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It’s been a long uphill battle sending out all those resumes and cover letters and waiting by the phone. Finally, a company has reached out and wants to invite you to be a part of its team, if you can pass one more test. Your interview is just one part of your application that will make or break your chances of landing the job you want. You may have honed how to make yourself look great on paper, but the moment of truth lies within the interview room. Since this will probably be the first impression you and your potential boss have of each other, you want to try not to get caught off guard by industry-specific questions. You can expect to hear the usual, stock questions while they try to get a good idea of your personality, but it will be your answers to the more specific questions that can set you apart from the other candidates and win you a second interview. We’ve compiled a short list of possible HR administrative assistant interview questions and answers for your position below.
But first, you might be curious about what the role of a human resources administrator involves. A human resources administrator’s role is to be the primary point of contact within a company for any and all HR-related questions. The administrator acts as a liason between insurance providers and employees to resolve benefits-related issues and problems, such as disputes related to claims.
Also, what is the meaning of an HR round in an interview? You’re going to need to know this if you’re trying to join a company as an HR administrative assistant. The HR round of an interview is typically the last interview phase of the interview process; it’s also quite frequently the phase where a hiring decision is made regarding the candidate. Questions about career goals and milestones are typically asked of the candidate during the HR round.
6 HR Administrative Assistant Interview Questions & Answers
As an HR administrative assistant, you will be the face of your department. How do you plan on maintaining a positive attitude while receiving multiple requests throughout the day?
I am an outgoing and agreeable person by nature and value communication between many different personality types. I understand that an inherent duty of this position is to be able to maintain a rapport with individuals from a wide variety of professional positions and diverse backgrounds. I acknowledge that a constant barrage of requests could be tiresome to some people, but I enjoy helping people and absolutely look forward to assisting with the many types of interactions. Helping new employees navigate their recently secured positions is a welcome and exciting challenge.
Many people will come to you with generalized questions you may not be able to answer. How will you direct people to the appropriate department?
It will be imperative for me to familiarize myself with the department staff so I can efficiently point people in the right direction. Each member of HR has a specific skillset and duties that have been meted out accordingly. It is my job as a new employee to learn who is responsible for what task, so I can assist other new employees in finding the answers to their questions.
At times, employees may ask you to do things that have nothing to do with your job, simply because they are not sure who else to ask. How will you help them find the solution to their problem?
Being new to a job can be overwhelming, and I am happy to help orient employees to their new department. Seeking out the right person is never a burden, because you always meet new people and learn in the process, which means you can respond more efficiently next time.
You will be responsible for multiple phone lines. Do you have experience handling high call volumes?
In several of my previous positions I was required to operate multi-line phones. I have a lot of experience operating complex phones with various levels of transfer and voicemail capabilities. I am also familiar with systems in which you can transfer voicemail to emails and vise-versa.
You will frequently be asked to send out departmental emails and updates. How would you describe your writing skill level?
In every position I’ve held, I’ve been required to email on behalf of various employees. In some cases, I acted as liaison between my boss and all internal and external contacts and ghostwrote about 90 percent of his office emails for him. I also have experience updating websites and sending out newsletters, which both require excellent writing skills.
Have you encountered conflicts of personality at work in the past, and how have you overcome these tense situations?
It’s almost impossible to go through your professional life without encountering some sort of conflict. In a particularly tricky situation in which a coworker repeatedly made errors in orders and misinterpreted requests from fellow employees, I implemented a rule that all communication involving orders or meeting requests must go through email, so there would always be a paper trail. In this way we were able to avoid having to rely on one person’s word against another’s.
Nilda Melissa Díaz is a Career Advice Writer. She has worked for the Washington Post, Stringr, and Latina Style Magazine. She has a master's in journalism from Columbia University and is a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.
