Job Interview FAQ: Do You Have any Question for Me?

Job Interview Preparation Tips

There's one question that is asked by an interviewer during a job interview to the candidate. They ask this question only if they are in their mind thinking of hiring the candidate, or shortlisting him or qualifying him for the next round.

So, if you are asked this question in a job interview then you know that your chances of getting hired has skyrocketed.

This question is, if I were to compare it with the game of cricket, like the last ball of the match were the candidate is the batsman and the interviewer is the bowler. Now, it's upto the candidate to either hit the ball for a six or just leave it.

You might be wondering what is this question?

I'll come to that in a minute. First let me highlight why this question is so very important.

This question is a big opportunity for the candidate to close the interview on a high note and that also in his favor. If he is well prepared and knows how to play the question or answer the question well he will be on top of the mind of the interviewer hours after the interview is over.

So finally let me reveal this question to you:

Do you have any questions for us?
Or, do you want to ask us any question?

Now on the face of it this question appears very casual, very innocent that is why the candidate is not able to grab this opportunity.

What do they do?

They simply say - no sir or o ma'am.

As a candidate for the job interview you have to understand that each question asked in the interview has a purpose and the interviewer wants to test you on a certain aspect that might be required for the job profile.

What's the impact of answering this question in the right manner during the job interviewer?

Before we get into that lets look at what you should not say as answer to this question:

NEVER SAY:

Will I have to come for work on Saturdays?

How many days leave will I get per year?

Will you give Diwali bonus?

Or any such question that will give an impression to the interviewer that you have not yet started your career and you are more bothered or concerned about such things.

These questions might be important for you but the interview platform is not the right place to ask these questions. You want the interviewer to think that you are serious about your career and not as someone who is bothered about personal comforts.

Now let's look at the right way to answer this question.

First of all let me tell you there's no one standard right way to give an impactful answer.

I will show you the way and you need to build your narrative.

Let me share with you a real life example from my training session.

Once I was called upon for a quick one and a half hour training session. There were a few candidates who had to attend a job interview in the afternoon session.

I didn't have much time. I trained them in answering FAQs in a job interview. And one of the questions was - Do you have any question to ask?

I shared with them how they should design their answers.

Next day one candidate came to meet me and shared that the interview had gone great and the interviewer had asked the question that we are discussing in the blog. I asked him how did he answer the question? He told me his answer and added that the interviewer was super impressed by his answer.

Here's the answer that the candidate gave to the interviewer in response to the interview question - Do you have any question for me?

Answer: Yes Sir. Can you please guide me on what other professional courses should I take up that wil help me build my career in this field?

This is not the exact words of the candidate. I have paraphrased it. But look at the answer. A fresher who is about to start his career is asking guidance from the interviewer related to his career. It sends a clear message that the candidate is sincere about his career and future prospects in this field. He wants to stay at the cutting edge of his chosen field.

This kind of answer is bound to impress the interviewer. This is the kind of answer that will come as a pleasant surprise to the interviewer.

Now this is not the only way to answer.

You can also ask about how your career graph will move up in the organisation if you are hired or what will your job responsibilities be if you are selected for the post.

Just think hard on the answer that you can give.

The interviewer may ask or may not ask this question. But as a job aspirant you must know how to answer this question that will make you stand out from the crowd.

Have you ever attended a job interview? If yes, did the interviewer ask you this kind of question? How did you answer this question? What other questions did they ask you and how did you answer them? I would like to hear from you.

****************