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"Dear Annie: I\u2019ve only been out of college a few years, and I was hired into my first real job (which I still have) by an on-campus recruiter at a career fair, so I don\u2019t have much experience with interviews. Now, I\u2019m looking around for something a bit more challenging. I have some tech skills that happen to be in demand right now, so I\u2019m getting interviews, and they\u2019ve mostly gone pretty well so far.\nMy problem is with the part of the discussion, usually at the end, when the hiring manager says, \u201CDo you have any questions?\u201D I research each company online beforehand, and can usually think of a few things to ask about industry trends or particular moves the company has made lately, but I keep feeling like my questions are too predictable (kind of boring, actually). What should I be asking? \u2014 Just Jerry\nDear J.J.: \u201CIf you talk to recruiters and executives who are actively hiring, they will tell you they get three types of questions: no questions, bad questions, and &amp;#8212; very rarely &amp;#8212; memorable questions,\u201D says Andrew Sobel. \u201CThe candidates asking the memorable questions are usually the ones who get job offers.\u201D\nSobel, co-author of a new book called Power Questions: Build Relationships, Win New Business, Influence Others, is a longtime consultant and coach to senior managers at companies like Citigroup \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\tC\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t, Xerox \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\txrx\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t, Cognizant \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\tctsh\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t, and Ernst &amp;#38; Young. He says a recruiter for a fast-growing tech company told him recently, \u201CYou\u2019d be surprised at how many job candidates have no questions at all, or they ask dumb questions like, \u2018So what do you do?&amp;#8217;\u201D\nMORE:\u00A0The 10 investment banks employees most want to quit\n\nThat\u2019s too bad, because asking the right things is \u201Chow you create a thought-provoking conversation, which puts you a cut above the average candidate,\u201D Sobel observes.\nWhile there is nothing at all wrong with what you\u2019ve been asking interviewers so far, he suggests adding a few of these to the mix:\n1. Why?\u00A0Questions like \u201CWhy did you close down your parts business rather than try to find a buyer for it?\u201D or \u201CWhy did you decide to move to a product-based organization structure?\u201D &amp;#8212; which it sounds as if you\u2019re already asking &amp;#8212; not only show you\u2019ve done your homework on the company and put some thought into it, but are open-ended enough to spark an interesting conversation. As a rule, Sobel advises avoiding any question someone could answer with a \u201Cyes\u201D or \u201Cno.\u201D\n2. What has been your experience here?\u00A0Without asking anything intrusive, you want to form a connection based on some understanding of the interviewer\u2019s situation.\nSobel recommends something like, \u201CI understand you joined the company five years ago. With all the growth you\u2019ve had, how do you find the experience of working here now compared to when you started?\u201D Or try: \u201CWhat do you like most about working here?\u201D\n3. Show your value. In the interest of making the discussion a two-way street, think about mentioning a technique or process you\u2019ve learned from your current job that a prospective employer might benefit from adopting.\u00A0Obviously, with this approach, you have to be careful not to reveal proprietary information or give away any secrets.\nMORE:\u00A0The one job banks and hedge funds can&amp;#8217;t fill\n4. Focus on the future. Ask something like, \u201CYou\u2019ve achieved large productivity gains in the past three years. Where do you believe future operational improvements will come from?&amp;#8221; or \u201CLooking ahead to the next couple of years, what are the potential growth areas that people in the company are most excited about?\u201D Not incidentally, the answers could give you a sense of where your own career path could lead if you get hired.\n5. Find out about the culture. You can learn a lot about what it would be like to work at a company, Sobel says, by asking, \u201CWhat are the most common reasons why new hires don\u2019t work out here?\u201D or, conversely, \u201CWhat kinds of people really thrive in your organization?\u201D Along similar lines, \u201CWhy do people come to work for you rather than a competitor, and why do you think they stay?\u201D could yield some valuable insights.\n6. What are the interviewer\u2019s selection criteria? Sobel says you should ask, \u201CIf you were to narrow the field to two final candidates for this job, with equal experience and skills, how would you choose one over the other?\u201D You may not get a totally candid answer (the truth might be, for example, that the candidate with the lower salary requirement would win out), but you still might learn something worth knowing.\nThe right questions, Sobel says, \u201Callow you to demonstrate your knowledge without sounding arrogant, and they greatly improve your chances of hearing the best question of all &amp;#8212; \u2018How soon can you start?\u2019\u201D\nTalkback: What questions did you ask in your last job interview? If you\u2019re a hiring manager, which questions from candidates impress you most (or least)? Leave a comment below."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://fortune.com/2012/03/16/6-questions-to-ask-a-job-interviewer/?section=money_pf>