an interview don’t just help you evaluate an employer. They tell an employer something about you. 

Try my 6 Rs in your next interview and let me know in the comments how it goes!

Coming soon: Dulye & Co.’s Career Compass Podcast takes a deeper dive into how to ask smarter questions in your next job interview.

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