Are you still interviewing like it’s the 1960s?
In the year 1960, 85 percent of Americans were employed by companies. Fast forward to today and 40 percent of the total global workforce is now made up of the gig economy. By 2023, 52 percent of people expect to be participating in the gig economy. People are no longer overwhelmingly interested in working full-time for any single employer, which means the mindset of today’s talent pool is changing. People don’t necessarily want to work in a traditional, full-time, W2 job, like they did 60 years ago.
So, why are companies still interviewing the same way? And worse, why are they still asking the same (or similar) questions?
As meaningless as meaningless questions are, the responses they elicit are equally as irrelevant. And around and around we go. It’s time to modernize the interview and ask better questions that get at the real heart of why someone would make a good fit for the job and for the company.
Try asking this, not that
– Ask this: Where do you see your biggest opportunity to make an impact?
– Not that: What is your biggest weakness?
– Ask this: What do others applaud you for?
– Not that: What is your greatest accomplishment?
– Ask this: Where do you aspire to be in the next 2 years?
– Not that: What celebrity are you most like?
– Ask this: What are three things that motivate you?
– Not that: Can you handle this position?
– Ask this: What would define a perfect job for you?
– Not that: Tell me about yourself.
Workplaces, like the workforce, are changing. The questions that used to be asked in the ‘60s, ‘70s, ‘80s and even up until just a few years ago no longer have a seat at the interview table. Modernize your techniques and find the right talent for the job, whether that be a full-time employee or a contractor, by asking better questions.