How to design an effective interview
A useful interview blends four question types. Technical questions check whether the person can do the job. Behavioral ("tell me about a time when…") measures how they act in real situations. Situational ("what would you do if…") tests reasoning. Motivational understands the why. An interview made of only tech hires capable but misaligned people; one made of only motivation hires enthusiasm without skill. Mix them.
The STAR method for behavioral questions
For "tell me about a conflict with a coworker"-style questions, ask candidates to answer in STAR format: Situation (context), Task (what they had to do), Action (what they specifically did), Result (what happened). If the answer jumps straight to "it all worked out", they're acting — they didn't act. If they can detail each step with data, they're telling something real.
How it varies by level
- Junior. Focus on basic knowledge, learning attitude, study cases. "How did you learn X?", "Which project are you proudest of?"
- Mid. Balance between technical and behavioral. "Tell me about a project you led", "How do you manage priorities when everything is urgent?"
- Senior. Hard decisions, leadership, mentorship, conflict resolution, vision. "Tell me about a decision you made without full information", "How do you handle an underperforming peer?"
For candidates: how to prepare
- List your 5 best stories. Rehearse each in STAR format.
- Identify your 5 worst professional moments. How you answer "tell me about a failure" separates top candidates from the rest.
- Practice out loud. Saying it in your head doesn't count: pronunciation changes everything.
- Research the company. 30 minutes on the website, 15 on the interviewer's LinkedIn, 15 on recent social. Enough to ask 2 sharp questions at the end.
- Prepare three questions for them. One about the role, one about the team, one about the company.
For interviewers: common mistakes
- Asking the same questions to everyone. Adapt to the resume. An interview isn't a checklist.
- Talking more than the candidate. If you cross 30% of the time, you're selling, not interviewing.
- Asking about personal life. Age, kids, family plans — illegal in many jurisdictions and bad practice everywhere.
- Trusting one interview. Three interviews with three people reduce individual bias.
- Not taking notes. After 5 interviews you confuse them. Capture verbatim quotes.
Questions we don't recommend
"What's your biggest weakness?" has been answered so many times that almost no one gives a sincere reply. Better: "What area did you specifically focus on improving in the last year?" — more concrete and revealing. Another to avoid: "Where do you see yourself in 5 years?" — invites canned answers. Swap for "Which skill do you want to develop next year?" or "What kind of work would you like to be doing in 2 years?"