HR Generalist Interview Questions and Video Prompts

Introduction

Hiring the right HR Generalist is critical for Human Resources teams that need a versatile professional who can manage recruiting, compliance, employee relations, and day to day HR operations. A strong HR Generalist supports people strategy while ensuring legal and policy obligations are met.

This guide includes role-specific interview questions for HR Generalist candidates at basic, intermediate, and advanced levels, plus five pre-screening one-way video interview prompts ideal for ScreeningHive. Use these to screen efficiently and standardise evaluations across applicants.

HR Generalist Interview Questions

Basic HR Generalist Interview Questions

• How would you describe the core responsibilities of an HR Generalist in a mid-sized organization?
• What steps do you follow when onboarding a new employee?
• Can you explain the difference between exempt and non-exempt employees?
• How do you maintain confidentiality when handling employee records?
• What experience do you have with benefits administration?
• How do you stay informed about changes in employment law and required compliance?
• Describe a time when you helped improve an HR process. What role did you play?
• What HR systems or HRIS platforms have you used, and what tasks did you perform with them?

Intermediate HR Generalist Interview Questions

• Describe a situation where an employee raised a performance concern. How did you investigate and resolve it?
• You discover payroll errors affecting several employees. What immediate actions do you take and how do you prevent recurrence?
• A hiring manager repeatedly requests candidates who are not a good fit. How do you coach them to improve hiring outcomes?
• Explain how you would design an onboarding plan for remote new hires to ensure engagement and compliance.
• Describe a time you led or supported a benefits open enrollment. What challenges did you face and how did you address them?
• How do you balance competing priorities when HR requests, employee relations issues, and recruiting deadlines collide?
• Provide an example of how you used HR data or metrics to influence a people decision.
• You receive a formal complaint alleging harassment. Walk through your investigation process and documentation approach.
• How have you supported diversity and inclusion initiatives in your previous roles?
• Explain how you would conduct a workforce planning exercise for a single department facing turnover.

Advanced HR Generalist Interview Questions

• Describe how you would build an HR operations framework to support a company scaling from 50 to 250 employees.
• How would you evaluate and select an HRIS system to replace legacy tools? What stakeholders and criteria would you include?
• Explain your approach to designing a pay structure that balances market competitiveness and internal equity.
• How do you develop and present HR metrics to senior leadership to demonstrate ROI on people programs?
• Describe a time you led change management for a policy or process change. How did you secure buy in and measure adoption?
• What strategies do you use to optimise recruiting processes to reduce time to hire while maintaining quality?
• How would you design a scalable performance management program that supports ongoing feedback and development?
• Explain how you assess HR compliance risk across multiple jurisdictions and prioritise remediation efforts.
• Describe an instance where you redesigned an HR workflow to improve efficiency and employee experience. What tools and metrics did you use?
• How do you mentor or develop junior HR team members to build capability across the HR function?

Pre-Screening Video Interview Questions for HR Generalist

These five short one-way video interview questions are ideal for ScreeningHive to evaluate communication, judgment, and role fit before live interviews. Use them to standardise initial screening and save time on candidate selection.

1. Tell us about a recent HR challenge you resolved and the outcome.

   This evaluates problem solving, concise storytelling, and practical experience resolving HR issues.

2. How would you prioritise competing HR tasks on a busy day? Provide a brief example.

This assesses time management, prioritisation skills, and ability to work under pressure.

3. Describe your experience with HR systems and which report or dashboard you find most valuable.

This checks technical familiarity, data orientation, and ability to use HRIS for decision making.

4. Explain how you ensure confidentiality and compliance when handling sensitive employee matters.

This evaluates understanding of privacy, legal compliance, and professional judgment.

5. What motivates you to work in Human Resources and what strengths do you bring as an HR Generalist?

This measures cultural fit, motivation, and how the candidate articulates their value to the HR team.

Conclusion

This collection of HR Generalist interview questions helps hiring managers, recruiters, and HR teams assess candidates across knowledge, practical experience, and strategic capability. Using a structured set of basic, intermediate, and advanced prompts ensures consistent evaluation and better hiring decisions.

ScreeningHive enables one-way video interviews that deliver faster screening, standardised evaluations, and a more efficient candidate funnel. Try ScreeningHive today with a FREE sign-up to streamline your HR Generalist hiring process.