Interview Preparation Questions for a Position in Human Resource Management

Below are tips to help you ace human resource manager interview questions, make a good impression on company leaders and convince your interviewer you are the perfect person for the human resource management job. You won’t know the exact questions you will be asked in your interview, but you can get a feel for the type of questions for which you will need to prepare by thinking about what you would ask a professional interviewing for your job.

Prepare to answer questions about your education and experience in human resource disciplines such as recruitment, employee benefits and workplace safety. You should also prepare to answer questions about how you would handle a range of employee situations, such as an employee discussing sensitive company information or a sexual harassment complaint. Being prepared for behavioral and situational interview questions that show you have critical thinking and decision-making skills, which are vital for human resource professionals.

12 human resource manager interview questions for which you should prepare

Below are 12 specific human resource manager interview questions for which you should prepare, according to Susan M. Heathfield, human resources expert and blogger for about.com.

1. How did the HR function impact your organization’s strategic planning in your last position?
2. Describe how you were able to assess the success of HR services and employee relations in your last HR position? What did you measure?
3. How did you determine or contribute to determining the priorities for the HR department in your most recent position?
4. Please discuss a time when an employee came to the HR department with a complaint about his or her manager. How did you investigate the complaint and help the employee solve the problem? How did the story end?
5. Describe the work environment that you developed for people in your last HR position. What were the key characteristics of the work environment that you were trying to maintain and reinforce?
6. How did your HR department contribute to planning, creating, maintaining, and changing the corporate culture? What were your significant contributions to establishing the work environment for people?
7. What programs or processes, that you developed to maintain and reinforce the work environment that you offered employees, are you the most proud of contributing to or initiating?
8. Tell us about a time when you initiated a people process or program that was successful in your organization. Why did you believe your organization needed the program? What steps did you take to initiate and develop the program?
9. On the flip side, have you ever championed a process or a program that failed to take hold in the organization? What steps did you take and how would you change your approach the next time so that your organization would integrate the initiative?
10. How do you go about identifying aspects of your organization, the organization’s culture and the offerings of the HR department that need to change or improve?
11. What is the role of the HR department in helping other departments identify and make changes to processes that affect their employees or customers?
12. Can you tell us about a time when you helped a department make needed changes? What was the change and how did HR help identify the need for the change and the action plan. Was the intervention successful?

Prepare to ask questions of your own

Interviews are a two-way street. In addition to being prepared to answer questions, you should come prepared to ask a few of your own. According to recent Forbes article, below are five great questions to ask during your interview.

1. What is your company culture like?
2. What are you looking for in a candidate?
3. What does career progression look like within the business unit for which you are hiring?
4. Do you have any concerns regarding my candidacy that I can address?
5. What has been your experience working for Company X?

About the online MBA in Human Resource Development at Spring Arbor University. Spring Arbor University offers a fully online MBA in Human Resource Development that can be completed in as few as 18 months. As a student of the program, you learn the advanced skills needed to effectively lead an organization’s human resources department and develop talent within the organization. This includes a detailed understanding of organizational behaviors, and how to enhance group and team performance and promote workplace learning and development. Learn more.