Essential Questions for Internal Job Candidates

I touched on all aspects of the job interview as an internal candidate in episode #202:

https://exclusivecareercoaching.com/posts/2021-11-10-202-how-to-prepare-for-the-interview-as-an-internal-candidate

In that episode, I spoke briefly about how to approach your questions for the interviewer – today I want to dive more deeply into this.

1.    You CANNOT be canned or generic.

One of the things I work with my interview coaching clients on is how to develop well-thought-out, unique questions that are based on your research of the company. Taking your questioning to the next level by asking specific questions that are not plug and play – meaning you won’t be asking these same questions in your next interview with a different company.

This is essential when you are an internal candidate. “Tell me about a typical day on the job” never really cuts it – but especially in this situation.

I have to say – I looked up what was online when I was preparing for this episode, and what I found was exclusively the generic, interchangeable stuff that is no different from the drivel being suggested for external candidates. I boldly say: Listen to ME on this one.

2.    Approach your questions from the perspective of “What do I ACTUALLY need to know to evaluate this opportunity?”

Assuming you aren’t in a desperate situation, such as your position is being eliminated and it’s either this role or the highway, you should be interviewing them just as much as they are interviewing you.

So many candidates develop questions they think will impress the interviewer – or they see this phase of the interview as a box to be checked, rather than a critical part of the process.

Of course, this point applies to external candidates, as well – but I felt it needed to be said.

3.    Start your questions with what you DO know.

Here’s an example:

“I’m very knowledgeable about our company’s customer service expectations and how we adhere to them in my current department, which works with external clients. How have you operationalized those expectations with your customer base, which is entirely internal?”

Here’s another example:

“I understand from speaking with some of the members of your team that a priority for your department is X. I think I have a pretty good idea of what my role in X would be, but could you fill in some details for me?”

4.    Ask follow-up questions, when appropriate, that continue to show your knowledge of the organization.

The more you speak to the interviewer as the internal candidate you are, the more they see you in their role.

Not every question will warrant follow-up, so use good judgment here.

Here are follow-up questions based on my previous initial questions:

“That makes complete sense that you have adapted the company’s policy of response time to make it even quicker for internal stakeholders to get a response from you! How do you measure success on this policy and how have you gotten your team onboard?”

“As I understand it, my role with X initially will be [rephrase what they said]. Do you see me becoming more involved with X after my first 90 days on the job?”

5.    Leverage transferability whenever possible.

Another tremendous tool at your fingertips as an internal candidate is showing the relevance of what you have done, and are doing, in your current role to the role you’re interviewing for.

This further positions you as an internal candidate who can get up to speed more quickly – and it will make you sound more intelligent.

Example:

Let’s say the interviewer asks, “Tell me about a situation when you had to help motivate a team you weren’t the leader of.”

Your answer:

“As you know, every department in the company has had a role to play in Project Z – and in our department, I was part of a team that was developing an application to help employees do ___. Our team was really struggling with ___, but instead of powering through, I sensed that the team was getting discouraged.”

Go on to tell the Actions, Results, and Lessons Learned for that behavioral answer.

In summary, the bar is higher when you are an internal candidate, in that your level of questioning HAS to be elevated – you don’t have an option to phone it in with generic questions. Do your homework and bring your A game.

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