You have a CV open, an interview in ten minutes, and no plan. Generic questions will give you generic answers. Here is a faster way.
The trick is to stop reading the CV top to bottom. Instead, scan for three anchors, then write one probing question per anchor. Five minutes, three sharp questions, done.
The three anchors: achievement, gap, claim
Anchor one is the biggest achievement. Look for a number, a launch, or a named outcome. Something like “grew MRR 3x in 18 months” or “led migration to AWS across 40 services.”
Anchor two is the biggest gap. That could be a time gap between roles, a missing skill the job needs, or a jump in seniority that looks unearned. You are not trying to catch them out. You are trying to understand the shape of their career.
Anchor three is the biggest claim. The vague one. “Transformed culture.” “Owned strategy.” “Scaled the team.” These are the phrases every CV is full of, and almost no one interrogates them.
Writing the actual questions
For the achievement, drill into ownership. Try: “You grew MRR 3x in 18 months. Walk me through what you personally changed in month one versus month twelve, and what you would have done differently.” That forces specifics.
For the gap, stay neutral and curious. Try: “I noticed you moved from Head of Product at a Series B back to a Senior PM role. What drove that decision, and how did you feel about it six months in?”
For the claim, ask for the receipt. Try: “You mention scaling the team from 4 to 22. Who was the first hire you got wrong, and how did you handle it?” The follow up matters more than the first answer.
Make it a habit, not a scramble
Keep a note on your desktop with the three anchor prompts. Before every interview, fill them in. You will be shocked how much sharper your questions get, and how quickly weak candidates start to self-select out.
Sieve reads every CV the way an experienced interviewer would and surfaces the achievements, gaps, and claims worth probing before you even open the call. Pull better questions in seconds, not minutes. Try it at sievecv.com.