Hiring tech talent is a costly venture – and this trend is not likely to change any time soon. For instance, recruiting a developer can cost anywhere between more than $28,000 to nearly $36,000. So when you go through this process, you want to be sure you do it right the first time. Because having to rehire is even worse.
Although first-round interviews are at least one step away from your final hiring decision point, they are critical in narrowing the field of qualified candidates. So, you need to carefully consider the questions you ask. Your goal is to fully understand each individual’s past accomplishments and future goals, as well as their overall cultural alignment with your organization.
Here are some samples:
“What’s next for you?”
A candidate’s response to this question paints a clearer picture of what’s important to them in a role and why they’re seeking something new at this point in their career.
“What have you done recently that has shown a positive ROI?”
By making this inquiry, you can learn how well a candidate articulates their accomplishments and how adept they are at effective communication overall. There are other advantages as well: you’ll be able to better gauge if a person is persuasive without being boastful or arrogant, and their answer may help indicate how strong their leadership and teamwork skills are.
Last but not least, consider the specific example they give and the story they tell. Does it set them apart from the competition?
“What attracted you to this particular job?”
This question is a great way to see if a candidate has true enthusiasm for the job, or just applied without giving it a lot of thought. Likewise, are they truly invested in the possibility of joining your company for the long term?
“What has your typical experience as a member of a team looked like?”
Does your open job require an employee to work solo or as part of a cohesive team?
That’s a trick question for you – because in any role, there will be some degree of collaboration involved. Drill down until you feel confident a candidate can work with others to the degree needed to succeed in the role. With this and similar behavior-based questions, look for specific examples from a person’s past experience, backed by numbers and data that support their success stories.
“What questions do you have for us?”
The best candidates will have questions of their own. Those who are most thoughtful and interested in your opportunity will be the ones most likely to make intelligent, informative inquiries, which will lead to you keeping them in the running for the job.
As you build your industry-leading IT team, consider partnering with the hiring specialists at Venteon. Our Venteon Partners division focuses exclusively on sourcing top IT talent, empowering your business to streamline operations, increase capabilities, lessen demand on your valuable resources, and launch new technologies. Contact us today to learn more.