An ex-Meta recruiter says one of the biggest mistakes job candidates make in interviews is not asking questions
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- A major mistake job candidates make is not asking questions at the end of an interview.
- An ex-Meta recruiter says it's a "red flag" and actually shows "disinterest" in the role.
- She said a job interview is a "two-way experience" for both parties to learn more about each other.
Getting to the end of a job interview and not having any questions for the recruiter can actually be a major red flag, according to an ex-Meta recruiter.
Jenn Bouchard, former global head of talent at Meta and now a chief people and administration officer at Figure8, spoke with Fortune about how candidates can set themselves apart with good questions and why it’s a mistake not to have any.
"If candidates don’t have follow-up questions that they’ve pulled through from the interview or if they just say ‘I’ve had all of my questions answered,' that’s a red flag," Bouchard told Fortune.
Bouchard, who spent over a decade at Meta, said having no questions can show "disinterest" from the candidate.
She explained that a job interview is a "two-way experience" during which the recruiter gets to know the candidate, but the candidate also gets to know more about the company and the culture.
"I also want them to be curious about getting to know the role, the company, the culture, even the team that they might be walking into," she said.
She also advises candidates to send a follow-up email to the hiring manager to thank them after an interview.
It "really lets me know that they were present, engaged, and continuously excited about the roles that we have at the company," she said.
Other tech recruiters have shared similar advice.
Amy Hoover — formerly of TalentZoo — previously told Business Insider that not having at least two questions prepared makes you seem "less intelligent and engaged."
And it's important to make sure your questions aren't too general, Nolan Church, a former Google and DoorDash recruiter, told BI.
Candidates should make sure their questions are specific to the company, its mission, and its leaders, he said.