Interview Guide: How to Run a Productive Expert Interview

Expert interviews are a high-leverage method to gather domain knowledge, validate hypotheses, and explore emergent ideas. Done poorly, they yield anecdotes and noise. Done well, they surface patterns and plausible mechanisms. This practical guide walks you through planning, question design, interview conduct, and analysis—so you can produce insights that fuel better decisions.

Before the interview: plan with intent

Start by being explicit about why you need the interview. Typical goals include:

• Exploring domain landscape and jargon.
• Validating assumptions or hypotheses.
• Collecting examples and stories to supplement quantitative data.

Choose experts whose perspective aligns with your goal: practitioners for operational insights, academics for theoretical framing, and product managers for market signals.

Designing questions

Use a semi-structured format: a scaffold of core questions with room for follow-ups. Avoid yes/no prompts; prefer open-ended, experience-based prompts such as:

• "Can you walk me through a recent example where X occurred?"
• "What indicators do you use to detect problem Y early?"
• "Where do you see common mistakes made by teams in this domain?"

Include clarifying probes to elicit detail: "How often?", "Who is involved?", "What did you try next?"

Consent and ethics

Always obtain informed consent. Explain how the data will be used, whether the interview will be recorded, and how you will store notes. Offer anonymity when possible—and be clear about attribution if you plan to quote the expert publicly.

Conducting the interview

Practical tips for the conversation:

• Start with a brief warm-up question; build rapport quickly.
• Keep the expert talking about concrete experiences rather than abstract ideals.
• Use silence strategically—give time for reflection after a question.
• Record (with permission) and take structured notes: timestamp key points for easier transcription.

Data capture and organization

Post-interview, create a summary template: context, key claims, supporting evidence, and follow-up questions. Tag snippets by topic and store recordings with associated metadata (date, organization, role). This makes later synthesis and cross-interview comparison faster.

Analyzing interview data

For small projects, thematic analysis works: code transcripts for recurring ideas and produce a synthesis matrix mapping themes to supporting quotes. For larger projects, use qualitative analysis software to maintain traceability between codes and raw data.

Turning findings into action

Translate insights into clear outputs: prioritized recommendations, decision memos, or experiment hypotheses. Include confidence levels and evidence strength. This practice helps stakeholders understand when an insight is a robust pattern versus a single informant's perspective.

Common pitfalls and how to avoid them

• Confirmation bias: Avoid leading questions; use neutral prompts.
• Scope creep: Keep the interview focused; reserve separate follow-ups for divergent topics.
• Poor note hygiene: Capture metadata and quotes accurately to prevent misattribution.

Closing the research loop

Share a short summary with interviewees—this fosters trust and can correct misunderstandings. When possible, invite experts to review excerpts you plan to publish. This practice improves accuracy and maintains long-term relationships.

Final advice

Expert interviews are deceptively powerful. Invest time in preparation, consent, and post-interview synthesis. With disciplined practices, they become a reliable bridge between raw data and strategic decisions.