This interview guide for Finance roles will help you to quickly identify which candidates should be on your shortlist. By asking these Finance interview questions and assessing the answers against the indicators provided which will help you determine better which are the high performing candidates.
To be effective, however, these Finance interview questions need to be utilised early in the recruitment process to ensure only high performing candidates make it onto your shortlist and attend the final face to face interviews.
Using Video Interviewing as your screening tool can ensure this. It allows you to make sure all candidates are asked the same key interview questions. Video Interviewing allows you to identify high performing candidates earlier in the recruitment process. This means you can be confident that all the candidates you meet face to face have the skills required to be successful in the role.
This guide was prepared by our Head of Assessment Design, Claire Crisp (BSc, MSc, C.Psychol).
Responsibilities
- Produce financial reports
- Execute internal expenses policy
- Support preparation of monthly / year end accounts
- Assist with budgeting and forecasting
- Process monthly payroll
- Process VAT returns
Key Competencies Required
Primary
- Analytical Thinking
- Judgement and Decision Making
Secondary
- Written Expression
- Attention to Detail
- Building Relationships
- Planning and Organising
Interview Questions
Below are two Finance interview questions which will help you identify and eliminate those candidates who do not possess the analytical thinking and judgement and decision-making skills required to be successful in a Finance role. To support these Finance interview questions, we’ve prepared a rating system to help you evaluate a candidates’ answer.
- To assess Analytical Thinking– “Please give me an example of a piece of work that required you to analyse a significant amount of data. How did you approach this and what conclusions did you draw?”
- To assess Resilience- “Tell me about a time when you had to make a particularly important and difficult decision at work. How did you feel about this and what approach did you take?”
How to assess: Analytical Thinking
A suitable candidate will analyse information from a range of sources, quickly sorting that which is relevant and key from the irrelevant or trivial. They will link data and information together and draw appropriate inferences and conclusions.
| Positive Behaviours | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | Negative Behaviours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Analyses information from a range of different sources | Analyses a narrow range of data | |||||
| Differentiates key data from the irrelevant | Gets distracted by irrelevant data | |||||
| Identifies key issues from the data available | Views the data as a whole; fails to identify key issues | |||||
| Links relevant issues together | Views each piece of data as a separate element; misses connections and links | |||||
| Draws valid inferences and meaning from data | Draws farfetched or unsupported conclusions from data |
How to assess: Judgement and Decision Making
A suitable candidate will weigh up relevant information and options in order to make sound decisions. They will be confident decision makers even in difficult situations.
| Positive Behaviours | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | Negative Behaviours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Takes responsibility for making difficult decisions | Abdicates responsibility for decision-making; looks to others for guidance | |||||
| Is confident about own judgement in difficult situations | Is unsure or under confident about own judgement in difficult situations | |||||
| Makes decisions by weighing up the facts and information available | Makes decisions based on gut feel; does not consider all the facts | |||||
| Considers alternative courses of action | Makes a decision and sticks to it without considering alternatives |
