Interviews

Behind many interview questions sits a second question, and the second one is often what gets scored. This shelf is about that second question.

We write from the scoring side of South African interviews. Some processes are run through an agency, with a recruiter sitting in alongside the client's HR manager and the line manager. Many have no agency in the room at all. Some use a panel and a structured scoresheet, and some are a conversation with one manager. Structured scoring makes interviews more consistent, but a vague criterion such as "culture fit" can still let a personal impression into the decision. These articles explain how the scoring works and what the second question is, and why the criteria that should count are the ones tied to the job.

Start with what SA interviewers actually ask, and why. It covers the questions South Africans commonly get, rather than the ones in American interview books: how you will get to work, which languages you speak, why there is a gap on your CV, and the small talk about marriage and children. The law does not allow an employer to discriminate unfairly against you on grounds such as marital status or family responsibility. Those questions still come up. It also covers what tends to end an interview early. Most of those you can raise yourself before the panel finds them.

If money is the part you are dreading, what to say when they ask your salary expectations is on the Pay shelf. It covers why the question gets asked, what happens if you decline to answer, and how to give a number you can defend when someone pushes. Processes differ on when pay comes up. One sensible approach is to leave money out of the interview unless they raise it. Either way, know what you will say when they do.