Crucial Questions and Answers at Interviews
Job Interview Tips – Jobnet Job Directory
What kinds of questions should you ask prospective employers in an interview, when you are asked, “Do you have any questions?”
Employers are truly interested in answering your questions, but mainly they ask you because they want to see how prepared you are for the interview. If you don’t have any questions, the interviewer may assume that you are not really interested in the job or too lazy to prepare any questions. So, have some questions ready! There are numerous questions you could ask in reply to that question:
You could ask fact-based questions about the company, division, branch, or product. Example: “How do you determine the value customers are receiving from your products or services?”
You could ask specific job-related questions for the position you are interviewing for. Example: “How much of the current position involves meeting with clients?”
You could ask about future plans of the company, division, branch, or product.
You could ask questions about the hiring process. Example: “When can I expect to hear back from you?”
You could ask a question that places you in the job. Example: “What kind of projects/assignments would I be working on first?”
You could ask about anything that you are really interested in getting an answer to that was not already discussed during the interview (but avoid asking “me-first” question about salary and benefits).
Another common interview question is: “Where do you see yourself in the next several years?” Employers ask this question partly to see if you truly are seeking a permanent position. This question is also one of the most popular for employers to ask because it’s a way (they think) of understanding a prospective employee’s drive and ambition. Yet, you don’t want to answer that question too ambitiously: “I plan to be running this company,” or “I plan to be your boss.” But you need to show some direction and ambition.
A good answer would be something like: “I would hope I am still with this organization in a position of increased responsibility, making a vital contribution to its success.” You could also add a statement about professional career growth to your answer: “I hope to be in a position of increased responsibility that allows me to continually sharpen and grow my career skills, while making a significant contribution to the success of this organization.”
If a company has a “business casual” dress code, should a man still wear a nice suit to an interview there?
How to dress for interviews continues to be a complex area as more companies adopt business casual dress codes. The rule of thumb is that you never want to dress below the dress code when interviewing, but dressing too far above it can also be risky, possibly signaling that the person doesn’t fit into the culture of the organization — and fit is a big issue. Try to fit the part. Find out more about the dress code of the executive staff. Do they always dress casually, or just on certain days? Is the dress code different when working internally than when dealing with external clients?
Ever get asked a question in a job interview that doesn’t seem to have anything to do with the job?
“Whom do you admire most and why?” is an example. We call this type of question a “wild card” or “off-the-wall” question, which is meant to see how well you think on your feet and whether you will get flustered. While you can prepare for most of the standard interview questions, these wild-card questions can catch even the experienced interviewee off guard; thus, the key is to not allow yourself to get rattled by it. Keep in mind that there really are no wrong answers, but some answers are better than others.
As with all interview answers, it’s best to answer in a way that helps you state your case that you are the right person for the position. The answer to the “most admired person” question, for example, could be a famous leader, enabling you to discuss the value of leadership and the leadership traits you have; or perhaps a famous businessperson, allowing you to cite the value of business acumen and your key business skills; or perhaps an athlete, opening the door to talking about the value of teamwork and your experiences as a team player.
How should you deal with interview questions about grades if your academic performance has been less than stellar?
Take comfort in the fact that many employers are more interested in a job-seeker’s previous accomplishments and in what skills they could bring to the job. Good marks is a measure of academic success, but what it really measures is questionable — and there are certainly no conclusive studies that tie academic success to workplace success. One way around an average overall academic record is to focus on the academic area in which you have higher marks on your resume and in your interviews. Second, examine mitigating circumstances. Did you hold a part-time (or full-time) job while attending college? If you held down part-time jobs , or worked full-time while attending college, you can talk about the lessons learned from multitasking and balancing work and education. Third, examine your extracurricular activities. Did you participate in an extraordinary number of extracurricular and/or volunteer activities? Use these activities to help explain that you were seeking a well-rounded education that included both classroom learning and experiential learning. Finally, if the employer is irrevocably focused on your academic record, you probably don’t want to work there anyway. The degree is what matters — not always the path one takes to get it.
Many disappointed job-seekers have been heard to say, “but the interviewer said I was perfect for the job.” If the interviewer indicated you had a great interview, but you don’t hear anything, ask yourself some questions. First, did you follow standard rules of job-interviewing etiquette and write thank-you notes (or letters) to each person who interviewed you? Second, did you ever call the employer back and express your interest in the position?
The problem could be with your interview style, your references, or something else. Call one of the people you interviewed with — the one you felt you had the most rapport with — and politely ask the person to critique your performance. Once you have broken the ice, you should ask in a non-confrontational manner why you didn’t get the job offer.
The keys to successful job interviewing are three-fold: research, preparation, and practice.
Job-seekers can usually discover what kind of interview to expect by doing some basic research; in fact, some companies even post this information on their corporate career section of their Web sites. Once you have some knowledge about the type of interview(s) to expect, the next step is preparation; prepare your answers and anecdotes to properly respond to anticipated questions. Finally, practice giving your answers to the questions; the trick is being rehearsed while sounding spontaneous when at the actual interview.
Answering questions about how and why you left previous employers is always a tricky issue for job-seekers. If you left under negative circumstances, the key is to put a positive spin on the story. Most of us — at one time or another — have been fired, asked to resign, or been rightsized – so that’s not really the issue. One final note about your response: be sure that besides your verbal response to the question, that your nonverbal gestures are not telling another story. Be confident and positive.
The key to successfully answering interview questions is understanding the purpose behind each question. Your answers should always be focused on the prize — getting to the next step, getting the job offer. Thus, your answers should always be framed in the context of how your mix of education, experience, and skills will add to the company — and make the interviewer’s job easier/better. Once you have a handle on what the position entails, you should have a good idea of how to frame your answers to skills-based questions, identifying and matching the key skills you can bring to the employer.
Every job-seeker should have a one-minute sales pitch. While parts of the pitch can be general strengths and skills you can offer to any employer — including your (USP), you should, of course, tailor your answer to the employer and job at hand to provide the strongest possible sales pitch. And regardless of whether you end up using the sales pitch in the interview, you should most certainly write it in your thank-you letter following the interview.
In all situations, from your cover letter to the interview, you must be able to showcase your accomplishments and achievements in your previous experiences – and build a platform for showing how you’ll be able to do these same things (and more!) for a new employer.
At the end of the interview, assuming you feel it was a good interview for a job you want with an employer that is a match with your values, you as the job-seeker should ask for the job. There is really no harm in asking. It certainly reinforces your position as someone who not only is interested in the job, but is the best candidate for the position. The worst the employer can do is tell you the company is still interviewing other candidates; and perhaps, the interviewer will think you a bit overconfident. How do you do it?
Wait until the end of the interview, as things are wrapping up. Then simply restate the key skills/education/experience that the employer is seeking and how you fit exactly with what the employer is looking for. Stress the overall fit between you and the organization (in terms of values, culture, etc.), and then simply state that you want the job offer.
One caveat: Be sure you really want the job before making such a bold request because if the employer then offers you the position they will expect you to accept it rather quickly — and perhaps on the spot. A less risky interview closer if you are interested, but not quite sure if the fit is perfect is to end the interview by telling the interviewer that you are interested in the job and asking about the next step in the process.
A significant rule of job-hunting and interviewing is to never, never say anything bad about former bosses or employers – no matter how much you want to ventilate. Simply come up with a reason for leaving your last job. A common response is something along the lines that you had achieved all you could, and it was time to move to a higher level of challenges. Focus on accomplishments and challenges, not learning – and don’t make the answer too self-centered. You could also say the organizational structure was such that you really had nowhere to go internally, so unfortunately you are looking at new opportunities and employers.
Asking questions in any interview situation is critical for job-seekers; when job-seekers ask questions during interviews, potential employers perceive it as a sign of interest in the company.
If you have some sort of negative issue in your job history (such as getting fired), don’t raise it — ever — but especially not in your cover letter or resume. Even in the interview, let the employer bring it up. Once the issue has been raised, the best answer is always the truth. Admit that you made a mistake — and, more importantly, show how you have learned from that mistake.
Diana LeGere, of Executive Final Copy, has a piece of career advice that we have certainly tried to impress upon those we counsel: “Ask not what the company can do for you, ask what you can do for the company. Remember the prospective employer is buying you. Companies make quite an investment over the years in terms of benefits, wages and company rewards. Choosing the wrong candidate will result in lost salaries, and an unfilled job, funds spent on employment ads, recruiters and time lost pursuing the unfavorable task of interviewing are to name a few.
Therefore, they care more about meeting their needs than yours. Ideally, you want a match that suits you both. So, keep your needs in mind. However, for the sake of landing the job, focus on how you will benefit the company. Inquire about their concerns and prepare to offer solid logical solutions to their issues. You may have been able to recognize some problems during your initial research of the company. Why not arrive with knowledge of the employer’s corporate issues and a plan to glide through them for positive results? This gesture will clearly define problem-solving and teamwork skills. The more you can do for the company, the better candidate you will be to join the firm’s team.”
