By Taylor Seabrook, Head of Talent & Employee Experience
Why the Right Interview Questions Matter
Conducting a successful interview is about much more than confirming a candidate’s technical qualifications. The best hiring managers know that interviews are an opportunity to understand how someone thinks, communicates, solves problems, and will ultimately contribute to the team. While resumes tell you about previous career experience, thoughtful interview questions reveal how a person will fit into the role and your organization.
Many interviewers default to asking about experience or walking through a candidate’s resume. While those conversations are important, they often miss the qualities that determine long-term success, such as resilience, adaptability, decision-making, and culture fit. By asking questions that prompt candidates to share real experiences, hiring managers can gain deeper insight into how they’ll approach challenges and collaborate within the organization.
In this video, Taylor Seabrook, Head of Talent & Employee Experience at Landing Point, shares three interview questions every hiring manager should incorporate into their interview process to better evaluate candidates beyond their resumes.
Watch the Video
[Taylor Seabrook, Head of Talent & Employee Experience, shares three essential interview questions hiring managers should ask to better evaluate candidates.]
The 3 Must-Ask Questions
1. “Tell me about a time you had to face a challenge.”
This question helps hiring managers understand how candidates approach adversity, solve problems, and navigate obstacles. Look for insight into their strategic thinking, resourcefulness, ability to collaborate, and whether they take ownership when faced with challenges.
2. “What type of environment do you thrive in?”
Understanding the conditions where a candidate performs their best provides valuable insight into their ideal leadership style, team dynamics, and workplace preferences. This helps hiring managers assess whether the organization can provide the support and environment needed for long-term success.
3. “Tell me about a time you had to think on your feet.”
This question reveals how candidates make decisions under pressure, exercise judgment, and adapt to unexpected situations. Strong answers can highlight a candidate’s ability to stay composed, evaluate options, and take action when faced with uncertainty.
By combining these three questions with a structured interview process, hiring managers can move beyond evaluating resumes and begin identifying candidates who possess the qualities needed for long-term success.
Looking Ahead
Hiring the right person requires asking the right questions. At Landing Point, we partner with organizations to build thoughtful interview processes that identify candidates with the technical expertise, soft skills, and long-term potential to succeed. If you’re looking to strengthen your hiring strategy or build a high-performing team, connect with us!
Transcript
Taylor Seabrook
As Head of Talent at Landing Point, I interview a lot of candidates and work with our interviewers to coach them on how to interview great talent.
Three questions I think all leaders should ask candidates in the interview setting are:
First and foremost, tell me about a time when you had to face a challenge. What you’re looking for is how the person handled adversity. What strategic tactics did they deploy? What resources did they rely on? How much of that was independent versus a group effort? Every role comes with challenges, so understanding how someone has navigated them is incredibly valuable.
The second question is, what type of environment do you thrive in? More often than not, interviewers focus on negative questions, but it’s equally important to understand how someone is successful and what they need to perform at their best. You’re looking for insight into what type of manager, leadership style, and team environment will help this person succeed.
The third question is, tell me about a time when you had to think on your feet. In every role, there will be moments where people have to make quick decisions. This question helps you understand how candidates exercise judgment and make decisions under pressure.
About Taylor Seabrook
Taylor Seabrook is the Head of Talent & Employee Experience at Landing Point, where she oversees firmwide talent strategy, recruiting operations, and employee engagement initiatives. She partners with divisional leaders to identify and develop top talent, create performance frameworks, and foster a culture of growth and collaboration.
With more than a decade of experience in talent acquisition and higher education, Taylor brings both strategic vision and a people-first approach to Landing Point’s internal HR function. She previously led firm-wide recruiting at Viking Global Investors and served in admissions and advancement roles at Bowdoin and Brown Universities.
A graduate of Bowdoin College, where she studied Economics and served as captain of the women’s lacrosse team, Taylor is a champion of mentorship and team cohesion within Landing Point’s culture. She splits her time between New York and the Southeast, attending Clemson sporting events and spending time with her family and dog Crosby.