5 Tips for Interviewing In-House Legal Candidates
/An overview of what questions to ask during an interview and how to interpret your candidates’ responses.
Many lawyers and most General Counsels boast impressive collegiate backgrounds, have impeccable resumes, and have collected a broad range of professional experiences. Therefore, to help properly evaluate candidates and unearth the top performers, interviewers must examine a broader range of factors during the interview process—including silent-but-powerful indicators such as body language, tone, and professional presentation.
Here are five tips for interviewing in-house legal candidates:
1. Behavioral-based questions
A person’s past is one of the most efficient predictors of future behavior. And incorporating a comprehensive behavioral assessment into an interview will give you some information that assesses a candidate’s character and decision-making style.
Before your interviews, assess the open position and your organizational culture, and then prepare a set of behavioral questions that align well with both. For example, here is a list of desired character traits, along with a few strategic questions to help you measure them:
Problem solving and resourcefulness: “Describe a time when you were faced with a significant problem that needed to be solved or a unique challenge that required a resolution. What solutions did you generate, and how did you select the most appropriate one?” Look for enthusiasm, critical-thinking skill, and efficiency in their described process to overcome the hurdles.
Level of integrity: “Tell me about a time when you felt pressured to compromise your professional integrity, along with the actions you took to navigate those situations.”
Project management/organization: “In this profession, as we all know, the devil is in the details. Describe a time where the details of a project were just as important as the outcome itself and the steps you took to manage each step of the process.”
2. Assess professional presentation
You can learn a lot about your candidates by how they present themselves before, during, and after an interview. For example, it is not uncommon for interviews to be re-scheduled or postponed as a result of conflicts with the executive team, especially when you’re hiring at the General Counsel level. When this happens, pay close attention to a candidate’s response. If you pick up on feelings of irritation or dwindling patience—or they are not efficient about responses to requested changes—there’s a good chance that their true professional character is being exposed.
You’ll also want to pay attention to your candidates’ comfort with the interview process. If an attorney appears nervous or shaken in an interview, they may not be adept at handling stressful situations that have an audience and high stakes.
Last, study a candidate’s conduct, style, and overall demeanor, and then think about how they align with your company's culture. If your company operates more formally, then you'll want to look for candidates who present themselves accordingly.
3. Measure their motivation
When interviewing attorneys, you must assess their level of interest in your company and the opportunity at hand. Simply asking “Why are you interested in this role?” gains valuable insight into their motivation for being there.
For example, a less-desirable candidate will discuss their reasons for wanting to leave their current role, while desirable candidates will discuss specific reasons that your company and the particular role are exciting for them. Their answer can also help you when it comes time to devise an offer, especially if you are unable to meet their salary requirements.
4. Assess cultural fit
Even the most talented and experienced lawyers won’t be successful unless they are also a good cultural fit for your company. That means having a solid understanding of your core values and asking strategic questions to ensure that your candidates’ values align with them. To help you evaluate cultural fit, try asking these questions:
What would you change about your current company’s culture, and why?
If you were to establish your own business, what would your top three core values be?
What are your personal work habits? Do you prefer a more casual atmosphere or one that tends to be more formal?
How do you deal with conflict, ethical dilemmas, and challenging colleagues?
5. Create a benchmark for references
Collecting references and candidate referrals is a necessary step in any hiring process, but it is important to create a benchmark that helps you measure their feedback. To accomplish this, try asking this question in an interview: “If you were going to assemble a meeting of the minds where you asked your professional references to relay your greatest strengths and weaknesses, what would they say?”
Take those answers and then compare them to those of their references to see how they measure up. If they align, that is usually a sign of an honest, high-performer.
Even though interviewing legal candidates can be an arduous process, it is not a process that should be rushed. Yes, having open positions can be costly and temporarily lower productivity levels—but hiring the wrong candidate can cost you even more, in both time and money.
Carrington Legal Search is an executive legal search consultancy that can take your company throughout the entire candidate assessment process and guide you through the interview process. To make our nationwide network work for you, get in touch at 512-627-7467 or email carrie@carringtonlegal.com.