Best interview questions for your hiring process
Office Administrator Interview questions
Office Administrators are a vital role in any company. They specialise in taking on the administrative tasks for a team which includes scheduling, data entry and file management, therefore streamlining processes for the rest of the team.
When looking for the perfect candidate, these should be the skills you’re searching for:
- Computer literate (preferably with experience in Microsoft Office or other programs your company uses.)
- A high level of communication skills, both written and verbal.
- Impeccable time management and organisation skills.
- Experience with an office management system is preferable.
An Office Administrator will work closely with multiple different departments, meaning their multitasking and people skills will be a priority, too.
Interviewing an Office Administrator
Having an expert set of eyes working on your administrative tasks will ensure your team doesn’t end up with a backlog of files to search through and organise, meaning more time to meet their goals! These example Office Administrator job interview questions will help you pick a candidate who’s up for the role.
It’s worth noting that these questions are designed to be used early in the interview process and help you get to know the candidate better, so they may not be as well suited to second or third meetings.
How to open the job interview
In the initial stages of their interview process, it’s natural for the candidate to be a little nervous. Therefore, it’s a good idea to provide them with a few warm-up questions to help make sure that you’re getting to know their personality properly. Open-ended and positive themed questions work best here, as they encourage a conversation to build up.
This section of the interview only needs to contain a couple of questions but will make a lot of difference when it comes to the more serious questions.
Best interview questions for your hiring process
See our Office Administrator Job Description hereFor the interview
A positive opener to start
How did you get started as an Office Administrator?
What has been the proudest moment of your career?
Behavioral Questions
How would you handle being given multiple administrative tasks with tight deadlines?
How do you stay organised when working on numerous projects at once?
The candidate may give an insight into their past experience and project organisation here.
Which tasks do you enjoy working on the most in your role?
You can gauge which tasks a candidate performs well, as well as their overall understanding of their role based on this answer.
What are some improvements you’ve made in past roles to help boost a team’s organisation/productivity?
This question aims to assess how comfortable a candidate is using their initiative and implementing changes.
Soft Skills
Describe a time you’ve had to deal with poor communication from a team member or department?
The answer here will give you an idea of how well a candidate deals with problem-solving, communication and also an insight into their people skills.
How do you expect the Office Administrator role to change over time?
Here the candidate will be able to show off their knowledge of upcoming trends or changes in their market, as well as giving an idea of their initiative.
When reporting to multiple supervisors at once, how do you prioritise your work?
This question aims to assess the candidate’s collaborative skills, as well as offer more information on their organisation and prioritisation skills.
Hard Skills
Which computer programs do you have the most experience using?
The focus here is on how well the candidate is equipped to use the systems you have in place at your company, and gain insight into what you’d have to train them in.
What skills do you possess that you think might make you a good fit for this role?
This direct question will give the candidate the chance to speak on their specific strengths, and will also demonstrate their level of confidence well.
Describe a time you’ve had to set up and prepare a report/presentation for a meeting?
The answer here will touch on a candidate’s past experience and give insight into which reporting software they have used previously.
How would you describe your experience with calendar management?
Here a candidate will have the chance to mention any experience they have with scheduling meetings with internal and external stakeholders, or planning and coordinating events for the team.
Operational / Situational Questions
How would you deal with a situation where a supervisor required information from you which you didn’t have?
This question can be used to manage a candidates problem solving and communication skills.
Which departments have you offered administrative support to in the past?
This will offer an insight into which departments the candidate can support in your company.
Describe a time where you’ve had to collaborate closely with a team to meet a deadline.
The answer here will give insight into a candidate’s collaborative and people skills.
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This answer will give you an impression of a candidate’s time management and prioritisation skills.