Interview questions: Do you have any questions for us?
Towards the end of a job interview, the hiring manager will likely ask if you have any questions for them. This is a great opportunity to clarify anything you may be unclear about to do with the role, the team or the company. It also shows you’ve given careful consideration to the job.
Asking thoughtful interview questions can help you decide if the company and role are a good fit for you. In this guide, we cover why interviewers ask this question and provide some example answers to give you a starting point.
What the interviewer wants to know
Most hiring managers will expect some end-of-interview queries from you, which is why they give you the opportunity to ask. While this may seem like they’re simply following interview etiquette, it’s also a way to get insight into how serious a candidate you are.
By asking questions such as, ‘How many people are in the team?’, and ‘Can you tell me more about the team’s objectives this year?’, you’re showing you’ve listened to them speak about the role, have done your research, and are genuinely interested in the position. Asking relevant questions also shows your critical-thinking skills in action.
How to prepare for the question
You can ease interview nerves by being well prepared. The more prepared you are, the more confident you’ll feel and the more competent you’ll seem to the hiring manager. Here are some tips to help you come up with good questions for the interviewer.
Research the company and role beforehand
It’s good practice to learn about an organisation before heading into a job interview. By taking a look at the company’s website and social media profiles, you get a better understanding of their culture, their size, their competitors and their main objectives. You may be interested to learn more about who you’ll be working with, any company events, or their commitment to training. Write down any questions that come to mind when you do your research.
Review the job description and make notes
Reviewing the job description is always a good idea before an interview. It allows you to brush up on the requirements of the role and become familiar with the essential criteria. It also gives you an opportunity to see if any important information is missing that you’d like to ask about, such as work hours, working location (on site, remote, hybrid, etc.), main day-to-day duties, and how performance is measured. Make notes of anything you’d like to know more about.
Make a list of questions and prioritise them
Based on your notes, write down a list of questions about the role and the company, then put them in order of importance. Realistically, there’ll only be time in the interview to ask up to three questions, depending on the seniority of the role, so choose the ones that are most important to you. When you have three top questions, commit them to memory and practice asking them out loud.
How to answer ‘Do you have any questions for us?’
The best way to answer, ‘Do you have any questions for us? is with a confident, is by saying yes, then asking your most important question first. Here’s how to interview your interviewer:
When asking your end-of-interview queries, it’s best to keep them open-ended. An open-ended question is one that can’t be answered by yes or no, and is more likely to naturally flow into a discussion.
Show interest in the interviewer’s responses, nodding and maintaining eye contact, and asking follow-up questions if you have them.
Take notes on the answer if you need to, if there’s an address, contact details or date you need to jot down.
If the job ad or interviewer mentioned something that piqued your interest, refer back to it. For example: ‘You mentioned AI tools earlier, which I’m really interested in exploring – how much would AI factor into the duties of this role?’
Questions to ask in an interview
Sometimes the hiring manager will answer your questions during the interview without you having to ask. In this case, you can ask for elaboration on the answer, you can have back-up questions ready, or you can improvise a new question.
Here are some examples of interview questions to ask:
About the role
What are the main responsibilities and priorities for this position?
What does a typical day or week look like in the role?
What are the biggest challenges someone in this position would face?
Did the previous person get promoted/leave or is it a new role?
Who would I be working with most in the team?
What sort of person do you see thriving in this role?
About the organisation
What are the company’s objectives this year, in general?
How would you describe the company or team culture?
In terms of culture, what would you say the company does better than any other company?
What would you say most people enjoy about working at this organisation?
About career development
What opportunities are there for career growth within the company?
How does the company offer ongoing training and development?
What would a typical path to leadership look like at the company?
What sort of on-the-job training is provided?
What would the next position up from this role be?
What not to ask for follow-up questions
There are some topics you should avoid when it’s your turn to ask questions in a job interview. If you’re in the second round of interviews, you can usually ask more probing questions, but for a first interview it’s better to steer clear of the following.
Some topics you should avoid asking interviewers about include:
Salary, benefits or holidays
Questions that could easily be answered through basic research, such as the company’s main products/services
Personal questions about the interviewer
Confidential information, like client information or revenue.
Preparing questions to ask in an interview is a good way to show your interest in a role and get an idea of the job and workplace culture. By preparing two or three interview questions, you not only learn more about the job, but get to show that you’re a serious candidate with good critical thinking and communication skills. Prepare your questions before the interview, so you can go in confident and make a strong impression on the hiring manager.
FAQs
Is it okay to bring a prepared list of questions to the interview?
It is okay if you really need to, but it would be unusual to bring a long list of questions to an interview. It is better to commit your top three questions to memory without a list, and follow up in an email after the interview. If you have forgotten your questions, you can use your notes as a reference and avoid reading directly from them.
What if the interviewer has already answered all my prepared questions?
If the interview has already answered all the questions you prepared, ask them for more information related to those topics. You can also improvise questions based on the conversation and your prior research. If you genuinely don’t have any questions, you can say something like, ‘I think you’ve covered everything for now; it all sounds great. If I have questions later on, is it okay if I email you?’
How many questions should I ask?
You should ask two to three questions at your interview. Ask open-ended questions that prompt descriptive answers that may flow into a discussion, rather than many questions that can be answered with a yes/no response.
What if I can’t think of any questions to ask?
It’s best to prepare a variety of questions before a job interview to help feel more confident and avoid going blank. If you get stuck, ask the interviewer about their own experience with the company or their role.
Is it okay to ask about the next steps in the hiring process?
Yes, it’s okay to ask about the next step in the hiring process at a job interview. This shows you’re interested in and excited for the role. A good way to ask about the next step in a hiring process is by asking about the timeline, when you can expect to hear back from them, and what you can expect moving forward.
