Finding strong finance professionals in today’s market can be a challenge. The way you approach the interview process can make a big difference in uncovering the right people for your team. Here are three critical areas and a list of behavioral-based interview questions you should be asking.
Profit and productivity questions:
- What have you done to reduce the financial risk of your organization?
- Describe a situation where you saw a way to improve productivity, reduce cost, or increase profits. What was the improvement?
- How did you discover the improvement?
- What was your role in making the improvement?
You want a person who can think on their own and come up with improvements. No matter if they are a clerk or the CFO, you need a financial team that constantly improves how you do business.
Process and procedure questions:
- What process or control have you put into place that improved your financial systems?
- Give an example of one way you improved the efficiency of the finance department at your current job?
- How many new procedures did you implement in the past 12 months?
Accuracy and detail questions:
- What is the most detail-oriented task you perform?
- How difficult is it for you to perform this task accurately 100 percent of the time?
- Give an example of a shortcut you took that caused accuracy issues?
The key is to dig deep in an important area for your finance team. You are looking for a detailed story and specific examples of how the candidate has been involved in making their finance department better. Keep asking questions about the story until you feel you have a thorough understanding if they have what it takes to succeed in your environment.
Are they able to make that connection and show how their financial skills will make a significant impact into helping your company reach the short-term and long-term goals?
We need to discover if our financial candidate strives for accuracy and attention to detail. That is not enough. We also need individuals who can lend to the profit and productivity of your organization.
Be wary of anyone who says they haven’t experienced challenges, or doesn’t articulate how they improved the environment they worked in. Everyone, no matter where they are in their career journey, has run into an obstacle or two. And each of us has the ability to improve our surroundings. It should raise red flags if someone cannot or will not recognize and describe those hurdles.
Tell us how we can help!
Contact us today to set up some time to learn more about Systems Personnel and how we can help augment your existing team or help you find the perfect candidate.