Essential HR Director Interview Preparation Guide

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I like new challenges and a chance to grow. As long I keeping getting these, I don’t think I’ll need to switch over. I’d like to believe that this relationship lasts for many years. However, I haven’t set a time limit as such.

All my bosses possessed some skills worth learning. I have always tried to learn something new from them including my previous boss.

I believe that an ideal remuneration for any position recognizes the ability, rewards the performance and provides the employee an opportunity to indulge in his hobbies and passions. I am sure that this company also takes care of these.

Admittedly, this HR interview question is a little silly. Even so, it’s another opportunity to underscore your motivation and work ethic. Kennedy advises acknowledging that you’d be thrilled to win the lottery but would still look for meaningful work because meeting challenges and achieving make you happy. And say it with a straight face.

You might feel that I possess more degrees than you require for this position. But, I believe that I grow everyday when I talk to my staff, customers and superiors. So, basically the learning process continues through out the life – I don’t think I am over qualified.

I was quite enthusiastic while joining my last job. Towards the end, the number of challenges and opportunity to grow further started diminishing. A challenge loving and growth oriented person like me doesn’t enjoy this.

Research the company and its business a bit before appearing for the interview. Also, find out a bit about the technologies they work upon. You don’t need to know everything inside out but having a fair idea about the company makes you appear interested in the position, to be taken seriously.

For e.g. I see that your company does a lot of projects based on OpenSource platforms like Joomla, Drupal, Magento which is quite interesting as I have a similar kind of experience.

“The real agenda for this HR interview question is assurance that you aren’t applying to every job opening in sight,” says Kennedy. She advises never mentioning another company by name or another job title because you want to highlight all the reasons you’re perfect for this job and that you’ll give it all of your attention if achieved. A good response would be: “This is where I want to work, and this job is what I want to do.”

The answer to this question lies in the preparation you did before the interview. It is extremely important that you research the requirements of the position well and match them with your skills.

For e.g. if the position requires an Asp.net developer with good knowledge of health care domain, tell the interviewer about your technical skills and your domain knowledge.

Fresh graduates can talk about their technical skills, ability to learn and grasp things quickly.

Kennedy says that, really, no one should be too taken aback by this HR interview question, as it’s one of the most basic interview questions and should always be anticipated. However, all too often interviewees either can’t come up with something on the spot or miss the opportunity to highlight their best skills and attributes. Kennedy says what the HR interviewer really wants is insight into how your mind works. Have an answer ready, like how you solved time management issues in order to take on a special assignment or complicated project that showcases an achievement.

The intention of this HR interview question is to decipher how much you really care about the job or if you’re simply going through the motions or winging it. Kennedy says the best way to answer is by saying, “I very much want this job, and of course researched it starting with the company website.” Beyond explaining how you’ve done your homework, show it. Reveal your knowledge of the industry, company or department by asking informed questions and commenting on recent developments.

Most of the times, the job of software development is that of working under pressure. Sometimes, it will be the pressure of delivering on time while it can be that of a bug that has sprung all of a sudden in your code.

So, expect pressure in everything you do. It is important to maintain your performance and develop strategies to deliver under pressure. You can then go ahead an talk about your way of dealing with pressure and performing under it.

You may want to leave your present job for any reason but make sure that you do not talk bad about your manager, company or job. It reflects your complaining attitude.

Provide a sincere reason for e.g. “I think, I have grown up with my last employer as much as I could. I want to grow further and I believe that is possible with a new employer.”

There are a few good ways to answer this question. It’s always ideal to highlight the characteristics you possess which work well for the position. Let your interviewer know that you are capable of fitting the position by illustrating your strengths. For example, letting your interviewer see that you have excellent interpersonal skills and communicate well, both in oral and written forms, is wonderful. Look back at the job posting and take notice of the characteristics they specifically mention. If you possess these attributes, bring them up when answering this question.

Don’t fall into this trap HR interview question. Kennedy says you always want to present yourself as optimistic and action-oriented, and hiring managers may use this question to tease out whether you’ll have trouble working with others or could drag down workplace morale and productivity. “Develop a poor memory for past irritations,” she advises. Reflect for a few seconds, and then say you can’t recall anything in particular. Go on to compliment former bosses for being knowledgeable and fair and commend past coworkers for their ability and attitude. It will reveal your positive outlook and self-control and how you’ll handle the social dynamics in this position.

“The real HR interview question is whether you are lying to and short-changing your current employer while looking for other work,” says Kennedy. The interviewer may wonder: If you’re cheating on your current boss, why wouldn’t you later cheat on me? She suggests placing the emphasis on why you’re interested in this position by saying you’re taking personal time and that you only interview for positions that are a terrific match. If further interviews are suggested, Kennedy advises mentioning that the search is confidential and asking to schedule follow-ups outside of normal working hours.

When I was a new HR manager, I had a hard time understanding how incentives and fringe benefits could be used to help recruit the most talented individuals. Instead, I focused on making sure that the salary offered was indicative of both the job candidate’s previous experience level as well as a genuine sign of the confidence that the company had in that person to grow and contribute to the vision of the corporation. As I continued as an HR manager, I came to see that the people we wanted to hire were more willing to take on the responsibilities and demands of their new positions when they were offered both a reasonable salary as well as signing bonuses and opportunities for performance-based bonuses throughout the year.

Again, it is important to study the requirements of the position before you appear for the interview. List out your strengths and offer the ones that this role demands.

For e.g. If you are appearing for the position of a Tech Lead – VB.net, talk about your VB.net skills, any extra knowledge which you have about coding with VB.net in comparison to other candidates, your team management skills etc.

There are many people who do not change their jobs for years and when they go out looking for a new employer, this is one of the most important questions they are asked. Some people might look upon staying with the same employer for long as “lack of ambition”.

A good answer to this question can be something like, “Yes, you are right. I stayed with my last employer for almost 5 years but I was continuously growing in the company, doing new things, handling bigger challenges. So, I was quite happy working with them for these many years.” You can then talk about how you grew with your last employer.

I believe that at one point of time in career salary becomes secondary and self actualisation become more important. While taking up any new job, it will be my priority to ensure that the work culture, chances to contribute and grow are sufficient along with the money I am paid. I also believe that any good company who cares about its employees ensures that they are paid well.

Yes, it happened once. I was quite friendly with a colleague of mine from the other department. While talking to him during the lunch hour, I casually told him about the new marketing strategy that the marketing team was thinking about. He mentioned it to his boss and that caused a lot of confusion between the two departments. This taught me a lesson that you must not discuss any departmental strategies with anyone from other department unless you have been authorised by your boss.

☛ What’s your experience with HR software?
☛ What do you know about EEO laws/FMLA/etc.?
☛ What KPI’s do you use to measure the effectiveness of the HR function?
☛ If you have to use three words to describe the role of an HR Director in a company, what would those be? Why?
☛ How do the company’s HR needs influence strategic planning?
☛ What do you do to ensure the HR department’s objectives are aligned with strategic goals?
☛ What is company culture to you? How would you maintain it as the company grows?
☛ What can HR do to influence the company culture?
☛ What steps would you take to ensure diversity in the organization?
☛ How do you stay current and ensure compliance with employment laws?
☛ What is your role in assisting other departments in improving their people practices and adhering to policies?
☛ Let’s assume you encounter a problem but there are no official guidelines for solving it. What is your course of action?
☛ If one of the managers under your supervision made a serious mistake, what would you do?
☛ Imagine one of the stakeholders is asking you to implement a policy while you think it will not benefit the company in the long run. How do you handle this?

☛ Describe a time you developed a new policy. What did you do to make it work successfully?
☛ Tell me about a time when you implemented an HR initiative, policy or program that didn’t stick. What should you have done differently to avoid that?
☛ Tell me about a time you were successful in driving positive change.
☛ Describe a time when a manager came to you with a problem they couldn’t solve. What did you do?
☛ Tell me about a time you had foreseen a problem with employees/union/vendors. How did you prevent it from escalating?
☛ What actions did you take to shape organizational culture in your past role?
☛ What do you think was your most important contribution to the workplace in your previous job?
☛ Describe me a situation where you had serious challenges and road-blocks in doing your job efficiently. What did you do about them?
☛ Tell me about a situation where you had to disagree with your superiors. How did you approach this and what happened?

☛ How would you describe your management style?
☛ What is your overall approach to human resource management and managing the department?
☛ What is your view on coaching and training?
☛ What is your hiring approach? Where do you find top industry talent?
☛ What is your approach to new employee onboarding?
☛ What is your ideal company culture? How do you define it?
☛ What technology and tools do you believe are essential for HR management?
☛ What do you think is the biggest motivator for employees?
☛ How do you keep employees engaged? What is your best advice?
☛ What is the most effective approach to resolving an employee conflict?

I believe that every individual can succeed in her or his career with the proper training. It is essential that HR managers under me are not only aware of and well-versed in the company policies regarding personnel, but also able to sincerely understand how these policies are beneficial to both the employees and the management. With the proper buy-in from those administering the policies, I find that there is greater cooperation company-wide in abiding by the company’s policies and procedures.