36 Interview Questions for a Sr. UX Designer

Aug 27

Are you hiring a UX Designer? Not sure what questions to ask? I recently went through this process and put together a list of key questions that helped me assess candidates thoroughly. Here's what I've learned:

TLDR: Questions for Hiring a Senior UX Designer

When interviewing a Senior UX Designer, it's crucial to align your questions with your business goals and team needs. This guide covers 36 key questions you should ask, along with what to listen for in their answers. We also provide ways to practice, common pitfalls to avoid, and a playful quiz to test your understanding at the end. Let’s make sure you find the right fit for your team!

Here's what I've learned:

Before diving into the interview, it’s crucial to align your expectations with the business goals and team dynamics. Think about what skills are most critical for your team right now and how a new teammate can contribute to the team’s growth.

Remember, an interview should be a two-way conversation. It’s not just about drilling the candidate with questions, but also about giving them the space to ask you questions and engage in a meaningful dialogue.

Here are the 36 interview questions to ask when hiring a Senior UX Designer, along with insights on what to listen for in their answers:

Company Mission, Values, and Cultural Fit

What is our company’s mission statement?
Example: Meta’s mission is to give people the power to build community and bring the world closer together.
What to listen for: Do they understand and resonate with your company’s mission?
What are our company’s values?
Example: Meta’s values include “Move fast, Focus on long-term impact, Build awesome things, Live in the future, Be direct and respect your colleagues.”
What to listen for: Can they articulate your company’s values and relate to them?
Why do you want to work for our company?
What to listen for: How they connect their current role and skills to your company’s job description and values.
Describe a situation in which you have demonstrated the company’s core values.
What to listen for: Using the S.T.A.R. (Situation, Task, Action, Result) method, do they show how they embody your company’s values in real-world scenarios?
Tell me about a situation where you failed.
What to listen for: A situation from the first half of their career. Do they provide insights into what they learned and how it influenced their growth?
Tell me about your best collaboration experience.
What to listen for: Use the S.T.A.R. method to explore how they collaborate effectively and what made it a successful experience.
How would you contribute positively to the company’s mission?
What to listen for: Specific actions or approaches they would take to align with and drive the company’s mission forward.
Tell me something a former colleague would say about you.
What to listen for: Personal qualities or skills that are consistently recognized by others, with examples from past collaborations.
Why did you leave your last job?
What to listen for: Honest reflection on what they were missing in their previous role and what excites them about your opportunity.
What are your strengths?
What to listen for: Skills that align with your job description and how they have applied these strengths in their previous roles.

General UX and Process Questions

Tell me about yourself. What has been your journey into UX? Why have you chosen to pursue a career in UX?
What to listen for: Does their journey and career experience align with the role? Are they passionate about UX?
Every UX designer has a process of some kind. What is your ideal project process?
What to listen for: A clearly articulated design process that centers on user needs. Do they consider telemetry after deployment?
What areas of the end-to-end process are your strengths and weaknesses?
What to listen for: Are their strengths aligned with what your team needs most? Are they aware of their weaknesses?
How do you work with other designers, PMs, and Developers?
What to listen for: Insights into their personality and communication skills. Are they collaborative?
UX projects involve many responsibilities; what responsibilities are most valuable to you?
What to listen for: Do their priorities align with a sound design process? How experienced are they with end-to-end design?
What’s your process for deciding which feature to add to a product?
What to listen for: Consideration of timelines, business goals, research, and collaboration with stakeholders.
How do you respond to negative feedback or feedback you disagree with? Can you tell me about a time when you received such feedback?
What to listen for: Do they handle feedback constructively? Are they able to collaborate and incorporate outside perspectives?
Tell me about your most and least successful UX projects.
What to listen for: In the successful project, do they highlight their contributions and the impact? In the least successful project, do they explain what they learned and what they would do differently?
Tell me about some of your favorite examples of great UX.
What to listen for: Their knowledge of UX best practices. Do they break down the problem, the solution, and why it’s user-centric?
What are some of the biggest challenges you face as a UX Designer?
What to listen for: Are they focused on process challenges or collaboration challenges? How do they overcome these obstacles?
Tell me about a design leader you follow.
What to listen for: Are they actively improving their career? Do they differentiate between trends and innovations?
What do you think will be the next big thing in UX?
What to listen for: Are they passionate about UX? Are they keeping up with trends and innovations in technology?
Where do you see yourself in five years?
What to listen for: Ambition and a clear vision for their career. Do they have a plan?
Why us?
What to listen for: Are they genuinely excited about your company’s mission? How do they see themselves adding value to your team?
What questions do you have for us?
What to listen for: Are their questions insightful? Do they show a deep interest in the role and your company?

Metrics, Measurement, and Reflection

How did you measure success in your previous projects?
Examples: NPS (Net Promoter Score), Time on Task, Task Success Rate, aligning with business and customer goals.
What was the biggest failing of this project?
What to listen for: Balancing business goals with user needs and how they addressed or would address these challenges.
If you could work on your project again, what would you do differently?
What to listen for: Reflection on the importance of iterative design, early user feedback, and cross-functional collaboration.
What metrics signaled you to work on this problem?
Examples: Lack of updates, customer service tickets, NPS, or referral trends.
What guided your assumptions and hypothesis during your project?
Examples: Data analysis, UX research, market trends, user interviews, and usability tests.
What problem did you solve with this project?
What to listen for: Understanding of the problem from both business and customer perspectives.
How do you influence product decisions?
What to listen for: Deep understanding of user needs and business objectives, and how they advocate for these in the design process.

Challenges and Growth

What kind of challenges did you face working on your latest project?
What to listen for: Use the S.T.A.R. method to explore challenges and how they were overcome.
What do you want to do in the future?
What to listen for: Alignment of their career goals with the opportunities your company can offer.
What is the area where you have the most to learn?
What to listen for: Openness to growth, especially in areas relevant to your company’s current or future needs.
Describe a time when you completed a task under pressure.
What to listen for: How they handle stress and deliver quality work in high-pressure situations.

Ways to Practice:

Mock Interviews: Conduct mock interviews with colleagues to refine your questioning technique and improve your ability to identify the right candidates.
Feedback Loops: After each interview, gather feedback from everyone involved to fine-tune your approach and questions for future interviews.
Scenario Testing: Create scenarios based on the questions above and see how candidates respond to practical challenges.

Pitfalls to Avoid:

One-Sided Conversations: Don’t dominate the interview. Remember, it’s a dialogue—give candidates room to ask questions and express themselves.
Focusing Only on Experience: While experience is important, don’t overlook a candidate’s potential and cultural fit within your team.
Ignoring Red Flags: If a candidate avoids answering a question or gives vague responses, it might indicate they lack the necessary experience or confidence.

Summary

When hiring a Senior UX Designer, it’s essential to ask the right questions that align with your business goals and team needs. The 36 questions outlined above are designed to help you gauge a candidate’s experience, communication skills, and cultural fit. Practice your interviewing techniques, be mindful of common pitfalls, and ensure the interview remains a two-way conversation.

👉 Joke: Why did the UX Designer bring a map to the interview? To navigate the tricky questions with a user journey! 😂

This guide is designed to help you find the perfect Senior UX Designer for your team. Keep these questions and tips in mind, and you’ll be well on your way to making a great hire!

That's it, that all.

Once you’ve hired your new UX Designer you can find a great 30 day onboarding process here.

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