Critical Interview Questions Regarding Objectives

The Cheshire Cat in Alice in Wonderland said:

“If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.” 

I say:

“If you don’t know the objectives in your new job you’ll probably fail.”

Why are your objectives so important?

Quite simply, getting your objectives accomplished is the only reason they hired you, it’s the only reason they’re paying you, and it’s the only thing they’re keeping you on board to do!

You better understand your objectives.

Okay, but how can you not know your objectives?

It’s not that difficult. If you’re being hired to replace someone who’s left, the person who’s hiring you may not even know what the person you’re replacing was doing.

Inexperienced managers may not fully grasp the concept of objectives and may not have thought them through.

Perhaps the hiring manager discussed objectives during the interview, but you were too busy selling yourself to catch them.

The most common problem is that the manager told you his objectives, but they’re different than those of his boss, and your coworkers. You may be blindly walking into oblivion following someone’s misguided objectives.

Use the Magic Moment to Understand Objectives

 Let’s start some post job offer questions for the hiring manager:

·         Is this a new position or am I replacing someone?

·         What happened to the person I replaced?

o   If it sounds like they were successful – What did they do that made them successful?

o   If it sounds like they failed – What did they do to fail?

·         How will I be measured?

o   What do you expect me to accomplish in the first month, six months, or year?

·         Do you use written objectives?

o   How often do they change

o   Do we discuss them or do you simply assign them?

·         What happens if we disagree?

·         Do you think everyone around here agrees with these objectives?

Imagine how much you just learned about the job offer you have in your hand just by asking these questions and listening to your potential new boss answer them. He may not give you a straight answer, but you’ll learn a lot about him in the process.

Repeat

Now take the same list of questions and ask his boss and anyone else you may have met during the interview cycle. Try and expand the list and talk to potential coworkers.

At this point you’ll have a very clear understanding of what it will take to succeed. You can decide if it sounds like something you want to take on. You will also have impressed everyone that you’ve talked to with your insight and wisdom.

Next Post – Money Questions for The Magic Moment