Why are Hiring Managers NOT Asking This Question?

One year ago, my average day was probably a lot like yours. Get up. Go to work. Work. Go home. Repeat.

Enter a global pandemic.

The lockdowns, business closings, and stay-at-home orders swept across the country like a chaotic tsunami. For most of us, work, and the workplace in 2020 would never be the same.

For millions like me, COVID brought a big change: an unexpected job loss. For nearly everyone else, it triggered a radical shift from brick-and-mortar workplaces to remote work from home offices, kitchens and spare bedrooms.

Countless employees scrambled to find alternative ways to stay productive while staying at home. Employers pivoted quickly to the “new normal” of off-site work.

Job seekers also got a taste of the new remote reality. Due to the coronavirus, job interviews have gone virtual. In fact, since May, all but two of the interviews I have had have been video conferences. Zoom, Skype, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams – you name it. I’ve used them all.

Here is the ironic part. Not once, during those virtual interviews, did a potential employer ask me about my remote-working skills. Never. This seems especially odd to me since most of the interviewers were working remotely themselves! Somebody cue Alanis Morissette.

So, why does this omission bother me?

Since last February, companies have invested heavily in systems and support to keep remote workers productive, and experts predict that telecommuting is here to stay. A fall 2020 study by the U.K. recruitment firm Hays showed that 63 percent of tech employees expect to keep working remotely through 2021 and beyond. The same percentage believe they will have more opportunities for flexible employment arrangements in the future. In a December memo, Google CEO Sundar Pichai outlined extended office closures and work-from-home procedures through at least Sept. 1, 2021.

As someone who has sat on both sides of the interview desk, I think hiring managers need to assess a candidate’s fitness for the remote work environment - if they haven’t already.

Here are a few of the questions I would ask:

• How do you rate your tech skills?

• What do you see as the biggest challenges of remote work?

• Where do you prefer to work? In an office, or at home?

• Tell me about your experiences in a networked team.

• How do you get the answers, input, or information you need working as part of a remote team?

• How do you stay focused on work when you are not “working at work?”

• What are some of your self-motivation best practices?

Candidates should also be prepared to answer those questions. Ask yourself - how can I show a hiring manager I can work both independently and productively? Now seems like a good time for job seekers to add remote-work skills to their resumes too. Include experience with VPN systems, email, and file sharing (FTP sites, Dropbox, Google Docs, etc.), and different video conferencing systems.

While remote work may be our “new normal” and “next normal” – a note of caution. I have navigated a hybrid of in-office and remote work during my career and learned that the line between work and home can easily become blurred. Those two places are not interchangeable. Work hard to separate them.

What are your thoughts on working remotely? Is it here to stay? What questions would you ask a job candidate to determine their remote-readiness?