You made it. You applied for jobs you’re interested in, and they invited you to an interview! Congratulations!
Now what?
While getting an interview is exciting, it’s also nerve-racking because there are so many factors to consider. You can do all the research on your interviewers, the organization, and the position, but it ultimately comes down to one thing. You.
When I have an administrative job interview, the first thing I do is FREAK OUT WITH EXCITEMENT! Then, once I’ve calmed down, I think about how to prepare for the interview. Primarily, what questions should I ask? How can I best show my genuine interest in the position?
So in this post, I’ll be explaining how to develop questions to ask in your administrative job interview.
Administrative Job Interview Question #1
Job Technicalities
The first stop is to look at the technical requirements of the job. I’m specifically looking for what technical or hard skills they are looking to fill. Your goal is to highlight any software knowledge or organizational criteria that you already meet.
I try to picture what my day could include. Does it seem like it would be a day full of meetings or events, or will I be managing projects, budgets, people?
Go ahead and try it now! Read through a job description, highlight the key requirements, and try to imagine what your day might look like.
If, while you’re imagining your day, you come up with questions or things that are unclear to you THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT YOU NEED TO ASK!
If there are software programs you haven’t heard of, it’s a great opportunity to learn more about what that they are before your interview. Doing this gives you the opportunity to let them know you want to learn the software and why, if it comes up.
This is also a great opportunity to showcase your specific strengths! Give examples that illustrate not only what you’ve accomplished, but how it excites you to provide that service or solution.
Personally, I love this part. Typically, only a few people actually get to hear about the accomplishments administrative support professionals make. So, instead of thinking about this as bragging, think of it as your opportunity to show your interviewers how important you view your accomplishments!
You deserve it, and it helps you to not feel as “braggy” (in case you feel that way).
Job Technicalities Example
Let’s say a job description listed a proficiency in MS Office, but they didn’t list that anywhere else on the job description. If you’re like me, and have a deep love of Microsoft Excel, I would want to find out if it’s a proficiency in all Microsoft programs, or if they use one more than the others. That question would look something like, “I noticed a proficiency in MS Office listed as a requirement. Is there a particular program that is used more often? If so, which one and could you give me an example?”
Administrative Job Interview Question #2
Job Goal
Ultimately, as an administrative support professional, your goal is to help realize your organization’s big picture. So,it’s important to understand what and how you can offer the best support to your organization.
For example, imagine the position description is asking you to assist primarily one person. When I close my eyes and envision that scenario, I’m seeing or thinking:
- I hope I like this person, but what if we don’t get along?
- Assist them exactly how?
- What is their goal?
From those thoughts, I might ask in a job interview:
What if we don’t get along?
- What is your management style?
- What is your communication style? (ie: email, direct, in-person, Zoom)
- What do you like the most about working with [insert person here]? (If you’re being interviewed by others other than the person you’d be assisting.)
Assist them how?
- Could you walk me through what a typical might be for someone in this role?
- How do you see this position adding value to the person in need of assistance and/or the organization?
- What do you believe is the area that needs the most help that this role could improve?
- What does “success” look like in this role?
What is their goal?
- What are your short- and long-term goals for the organization?
- What does success in accomplishing these goals look like to you?
In Summary
What you’re hoping to gauge is that the organization/team has:
- thought about the position and understands the value of having someone capable in this role,
- a clear idea about what this position’s responsibilities are,
- an understanding of what they are asking you to do.
Last, the questions will give you an opportunity to get to know the person(s) you’ll be working with the most. It’s important to listen to their answers to help you determine if it’s in line with your own.
Administrative Job Interview #3
Future/growth:
This aspect of the job interview really depends on the position and organization. However, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t ask about it, if it’s important to you.
I’ve found that most administrative positions have very little internal growth opportunities. The assumption is that you work an admin job until you’ve accepted that the organization has no intention of changing the position. Most of the time, the outcome is you leave the job, or accept that the position will never change and stay.
I still believe it’s important to try to grow within any organization. It’s so disappointing to lose someone who has become so intimately involved in an organization over an organization’s unwillingness to increase pay or offer a promotion. But that’s often the tale that is true for not only myself, but many other admins.
There are two ways to be paid in any job. First is money. Second is knowledge/experience.
Here are some sample questions:
- How do you view professional development?
- What professional development resources are available to employees?
- How do you support professional development?
- Let’s say you hire me, and I excel in this role. In what way and how do you see this position growing?
In any admin job interview, it’s important to ask these questions as early as possible.
These questions let the organization know that you’re serious about this role and that you plan to work hard. It also allows you to gauge your future with that organization. Granted, that future might change, but at least you’re letting them know you intend to grow with the organization and be better together.
Conclusion
Getting an interview is awesome, but the actual interview process has really just begun. Think about who you are, what you need, and how you and organization can be mutually beneficial to each other.
With that in mind, if you think about these three concepts of job technicalities, job goals, and future/growth opportunities, you’ll definitely be starting in the right place.
Remember, an interview process is for BOTH the applicant AND the organization. They aren’t just interviewing you, but you are also interviewing them. I’ve talked a lot about toxic work environments, and the interview is the first opportunity to minimize that happening to you.
Being yourself and being true to yourself is the secret to help you in your administrative support job interviews. Being genuine about your love for your administrative support profession is an awesome quality that you should be proud of!
I hope you found this post helpful, and have given you ideas about how to develop questions to ask in your next administrative job interview. If you have found it helpful, please share this post to help your fellow administrative professionals!
Featured Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash
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Photo by Afif Kusuma on Unsplash
