Press Release
Interview Questions – What to ask and what not to ask
Friday, May 02, 2008
I own a company which is growing at an extremely fast rate. I am new to the hiring process and do not want to ask “out of bounds” or illegal questions during the interview. What can you suggest I do to make sure I do not cross the line?
Any specific interview questions aimed at learning a person’s sexual orientation, race, religion or age, are considered off limits. These questions have been deemed in many labor cases as offensive and discriminatory. Any attempt at learning political ideology, family history or obtaining specific industry information while interviewing a candidate are treading a fine line and can considered inappropriate. To cover yourself and learn a little about the candidate’s personality you may consider giving the candidate a directive, “Tell me about yourself.”
However, sticking to specific interview questions about the candidate’s past performance, skill set, business acumen and ability to perform the job that he/she is interviewing for will always be the safest way to conduct your interviews. These questions will allow you to accurately assess their technical abilities and help you get a better determination of their ability to perform. If you are looking to assess work ethic, integrity or other intangibles consider asking hypothetical interview questions or pose a problem for them to solve.
Throughout the process though, make sure that the interview is as enjoyable as possible as you will want them to accept your job offer if you decide they warrant one.