Questions to ask Interviewer

It would be nice if we can compile a list of questions you can ask your future employer. It should be serious questions that you can actually ask in an interview without blowing your chances of job offer.

To start off, how do I ask politely if the employer is a slave driver? Specifically what kind of overtime would the employer expect?

First of all start with compiling a list of questions you need answered to know if the position is a good fit for you. That one you listed could be asked with "What is the average hours worked? Are there times of the week, month or year that are busier and require overtime?"

I am always looking for ideas about questions to ask in an interview. I do a lot of contract jobs so I usually am interviewing at least once per year (often twice per year). I do research on the company first and prepare a list , but often the person doing the interview does like to go on at length about the department, accomplishments, and the company in-general. Or by the third interview someone has answered all the questions. Or the recruiter/agency fills you in on the details. So I' m looking forward to see what others post about this.

some strategies I use is that if the first person I interviewed with has told me something interesting, I' ll verify it by asking about it at later interviews for the career position. For example if the HR person tells me that everyone in the department has been there for 3 years or more, I' ll ask the hiring manager about turn-over. I' ve uncovered some mixed answers that have sent up red flags that way. I also like to key into the accomplishments or progress the hiring manager usually brings up at some point and then later ask for more information about that. For example "You mentioned earlier that in the past year you have managed to accomplish X. Can you tell me what you believe was the single most important factor or change you made to reach that goal and why it was so important?" I also sometimesask the hiring manager what they feel is the biggest mistake they' ve made in reaching their goals for the department. That one takes more guts to ask (and answer), so I judge carefully if they might take it the wrong way before deciding to ask or not..