Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and should not be taken as professional career or legal advice. Always consider your personal situation and consult with a qualified expert before making employment decisions.
Questions to ask a recruiter play a crucial role in today’s hiring process, helping to avoid wasting time interviewing individuals who aren’t a good fit for the job or the company. To aid in this goal, many recruiters use a simple phone screen technique, asking questions of a potential applicant that determine whether they move forward in the interview process.
But this phone call works both ways, giving you, as the applicant, the chance to decide if you think the job is a good match for your career aspirations by asking the right Issues to the recruiter.
Please don’t be nervous about turning the tables on the recruiter and quizzing them. It’s actually mutually beneficial! The correct queries to ask a hiring manager save you both time and effort, avoiding a job that you won’t stay in long or may not be happy at. During your next recruiter phone screen, consider asking a few of these 18 questions to clarify the work environment and position before you agree to an interview.
7 Questions About the Position
Recruiters have an insight into the job that you don’t get to see yet. They are in a balanced position where their duty lies in finding you the right career opening, but also ensuring they don’t waste the employer’s time with the wrong candidate. For those reasons, they’re more likely to be upfront with you if you ask the correct questions of the recruiter.
Part of knowing what to ask involves the field you’re in. For instance, this article by Obsidi dives into industry-specific questions for people in the tech job hunt. But you can use this list for more general questions fit for any job.
- What are the job duties for this position?
- What would a typical day on the Occupation look like for me?
- What types of projects would I be working on, and who would I be working with?
- What hard and soft skills would the ideal person for this role have?
- What are the typical challenges that someone in this role would face?
- Does this role play an integral part in the company’s goals?
- Is there room for growth from this position?
These Queries to ask a recruiter not only help you get a better grasp on what you’d be doing if you accepted the Occupation, but they also guide you as to the importance of your role in relation to. From there, you can decide whether you are willing to take on the responsibilities and if it aligns with your career goals.
Tell Me About the Employer in 7 Questions
Now that we understand more about the connection between job satisfaction and mental health, many people are cautious about who they work for. When you know what you value, you want to ensure the employer shares those same focal points. For example, suppose diversity and inclusion are crucial to you. In that case, this is your opportunity to ask the recruiter if the corporation is recognized as a safe and inclusive workplace by using the right questions.
Use these Issues to learn more about the corporation and the atmosphere of the people you’d be working with if you accept the job:
- What are the company’s values/mission targets?
- How do people describe the workplace culture?
- What is the team like that I’d be working with? Do they prefer individual work or a team community?
- Who would I be reporting to directly?
- What kind of professional development does the organization offer? Do they encourage or reward professional growth outside of their organization?
- Does the organization tend to promote from within or look outside for upper-level position openings?
- What kinds of DEI policies does the organization include in its workplace policies?
With the answers to these Queries to ask the recruiter, it’s easier to see if the employer’s values align with yours. If you don’t think you’ll fit in with the overall company culture, you can let the recruiter know, and keep looking for the right job where you’ll be satisfied and valued during the selecting process.
4 Questions to Understand What the Hiring Process Looks Like
Still interested in the Occupation after asking your previous questions? The last section to understand is what comes next.
Before you hang up, ask the recruiter what you can expect.
- Will you receive an email or phone call from the corporation?
- Should you submit a resume and application?
- What’s the general timeline for this company’s hiring process?
- When can you expect to hear from the recruiter?
With these short Queries to ask a hiring manager, you have an idea of how to proceed, taking out much of the confusion and uncertainty that often comes with a potential job offer.
Conclusion
When a hiring manager calls you with a potential job, they’ve already determined you may fit the requirements. Now, it’s up to you to decide whether the position is what you’re looking for. By asking a handful of these 18 quick and practical questions, you can use this phone display to gauge your interest in the Occupation and the organization.
