Somehow, over the years, although I’ve mostly been an IT manager, I’ve become something of a go-to person among HR and recruiting professionals. Probably because every manager needs to know how to hire the right specialists for their team.
For a few years now, I’ve been actively recommending the book “To Hire or Not to Hire?“ by Konstantin Borisov. It’s concise and very clear, covering most hiring-related topics in our field.
That said, there are a number of points that often don’t get the attention they deserve—and I’ve promised more than once in various discussions to eventually share my own approach. It seems that time has come.
Let me start by saying that I don’t claim to have the one true way. I’m not writing a book—just sharing a few tips that have worked well for me personally, though others may have different needs and approaches. In addition to general principles, I’ll also go over some of the questions I ask in interviews. And I’ll only include those I came up with myself—not ones I read in books or picked up from courses, but questions I arrived at through my own reasoning (though many of them have since been adopted by colleagues).
As I mentioned earlier, I’ve been involved in hiring for about 25 years now, with varying levels of involvement and quality over time. To improve my skills, I’ve taken several recruitment courses and even earned a certification from DDI. That said, I don’t follow a single method “by the book.” Instead, I took what I learned and built my own interview process—one that feels natural to me and consistently gives the best results in my case. That’s why I believe no one should blindly follow all advice either; you need to try things out and see what works best for you and your goals.
So, let’s begin.
WHY DO WE EVEN INTERVIEW?
Let’s start by talking about why we conduct interviews in the first place. You might think I’m joking—obviously, we interview people to find a new team member. And yes, that’s true. But the way many people act during interviews suggests they forget that goal within the first few minutes.
I’ve seen plenty of interviews—both as a candidate and as one of the hiring managers—where the interviewer spends a huge chunk of time talking about their team, their project, the tools they use, their cutting-edge technology, and so on. All of that is great. But if you have one hour and spend 45 minutes presenting your project, what exactly will you be left with once the call ends?
So let’s remember: the goal of any interview is to answer a few critical questions—Should we hire this person? How can they help us? What are the risks? What didn’t we manage to figure out, and how can we follow up on that? In the end, as Konstantin Borisov put it in the title of his book: To hire or not to hire?
And that’s something we need to keep in mind at all times. Getting a candidate interested in the role is useful—but only once you’re confident you want them. Not instead of that.
PREPARING FOR THE MEETING
Unfortunately, many hiring managers do little to no preparation for the interview. At best, they skim the candidate’s résumé. And that’s a serious mistake, because if you’re unprepared, you’ll either miss asking key questions or waste interview time trying to come up with them on the fly.
That’s why I always recommend spending at least 10–20 minutes preparing. Start, of course, by reviewing the résumé. Look at the candidate’s experience—where they worked and for how long. Write down anything that stands out or raises questions specifically for your role—those will become your follow-up questions during the interview.
If I have time, I also look the candidate up on social media. I know opinions on this vary, but I do it to get a sense of how the person behaves in public spaces. Sometimes just that quick look is enough to decide not to move forward. A résumé might look great, but once you see what someone posts or how they interact with others, it can become clear that you’re not on the same page—and that saves you time and stress.
One last thing—decide in advance who will be conducting the interview. Ideally, no more than two people from your side. Three against one is too much. You won’t get through all your questions, and the candidate may feel uncomfortable being outnumbered. A 1-on-1 format is ideal.
But if more than one of you is present, agree ahead of time who will focus on which topic and how you’ll hand over the conversation, so you don’t interrupt each other or come across as uncoordinated and unprofessional.
HOW TO CONDUCT THE INTERVIEW
Even though the main goal is to decide whether to hire the person or not, that doesn’t mean everything else can be ignored.
Interviews usually last an hour or an hour and a half. Anything longer tends to exhaust both sides—though I don’t mind a longer chat if the candidate is particularly interesting. Still, I try to stick to the idea that we have one hour.
My interview structure is fairly simple:
- Introductions
- Setting the ground rules
- Outlining the agenda
- The interview itself
- The closing part
I usually aim to get through the first three steps in about five minutes. I reserve the final 10–15 minutes for wrapping up. That leaves 40–45 minutes to assess the candidate. It’s important to track this time—your ability to manage it also tells the candidate something about you and your company.
Introductions are the easiest part. Start with yourself—who you are in the company, why you’re at the meeting, and your background in the industry. This gives the candidate a quick understanding of who they’re talking to. If there are multiple people from your side, everyone should introduce themselves—briefly. You can also give a very short overview of the company and the project, but keep it high-level.
Ground Rules usually start with how you’ll address each other—formally or informally. Personally, I dislike being addressed informally right away, even though I actually prefer informal communication once the tone is set. Second, let the candidate know you’ll be taking notes during the conversation (whether in person or over a call, where they might hear your keyboard). It’s a small courtesy, but it shows respect.
If the interview is held via a call, I strongly recommend that all participants turn on their cameras. It makes you more human, not just a faceless voice. And video lets you pick up on all kinds of nonverbal cues from the candidate—their expressions, body language, and so on.
In a remote call, it’s also important to clarify whether the meeting will be recorded and if the candidate consents to it. If they don’t, don’t insist.
The next step of the introduction is outlining the agenda. Many people skip this part, but that’s a mistake. Setting a clear plan upfront answers unspoken questions and creates structure. There are different ways to do this, but I usually say: “For most of our time today, we’ll focus on your experience and background, since that’s our main goal. In the last 10–15 minutes, you’ll have a chance to ask anything you want about the company or the project, and I’ll be happy to answer—as long as it’s not confidential.”
These simple steps help the candidate understand how the meeting will go and allow them to relax a bit.
I won’t go into detail about the interview itself here, since I’ll describe the key points later. Just don’t forget the questions you’ve prepared—your goal is to figure out whether this person is a good fit. And don’t lose sight of the notes you made during your prep.
The closing part is just as important as the opening. It gives the candidate a chance to learn more about you by asking any questions they might have. Here are a few key things to keep in mind:
- By simply answering their questions, you can either increase the candidate’s interest in joining your team—or push them away. It all depends on how you respond and how sincere you come across.
- Just listening to their questions can tell you a lot about the person and their motivations. Candidates tend to ask about what truly matters to them—which gives you clues about what they’re looking for, what drives them, and what potential risks might be involved if you hire them.
Common topics here include working hours, equipment, vacation policy, benefits… sometimes even internal processes, the professionalism of colleagues, tools used, and the company’s stance on AI technologies. And so on.
And finally, when wrapping up the meeting, clearly explain what happens next. I recommend being honest. If you plan to make a decision in 1–2 weeks, say that—don’t just offer a vague “we’ll be in touch.” If you already know the candidate isn’t a fit, you can say so gently or indirectly. But don’t promise to follow up if you know you won’t. Even a “no” can be delivered respectfully.
One general comment on the whole interview: always be respectful. Even if it’s clear the candidate isn’t right for the role, take the time to explain the vacancy and the company. They might grow into the role in the future—or they might simply tell others how professional the interview was. Because beyond just hiring, you’re also leaving the candidate with an impression of your company—and of you.
And now, let’s take a closer look at a few specific parts of the conversation about the candidate.
WORK EXPERIENCE, PREVIOUS EMPLOYERS, AND PROJECTS
Since I usually hire for leadership roles (from leads to managers), I almost never ask technical questions. But here’s one piece of advice: if you really want to assess technical skills, either give a small test assignment or ask open-ended questions that require reasoning—just not the kind with a single “correct” answer. Correct answers can be memorized or fed in real time by ChatGPT on a second screen. And in the end, you’ll get nothing of real value.
What I’m always interested in, though, is what exactly the candidate did at their previous jobs—what their responsibilities were, why they left, how their relationship with the team developed, and how they speak about former colleagues.
Recently, I’ve been seeing more and more cases of candidates misrepresenting their employment history. And while I understand that dishonest recruiters and inflated job requirements often push candidates to “touch up” their résumés just to get past the initial screening, I personally believe: if someone lies once, they’ll lie again. And once trust is gone, I can’t work with that person. That’s one of the reasons I make a point of having at least a brief discussion about their previous jobs.
I like to probe with questions like: “What exactly did you do?”, “How did your contribution improve the product?”, “Which of your former colleagues would praise your work, and why?” All of these are asked in a positive tone, but they’re hard to answer with vague generalities. On the one hand, this reveals real experience and strengths. On the other, it helps spot candidates who are taking credit for work they didn’t actually do.
In addition, I strongly believe in checking references—not to “catch” someone lying (though I do know a few people who uncovered outright falsehoods this way), but because former employers can share useful insights. Sometimes they’ll mention traits that may not matter to you at all—or ones that could help you assess risk and keep an eye on certain things during the probation period.
MY QUESTIONS: WHAT I ASK AND WHY
Now we come to what’s probably the most interesting part—what questions I actually ask. I’ve been asked about them several times.
I’m not afraid to share my questions, because knowing them in advance gives a candidate very little advantage. Sure, the element of surprise might be gone, but that’s not the main point. There are no “correct” answers to these questions. What matters much more to me is how the candidate reacts, what they say, and how they say it.
I have quite a few questions, but I’ll stick to my favorites—the ones I ask almost every time. Some of them I call “double taps” because they come as a pair: two questions asked back-to-back.
1. Double Tap: “What Former Colleagues Think”
We’re all used to hearing the classic interview question: “What would your former colleagues say about you in a positive sense?” I ask that one too. It’s a pleasant question—talking about your strengths tends to put people at ease.
But then I follow it up with the second question: “And what might your former colleagues say about you that’s negative?”
What do I get from this? I believe there are no perfect people. Everyone has their quirks and drawbacks. And if a person is willing to speak openly about theirs, it’s a strong sign they’re also capable of owning their mistakes—instead of blaming others. It also gives you insight into their personality traits. Sometimes those “negatives” might actually be positives in your context (for example, “I’m overly meticulous”—which can be a great asset in certain roles). Or they might be neutral but useful to know in advance (like “I tend to push back on ideas at first, but usually come back the next day with a more balanced view”).
2. Scenario: “Handling Conflict”
This one isn’t entirely my own invention, but over time I’ve turned it into a near-essential part of the interview.
Whether someone is a manager or an individual contributor, I want to understand how they behave under pressure or in uncomfortable situations. For non-managerial roles, I might leave this to the team leads, but when it comes to managers, I always ask about it. It’s not even a question, really—it’s a request: “Tell me about a conflict situation you’ve experienced at work.”
If someone’s been working for any length of time, they’ve definitely faced some kind of conflict. Maybe they disagreed with someone, maybe something didn’t sit right with them. What’s important for me is to hear what they define as a conflict, why it was a conflict for them specifically, and—crucially—what they personally did to resolve it. I usually finish with a follow-up: “If you had the chance to go back now, what would you do differently?”
The purpose behind these questions is pretty clear: I want to understand how the person works with others, how they handle tension, whether they’re willing to solve problems themselves, or if they’ll always look for someone more senior to jump in (or worse—just wait around hoping someone else notices and fixes it). These may seem like small things, but they add up quickly and can heavily affect your own work rhythm as a manager.
I also include an additional question in this area if I want to dig deeper—not just about conflict, but about interaction with the team (if the candidate is a manager or a lead): “Tell me about a situation where your team disagreed with you, and you managed to convince them you were right.” This kind of story can be a real treasure trove of insights about the candidate.
3. Double Tap: “Good/Bad Manager”
Since most of the time you’re interviewing someone who’ll be reporting either to you or to someone on your team, it’s important to understand how that working relationship might take shape. Some of this you can pick up from their answers, some you’ll only learn during the probation period.
But why not ask directly? So I usually ask: “Which of your past managers—or well-known figures—do you consider to be a truly good leader, and why?” Then I may follow it up with a complementary question about a bad manager.
The result? You get a better understanding of the candidate’s motivations, communication preferences, approach to proactivity, and maybe even insights into how they deal with conflict and resolution. The answer to this kind of question can reveal just about anything.
4. Double Tap: “Achievements”
Everyone loves talking about their achievements—even if, in reality, those achievements belonged more to their colleagues or team.
But I ask just one very specific question: “What do you consider your single greatest achievement?” The key here is that it must be just one—the most important one. And if the person hesitates, I clarify: it doesn’t have to be work-related; personal life is perfectly acceptable too.
Some people have told me there’s no point in asking about personal achievements because they won’t reveal anything about professional qualities. I strongly disagree. My goal isn’t to assess what someone has accomplished at work—after all, what counts as an achievement today might change tomorrow. What matters to me is what they choose as the most important thing in their life. Then I follow up with: Why that one? Why do you consider this your most meaningful accomplishment? This is a question about motivation—what drives the person, what matters most to them.
And if they consider it an achievement, I want to know what exactly they did to make it happen. Sometimes I hear things like “we accomplished this or that.” That can be a red flag—people who didn’t do much themselves often try to hide behind “we.” But on the flip side, experienced managers sometimes say “we” because they genuinely see their success as a team effort and don’t want to take sole credit. That’s why I always follow up with: “What specifically did you do to make that happen?” It helps clarify things.
But I don’t stop at this fairly standard question. After we’ve touched on their moment of pride, I ask a reverse question: “What has been your biggest failure over the years? What are you most ashamed of, and why?”
Again, this is a question about openness and the ability to own your mistakes. If someone says they’ve never failed, I don’t believe it. Everyone has made mistakes. The real question is whether they’re willing to talk about them, and how. What do they consider a failure—and why? What would they do differently today? I think the intent behind this one speaks for itself.
5. Scenario: “Multiple Offers”
This is one of my favorite questions to ask at the very end of the interview: “Imagine that tonight you receive several job offers from different companies. Each one is very different. What will you base your decision on?”
Once again, this is about motivation, because their selection criteria immediately reveal what really matters to them. But it’s important not to let the candidate get away with vague answers like “the team” or “the project.” I always follow up: “The team—that’s interesting, but what exactly matters to you in a team? And more importantly, how would you recognize that just from a job offer?” Same with “the project”—I ask them to clarify what aspects are important and how they’d evaluate them. That’s when people usually start giving more concrete, thoughtful answers.
Interestingly, in all the time I’ve been asking this question, only a handful of candidates have said that salary would be their top priority.
JOB OFFER AND PROBATION PERIOD
To wrap up this short article, I’d like to talk about the next steps—what happens when you decide you like the candidate and are ready to make an offer.
Personally, I’ve trained myself to pause at this stage—and I always ask my team to do the same. Take a breath and think about one key thing.
Risks. What did you notice during the interview that made you uneasy? Why could that be a risk? Is it really a risk for this role, or just a quirk in communication style? Most importantly—how can this risk be tested during the probation period? What will you do if it turns out to be a real issue?
As you can see, this immediately shifts your view of the probation period—it’s not a formality. And yet, in my experience, many people treat it as just the first few months of work, often with reduced pay. But the word probation exists for a reason—it’s a period to test. And not just the candidate, but yourself as well. This is a time when both sides are learning about each other and figuring out whether they’re a good match. And if, at the end of it, the candidate says it isn’t working out and it’s better to part ways—that’s actually a plus in my eyes. It shows maturity and self-awareness.
Now, about that reduced salary—to me, that’s a serious red flag. Early in my hiring days, a candidate asked me a very reasonable question that I’ve never forgotten: “Why is the company planning to pay me less during the probation period if I’ll be doing the exact same job as after it ends?” And I didn’t have a good answer.
Since then, I’ve become firmly opposed to reduced pay during probation. Pay people what they’re worth. If they’re not a fit, you’ll let them go. And if they are, they’ll see right away that you valued them as a professional from day one.
POST SCRIPTUM
Let me end by saying once again—this is just my personal experience, and I don’t claim to hold the ultimate truth. These approaches have helped me in hiring, and I’m sharing them here in the hope that they might be useful to others as well. But if you’ve found your own way—or if something I’ve said doesn’t quite work for you—that’s perfectly fine. What matters most is that you understand why you do things a certain way, instead of blindly copying one of the countless “best practices” from “top recruiters of all time.”
Good luck finding the candidates who are truly right for you.
