Interview Questions Every Job Candidate Should Ask
Saturday, June 17th, 2006Interviewing for a job shouldn’t be a one-sided activity. The person conducting the interview is expecting some line of questioning from the job candidate. Come to an interview armed with these questions and you will certainly get their attention. I interview a lot of people and the very small minority of them asks any questions at all. Asking a lot of question shows that you have a genuine interest in the job and have the initiative to get the answers you need in order to make informed decisions. Make sure to stay within the time guidelines of the interview as a courtesy.
Human Resources
- Is there a 401k? When can I start contributing? What is the vestment period?
- Am I eligible for a bonus? How is the bonus determined?
- How much vacation do I get? What is the accrual rate? Vacation is usually a negotiable item so be sure to use this as a bargaining chip.
- How are raises structured? Are they performance based? I personally couldn’t work at a place that doesn’t use performance based raises. Where is my motivation?
- How is your medical insurance structured? This is usually the only question I get asked.
- How often do I get a review?
Company
- How many employees do you have? How many did you have last year? What is the rate of attrition?
- Do you contract out software development?
- What are the growth areas for the company?
- Who are your competitors? What are the emerging markets? Be sure to research the company and ask industry-specific questions.
- What are my opportunities for advancement?
Job Specific - Any decent software shop should give its programmers the best hardware and software to do the job.
- Am I replacing someone? Why did they leave?
- How much new development vs. maintenance?
- What will my first project be? Have them describe a typical project to you.
- What kind of hardware will I get for a development machine?
- Will I have dual monitors?
- Do you have the best and latest versions of development tools?
- What is the noise level in the area I will be working in?
- What is the size of my cubicle? Make sure you see the area you will be working in.
Management - Your relationship with your manager is possibly the most important aspect of your job. Make sure your manager has the management style that fits your demeanor.
- What is the management style of the manager?
- Does the manager have a technical background? This is a really important question. A non-technical management team is a potentially bad situation. Can a non-techie affectively manage a techie?
- What is the project management methodology? Does the company use project managers? Is there any support staff for the programmers such as business analysts and testers?
- Do you have release schedules? Most places will not have a release schedule. This line of questioning will give you and idea of how organized they are.
- Do you use standards?
- Are any of your procedures documented?
- How is triage handled? Is there a help desk?
I recommend meeting with some of your peers too. Management and human resources will never give you an accurate picture of the current state of affairs but your future comrades probably will.
This is just a guide and there are a lot of different questions that could be asked. Job hunting is a chess match wrought with peril and danger. Come armed to your next interview and get the answers you need to make the right decision.
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