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I. Before You Begin Your Journey
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Interviewing Tips and Techniques
Interviewing Tips and Techniques
The interview is your opportunity to sell yourself, to dazzle the interviewer with your qualifications and accomplishments, and to impress him/her with your positive and confident attitude. Confidence stems from familiarity with the product one is marketing. That is to say, the better you know yourself, the more successfully you will be able to work as Marketing Representative for yourself, convincing the interviewer that you are the best qualified applicant for the job. This is a good time to remember your skills statement.
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NOVA offers several workshops on interview techniques: Ace The Interview (free), Informational Interviewing ($30), Presenting Your Accomplishments ($30), Behavior-based Interviewing ($30), and Negotiating the Offer ($30). For more information, call NOVA at 408.730.7232 or see workshops. |
- Tell me about yourself.
- Why do you want to work here?
- How are you qualified for this job?
- What are your strengths?
- What are your weaknesses?
- How did you come to choose this field?
- Where do you see yourself in five years?
- What did you like the most about your last job?
- What did you like least about your last job?
- Why did you leave your last job?
- Why should I hire you?
- What are your salary requirements?
- Do you have any questions for me?
Illegal Interview Questions: Find out what questions are and are not legal at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's website: http://www.eeoc.gov
Anticipating the Interview Format:
Most interviews have a relatively predictable format. Being aware of this structure can help you to anticipate and prepare for the interview and feel more comfortable.
Ice breaker
This two or three minutes of friendly small talk is designed to put the applicant (and perhaps the interviewer) at ease. The interviewer might ask questions about your parking problems or comment on the weather; you might note a golf trophy on the desk or an interesting photograph on the wall.
Background probe
Here the interviewer will ask some tough questions in order to find out about your background, such as: "Tell me about yourself?" and: "What are your strengths and weaknesses?" Keep your responses job-related, specific and brief, relating your skills to the prospective position.
Career probe
Probing to find out your career plans and looking to see if you are a motivated and serious employee, the interviewer might ask questions like: "How did you get into this field?" and: "Where do you see yourself in five years?" Again keep your response job-related, perhaps asking about opportunities for advancement within the field.
In a sense, any interview is a stress interview, an anxiety-producing situation. But within some interviews, you will be asked questions designed to increase that anxiety. Stress questions put you on the spot so that, stripped of any predetermined defenses, the "real you" can emerge. These questions however, are often simply another way of asking a recognizable question in a more challenging form, and can generally be skillfully handled with one of your carefully thought-through responses. Should a stress question be tossed your way, realize that the interviewer is testing your poise under pressure --- then pause a moment to take a relaxing breath and think through your response before answering.
One variety of stress question directly attacks your vulnerabilities. The predictable questions: "What are your weaknesses?" or: "What did you like least about your last job?" are stress questions. But the former might be asked in a variety of more stressful ways, such as: "Describe for me a time when you really put your foot in your mouth." And the latter might become the craftier: "How did your last company not appreciate you?" But with a moment's calm thought, you can recognize these as questions which you are prepared to answer.
Sometimes stress questions pose a "what if. . ." scenario, meant to throw you into a situation like one you might face on the job. For example: "Do you see this pen in my hand? Sell it to me. . ." could be an appropriate test "question" for a sales position. Or a stress question designed to test your skills as a manager might ask: "If an employee whom you supervise came in late for a shift smelling of alcohol, what would you do?" Another stress question might test your knowledge of safety precautions, such as: "What would you do if the machine you were working on started to smoke?" While the exact content of these questions cannot be anticipated, you can prepare for this sort of question by thinking through "what if. . ." scenarios which are related to your job.
Your opportunity to ask questions or add comments:
Asking questions shows that you are an interested applicant. It is to your advantage always to ask a question when given the opportunity. While the liveliest questions might be those that occur naturally during the course of the interview, do bring some prepared questions about the position/company to the interview. Also at this time, you have the chance to add any information (about your strengths, qualifications, job history) that was not covered during the questioning period.
Closing
Usually, when the interviewer asks for your questions or comments this signals the end of the interview. At this point, thank the interviewer for her or his time, express your enthusiasm to be hired for the job, and find out the next step you can take in the hiring process. Finally, ask for the interviewer's business card so that you can promptly follow up the meeting with a thank you note and, if appropriate, a phone call.
Closing The Interview: Questions To Ask and NOT Ask
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"May I see the place where I might be working and meet some of the people?" |
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"What would you say are the challenges of this position?" |
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"What would my typical day be like?" |
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"What are the skills and qualities you are seeking in your ideal candidate?" |
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"Is this a newly created position?" |
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"What would you like done differently by the next person who holds this job?" |
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"What do you like most about working for this company?" |
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"To whom would I report? Might I have the opportunity to meet that person?" |
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"What type of training, if any, is required for this position?" |
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"What are the opportunities for growth within this job/company?" |
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"Could you describe the process by which I will be evaluated in this job?" |
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"How many people have held this position over the last few years?" |
"What salary are you prepared to offer me? "What are the job benefits?" "How much vacation time and sick leave would
I have?" "Would you be willing to consider making
a decision before (next Thursday)?" "Could you evaluate my interview? How did
I do?"
Since less than half the people interviewed send the Hiring Manager or Personnel Recruiter a note expressing their enthusiasm for the job, writing a follow-up letter will set you apart from the competition. Send a thank-you note immediately, never allowing more than two or three days to pass.
The thank you note can serve several purposes, including:
- Keeping your name fresh in the interviewer's mind while demonstrating your enthusiasm for the job.
- Affording you the opportunity to reiterate your key qualifications for the position.
- Adding any pertinent information which you might have forgotten to mention in the interview.
Researching Employers:
Take the time to research both the employer/company as well as the position itself before your interview. The more informed you are about the prospective job and place of employment, the more confident and enthusiastic you will appear in the interview. Your knowledge will show the interviewer that you care enough about where you work to have gone to the trouble of learning about the job/company. Moreover, you will be doing yourself the service of finding out if this is an environment in which you would like to work. Some areas to research are:
- Geographical Location(s)
- Type of industry/organization
- Basic organizational philosophy/"corporate culture"
- Products or services rendered
- Company size
- Major divisions
- Number of years in business
- Financial history/Net earnings
- Mergers/Acquisitions
- Competitors
Methods of finding out information about the prospective employer include:
- Calling the company directly with your inquiries or dropping by to pick up any available marketing and sales literature.
- Going to your local library and using the guides which provide such statistics on businesses. (Reference Librarians can be a great help.)
- Finding an inside contact --- someone who is now, or has been, employed at the prospective work place --- and asking her or him about it.
- Go online and check out the company's Web site. Review its competitors' Web sites.
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