You won’t hear me use the word “feel” very often when it comes to the screening process. As a general rule, you have to be careful not to rely too much on your personal feelings when it comes to recruiting. If you are not disciplined enough to put qualifying the candidate first, you will not find the best candidate for the position. First and foremost you must determine the most qualified candidate for the position. If you have more than one equally qualified candidate, that is when your instinct becomes important.

Let's say you have three candidates with excellent backgrounds, high test scores, great demeanor, the works. You could hire any of the three and feel like you've done well. Unfortunately in most cases, you can only choose one. How do you determine the best of the best?

You have to dig a little deeper and ask more questions so you can incorporate your instinct in to the process. Professional instinct is possibly one of the most critical skills of any recruiter. In fact, great instinct is what makes a good recruiter a top performer in my opinion because a recruiter with great instincts can find the best, of the best.

Below are some of my favorite types of “final interview” questions. These questions are great tools to help you determine which candidates will truly make the best hire for your organization when you have more than one individual you could confidently make an offer to. You will notice that these questions are more about determining which candidate you feel most strongly will be the best fit.

The Scenario Question

“If everyone in the office were to walk out at the same time, excluding myself and yourself, what would you do?”

This is just an example of course, but I would encourage you to think of an uncomfortable scenario that could happen, even if it is a worst case scenario. Really listen as the interviewer explains what they would do and probe for details as you would with any behavioral based question. Is this the person you want to be at your side in the scenario you give? Remember to keep in mind general hiring guidelines here. It goes without saying that you don’t want to go overboard and ask something inappropriate or illegal.

The Blunt Inquiry

“ We have three great candidates and could be very pleased working side by side with any of you. Why should we pick you? What will make you stand out as the best hire?”

This gives the candidate an opportunity to freely “toot their own horn” so to speak. Can they sell you on themselves? What talent do they see in themselves that you have not already identified. How does their answer make you feel? Did you want to just hire them on the spot, or were you anxious to hear the other candidates answer the question before you made a final decision?

The “What if…” Question

“What would happen if money were no object, and  I were to offer you this position with the pretense that you must accept immediately to be hired? Would you accept? How would this affect your career plan?” or “Where do you think you would be if you accepted this opportunity today?”

This type of question will give you a lot of insight as to how well the individual is planning for the future, their interest level and again, give you an opportunity to let your instinct make the decision about which candidate is best for your organization.

Using these formats for your final questions will help get the right conversation started to determine the choice that is best fit for your organization.Have you used these type of questions in the past? What other types of questions do you use to find the best of the best?

Amy McDonald is the President and CEO at REKRUTR. She has been working in the human resources and recruiting industry for over 20 years. Amy has worked with hundreds of recruitment professionals throughout her career, training best practices in sourcing candidates and refining the recruitment process. In her spare time, Amy participates as a thought leader in Recruiting for BIZCATALYST360°