Some professions are defined by(由…定义) questions. Detectives ask them, and suspects have the right not to answer them. A phrase like “I’m the one asking the questions” sounds appropriate when coming from a journalist, and pretty weird from the lips of(从…口中说出) a plumber.
有些职业靠提问来定义。侦探提问，嫌疑人有权保持沉默。像“我才是提问的人”这句话，出自记者之口很恰当，出自水管工之口就相当奇怪。
But questions are crucial in every organisation. They sharpen thinking(使思维敏锐) and extract information(提取信息) when things go wrong. They are central to forging relationships(建立关系): according to research by Karen Huang of Georgetown University and her co-authors, people who ask more questions tend to be better liked. Questions are a crude(粗略的) way to measure career progression. As you get more senior, you spend less time doing the work and more time asking about it. By the time you reach the boardroom(董事会会议室), your principal output(主要产出) is questions.
但提问在每个组织中都至关重要。当事情出了差错，问题能磨砺思维、提取信息。它们对于建立关系也很关键：根据乔治城大学 Karen Huang 及其合著者的研究，问问题越多的人往往更受欢迎。提问是衡量职业晋升的粗略方式。随着职位升高，你花在做事上的时间减少，花在问事上的时间增多。等你坐到董事会会议室里，你的主要产出就是问题。
An absence of questions may indicate a culture that does not brook(容忍（动词）) them. Even easy questions can be a warning sign. A paper by Elliott Ash of ETH Zurich and his co-authors trawls through(仔细搜索) interview reports posted to Glassdoor, a workplace-review site, and finds that candidates are more likely to turn down high-wage job offers when they rate the interview process undemanding(要求不高的). By analysing free-text posts about interviews, the researchers find that candidates view softball questions(简单问题) as a signal about the quality of future colleagues. Tough questions are not just a way for employers to screen for(筛选) able candidates; the reverse also applies(反之亦然).
缺乏问题可能意味着一种不容忍问题的文化。即便是简单的问题也可能是一个警示信号。苏黎世联邦理工学院的 Elliott Ash 及其合著者的一篇论文梳理了发布在职场评价网站 Glassdoor 上的面试报告，发现当应聘者认为面试过程要求不高时，他们更有可能拒绝高薪工作机会。通过分析有关面试的自由文本帖子，研究人员发现应聘者将简单问题视为未来同事素质的信号。棘手问题不仅是雇主筛选能干的候选人的方式；反之亦然。