How to Improve Interviewing Skills for Hiring Managers

I’ve been a recruiter for 5+ years, and I’ve closely seen how Hiring Managers make decisions. If you’re looking for a job in the U.S., these strategies are GOLD. I’ve been in dozens of debriefs where the candidate looked great on paper, answered questions well, and still didn't get hired. Because hiring managers aren’t just asking, “Can they do the job?” They’re asking: → Do they understand the role? → Can they think through messy problems? → Will they communicate clearly with the team? → Are they coachable? → Will they take ownership? Here’s how you can show hiring managers that you are the right fit. 1. Show your thinking, not just your answer. When walking through a project or technical solution, don’t jump straight to the outcome. Walk through the decisions you made, what tradeoffs you considered, and what you’d do differently now. That shows maturity and reflection, which managers love to see. 2. Ask better questions. Skip the generic: What’s the culture like? Instead ask: What does success look like in the first 90 days? What challenges is the team currently facing? Hiring managers remember candidates who sound like future teammates. 3. Own your gaps. You don’t need to pretend to be perfect. In fact, the best candidates I’ve seen are the ones who say: I haven’t done X before, but here’s how I’d approach it. That shows adaptability. Most roles evolve, so this matters more than checking every box. 4. Match your energy to the team. If the team is collaborative, curious, and fast-paced, show that you work the same way. Not by saying it, but through your tone, your responses, and the way you engage. You don’t need to perform. You need to connect. That’s what makes hiring managers say, “Let’s bring them in.” Repost this so others crack interviews. P.S. If you are a job seeker in the U.S. and found this post helpful, follow me for more honest job-search advice. Let's get you hired in the next 90 days.

HERE'S WHERE MY JOB INTERVIEWS ALWAYS GO SOUTH Hi Liz, Love your advice and encouragement! I've had THREE second interviews and no third interviews and no offers. So I must be doing something wrong. The second interviews are interviews with my hiring manager, usually a Director. (The first interview is with an HR person or internal recruiter.) The recruiters and HR people love me. The hiring managers like my resume well enough to interview me but when they meet me, I can see a look on their face that is not encouraging. They may think I'm too young or too un-corporate for the job. I dress the usual way for an interview but I have a pink section in my hair and a small tattoo on my wrist. Could that be why I'm not getting moved along in the hiring process? Thanks, Kai Hi Kai, It could be that, but I doubt it. Hiring managers have real problems they need to solve. If you show up looking like the person who can make their life easier they are unlikely to care about a pink streak in your hair or a wrist tattoo. They can't afford to care. It's more likely that you're interviewing defensively, the way virtually all of us were taught to do. Interviewing defensively means taking a passive role in the interview, treating it like an oral exam. That's what we were taught, but it's not the way to get the job you deserve. You want to take a more active approach. An interview with your hiring manager is all about pain and solutions. Your mission on any interview with a hiring manager is to offer a hypothesis about their first or second most significant pain point and probe to see whether that is indeed a top priority. Once you know something about their pain, you can dive into a substantive, meaty conversation about the pain and your experience dealing with similar issues. That is much more interesting than anything else you and your hiring manager might talk about. It's the number one thing they care about! Start with the manager's job title. What do people in that job title typically worry about? What is likely to be your hiring manager's biggest headache? Google can also help you identify the major pain points plaguing your hiring manager. Reach me at the link in the comments if you could use help identifying your hiring managers' pain points and/or getting away from defensive interviewing to make your interviews more impactful and productive. Here's to you Kai! Best, Liz

Want to have stronger job interviews in 2025? Here’s a proven tip that sales taught me. Most people walk into interviews thinking they just need to answer questions. Wrong! The real finesse? Start asking the right questions and then double down with this phrase: 👉🏽 “TELL ME MORE.” 👈🏽 This isn’t just a sales trick…it’s your secret weapon in interviews. Here’s why: 1️⃣ You stand out. Most candidates stick to surface-level answers and canned responses. But when you ask, “Tell me more,” you flip the script and show genuine curiosity. 2️⃣ You uncover what matters most. Hiring managers rarely tell you the real pain points right away. They might say, “We need someone to improve team collaboration,” but when you follow up with “Tell me more,” you might find out the real challenge is communication breakdowns between sales and marketing. 3️⃣ You position yourself as the solution. By digging deeper, you can tailor your answers and ideas to what the company actually needs…not what you think they need. 💬 Example: 👤 Interviewer: “We’re looking for someone to improve our sales numbers.” 👤 You: “Interesting. Can you tell me more about what’s currently holding the team back?” 👤 Interviewer: “Well, our reps are struggling to close deals.” 👤 You: “Why do you think that is?” 👤 Interviewer: “Our pitch deck is outdated, and our team isn’t confident using it.” Boom. Now you know their real problem. Instead of just saying, “I’m great at sales,” you can say, “I’ve revamped sales tools in the past, and I’d love to bring that same value here.” Here’s the gem: “Tell me more” doesn’t just get you answers, it gets you insights. And insights are what help you connect the dots between their pain points and your unique value. 🛠️ Actionable Takeaway: Next time you’re in an interview: Ask a thoughtful question. Then follow up with: “Tell me more.” Use what you learn to position yourself as the solution they didn’t even know they needed. Stop winging it. Start winning it. Ready to try this in your next interview? If so…tell me more 👀 in the comments 👈🏽(See what I did there)