I’ve hired many support reps over the years. Each interview taught me something new. From this experience, I’ve created 100 proven questions.
These questions are tools to uncover skills, attitudes, and potential. They’ll help you find great support reps, whether you’re building a new team or expanding an existing one.
The best interviews are conversations. Use these questions as a guide, but follow interesting leads. Listen to what candidates say and how they say it. Their interview style often reflects how they’ll talk to customers.
I’ve organized the questions by category, explaining why each matters and what good answers look like. This will help you make better hiring decisions.
What to Look For
When I interview candidates, I look at five key areas:
- Communication skills
- Problem-solving ability
- Technical aptitude
- Empathy and patience
- Eagerness to learn
Each tells me something different about the candidate. Together, they paint a picture of how the person will perform in the role.
Technical vs. Non-Technical Skills
Here’s a truth I’ve learned the hard way: you can teach technical skills, but you can’t teach curiosity or empathy.
I once hired a tech whiz who knew our product inside out. But he couldn’t explain things simply. Customers left confused and frustrated. He didn’t last long.
Another time, I took a chance on someone with less technical experience but great people skills. She picked up the technical side quickly. Customers loved her. She’s now our team lead.
The lesson? Look for the unteachable skills first. The rest will follow.
How to Interview
I’ve found the best interviews feel like conversations, not interrogations. I start with easy questions to help the candidate relax. Then I dig deeper.
I always leave time for their questions. It tells me a lot about what they value.
And I pay attention to how they communicate. Are they clear? Concise? Do they listen well? These skills matter when dealing with customers.
The Questions
Here’s a list of questions I use, why they matter, and what I look for in the answers:
General Questions
| Question | Why it matters | Cues for a good answer |
| Tell me about yourself. | Shows communication skills and self-awareness. | Concise, relevant information about professional background and career aspirations. |
| Why are you interested in working for our company? | Reveals research skills and genuine interest. | Specific reasons related to company culture, products, or mission. |
| What do you know about our company and our products/services? | Shows preparation and industry knowledge. | Detailed understanding of company offerings and market position. |
| Can you describe your experience in customer support? | Provides insight into relevant skills and experience. | Specific roles, responsibilities, and achievements in customer support. |
| Why did you leave your previous role? | Reveals career motivations and potential red flags. | Positive reasons like seeking growth or new challenges. |
| Who was the best customer agent in your team? And why? | Shows ability to recognize excellence in others. | Specific example with qualities that made the agent stand out. |
| If I call your manager, what would they say about you? | Provides insight into self-awareness and perceived strengths. | Honest reflection on work ethic, strengths, and areas for improvement. |
Role-Specific Questions
| Question | Why it matters | Cues for a good answer |
| Can you describe a time when you had to escalate a customer issue? What was the outcome? | Assesses ability to handle complex situations. | Clear reasons for escalation, steps taken, and positive resolution. |
| How do you ensure the quality of your responses to customer queries? | Evaluates commitment to accuracy and helpfulness. | Specific processes for verifying information and ensuring quality. |
| How do you prioritize your tasks when dealing with multiple customer queries at the same time? | Assesses time management skills. | Clear prioritization strategy and examples of managing multiple tasks. |
| Tell me about a time when you had to handle a particularly tough customer. How did you manage the situation? | Evaluates ability to handle difficult interactions professionally. | Calm approach, steps taken to resolve the issue, positive outcome. |
| What customer support tools are you familiar with? How have you used them in your previous roles? | Assesses technical skills and tool familiarity. | Specific tools mentioned and examples of effective use. |
| Can you provide an example of how you handled a situation where you didn’t know the answer to a customer’s query? | Assesses problem-solving skills and resourcefulness. | Steps taken to find the answer, resources used, clear communication with the customer. |
| How do you handle repetitive or monotonous tasks while maintaining high-quality customer support? | Evaluates motivation and consistency. | Strategies for staying motivated and maintaining quality. |
| Tell me about your KPIs and how you performed against them? | Assesses understanding of performance metrics and ability to meet targets. | Specific KPIs mentioned, performance data, strategies used to achieve goals. |
Technical Questions
| Question | Why it matters | Cues for a good answer |
| How do you troubleshoot common technical issues reported by customers? | Assesses problem-solving skills and technical knowledge. | Specific troubleshooting steps, logical problem-solving process. |
| Have you ever created or used a knowledge base or FAQ for customer support? Describe your experience. | Assesses ability to create and use support resources. | Examples of creating or using knowledge bases, impact on efficiency. |
| How do you stay updated with new features and updates? | Assesses commitment to continuous learning. | Specific methods for staying updated, proactive learning strategies. |
| What is an API? Explain it to me as if I were a 5-year-old. | Assesses ability to simplify complex technical concepts. | Simple, relatable explanation using analogies a child could understand. |
| How do you explain technical concepts to customers who have varying levels of technical knowledge? | Evaluates communication skills and ability to adapt explanations. | Use of analogies, clear language, examples of effective explanations. |
| Can you give an example of how you handled a feature request or feedback from a customer? | Evaluates ability to manage and communicate customer feedback. | Steps taken to communicate feedback, collaboration with product team. |
| What programming languages are you familiar with? How have you used them in your previous roles? | Assesses programming skills and experience. | Specific languages mentioned, examples of projects or tasks performed. |
| Can you describe a script or automation you wrote to solve a problem or improve efficiency? | Evaluates ability to use automation for problem-solving. | Specific problem described, details of the script, efficiency gained. |
Collaboration Questions
| Question | Why it matters | Cues for a good answer |
| Can you describe a time when you worked on a team project? What was your role, and how did you contribute to the team’s success? | Assesses teamwork and collaboration skills. | Clear description of role, examples of contributions, positive outcome. |
| How do you handle conflicts or disagreements with team members? | Evaluates conflict resolution skills. | Steps taken to resolve conflicts, focus on communication and collaboration. |
| Can you describe a time when you had to coordinate tasks with other departments or teams? | Assesses ability to work across departments. | Examples of effective cross-team collaboration, positive outcomes. |
| How do you support and motivate your team members during challenging times? | Evaluates leadership qualities and ability to foster a positive team environment. | Examples of providing support, motivation techniques, positive impact on team morale. |
| Can you provide an example of how you handled a situation where a team member was not contributing effectively? | Assesses problem-solving and leadership skills. | Steps taken to address the issue, communication strategies, positive resolution. |
| How do you handle conflicting priorities when working with multiple departments? | Evaluates ability to manage priorities and collaborate effectively. | Strategies for managing conflicts, examples of prioritization, effective communication. |
| How do you gather and share feedback from customers with other departments to improve products or services? | Evaluates feedback management and communication skills. | Methods of gathering feedback, sharing processes, examples of implemented feedback. |
Feedback Questions
| Question | Why it matters | Cues for a good answer |
| Tell me about a time when a manager gave you constructive criticism. How did you respond? | Assesses ability to accept and use feedback. | Acceptance of feedback, steps taken to improve, positive outcome. |
| How do you seek feedback from your peers and managers? | Gauges initiative in seeking improvement. | Regular feedback sessions, examples of feedback sought and applied. |
| Describe a piece of feedback from a manager that was hard to hear. What did you do with it? | Reveals resilience in handling difficult feedback. | Honest reflection, constructive response, specific actions taken. |
| How do you prioritize your own development in a busy work environment? | Explores commitment to learning and time management. | Strategies for balancing work and development, examples of learning activities. |
| Share an example of when you identified a weakness and worked to improve it. | Assesses self-awareness and initiative in self-improvement. | Clear identification of weakness, steps for improvement, measurable results. |
| How do you track your professional growth and areas for improvement? | Shows if the candidate has a structured approach to self-improvement. | Use of tools like journals, feedback logs, setting SMART goals. |
| What steps do you take to apply feedback from a manager in your work? | Reveals the process for using feedback to enhance performance. | Clear implementation plan, follow-up actions, examples of successfully applied feedback. |
| Describe a time when you had to quickly learn a new skill to adapt to a change in your role. How did you manage it? | Assesses adaptability and approach to learning under pressure. | Specific example, learning strategy, successful application of the new skill. |
Career and Growth Questions
| Question | Why it matters | Cues for a good answer |
| Where do you see yourself in five years, and how does this role fit into your career goals? | Assesses long-term career aspirations and alignment with the role. | Clear career goals, understanding of how the role supports these goals. |
| Can you describe a time when you took on additional responsibilities to advance your career? | Evaluates initiative and willingness to take on new challenges. | Specific example, additional responsibilities taken, positive outcome or learning experience. |
| What skills or experiences are you looking to gain from this role? | Evaluates understanding of the role and desire to grow. | Specific skills or experiences mentioned, clear connection to career goals. |
| How do you seek out opportunities for growth and development in your current or previous roles? | Evaluates proactive approach to career development. | Examples of seeking out new projects or learning opportunities, impact on career progression. |
| Can you describe a time when you mentored a colleague? | Assesses leadership and mentoring skills. | Specific example, mentoring actions taken, positive outcome for the colleague. |
Hiring for customer support is an art and a science. The questions matter, but so does the conversation between them. Listen not just to what candidates say, but how they say it.
Remember, you’re not just filling a position. You’re choosing someone who will be the voice of your company. They’ll solve problems, teach customers, and provide insights that could shape your product.
Choose wisely. The right hire can turn support from a cost center into a competitive advantage.
And always keep learning. Each interview, each hire, is a chance to refine your process. The perfect support team isn’t built overnight. It’s crafted over time, one great hire at a time.
