Remember, an interview is a dialogue between two people, not a monologue: This is your chance to interview the interviewer a bit to see if the job is right for you. You can never have too much information to make a decision—even if you feel your interview has been pretty thorough, ask a question or two about the job, employer, or market for the industry. This question usually signals the interview is about to end ....

Do you have any questions?

You sure do. If you don’t, the interviewer will assume you aren’t interested enough in the job, or are too inexperienced or unknowledgeable to hazard a guess as to a relevant question.

Good answer: Ask about the job and/or employer to impress the interviewer with your interest and enthusiasm, and to get enough information to decide if you want the job if you get an offer. Ask a few questions from the list that follows. Be ready with a reason if the interviewer asks why you ask (and don’t say this book told you to).

Bad answer: No—which sounds like you’re uninterested or lack knowledge or experience to ask appropriate questions, even if you meet all the job qualifications. Sounding like a robot reeling off a list, without asking questions that naturally flow from the interviewer’s answers. Asking questions already answered in the interview. Asking questions about public companies whose information is readily available shows you haven’t done your homework.

Job Savvy

Always have some questions you want to ask prepared before the interview. You don’t want to hem and haw as if this was a surprise sprung on you. Reread these questions right before the interview.

Now, let’s turn the tables. Here are some questions you may want to ask the interviewer.

Why is the job open?

It’s helpful to know that the department is growing so much that new jobs have opened up, or that a division was formed to promote a new product or service. Or perhaps the last person was promoted, quit—as did three people before him or her—or was fired.

What happened to the last person who had the job?

Knowing the last person was promoted shows there is some growth potential in the job—or at least for that employee. Or knowing the last person was fired for cause means you may be stuck with their unhappy clients or customers, so a warning bell should go off.

Job Jinx

Don’t ask about benefits like vacation time, health insurance, retirement plans, or maternity leave early in the interview. The interviewer will question your priorities, so the question may torpedo your chances. Wait to ask about benefits until you get a job offer or the end of the interview. After all, if you get no offer, it’s irrelevant. Also, benefits often are negotiable.

How many people have had this job in the past few years?

Hearing several people held this job over the past few years should give you pause for thought—unless they were all promoted. Read between the lines, and try to learn the reasons for such high turnover in your next questions.

Is there a written job description? If so, may I see it?

Seeing the employer’s official description of the job and the responsibilities and activities it entails is helpful, since it will be fuller than the terse ad or posting you read or heard about. You can match up your skills and qualifications against this description, so you can tailor your answers to future questions. If there is no written description, ask for a complete verbal description.

What are the chances for growth in this job?

It’s nice to know if it’s a dead-end job where you will clock-watch and be stuck for all eternity—or a spot with lots of opportunities for advancement with a tried-and-true path for promotion and perhaps a training program. Of course, don’t expect the interviewer to come right out and say something damning about the job—but listen carefully to the answer and read between the lines if you can. Don’t give the sense you’re raring to leave this job before you even have it—but it’s a natural question for anyone with any ambition.

Who would be your boss?

Wouldn’t you like to know if your boss will be the ogre you’ve often heard or read about, which may certainly color your decision to take the job if offered? Getting a name means you can research him or her to learn more about the job and his or her management style.

Will you have a chance to meet your potential boss?

Meeting your potential boss gives you a chance to gauge if you can work with this person—or if there is something so off-putting you should think again.

Job Savvy

Ask general questions if the human resources department (personnel) is interviewing you, and save specific questions about day-to-day job details for the hiring manager. If an employment agency, recruiter, or headhunter is interviewing you, it’s okay to ask who will make the decision to hire.

What will be your first projects, or who will your clients be?

This can be quite illuminating, showing exactly what you will be doing as soon as you are hired, and possibly quite different from what you imagine. Perhaps some unpalatable clients or a truly unappealing project awaits—but you won’t know until you ask.

How much travel is required for this job?

You don’t want constant travel—or travel once or twice a month, or whatever is required—to be a surprise after you start the job. On the other hand, frequent travel may be your personal idea of nirvana, but best to know to avoid surprises.

How often do performance reviews take place?

If you’re an ambitious sort, interested in growth potential, it’s good to know if you have to wait a whole year to be considered for promotions and raises, or if you’ll be reviewed a few months after being hired. Sometimes job-hunters ask for, and get, a quicker job review than is standard.

Job Savvy

Write down the interviewer’s answers to your questions soon after each interview. We are far more apt to remember something if we write it down.

What qualifications and skills are you looking for in this job?

Hopefully, these are your qualifications and skills. If so, then match them up one by one to show the interviewer you’re the right person for the job. If not, make a mental note of what you lack—for example, certain computer skills, five years of supervisory experience, or experience handling clients in a specific industry. Perhaps your enthusiasm will make up for the lack, or you can take classes on the side to bring yourself up to speed.

How would you describe the work environment (corporate culture) at this employer?

If you’re a laid-back sort, you may be alarmed to hear the place prizes driven hard-chargers or hear the interviewer cheerily describe it as something of a shark tank. Or if you prefer a lot of autonomy, you may not be comfortable in a highly team-oriented spot where managers tend to supervise employees closely. Employers in the same industry can vary considerably in terms of work environment, so knowing the traits held in high esteem gives clues to what the workplace will be like.

Where are the opportunities for growth at this employer?

It helps to know if most opportunities for growth are in a totally different department, product, or service line from the job in question, and what contact, if any, you would have with that department. It’s also good to know if the employer has a strong promote-from-within policy, and if there is a training program to encourage advancement.

Job Savvy

A survey by Accountemps of 1,400 chief financial officers found that the number-one benefit employees crave is flexible hours (30 percent). It ranked tops over retirement plans (17 percent), extra time off (16 percent), health insurance (13 percent), and spot bonuses (13 percent).

What kind of training is available at this employer?

Some employers have official, well-designed training programs which offer clear paths to advancement. Others believe more in a sink-or-swim, learn-by-doing approach.

What can you tell me about the people with whom I’d be working?

The interviewer’s enthusiasm or lack thereof can be very revealing about the work environment you’ll find yourself in if hired.

What do you like about this employer? Why?

The answer the interviewer gives, and any enthusiasm it conveys, may convince you of the many positives the employer offers—or not.

What has the growth pattern of the employer been over the past few years? Any major layoffs?

If this is a public company, this information is easy to come by and you should know from your research, so don’t ask this question. Ask a variant, for example, “What accounts for the sharp rise in sales volume?” If it’s privately held, this information may not be easily found, so go ahead and ask.

Who will be the employer’s major competition over the next few years? Why?

Hopefully, you know this from your research, but it’s often enlightening to hear who the employer sees as its main competition.

What happens next? Or: When will I know your decision?

Find out if there will be other interviews. If so, ask with whom and if now is a good time to set up a meeting. If this is the first and only interview, this is your last chance: Say confidently you are eager to work here and are sure you will do a good job. Ask if there is anything else you can do before a decision is made.

Eventually you will feel the sense of empowerment that radiates through you when an interview truly is a conversation between two people. At this point, you should know whether the job has any chance for growth and what your first projects are likely to be, and have sized up your future boss. Because the interviewer expects you to ask questions to show your interest, you have a golden opportunity to show you’ve done your research. If you listen carefully to the answers, you’re able to make an informed decision on whether you even want to work there.