The best interview tip ever

Erin Landells

Thursday, May 23, 2013

It’s a big claim, but we are confident that this will be the best interview tip you ever receive. We think this tip is particularly relevant to applying for government jobs where there are usually a standard set of questions for all candidates.

At the end of the interview, the interviewer will ask if you have any questions. This is the time when you can ask questions that haven’t already been covered during the interview. Perhaps you might want to know what your key responsibilities will be, or how your success will be measured in the role.

Regardless of what questions you have, we have the best question for you to ask at every interview.

And the question is…

“Is there anything that I haven’t addressed that you would like me to discuss further?” (or something along those lines that comes naturally to you).

This question is the perfect question because it gives the panel a chance to probe further about any concerns they have.

In my experience, there are a couple of responses from the interviewer.

1. “No, thank you. We don’t have any further questions for you.” Delivered warmly, this usually means you’ve been brilliant and have nothing to worry about.
2. “No, thank you. We don’t have any further questions for you”. Delivered very professionally, almost sympathetically, means you really haven’t demonstrated your experience and suitability for the position but we don’t want to waste any more of your or our time by prolonging this interview any further.
3. “Yes, actually, can you tell us a little bit more about your project management experience?”. This provides an invaluable opportunity for you to elaborate further on your project management experience and potentially win the job.

We have used this question ourselves and have recommended it to many of the people we coach and it is definitely the best interview tip!