Interview scorecard by role
HR Generalist Interview Scorecard & Questions
An HR generalist covers recruiting, employee relations, policies, onboarding and compliance. Look for sound judgment, confidentiality, practical knowledge of employment rules and the ability to be both employee advocate and business partner.
What to assess: 5 core competencies
Copy this scorecard. Assign each competency to one interviewer, rate it 1–5 and write down the evidence before discussing the candidate with anyone.
| Competency | What good looks like | Score | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employee relations | handles conflicts and investigations fairly. | ||
| Compliance | knows and applies employment law and policies. | ||
| Recruiting and onboarding | runs structured hiring and onboarding processes. | ||
| Business partnership | advises managers pragmatically. | ||
| Confidentiality | handles sensitive information with care. | ||
| Overall | ☐ Strong no ☐ No ☐ Yes ☐ Strong yes | ||
10 structured interview questions for a hr generalist
Ask the same core questions, in the same order, to every candidate. Probe with "What did you do?" and "What was the result?"
- Tell me about an employee relations issue you investigated.
- How do you advise a manager who wants to terminate someone quickly?
- Describe an HR policy you wrote or updated.
- How do you build a structured hiring process for a small company?
- Tell me about improving onboarding.
- How do you balance employee advocacy and business needs?
- Describe handling a confidential complaint about a senior leader.
- What HR metrics do you track?
- How do you stay current on employment law?
- Scenario: a manager reports an employee is often late and recently disclosed a health issue. What do you do?
Rating anchors for the critical competencies
Anchors stop one interviewer's "4" from being another's "2". These cover the two competencies that most often separate strong and weak hr generalist hires. Read our interview rating scale guide to write anchors for the rest.
Employee relations
| 1 — Below the bar | Takes sides or skips documentation. |
|---|---|
| 3 — Meets the bar | Investigates fairly and documents. |
| 5 — Exceptional | Runs thorough, neutral investigations, resolves root causes and protects the company from risk. |
Business partnership
| 1 — Below the bar | Says "no" based on policy alone. |
|---|---|
| 3 — Meets the bar | Gives compliant advice managers can follow. |
| 5 — Exceptional | Proposes practical options, coaches managers and links HR work to business goals. |
Red flags to watch for
- Shares confidential stories from past employers.
- Treats HR as purely administrative.
- Unaware of basic employment rules.
30-60-90 day plan outline for a new hr generalist
| Days 1–30: Learn | Learn policies, systems and open cases; meet each manager. |
|---|---|
| Days 31–60: Contribute | Own recruiting coordination and onboarding; resolve open ER cases. |
| Days 61–90: Own | Deliver one policy or process improvement and an HR metrics snapshot. |
Turn this into a full plan with goals and check-ins using our 30-60-90 day plan guide or the 30-60-90 Day Onboarding Kit.
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How many interview rounds should a hr generalist go through?
Two or three focused stages are usually enough for a small company: a short screen, a structured interview using the questions above, and a practical exercise or final interview. Score every stage on the same 1–5 scale.
What is the most predictive part of a hr generalist interview?
The practical exercise — "a manager reports an employee is often late and recently disclosed a health issue. What do you do?" — because it shows real work rather than descriptions of it. Score it against the anchors on this page.
Generate more questions with the free interview question generator.