Interview Tips
Making Your Interview Count
e-Staffing
Presents: A better interview.
The following information provides excellent information on best practices for
preparing for your next interview.
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Preparing For Your Interview
Simply put, the interview gets you the job. The better prepared you
are, the better chance you have of getting a job. Remember, you are
competing against people who will also be studying and preparing for
their interviews.
We will continue to add suggestions on how you can best prepare for
your interview and the types of answers that usually yield results.
Of course, we cannot promise you will get the job, but if you follow
our suggestions, you will certainly be taking the right steps toward
success. We believe that they will help you to perform your best.
Introduction:
Think of an interview as a Presentation. You are the presenter. You are presenting a product whose time has come - You!
When you are in an interview, it is your job to present your skills and
abilities. It is also your job to find out how a company can best
enhance your career. Keep in mind that you are in the interview to find
the RIGHT job, not just any job.
While you are going through the interviewing process, you
should be seriously thinking about the company where you are
interviewing, about the people that make up the teams, and about the
product or service on which you will be working.
By the time the interviewing process is over you should already know whether or not you want the job.
If you want the job, accept the offer immediately.
If you do not, thank the company for their time, and let them know immediately.
No matter what your decision, a quick answer will gain you much respect.
The suggestions below are intended as a guide, and not as the rule.
In most cases they have been proven to yield positive results.
The best advice we can give to anyone going on an interview is to let his or her personality come through and have fun.
Throughout
the text, we use the term "manager". But the same rules apply to anyone
that is interviewing you, whether a manager, human resources personal,
or a potential co-worker.
Background:
The manager will probably want to obtain an overview of your background.
If the manager asks you something like, "Tell me about yourself,"
prepare and present to the manager a three to five minute presentation
about your background and employment history. Answer with lots of
information, but not too much detail. Areas that can be covered are:
- Education and hobbies
- The
places you have worked (start with 3 or 4 jobs ago, and work your way
to the most recent) and the major projects or accomplishments that you
were involved with.
- Conclude with the following type of question:
"Is there any area or project in my background
that you would like me to elaborate on?"
This will focus the conversation to the manager's immediate needs.
Specifics:
When the manager asks you about a specific area, either company or project, such as, "Tell me about your experience with this project," prepare to give as much detail and information as possible. Keep in mind that the less you say, the more likely it is, that the manager will think you do not know about the subject. Present all the skills you used to accomplish the task in question. Talk about:
- Your role in the project or company.
- What your part of the project actually did.
- The equipment, tools, computer programs, etc., you used to complete the project.
- How your part of the project fit into the whole of the project or company.
- Be
clear, and do not assume the manager understands all of the specific
details, but make sure the manager understands what you are talking
about.
It is better to talk a little bit too much, than not enough.
Pay attention to the body language of the manager. If you feel
you have saturated the manager with information, simply ask whether
he/she understands what you have said, and ask if they want more
details (with regard to the subject you are talking about.)
This will allow the manager to give you feedback, ask for more details,
or ask about another subject. Also, this will let the manager to see
that you are an excellent communicator.
Shyness:
If you have a tendency to be shy, it is VERY IMPORTANT to make the
extra effort to communicate to the manager what you have done and why
you did it, and to make sure that the manager understands you. This is
your one shot. Take a deep breath and give it all you have got.
Remember, even if you are quiet by nature, in order to get the job, you
MUST be able to communicate to the manager.
Expressing your Strengths:
In an interview you want to express your strengths that apply to the
position. There are several things you can do to accomplish this in
your conversation with the manager.
- Focus positively on the skills required for the position
- Overcome any skills that are missing
- Before the interview, make a list of all the projects that you have done. This will allow you to have fresh on your mind:
- What you have done
- What skill set or knowledge was required to complete the projects you worked on
- What you have done that is similar to the need of the company where you will be interviewing
The
reason for this is that it will allow you to easily relate a similar or
parallel experience to the manager when asked about experience you do
not have.
For example, If the manager asks "Have you ever
done XYZ?" and, you have not, do not say "NO," instead, state something
similar to:
"No, I have not, but I have done ABC* and that is why I know I can do XYZ for you."
*ABC equals a similar task or a parallel experience where you had to
learn quickly, did so on a fast learning curve, and then were able to
make a significant contribution. Make sure you explain it in detail.
State where and when you did it, what it was, how long it took you, and
what your contribution was, or what the outcome of your efforts was.
An answer like this will let the manager know that you are smart, that
you have overcome obstacles before, and that you have proven yourself
in the past. It will give the manager a better reason to overlook any
skills or experience that are missing.
Difficult Questions:
A manager may ask "What are you most proud of, or what was your greatest contribution?" It is important to prepare for these questions. Never just say something like "I am proud of everything." "Everything" is a vague answer which usually is translated as "I don't know."
Questions like this are an excellent opportunity to showcase yourself
and at the same time gives the manager much to think and talk about.
Select a project or event that you enjoyed, and talk about it in great
detail
- Allow the project or event to be a vehicle to HIGHLIGHT your skills and abilities
- REMEBER THIS IS YOUR PRESENTATION - ABOUT YOU!
- If the manager has asked, she or he wants to know. This is no time to be humble.
- Give details of the project, what it is, what it does, what your contribution was, and then why it was so gratifying to work on.
One of the trickier questions a manager might ask is "where do you see yourself in 3 or 5 years from now?"
Prepare and Beware!
"On an island with a cool drink and a gazillion dollars" might be the
real answer, BUT it may not get you the job. Neither might an answer
like "I would like to have your job" or "I would like to be in
Management" (assuming this is not a managers job your applying for.)
There are several things to remember:
On the average:
- Managers hire because they have an immediate need.
- Managers want to have happy, steady, and productive employees.
- Mangers want to hire someone, keep their production going and STOP interviewing.
- Managers look for red flags!
A
manager wants to hire someone to fill the immediate need of the
company, and get on with their life. If you mention that you want to be
doing something other than the job at hand, the manager may feel like
you are not going to stick around very long.
The object here, in most cases, is to keep this answer as vague as possible.
Try to state this answer by referring to you past experience as an
example what can be expected of you. For Example, to answer the
question "where do you see yourself in 3 or 5 years from now?"
"At,
PDQ, Inc., I started as a cashier and worked my way to a senior sales
position and I can see myself following a similar path here at XYZ,
Inc. I've learned that if I come in and do my best, the rest will take
care of itself."
Then, ask the manager, "Where do you see me in 3 years from now?"
This type of answer will allow the manager to feel secure and at the
same time assure him or her that you will want to stay and grow with
the company.
Be Confident:
As a General Rule: Express and demonstrate interest and confidence, both, EMOTIONALLY AND VERBALLY to everyone you meet from the most junior person to the most senior person.
Express interest in the company, the project, and the people.
Managers and interviewing engineers WANT to hear this.
VERBALLY express your interest in the project and/or the company and position.
DO NOT expect the manager or interviewers to just "know" that
you are interested. It does not work in personal relationships and it
does not work in business interviews.
A good place to express this interest is at the end of the
interview. Let the manager know you are interested in the position and
ask, "What is the next step in the process or that needs to be taken?"
Searching for a job is like searching for any good relationship. If you
start out with good clear communication, things are more likely to go
smoothly. If you tell the manager up-front "I like you," the odds are
higher that the manager will ask you back for a second interview.
Consistency:
If you are on an interview where you will be interviewing with several
different employees, often times they will ask the same question.
GIVE EACH OF THEM THE EXACT SAME ANSWER WITH THE SAME AMOUNT OF DETAIL.
Finally, express interest, verbally, to each interviewer!
One final note: Your Resume
It is the job of the manager
and interviewer to find out what you REALLY know and to find out how
you communicate your knowledge.
Never say "It's on my resume." There are NO exceptions to
this rule. Doing so may suggest that the manager has not read your
resume, or that there is unwillingness on your part to communicate.
