The First Question for A Project Management Candidate

Are you interviewing for an open project management position? What questions can you ask that will help you determine if this candidate has the potential to add to your unique culture, serve your clients with an excellent experience, and bring projects in on budget? We have been working through six key questions that we believe will help you get a well-rounded perspective on whether you have the right candidate for your organiztion.

Project Manager Interview Question #1

Our experience and our target audience is owners and managers in the property restoration industry. Many of these questions are readily adapted to project management in any of the disciplines in the skilled trades. You can learn more about developing your project management process, skills, and tools for development in Jon Isaacson's book - So, You Want To Be A Project Manager? 

The first question is designed to spark conversation, it is not meant to be a trick question or a trap for the candidate. We want to know what this person knows about the insurance claims process, as it is unique to the property restoration industry.

• If they have no experience, that is not a barrier, we need to know what their perceptions are and will need to spend time educating them on the nuances of this aspect of our business. 
• If they have experience, that does not mean they are immediately qualified. Unfortunately, there are many bad habits in our industry, so we want to understand how they were trained so that we can address any variances between their prior mindset and habits and our unique process.