Work related - How do I answer this question?

ahoywedding

(Posting here because no other board seems active)

We're doing a bunch of interviews at work right now. I have no problem with a candidate has questions, and appreciate when the questions are related to the position or the company. However, we've gotten this doozy twice, and I have no idea how to respond. They'll ask what we're looking for in the ideal candidate for the position, which is typical. The follow up question is if we think they meet those criteria or if we think they'd be a good fit. This is where I get hung up: If I say yes, doesn't that kind of give a false sense that they may be getting an offer? If I give some long, rambly answer, that seems like I'm kind of avoiding the question. The people who have asked that recently have all had good experience on paper, but personality-wise would not have worked out.

Any suggestions? I've tried googing this but only get results for how to answer questions from the interviewer  

climbingsingle

I would try to say something non-committal like, "We think you do possess some of the qualities we're looking for, and that's why we brought you in to interview.  But we are still interviewing other candidates." 

short+sassy

Haha, oh goodness!  I can see the conundrum.  Because, whether a good or bad answer, you don't want to give someone the wrong impression or have an awkward conversation.

But that gets interviewers back for the "What is your worst quality?" interview question, lol.

Seriously, though.  I think you could go one of two ways in honestly answering that question:

1. If there is a concern/question you have about them meeting the criteria or if they would be a good fit, let them know what that concern is.  Give them an opportunity to overcome your potential objection.  That's actually what they are getting at with that question.
2. However, if it doesn't matter what they say.  They will still be a "no".  Or, even if you don't have any concerns, but don't want to give the impression that an offer will be coming.  I'd say something like, "I really like X,Y,Z on your resume.  At the present time, I don't have any concerns about your fitting into the job.  However, we are still interviewing and have a number of strong candidates."  A bit wishy-washy but, sorrynotsorry, an interview isn't usually the place to make a promise, or a seeming promise, of a job offer.

I don't want to speak for her, but look @Jen4948 who has been running the gauntlet of looking for work.  I know she has been especially frustrated when she was basically told a job offer was coming.  And then it didn't. 

MesmrEwe

Internal vs. External motivation...  You're getting the answer to that question on the spot with that question...

Yea - that's a good one for "While it's a good question, we're interviewing a number of candidates and want to make a fully informed decision so can't really answer if you're the best fit at this time as there are a number of people we've yet to interview!" (even if they're the only/last one)...

ahoywedding

short+sassy said:

Haha, oh goodness!  I can see the conundrum.  Because, whether a good or bad answer, you don't want to give someone the wrong impression or have an awkward conversation.

But that gets interviewers back for the "What is your worst quality?" interview question, lol.

Seriously, though.  I think you could go one of two ways in honestly answering that question:

1. If there is a concern/question you have about them meeting the criteria or if they would be a good fit, let them know what that concern is.  Give them an opportunity to overcome your potential objection.  That's actually what they are getting at with that question.
2. However, if it doesn't matter what they say.  They will still be a "no".  Or, even if you don't have any concerns, but don't want to give the impression that an offer will be coming.  I'd say something like, "I really like X,Y,Z on your resume.  At the present time, I don't have any concerns about your fitting into the job.  However, we are still interviewing and have a number of strong candidates."  A bit wishy-washy but, sorrynotsorry, an interview isn't usually the place to make a promise, or a seeming promise, of a job offer.

I don't want to speak for her, but look @Jen4948 who has been running the gauntlet of looking for work.  I know she has been especially frustrated when she was basically told a job offer was coming.  And then it didn't. 

This is kind what I was thinking, and I struggled with the two who asked because it wasn't anything specific I could point to or anything that they could change, necessarily. 

I like the wording @climbingwife suggested, and that seems pretty neutral without shutting them down.

Thanks everyone! (And FWIW, I don't ask the stupid question about weaknesses Everyone says some version of the same few things anyway)

MNNEBride

MesmrEwe said:

Internal vs. External motivation...  You're getting the answer to that question on the spot with that question...

Yea - that's a good one for "While it's a good question, we're interviewing a number of candidates and want to make a fully informed decision so can't really answer if you're the best fit at this time as there are a number of people we've yet to interview!" (even if they're the only/last one)...

I would answer that question using the words in bold above.

lovesclimbing

Ask a Manager has actually answered questions like this a few times. She recommends that people don't ask it for the same reasons you state and recommends responding pretty much how PPs said. 

Here are links. https://www.askamanager.org/2011/07/asking-hard-sell-closing-questions-in-job-interviews.html

https://www.askamanager.org/2015/03/when-a-job-candidate-asks-so-what-did-you-think-of-me.html

Jen4948

MNNEBride said:

MesmrEwe said:

Internal vs. External motivation...  You're getting the answer to that question on the spot with that question...

Yea - that's a good one for "While it's a good question, we're interviewing a number of candidates and want to make a fully informed decision so can't really answer if you're the best fit at this time as there are a number of people we've yet to interview!" (even if they're the only/last one)...

I would answer that question using the words in bold above.

I like this answer too. It acknowledges the question but doesn't give anyone false reason to hope that an offer is pending.

Casadena

I would also really appreciate being told in a professional way, exactly what you alluded to in your OP.  Something like "We liked x,y,z on your resume which is why we brought you in for an interview and it seems that you have the experience and skills needed to do the job.  This position also requires a good amount if interaction with the team, etc so we are also looking for a good fit personality-wise which we can't be sure of until we have interviewed all the candidates." 

If you have a specific concern, say it (professionally of course).  I would definitely give a wishy-washy answer if it's something you can't pinpoint like "eh, I just don't like you". 

Over the last few years I've interviewed probably 50 times and I feel like this is a very very standard interview question.  People have answered me lots of different ways but I always appreciated a pointed answer because it gave me something to work on and little understanding as to how I stack up against other candidates. 

ahoywedding

lovesclimbing said:

Ask a Manager has actually answered questions like this a few times. She recommends that people don't ask it for the same reasons you state and recommends responding pretty much how PPs said. 

Here are links. https://www.askamanager.org/2011/07/asking-hard-sell-closing-questions-in-job-interviews.html

https://www.askamanager.org/2015/03/when-a-job-candidate-asks-so-what-did-you-think-of-me.html

Ahh thank you for this! I was looking for a discussion board or advice column type thing that addressed this question!

charlotte989875

ahoywedding said:

lovesclimbing said:

Ask a Manager has actually answered questions like this a few times. She recommends that people don't ask it for the same reasons you state and recommends responding pretty much how PPs said. 

Here are links. https://www.askamanager.org/2011/07/asking-hard-sell-closing-questions-in-job-interviews.html

https://www.askamanager.org/2015/03/when-a-job-candidate-asks-so-what-did-you-think-of-me.html

Ahh thank you for this! I was looking for a discussion board or advice column type thing that addressed this question!

I actually don’t think the question is that bad and IMO if companies/hiring managers have candidates a better sense of what they’re looking for and/or how candidates are doing people wouldn’t ask these types of questions. 

ernursej

I've been asked that before and have always said, "anyone shortlisted for the interview process has at least some of the skills/attributes we are looking for."

ahoywedding

charlotte989875 said:

ahoywedding said:

lovesclimbing said:

Ask a Manager has actually answered questions like this a few times. She recommends that people don't ask it for the same reasons you state and recommends responding pretty much how PPs said. 

Here are links. https://www.askamanager.org/2011/07/asking-hard-sell-closing-questions-in-job-interviews.html

https://www.askamanager.org/2015/03/when-a-job-candidate-asks-so-what-did-you-think-of-me.html

Ahh thank you for this! I was looking for a discussion board or advice column type thing that addressed this question!

I actually don’t think the question is that bad and IMO if companies/hiring managers have candidates a better sense of what they’re looking for and/or how candidates are doing people wouldn’t ask these types of questions. 

For me the problem comes in when someone technically does meet our on-paper requirements, but I don't think they'd be a good fit personality-wise, or they don't have the soft skills necessary for the job. I don't want to totally shut someone down when they're in for an interview, but I'd also hate to give any impression that an offer IS coming when I know it's not. If it makes a difference, we provide extensive feedback to our HR partners, and as far as I know they share that information with the candidates we don't select when they call to let them know. We've had mass hiring days in the past and some of our top choices ended up declining the offer, so we had to make offers to people lower down on our list. If I would have given those people any indication that I wasn't interested, they may not have accepted the offer either.

lovesclimbing

charlotte989875 said:

ahoywedding said:

lovesclimbing said:

Ask a Manager has actually answered questions like this a few times. She recommends that people don't ask it for the same reasons you state and recommends responding pretty much how PPs said. 

Here are links. https://www.askamanager.org/2011/07/asking-hard-sell-closing-questions-in-job-interviews.html

https://www.askamanager.org/2015/03/when-a-job-candidate-asks-so-what-did-you-think-of-me.html

Ahh thank you for this! I was looking for a discussion board or advice column type thing that addressed this question!

I actually don’t think the question is that bad and IMO if companies/hiring managers have candidates a better sense of what they’re looking for and/or how candidates are doing people wouldn’t ask these types of questions. 

I partially agree with you, but I also understand the flip side of the coin that Ask a Manager points out. What if you're really positive about them and that they're really great, but then you get five new applications tomorrow or interview a couple more people tomorrow where those people prove to be way better. Now you've given the first guy a false sense of security. Or you tell them they're the best so far, but then you know so-and-so who used to work with him who isn't on the reference list, but you know them so you chat anyway and find out he was fired for stealing. He's expecting a job offer based on what you said and then he gets a rejection. And you get emails asking why, if they're so great, they were rejected. 

I can see why hiring managers want to be vague. 

charlotte989875

ahoywedding said:

charlotte989875 said:

ahoywedding said:

lovesclimbing said:

Ask a Manager has actually answered questions like this a few times. She recommends that people don't ask it for the same reasons you state and recommends responding pretty much how PPs said. 

Here are links. https://www.askamanager.org/2011/07/asking-hard-sell-closing-questions-in-job-interviews.html

https://www.askamanager.org/2015/03/when-a-job-candidate-asks-so-what-did-you-think-of-me.html

Ahh thank you for this! I was looking for a discussion board or advice column type thing that addressed this question!

I actually don’t think the question is that bad and IMO if companies/hiring managers have candidates a better sense of what they’re looking for and/or how candidates are doing people wouldn’t ask these types of questions. 

For me the problem comes in when someone technically does meet our on-paper requirements, but I don't think they'd be a good fit personality-wise, or they don't have the soft skills necessary for the job. I don't want to totally shut someone down when they're in for an interview, but I'd also hate to give any impression that an offer IS coming when I know it's not. If it makes a difference, we provide extensive feedback to our HR partners, and as far as I know they share that information with the candidates we don't select when they call to let them know. We've had mass hiring days in the past and some of our top choices ended up declining the offer, so we had to make offers to people lower down on our list. If I would have given those people any indication that I wasn't interested, they may not have accepted the offer either.

I think this is far more feedback than most companies provide, and is guessnis not the norm. And I definitely understand the tension and risks, but I think often companies/HMs provide little to no feedback throughout the process (and if any feedback is given it’s after an offer has been accepted), which is what, writ large, leads to these types of questions. 

charlotte989875

lovesclimbing said:

charlotte989875 said:

ahoywedding said:

lovesclimbing said:

Ask a Manager has actually answered questions like this a few times. She recommends that people don't ask it for the same reasons you state and recommends responding pretty much how PPs said. 

Here are links. https://www.askamanager.org/2011/07/asking-hard-sell-closing-questions-in-job-interviews.html

https://www.askamanager.org/2015/03/when-a-job-candidate-asks-so-what-did-you-think-of-me.html

Ahh thank you for this! I was looking for a discussion board or advice column type thing that addressed this question!

I actually don’t think the question is that bad and IMO if companies/hiring managers have candidates a better sense of what they’re looking for and/or how candidates are doing people wouldn’t ask these types of questions. 

I partially agree with you, but I also understand the flip side of the coin that Ask a Manager points out. What if you're really positive about them and that they're really great, but then you get five new applications tomorrow or interview a couple more people tomorrow where those people prove to be way better. Now you've given the first guy a false sense of security. Or you tell them they're the best so far, but then you know so-and-so who used to work with him who isn't on the reference list, but you know them so you chat anyway and find out he was fired for stealing. He's expecting a job offer based on what you said and then he gets a rejection. And you get emails asking why, if they're so great, they were rejected. 

I can see why hiring managers want to be vague. 

I think there’s a difference between being vague but informative  (“these are the general qualities we’re looking for, we think your skill set is impressive which is why we brought you in, this is the culture we have here, we’re still interviewing & doing reference calls”) and telling someone an offer is likely/coming/in the works if it isn’t. I totally get HMs/HR have to be extremely careful about what they say to candidates, but I also think there is a lot of needless uncertainty in the process that can/should be reduced. 

knottie7d6129cc92a62680

or you can say like: "you are some of the candidates that fulfilled our overall requirements for the moment, so we're calling you out for an interview to further examine and evaluate of whether you are qualified for the position we are offering." and if you're not sure of how the final result will be, maybe you can say like: "we need to have a discussion with the department in charge and we'll get back to you immediately once we've come up with a decision".

hope this helps

MyNameIsNot

I actually like receiving this question from candidates. I interview and hire a lot of entry-level candidates. The question impresses me from someone fresh out of college, because it suggests they're thinking maturely about the company and the role, not just need to get a job. (Or maybe they just pulled it off a website, but at least they're doing some preparation.) 

If there's a specific hard skill that I'm concerned about, I'll [nicely] tell them and give them an opportunity to explain their skills in that area. If it's more a matter of personality fit, I'll give the vague answer. Even when it is the rockstar that I know is getting an offer, I give the vague answer about more candidates to interview. 

charlotte989875

lovesclimbing said:

charlotte989875 said:

ahoywedding said:

lovesclimbing said:

Ask a Manager has actually answered questions like this a few times. She recommends that people don't ask it for the same reasons you state and recommends responding pretty much how PPs said. 

Here are links. https://www.askamanager.org/2011/07/asking-hard-sell-closing-questions-in-job-interviews.html

https://www.askamanager.org/2015/03/when-a-job-candidate-asks-so-what-did-you-think-of-me.html

Ahh thank you for this! I was looking for a discussion board or advice column type thing that addressed this question!

I actually don’t think the question is that bad and IMO if companies/hiring managers have candidates a better sense of what they’re looking for and/or how candidates are doing people wouldn’t ask these types of questions. 

I partially agree with you, but I also understand the flip side of the coin that Ask a Manager points out. What if you're really positive about them and that they're really great, but then you get five new applications tomorrow or interview a couple more people tomorrow where those people prove to be way better. Now you've given the first guy a false sense of security. Or you tell them they're the best so far, but then you know so-and-so who used to work with him who isn't on the reference list, but you know them so you chat anyway and find out he was fired for stealing. He's expecting a job offer based on what you said and then he gets a rejection. And you get emails asking why, if they're so great, they were rejected. 

I can see why hiring managers want to be vague. 

I think there’s a difference between being vague but informative  (“these are the general qualities we’re looking for, we think your skill set is impressive which is why we brought you in, this is the culture we have here, we’re still interviewing & doing reference calls”) and telling someone an offer is likely/coming/in the works if it isn’t. I totally get HMs/HR have to be extremely careful about what/how they talk with candidates, but I also think there’s a lot needless uncertainty in the process that can be reduced.