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Comment by AnimalMuppet | Hacker News Reader

> I have sometimes asked the hiring manager to describe when and why he gave a report a negative review about something. This usually causes a long pause.

As well it should. First, they do they not want to look bad. Second, the person that they gave the negative review to may be in the room with you (if they do group interviews). Third, even without the first two, there may be legal issues with them telling you the truth. (Even if there are no legal issues, it is almost certainly against HR policy, and rightly so.)

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I would definitely pause.

I just took an internal course for interviewing potential candidates for our company a few weeks ago. Having been recently exposed to all the ways I can easily accidentally breach the law, I would agree that I would definitely hesitate, and may or may not answer the question.

Sure - in the comfort of my home office reading this thread, I have the luxury of being couch lawyer and arguing whether answering is legal or not, and how much I can divulge.

On the spot? I honestly might not have taken the risk if the question caught me off-guard (as it would've before today). As much as I want my manager to provide feedback often and early and for negative feedback to be constructive; and as much as I would want to exhibit those qualities myself; and as much as I think those things are important and should be discussed... I'd be uncomfortable sharing what is ultimately private information with, at that point, a random stranger.

If it is ok for managers to ask "Describe a time when you failed", it is fair game for interviewee to ask tough questions.

I can answer "describe a time when you failed" without getting sued or fired. So, no, it's not equivalently fair. Ask tough questions, sure. Feel free. This question passes beyond "tough", though, clear to "out of bounds".

The questions is easily answered without getting sued or fired. Candidates are asked to describe projects they've worked on. If my question is out of bounds so is that one. After all a candidate might be sued by his employer for divulging too much about the company's internal knowledge.

One doesn't ask "name a person you reviewed negatively," of course. That would be out of bounds.

All but the first item are easily addressed with straightforward responses as appropriate. "Not wanting to look bad" is rarely a good reason. This person has his reports careers in his hands. I don't think it's unreasonable to want to know his temperament when assessing performance.

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