By CPA Trendlines Research
Unexpected questions at a job interview can help you assess a candidate’s awareness of what’s involved in the human (as opposed to technical) side of the job.
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Look for recognition of professionalism, flexibility, ethics, teamwork and social skills.
Flexibility
- Halfway through the tax season, Congress changes a crucial and complex rule that impacts all your clients. What do you do? (Look for readiness to learn, willingness to talk with clients and realistic approach to difficulties.)
- If your supervisor insists on an approach that is technically wrong or inefficient, what do you do? (Look for tactfulness and teamwork.)
- If artificial intelligence automated most of your job, how would you make yourself valuable to the firm? (Look for other skills the candidate has or is willing to pursue.)
Teamwork
- If you were mentoring a new employee, what non-technical advice would you give him or her? (Look for recognition of culture and respect for teamwork. Watch out for negative advice, such as “Watch out for So-and-so.”)
- Someone you feel is less competent than you gets a promotion, but you don’t. How do you react? (Look for honesty, maturity, loyalty to the firm.)
- A colleague isn’t getting much done, so you need to take on additional tasks. What would you do? (Look for courage to talk with supervisor, willingness to do what’s necessary for the firm, and tact with a team member.)
- You notice a lot of stress and bad relationships in the firm. How do you handle it? (Look for concern, creativity and approach to human relationships.)
Professional Approach
- A client is having emotional or family problems that are interfering with business. What would you do? (Look for sympathy, tact and professionalism.)
- A client seems to be trying to dodge taxes with false data. What do you do? (Look for maturity, integrity, tact and persuasiveness.)
- A partner asks you to outline a marketing plan to expand the business. What would you do? (Look for willingness to help, involvement of a team and questions about what kind of expansion the firm is looking for.)
These questions might fluster someone who, with a little more time, might come up with good answers. In fact, thoughtfulness is as important as correct answers or quick thinking. A thoughtful candidate might ask for more context, so be ready!
Look for red flags, such as vague answers that avoid the issue, dismissive answers that deny importance and BS that reveals a lack of understanding.