Value Plus Inquiry

You’re in an interview, it’s going well, there are ten or so minutes left, and the interviewer turns it over to you.

“Do you have any questions for us?”

I think asking good questions in an interview is SO IMPORTANT. You should always, always have questions for your interviewers. I have a list of questions to ask in the works to post at a later date, but I wanted to take the chance to share a very powerful framework for asking hard hitting questions while also sharing a bit more about yourself.

Value plus Inquiry.

Very simply put, you express a value of yours and tie it into a question about the company.

Here is my go-to:

I have benefited immensely from positive mentorship in past roles, and have learned so much from some really excellent role models. Can you tell me a bit about the mentorship culture at [company]?

Now my interviewer knows several things about me: I have valued and continue to value learning, I am humble enough to know I would benefit from further instruction, and am looking for somewhere that will be conducive to that. The answer will also be exceptionally telling about the company and team. If my interviewer(s) jump at the chance to tell me all about their mentors, how teaching is facilitated across departments, and the cool new cross level buddy program their company has rolled out, that’s a pretty good sign. If there’s ten seconds of crippling silence and a half hearted explanation of a corporate mentorship program that they don’t participate in or know much about, that’s a strong indicator as well.

Some other value plus inquiry questions might include

·        One of the things I love most about [industry] is how dynamic it is, and how I’m still learning x years out of school. How does [company] facilitate continued learning for its staff?

·        I have a lot of passion for community outreach, and saw that [company] offers 8 billable volunteer hours each year to its employees. How else does [company] and its teams engage the community?

·        As a leader I feel really strongly about having the resources to meet my team where they’re at, particularly after the pandemic. How does [company] arm leaders to engage with and empower today’s modern workforce?

Now here’s the important part: You need to pick something you actually care about. The worst interview answer is one everyone can tell is fake.

Have you used this framing before in an interview? What are some values you ask about in interviews? Let me know at YourSTEMMentorBlog@gmail.com!