Do you have interview questions that you always ask? What are they, and why do you ask them?

1. Give me an example of a project that went poorly and tell me what you did to address it.

No one has all successes, so I'm looking for the individuals to be sufficiently aware of their abilities and experiences such that they can provide an example of a project that didn't go well. Next, I'm looking to see how they talk about responsibility: Do they take responsibility for any of what went wrong? I'm also looking to see their analytical ability: How did they approach the situation? How did they think about it? What did they consider or not consider? What skills and abilities did they contribute to resolve it? I'm looking to understand what role they did or didn't play in the project as well.

2. Give me an example of a project that went particularly well and why.

In essence, this is the inverse of my first question. It gives the candidates a chance to toot their own horn, which is easier to do than confront what went wrong. I'm looking to see how they describe what made the project successful. I'll probe to understand what parts of the project they were responsible for.

3. What brings you here today?

I generally phrase this question open ended like this, but if necessary I'll rephrase it and ask, Why are you looking to make a change now? Why do you to want to leave your gainful employment to take a chance on a new job? Why would you come talk to us? This line of questioning gives me a chance to see if the candidates have really thought about why they are making a job change. Also, it gives me a chance to see if they've done any research into who we are, what we do, and whether what we do is of interest to them. I'm looking for employees who subscribe to a higher ideal, who aren't just looking for a job that provides a paycheque, but for a job that connects to something more meaningful. In our case it is about helping people live better lives, and we want employees to get up in the morning to know that they are contributing to that goal.

I avoid asking "Microsoft" type questions. I was once interviewed for a job, and I got the litany of them from the hiring manager. For example, "Why are manhole covers round" type questions. Frankly, it turned me off royally. I didn't go to work there, and to this day I think this guy who interviewed me has real problems. I haven't followed it closely, but I believe that even Microsoft threw out that whole line of questions.