Most of my career I felt no control over the interview process. You go into an interview and you face all these unknowns. What got me interested in reverse interviewing was you could take the reins of the interview process. You could take ownership over the shape of the conversation. You could steer the conversation into specific areas where you have greater domain expertise. By taking it into waters you understand, it removes an element of the unknown from the whole process.

Incorporate these questions early on, even in informational interviews. These will differentiate you from everyone else.

It’s reverse psychology. By asking discerning questions, it signals that you have many options to choose from, particularly as you get deeper into the process.

Instead of waiting for the interviewer to ask questions, use reverse interviewing to show your excitement and ask if you can also ask questions. This changes the tone of the conversation and sets you apart.

One way I like to “insert this wedge” is by saying: "I'm excited to be here. I have a ton of questions to ask, but obviously this is your interview, so I’ll let you lead.”

My goals here are: First, determine if they measure these things and how frequently they discuss the metrics. Do they know these numbers off the top? How often are these numbers discussed?

Second, I want to uncover how they arrived at these metrics and the company's cultural understanding of them. The actual metric is not as important as having a thought out and explainable process.

The usefulness of these questions depends on the type of conversation.

I find these questions work well in unstructured interviews to steer the conversation. They 

 work as well in structured interviews where they have a list of questions to ask.

Have one or two questions to ask at the end, but follow their lead to check the box on their requirements.

Companies might push back on giving these answers. You can respond by explaining the “why” behind the question. For example, if you get pushback on questions about the company’s financials, you could say: “The reason I’m asking is that I’m a risk-averse person. I just want to make sure my family has health insurance in 6 months. So what can you tell me about our runway?” Just be conscientious of what your explanation signals about you!

I really like this question because it reveals the cultural tenor of an organization and helps you assess if you'll fit in based on your strengths and weaknesses.

For example, part of one company’s interview process was an ICE and experimentation exercise. Surprise, surprise…experimentation was a HUGE part of the culture. I only had a few reps at structured experimentation. I had spent more time on 0-to-1 work. It took me a long time to acclimate.

I don't know if knowing that would have changed my decision whether to join or not. But awareness of my strengths is something I’m more attuned to when evaluating companies.

Christopher Ming

When interviewing for new roles, I use this guide to ask non-generic questions during the "what questions do you have for me?" section. These questions will help you stand out while also surfacing useful information about the role and the company.

8 Job-Winning “Reverse” Interview Questions

I've spent 100s of hours studying how top tech leaders evaluate job opportunities.

Leaders know: interviewing is NOT just about "landing offers." 

You must interview them as much as they interview you.

Save these 8 questions to stand out in your next interview:

"Tell me about the company's KPIs across..."

For example, if the retention metric is WAU (weekly active users):

Dig into metric definitions. How did they arrive at them? First principles? Copy a competitor? Draw from a hat?

"How much runway do you have at your current burn?"

Are you cash flow positive? Profitable? Is there a goal or plan to become either in the near future?

What is your revenue growth rate this year? Last year?

What is your current company valuation? What was it last year?

Do we have valuation multiples of competing companies?

4. "Tell me about the last planning cycle."

Tell me about a team that missed its goals. What happened?

How do DRIs (Directly Responsible Individuals) get assigned?

"Who’s been successful at the company?"

7. "What’s the attrition rate at the company?"

When company-wide issues are identified, how are they communicated to staff?

Can you give me examples of when management was transparent and put together a thoughtful plan for addressing a problem at hand?

Reverse Interviewing Question Bank

8 Job-Winning “Reverse” Interview Questions

1. "Tell me about the company's KPIs across..."

2. "Tell me more about these metrics:"

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