Sample Interview Questions

How to Prepare for Your Interview

The following questions are meant to be used as examples and are by no means exhaustive.

Company/Industry

1. What the company strengths from your perspective?
2. According to my research, __________, __________, and __________ are listed as your competitors. Who is the strongest in your view and why?
3. What drew you to the company?
4. What is the company's focus this year?
5. What are the company's goals?
6. What do you consider important in fitting in the company culture?
7. What are the growth trends of the industry?
8. Who do you feel will be the company's main competitor in the future?

Management

1. What are the characteristics of the best performers in your region?
2. What was the previous experience of the best person you have hired?
3. How long have you been with the company?
4. What has been your progression with the company?
5. What are the opportunities for career growth in the company?
6. What benchmarks do you use in evaluating your direct reports?

Position

1. What specific activities do you like to see each week?
2. Can you elaborate on the initial training that I will receive and additional training during the first year?
3. What market share does the company have nationally as well as in the territory?
4. How does our product differ from our competitors?
5. Why is the position available? (If a replacement, why is the person being replaced? If replacement for lack of achievement, what did the person do wrong or not do?)
6. What are realistic first year earnings for your top 20% performers?
7. Are there any special characteristics that make the territory more challenging than others?

Interviewing process

1. When would you like to see the position filled?
2. Is there a scheduled training class that this person would attend?
3. When would that scheduled training be?
4. When is the next stage of interviews scheduled for?
5. What other individuals will be involved in the interviewing process?
6. When should I follow up with you or my sales recruiter's search consultant?
7. Based on our conversation, do you believe I have the experience and skills to proceed to the next stage of the interview process?
8. How many candidates are you interviewing for this position?

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