Position Name: Sales & Marketing
Interviewer
Candidate Name
Interview Date
Introductory Questions
– Interviewer(s) share name, role, tenure, and hand business cards for thank you messages – Share a brief overview of the company
– Give Candidate the Job Description, highlight Job Purpose, Schedule/Travel, Major Challenges & Key Decisions, and Physical Requirements
What type of environment do you thrive in? What type of management style do you enjoy most?
What do you know about our organization?
Transitional & Verification Questions
– Clarify any unclear information from resume or application
– Verify availability for work hours and schedule, start date, and other important details
What interests you about this role?
Technical Questions
– Ask job related questions, based on skills and competencies needed for the role
– Ask open ended questions that allow candidates to tell a story about a specific example
– Ask 5-10 questions based on the role and how much time you have (~3-4 minutes per question)
– Listen for recent examples, details, consistency, the candidate’s role in the story, and teamwork
– Take notes and ask clarifying questions as follow-ups
What specific areas (related to the position) do you consider yourself the most knowledgeable? What areas have you had less experience or do not feel as comfortable with?
Behavioral / Situational Questions
– Ask job related questions, based on skills and competencies needed for the role
– Ask open ended questions that allow candidates to tell a story about a specific example
– Ask 5-10 questions based on the role and how much time you have (~3-4 minutes per question)
– Listen for recent examples, details, consistency, the candidate’s role in the story, and teamwork
– Take notes and ask clarifying questions as follow-ups. Follow up questions may include:
- Tell us more about the action you took and the outcome.
- What did you say at that point?
- How did you react to that situation?
- Explain your role in more detail.
- Tell me in detail what steps you took.
- And what was the result?
- Describe the obstacles you faced in getting it done.
- What other options did you consider?
- Why do you think you reacted as you did?
- How do you think others felt about your actions at the time?
- Were you satisfied with the outcome of your actions?
- If the same or a similar situation presented itself, what would you do differently?
Business Acumen
Describe a situation where you successfully articulated the value proposition of a specific aspect of the business (or a product, idea, etc.)
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Communication
Give me an example of a time when circumstances changed the way you needed to communicate to others. What did you do and how did you do it?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Tell me about a time when you had to give instructions to another person who was having difficulty understanding. What did you do?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Customer Focused
Describe for me a recent time when a customer request could not be satisfied. What was the situation and how did you handle it?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Have you ever had to go the extra mile to satisfy a customer? Tell me what you did and what was the result?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
How do you go about understanding the expectations of your customer—internal and external? Walk me through an example with an actual customer.
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Describe a time when you successfully handled a customer complaint.
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Decision Making
Describe a decision you had to make when you were really torn between the alternatives. How did you finally decide? What was the outcome?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
What do you find most challenging about making a hard decision?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Emotional Intelligence
What do you do when you think someone is not listening to you? Give me an example of a time when that happened.
Situation:
Action:
Result:
What has been the most difficult criticism for you to receive?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Initiative
What self-development activities have you done on your own during the last three years?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
What types of work projects get you really excited? We all “geek out” about different things. What do you geek out about?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Integrity
Tell me about a time you were new to a company or work group. What steps did you take to build trust with coworkers and/or staff?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Judgement
Tell us about a mistake that you made, how you took ownership, and what steps you took to make it right.
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Tell us about a time that you had to exercise significant control and decision making.
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Negotiation
What makes an effective negotiator? Give me an example of an effective situation you’ve negotiated.
Situation:
Action:
Result:
How do you compromise in negotiations? Give an example of where this has been effective.
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Results Orientation
What does it mean to you to be results-oriented?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Give me a specific example that demonstrates your reputation for success and quality performance.
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Tell me about the last successful project you led.
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Time Management
What time management tools do you use?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
How do you structure your day? Your week?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Teamwork/Team Building
When it comes to group dynamics, what do you believe hinders teamwork the most?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
What role do you enjoy playing when working on a team?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
How would you describe a successful team? What is the #1 thing that makes a team truly thrive?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
What do you think are the top fundamental values to building a strong team and why? How do you build these values into a team?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Collaboration
What collaboration tools do you find the most helpful for working on team projects and why? How do you use these tools?
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Describe a high-pressure work situation and how you handled it. Tell me what happened, who was involved and what you did in terms of problem solving.
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Describe an example where you enlisted active participation of others to solve a problem.
Situation:
Action:
Result:
Candidate’s Questions
– Be sure to leave time for their questions, generally 1-3
– Paint a positive but honest view of the pros and cons of the work and culture
Notes
Closing Questions
– Describe where you are in the process, next steps, and when they can expect to hear back
– Ask if they have any final remarks
What is one thing I should know about you that I haven’t asked?
Interviewer Assessment
Enter your overall assessment about the candidate’s knowledge, skills, abilities, and fit for this position.
Would you recommend this candidate advance in the process?