When interviewing for an open position, we advise hiring managers to spend the majority of their time asking candidates about their histories: previous jobs, professional experiences, prior challenges, tasks they’ve enjoyed performing. Why is this important? Because getting a clear picture of what people have done in the past is a crucial step toward accurately predicting what they’ll do in the future.

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However, it’s also necessary to ask candidates about what they hope subsequent jobs will offer them as well. Knowing what individuals are looking for in their next opportunity helps you determine if what you have to offer will meet their needs. Being able to do this accurately is one of the keys to ensuring a great fit between a candidate and your open position. It’s also a major element of a great retention strategy, since people tend to stick around and do their best work if their job is everything they hoped it would be when they signed on.

So how do you get candidates to open up and talk about what they hope the future holds for them? The questions below offer some ideas for how to explore this topic in your interviews.

• What are the top 3 things you’d like to get out of your next job?
• Describe the position you’d consider to be a “dream job” for you.
• Tell me some of the things you’d most like to have the authority to do in your next job.
• What activities do you feel are the best use of your natural talents and interests?
• If you could spend 80% of your time in your next job doing one type of activity, what would it be?
• What are the top 3 things you’d like to avoid doing, if possible, in your next job?
• Tell me about some of the things you’d like to achieve professionally in the next few years.
• We all have things we’ve had to do in past jobs that we hope we never have to do again. What are some of your “never agains”?
• What new skills or areas of expertise would you like to master in your next position? What’s interesting to you about them?
• What are the deal breakers for you in choosing your next career move? These could either be things you must have or ones you absolutely want to avoid.
• Describe the type of manager you’d most like to work for in your next position.
• What kind of relationship would you ideally have with your next manager?
• If you could give your next manager one piece of advice on how to work with you most effectively, what would you say?
• If you could design your ideal work environment what would it look like?
• Tell me about the work schedule you think would be a good fit for you in your next job. For example, what hours would you prefer to be in the office, would you like to be able to telecommute on some days, what kind of flexibility would be helpful to you, etc.?
• What percentages of your time would you like to spend working with others vs. working alone in your next position?
• What talents or skills do you see yourself bringing to the next team you’re a part of?
• Describe the company culture you think would be a great fit for you.
• What kinds of things do you think make a company exciting to work for?
• If you started your own company, what values and beliefs would you want to incorporate in the business?
• How do you think the position we have available could help you reach your career goals?
• Based upon what you already know about our company, what aspects of working with us appeal to you the most?

Once you have the answers to these questions, you should have a very clear picture of how what you have to offer candidates fits with their goals and priorities. If they describe a very different opportunity than yours, you’ll need to be realistic and, in all likelihood, move forward with your other options. However, if what they want and need in their next career step sounds like something you can provide, your offer will definitely get their attention.

For more insight into how your interview process can be part of a highly effective overall hiring system, click here to checkout our Ultimate Hiring Guide.

Janna Mansker is vice president of client services for Berke, a human resources consulting firm, where she leads the company’s education initiatives and advocates for clients. She can be reached at janna@berkegroup.com.