HR managers are important members of your company. They take care of all the little things that have to do with your employees and make sure that they get paid, have health insurance, and do their best work. It’s extra important to find the right person for this job by asking the right HR manager interview questions. A lot of the work they do goes unnoticed.
Here’s how to ensure you’re zeroing in on the best candidates when hiring an HR manager.
Landing a job in human resources can open up an exciting career path. However, getting your foot in the door requires impressing HR managers and executives in the interview process. Luckily, while HR interviews aim to gauge your substantive knowledge and experience, they also evaluate soft skills around critical thinking, communication, and emotional intelligence.
Knowing the types of questions you’re likely to encounter can help you prepare and practice thoughtful, compelling talking points to show why you’re the right person for the role. These are 10 of the most common HR interview questions, along with suggestions for responding effectively:
1. Why did you decide to pursue a career in human resources?
HR roles require passion and commitment to attracting engaging and developing talent. Interviewers want to know what draws you to the field. To stand out
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Share an experience that sparked your interest – perhaps an internship, job shadow, or mentoring relationship with an HR leader. Discuss skills you developed and business impacts you helped drive
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Demonstrate enthusiasm and knowledge of the profession Highlight your understanding of key HR functions like talent acquisition, compensation and benefits, learning and development, employee relations, and performance management.
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Focus on the aspects of HR that most excite you rather than just needing a job. Talk about how you’ll apply your strengths and background to advance the company’s people strategy.
2. Describe your ideal company culture and environment.
Employers want to know you’ll be happy and engaged in your role long-term. In responding:
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Align your preferences to the organization’s characteristics. Research their culture and values to highlight related aspects that appeal to you (collaborative teamwork, innovative thinking, work/life balance, etc.).
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Use specific examples of workplace activities, leadership styles, growth opportunities, or company perks that motivate you. Emphasize preferences compatible with the job and company brand.
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Avoid discussing compensation, benefits, or location as primary drivers. Instead focus your answer on the type of work, leadership, and team dynamics that help you excel.
3. What interests you about this HR job and our company?
Interviewers look for candidates genuinely excited by the open position. To demonstrate enthusiasm:
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Share what initially attracted you to the opportunity. Be specific about job responsibilities that match your skills and interests, like recruiting IT professionals or developing healthcare benefits packages.
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Explain why you want to work for that employer. Research their products/services, growth trends, workplace culture, leadership bios, recent news, and HR initiatives to identify details that appeal to you.
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Ask insightful questions that show your understanding of the company’s needs and how you can contribute to strategic goals. This displays genuine interest beyond just wanting a job.
4. What skills and experience would make you successful in this HR role?
Your goal is convincing interviewers you can handle key position responsibilities. To do so:
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Carefully review the job description and highlight skills listed that match your background. Provide examples of successfully applying them in previous roles.
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Spotlight soft skills required for the role like relationship building, influencer, analytical thinking, project management, and communication. Use past stories to illustrate these capabilities.
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Address areas where you may lack direct experience but can quickly get up to speed through coursework, volunteering, or rapid learning on the job. Demonstrate enthusiasm for new challenges.
5. Tell me about a significant HR accomplishment or contribution you’re proud of.
Past success demonstrates you can deliver results in the role. To impress interviewers:
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Choose an example showcasing capabilities needed for the open position. For recruiting roles, discuss improving sourcing tactics or implementing campus recruiting programs. For compensation jobs, share how you helped design pay bands or bonus structures.
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Set the scene with details like being new to the company or inheriting outdated processes. Share quantified results like quality of hire, time to fill, cost reductions, engagement scores, or retention rates you improved.
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Focus on your specific contributions to the project and how they made an impact. Rather than spread credit across a team, emphasize the parts you spearheaded and your strategic thinking.
6. How do you stay current on the latest HR trends and best practices?
Ongoing learning is critical for HR professionals. To demonstrate your commitment:
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Mention memberships in HR associations like SHRM and following industry thought leaders on social media or through blogs and e-newsletters. Share examples of insights gained that helped you improve or evolve practices at past employers.
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Highlight certifications you’ve earned, conferences/webinars attended, and HR books/publications that have shaped your approach and philosophy.
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Discuss ways you stay up to date like regular peer networking, mentor relationships with other HR leaders, and setting Google alerts for emerging terms and legislative changes impacting your subdiscipline.
7. Tell me about a time you coached a direct report to improve their performance.
HR roles require coaching managers and employees. Your answer should demonstrate:
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Your process for providing performance feedback in a clear, empathetic manner (like starting with praise then constructive criticism or using the SBI model: situation, behavior, impact).
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How you involved the employee in coming up with goals and an improvement plan.
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Your patience and focus on developing them over time – through active listening, asking probing questions, and providing training opportunities.
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How you followed up with positive reinforcement as they showed signs of progress.
8. Describe a time you successfully negotiated a challenging situation between employees or business partners.
HR must deftly navigate workplace conflicts and disagreements. Share an example highlighting your conflict resolution approach:
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Ask clarifying questions to fully understand all perspectives and get to the heart of the tensions or misalignment.
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Remain objective and calm. Avoid automatically siding with one party or assigning blame.
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Identify solutions or compromises that satisfy shared interests and goals so both sides feel heard.
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Follow up over time to ensure actions were taken and the issue was resolved sustainably. Discuss how you worked to rebuild trust and collaboration going forward.
9. Imagine you strongly disagreed with an established policy. How would you go about proposing changes?
This scenario demonstrates your critical thinking and influence skills. A strong response covers:
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Suggest first taking time to fully understand the rationale behind the current policy and its intended benefits. Look for any data on the business case, impacts to date, and changes in the work environment since it was rolled out.
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Present your perspective backed by factual data points. Outline a proposed alternative and how it would better address business needs. Seek feedback from other stakeholders.
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Recognize that drastic changes take time. Propose small tweaks that can be piloted first to build consensus iteratively. Discuss mitigations to reduce risks and barriers to adoption.
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Emphasize that while you’ll passionately advocate your view, you’ll support whatever final decision is made and steward successful implementation.
10. Why are you looking to leave your current company?
This question aims to uncover any potential red flags about your workplace experience, mindset, or commitment. To respond positively:
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First, praise your current employer and reiterate you’ve enjoyed your time there.
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Share your career goals and how this new role better aligns with your skills, growth trajectory, or desire to expand your HR experience.
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Discuss a new chapter professionally or personally, like wanting fresh challenges after being in a stable job for many years or needing flexibility to address family priorities.
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Pivot to how excited you are by this company’s opportunities and why you’re ready to bring energy, passion and commitment to making an impact in the new role.
With preparation and practice, you can develop compelling talking points to ace the most frequently asked HR interview questions. Focus on conveying genuine interest, strategic thinking, and key experiences that make you
the ideal culture and talent champion for the company. Highlight the unique strengths you’ll bring to propel their business goals and employee success to the next level.
HR Manager Interview Questions
Since the job of an HR manager can be very broad, you should look for people who meet the specific needs of your business. When you interview people for the job of HR manager, use the questions below to find out what kinds of skills and experience they have in different areas of human resources.
HR Manager Interview Questions for Admin and People Operations
A big enough part of HR work is administrative tasks that any candidate you choose to interview should already know how to do them. These questions will help you find out how the person you want to hire as an HR manager handles the administrative and operational parts of their job.
- Which system do you like to use for managing talent the most?
- Your work week is made up of both long-term planning and day-to-day administrative tasks. How do you decide which ones to do first?
- How do you keep yourself going when you have to do boring or repetitive tasks?
- What would you do if an employee complained about something that needed your immediate attention? How would you look into it and solve the problem?
- When someone tells you about a problem with a toxic employee, what steps would you take to fix it? What would you do if you knew you had to fire them?
- Tell me about a time when office politics almost derailed a project and you had to step in to stop them. What did you do and what was the outcome?.
- What do you believe are the best ways to keep employees from leaving?
HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGER Interview Questions and Answers! (PASS your HR Manager Interview!)
FAQ
What interview questions to ask an HR manager?
Why should you respond to HR manager interview questions?
In addition, carefully thought-out responses to HR Manager interview questions render an accurate picture of what you have to offer and maximize the interview to benefit both you and the hiring organization. Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to stay up-to-date with the latest HR news, trends, and resources.
What questions should a HR manager ask a candidate?
These questions are written to help you assess your HR Manager’s knowledge of the field of human resources— especially topics such as regulatory matters, tech tools, and overall strategy. Ideally, your candidate will be able to discuss, in detail, the HR operations at their previous company.
What are some HR interview questions?
Let’s explore some HR interview questions, the thinking behind them, advice on how to respond, and some sample answers. 1. Tell me about yourself. This is often the first question asked in an interview. The employer wants to know what experience you’ve had, your career path, and what skills you can bring to the organization.
What do HR managers do in a job interview?
Some focus on personnel management, benefits administration, training, payroll, policy creation, and much more. It’s a diverse field, encompassing all things “people” in the workplace. As with all hiring manager meetings, nailing your HR answers during your interview is essential if you want the job.
