Top 25 HR Interview Questions Asked by Pune Companies — With Ideal Answers

These Questions Are Not From a Book — They Are From Real Pune Interviews

I want to be clear about where these questions come from. These are not pulled from a "top HR interview questions" list on the internet. These are actual questions that Pune companies — manufacturing firms in PCMC, IT companies in Hinjewadi, BFSI companies in Shivajinagar, and growing startups in Baner — ask candidates for HR Generalist and HR Executive roles in 2025.

We know this because our students come back and tell us. They share the questions they were asked, the questions they fumbled, the questions they answered confidently. Over hundreds of placement conversations, patterns emerge. The 25 questions below are the ones that come up most often in Pune HR interviews — along with guidance on how to answer each one in a way that actually impresses interviewers.

Payroll and Statutory Compliance Questions (Asked in Almost Every HR Interview)

Q1: What are the current PF contribution rates for employer and employee?

Why they ask: This is a baseline test. If you are going to handle HR, you must know statutory contribution rates. Many freshers cannot answer this.

Ideal answer: Employee contributes 12% of basic wages. Employer contributes 13% in total — 3.67% goes to EPF, 8.33% to EPS (capped at ₹1,250/month), 0.5% to EDLI, and 0.5% admin charges. The employee's full 12% goes to EPF. Total combined contribution is 25% of basic wages.

Q2: What is the ESI wage ceiling and current contribution rates?

Why they ask: Same as above — basic statutory knowledge test.

Ideal answer: ESI currently covers employees earning gross wages up to ₹21,000 per month. Contribution rates are 3.25% from employer and 0.75% from employee on gross wages. Employees earning below ₹137/day are exempt from the employee contribution but still receive coverage.

Q3: Walk me through how you would process a monthly payroll for 150 employees.

Why they ask: They want to see if you understand the end-to-end process, not just individual components.

Ideal answer: I would start by collecting all inputs for the month — attendance data, leave applications, late/absent deductions, new joiners with their joining dates and salary details, exits with last working days, and any salary revision letters. Then I would enter all inputs into the payroll system (GreytHR/Keka), verify the gross-to-net calculation for a sample of employees, run the payroll, and generate payslips for all employees. Simultaneously, I would generate the PF ECR file for EPFO portal upload, the ESI contribution file for ESIC challan, the Professional Tax computation, and the TDS working. After management approval, I would process the salary bank transfer file and upload statutory challans for payment before the 15th of the following month.

Q4: An employee's PF deduction was incorrect for the past three months. What do you do?

Why they ask: Problem-solving in a real scenario. Tests whether you know the correction process.

Ideal answer: First, I would identify the error — whether it was due to wrong basic salary being entered, an incorrect UAN, or a calculation error. I would calculate the correct PF for those three months and the difference. For the employer contribution difference, we would need to remit the shortfall immediately with applicable interest if the filing was already done. For the employee contribution difference, I would recover it over the next 1–2 months from their salary with advance communication. I would also verify whether the EPFO passbook shows the correct amounts and raise a correction request if needed.

Q5: What is Professional Tax in Maharashtra and how is it calculated?

Ideal answer: Professional Tax is a state levy on salaried employees. In Maharashtra, employees earning up to ₹7,500/month pay nil. Those earning ₹7,501–₹10,000 pay ₹175/month. Those earning above ₹10,000 pay ₹200/month (₹300 in February). Women earning up to ₹25,000/month are exempt. The employer deducts PT from employee salary and deposits it with the Maharashtra government by the last working day of the month.

Recruitment Questions

Q6: How would you write a Job Description for a Software Engineer role?

Ideal answer structure: A good JD has five parts — role summary (what the person will do and why this role exists), key responsibilities (5–8 bullet points, specific and outcome-oriented), must-have qualifications (education, experience, specific technical skills), good-to-have qualifications (secondary preferences), and company/team context (why someone would want this role). I focus on making responsibilities specific — not "manage code" but "design and build backend APIs for our payment platform using Node.js." Vague JDs attract irrelevant applications.

Q7: An urgent requirement came in for a niche technical role and you have 7 days to shortlist candidates. What do you do?

Ideal answer: First, I have a quick call with the hiring manager to sharpen the exact requirements — what is absolutely must-have vs nice-to-have, what the interview process looks like, and whether they are open to candidates from specific companies. Then I run a multi-channel approach simultaneously: boolean search on Naukri database, LinkedIn recruiter advanced search, direct referrals from current team members (employee referrals for niche roles often work fastest), and posting in targeted LinkedIn groups or communities relevant to that skill set. I would keep the hiring manager updated daily on pipeline status and adjust the search criteria if the first 48 hours do not produce enough quality profiles.

Q8: What is the difference between a job portal search and boolean search?

Ideal answer: A regular job portal search uses the portal's own algorithm to match keywords. Boolean search lets you build precise search strings using AND, OR, NOT, and quotation marks. For example: "Python developer" AND "Django" AND "Pune" NOT "freelance" gives you much more targeted results than typing "Python Pune." For niche roles, boolean strings on LinkedIn are far more effective than standard searches.

HR Generalist and Policy Questions

Q9: An employee comes to you and says their manager is targeting them unfairly. How do you handle it?

Ideal answer: I would start by listening carefully and without judgment — the employee needs to feel heard. I would take notes. I would ask open questions to understand the specific behaviours the employee considers unfair, not just their interpretation. I would explain the formal grievance process and let them decide whether they want to go formal or informal. If they choose informal, I might speak with the manager separately, framing it as a developmental conversation rather than a complaint hearing. If the situation involves potential policy violation, I would loop in senior HR. I would document everything throughout and follow up with the employee after any action taken.

Q10: What are the essential components of a CTC package in India?

Ideal answer: CTC (Cost to Company) includes: Basic salary (usually 40–50% of CTC), HRA (typically 40–50% of basic, higher for metro cities), Special Allowance (residual component making up the CTC), LTA (Leave Travel Allowance), Medical Allowance or reimbursement, Employer PF contribution (12% of basic), Employer ESI contribution (3.25% of gross if applicable), Gratuity provision (4.81% of basic), and may include performance bonus, car allowance, meal vouchers, or NPS contribution. The difference between CTC and gross salary is the employer's statutory contributions. The difference between gross and net/take-home is employee tax deductions (TDS, PF employee share, ESI employee share, PT).

Performance Management Questions

Q11: What is a Performance Improvement Plan and when should you use it?

Ideal answer: A PIP is a formal document that outlines specific performance gaps, measurable improvement targets, a timeline (typically 30–90 days), and the support the company will provide to help the employee improve. You use a PIP when an employee is consistently underperforming despite informal feedback and coaching, and when you want to give them a structured, documented opportunity to improve before taking further action. A well-designed PIP is not punitive — it is a genuine attempt to help the employee succeed. Poorly designed PIPs that are only created as a paper trail for termination damage company culture and may create legal exposure.

Q12: What is the bell curve in performance management and what are its limitations?

Ideal answer: The bell curve (or forced distribution) is a rating system that requires a predetermined percentage of employees to be rated at each performance level — typically 10–15% top performers, 70–80% average, and 10–15% low performers. The advantage is that it prevents rating inflation where managers give everyone high scores to avoid difficult conversations. The limitations are significant: it assumes performance is normally distributed across all teams (which is false — high-performing teams are penalised), it creates internal competition that hurts collaboration, and it can seem arbitrary to employees who all performed well. Many large companies including Microsoft, Accenture, and Adobe have moved away from bell curve rating for these reasons.

Scenario-Based and Behavioural Questions

Q13: Tell me about a time you made a mistake in HR operations and how you handled it.

Why they ask: They want to see self-awareness, accountability, and problem-solving capability.

Ideal structure: Use STAR — Situation (briefly describe the context), Task (what you were responsible for), Action (what you did, including the mistake and the correction), Result (what happened and what you learnt). The key is honesty — a candidate who says "I never made a mistake" sounds defensive. A candidate who describes a real situation, explains how they fixed it, and articulates what they learnt demonstrates maturity.

Q14: How do you handle an employee who is always arguing with your decisions?

Ideal answer: The first question I ask myself is whether their arguments have merit. Sometimes challenging employees are right and the policy or decision needs revision. If the decision is sound, I would take time to explain the reasoning behind it clearly — most resistance comes from people feeling unheard or not understanding the why. If the behaviour is genuinely disruptive rather than constructive disagreement, I would have a direct one-on-one conversation about how feedback can be given more constructively, and document that conversation.

Questions Specific to Pune's Manufacturing Sector

Q15: What is the Factories Act and what are an HR executive's key responsibilities under it?

Ideal answer: The Factories Act 1948 regulates working conditions in manufacturing establishments. HR's key responsibilities include: maintaining prescribed registers (adult workers register, leave with wages register, accident register), ensuring working hour limits (maximum 9 hours/day, 48 hours/week), managing overtime compensation at double the ordinary rate, ensuring adequate canteen, restroom and first aid facilities, managing health and safety committee requirements, and filing annual returns and inspection reports. Under the new Occupational Safety Code, several of these requirements are being updated — HR professionals in manufacturing must stay current on state-specific rules.

Q16: What is contract labour compliance and what does the Contract Labour Act require?

Ideal answer: The Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act 1970 governs the employment of contract workers — those employed through a contractor rather than directly. Key compliance requirements include: the principal employer obtaining a registration certificate, contractors obtaining a licence, maintaining prescribed registers for contract workers, ensuring contract workers receive statutory benefits (PF, ESI) through the contractor with principal employer's oversight, and understanding the conditions under which contract labour may be abolished and direct employment required. In manufacturing and logistics companies in Pune's PCMC belt, contract labour management is a significant part of HR's work.

Quick-Fire Questions That Trip Many Candidates

• "What is Form 16?" — TDS certificate issued by employer to employee showing salary paid and tax deducted. Part A from TRACES, Part B employer-generated. Must be issued by 15th June.
• "What is gratuity and how is it calculated?" — Payable after 5 years of continuous service. Formula: (Last drawn basic + DA) × 15/26 × number of years of service.
• "What is an appointment letter vs an offer letter?" — Offer letter is conditional, issued before joining, contains the offer. Appointment letter is issued on or after joining, is the formal employment contract.
• "What is the difference between gross salary and net salary?" — Gross is total before deductions. Net is take-home after employee PF contribution, ESI, PT, and TDS deductions.
• "What is attrition rate and how do you calculate it?" — Attrition rate = (Number of employees who left during period / Average number of employees during period) × 100.

Prepare for these 25 questions properly — understand the concepts, practice saying your answers out loud, and you will outperform 80% of candidates in HR interviews in Pune. If you want mock interview sessions with real feedback from experienced HR practitioners, call us at 7796731656.