Good questions to ask a recruiter or employer when calling about a job advertisement

These are the things that recruiters wish jobseekers would ask when they call about a job ad – as well as what they wish they wouldn’t ask.

CAREERS’ panel of expert recruiters answers a reader’s question each week. Have a question? Email [e-mail]

What are some good questions jobseekers should ask when they call about a job ad?

Lisa Morris

Director,

Hays

When you call for more information about an advertised job, your aim is to confirm you are a suitable candidate. If your application is unlikely to be considered, your time would be better spent on applying for a more suitable job. So, focus your questions on learning more about the ideal candidate, such as the priority skills sought, the “must haves” and the overall key objective of the role. Make sure you frame your questions in a way that helps you clarify any details that are not clear in the advertisement, rather than information you could have found online. You could also ask about the hiring manager’s expectations regarding the application, such as how many pages your CV should be, if anything in particular should be emphasised and how long the screening process will take.

Lisa Morris says logistical questions about the interview process can be good ones to ask of a recruiter.

Megan Nicholson

General manager

Entree Recruitment

There are so many great questions you can ask to help you with your application and finding out information that may not be in the advertisement. A lot of people hesitate to apply for jobs if they don’t have every skill that might be listed. Therefore it may be beneficial to ask if you would be considered if you don’t have a specific skill or experience that is listed in the ad – for example, proficiency in a computer application. You can also ask questions around who to address a cover letter too if there is no name on the ad, when the closing date is if there is no date listed and questions around why there is a vacancy. You can even ask questions around flexibility with hours and days.

Megan Nicholson says jobseekers can ask about the importance of having skills and experience listed in the job advertisement.

Andrew Sullivan

Managing director,

Sullivan Consulting

A general rule of thumb is to ask specific questions instead of broad or general questions, as job descriptions will often provide the answer to most broad questions. If a comprehensive job description is not available, feel free to ask for one! It is usually worthwhile to ask about a company’s workplace culture, as it will significantly affect your employment experience and can be difficult to describe in writing. Hours or scheduling, workplace arrangements, expected skills, and in some cases, salary are some other important topics to touch on.

Andrew Sullivan says questions around company culture are good to pose to a recruiter when calling about a job advertisement.

Alexandra Rosser

Head of Organisational Psychology Consulting,

Stillwell Management Consultants

Depending on what is outlined in the advertisement, questions could address the skills, personal qualities and level of experience sought, the physical location of the job, remuneration range on offer and to whom the job reports. Other questions could include asking how the opportunity has arisen (for example, is it a newly created role or has someone left it), how many people report into the person in the role, what is the team composition and structure and what is the organisational structure and culture. Questions about any specific working conditions which are essential to you may also be appropriate again depending on the context. What is key is not to ask anything which is clearly answered in the advertisement, though you may clarify anything that is open to interpretation.

Alexandra Rosser says to avoid asking questions about things that can be gleaned from the job advertisement.

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Originally published as Good questions to ask a recruiter or employer when calling about a job advertisement