What Does HR Look For In Interviews
The ultimate HR interview guide for people looking to succeed in every application process
Being called for an interview is wonderful news, thus it means your profile matched what recruiters were looking for in written applications. You might feel nervous and a little anxious, this is completely normal. But don’t let these feelings take the best of you during your interview.
To help you feel confident and qualified, we wrote this useful post. Below you can read about what the human resources interview process typically looks like, the most common HR interview questions someone will probably ask you, as well as some excellent job interview tips worth having in mind at all times.
Human Resources Interview Process
Each company has a unique human resources interview process. After they take a look at your resume and cover letter, you might be asked for an in-office interview or a phone/video interview.
Plus, you can be called for various interviews as the application process extends. If you had a phone interview last week, you might be asked to visit the office for a one-on-one interview in the next few days.
After this, some companies move on to group interviews to evaluate how you behave with others if you know how to listen and when to speak as well as if you’re able to state your ideas above the rest respectfully and smartly.
Whatever the process might look for the company you’re applying to, the questions asked are very similar between businesses. Keep on reading to find out which are the most common questions as well as excellent job interview tips.
Potential HR Interview Questions & How To Answer Them
Whether you’ve been called for an in-office interview, an informal interview, a phone or video call interview, or any other interview variant, it is recommended that you spend time practicing answering potential questions HR might ask you.
No matter the type of job or industry, there are some common questions all recruiters ask in job interviews. Here are some of them, and the best way to answer them.
Tell me a little bit about yourself. You will be asked this, so you better have a quick, and interesting answer already prepared. Skip saying your name, thus HR will already know this. Instead, you can say something like this:
“I’m an experienced worker with experience in X field. I love doing X and X in my free time and I look forward to doing X with my life”.
If the hiring manager wants to go more in-depth with your personal life, they’ll ask specific questions that you’ll answer more easily.
Why do you want to work for the company/Why did you apply with us. You can’t go into an HR interview without knowing a little bit about the company. Recent accomplishments, partnerships, and general information that all employees should know is recommended that you memorize.
Why did you leave your current job. It is important to be transparent with this answer and speak positively about your current job position. If an issue appeared that forced you to leave your job, try to explain it respectfully and positively, rather than telling bad things about your previous workplace.
What makes you a qualified candidate. When they ask this, it is your time to shine. Explain why you are a suitable candidate highlighting your skills and abilities as well as your work experience and how you deal with common issues. If you have a successful anecdote about how you solved a company issue, briefly comment it.
Do you have any questions you’d like to ask me. Have at least 2-3 questions to ask to show your enthusiasm and that you can take the lead on making things clear. You can ask about what their ideal candidate looks like, how they work to create a respectful and diverse workplace, and similar.
Job Interview Tips
If you’ve been called for an interview or just like to be prepared for when the time comes, here are some useful HR interview tips you can apply to your next call back.
Starting with the basics, the number one human resources interview tip you should have in mind is to carefully read and memorize the job description and your resume.
Arriving at the interview with little knowledge about this will only show hiring managers that you’re not fully committed to the job and that you did not take the time to even read the full description.
Apart from this, arrive 10-15 minutes early for your interview. Not only will this show that you’re punctual (something you want recruiters to know!), but also will help if, on the day of your interview, there’s suddenly a lot of traffic or complication with public transport. It is always best to be a little early rather than arrive late.
If something unexpected happens and you know you’ll be late or have to cancel your interview, make sure you know who to call or email. When you schedule your interview, ask if you can use that number or email for emergency communications.
Finally, practice your answers to have an idea of how much time you need to spend talking about certain things, as well as to ease your nerves.
HR Interviews Conclusion
In this post, we talked about what HR typically looks for in interviews, focusing on their application process, common questions they ask, and valuable job interview tips to have in mind.
Practicing with some time in advance can help you prepare better for your interview, in terms of timing your answers, knowing what to say, and similar. Most of the time, personal and company-related questions tend to be more difficult to answer compared to technical questions about one’s role or tasks.
The questions mentioned in this post can be of great help when practicing how to talk about yourself without sounding repetitive or not very interesting. Studies show that practicing in front of the mirror can also aid, so we recommend you try it too.