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 TOOLS FOR AN EFFECTIVE JOB INTERVIEW

Prepare to Discuss:

Employment data:

  • What you did
  • How well you did it
  • Salary level
  • Reason for leaving or considering change
  • Educational data
  • Class ranking
  • Honors and activities
  • Percentage of expenses earned

Personal data:

  • Community affairs
  • Speaking engagements
  • Articles written
  • Family, hobbies, interests
  • Professional affiliations

Be Prepared to Answer:

"Describe yourself" questions - Pre-planned responses should include:

  • Education
  • Work credentials
  • Accomplishments

Personality questions:


Example: "How do you perform under pressure?" Give "the obvious answer," supported by past or present experiences

Motive questions:


These attempt to determine if you will enjoy the job or fit in, for example:


"Why should you want to work in a firm this size?" or, "What's the ideal situation for you?" Answer in terms of your qualifications for the job: Don't be vague, be specific and be emphatic

Salary questions:

  • Tell them what you are presently earning when asked
  • Avoid negotiating salary; state you would consider a reasonable offer once all the facts have been gathered
  • Discuss with your recruiter how to best negotiate salary for each opportunity


Tough questions:

  • Prepare answers in advance and answer them matter-of-factly
  • Why do you want to make a change? What are your weaknesses?
  • Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
  • What kind of firm are you looking for?

Knowledge of the Company:


Know as much as you can about the organization, and be prepared with a list of questions (written is OK). But be careful not to cross examine.

Interest questions:

  • the company
  • the department
  • background of the interviewer

Job satisfaction questions:

  • The importance of the work
  • Your responsibilities and authority
  • Career potential
  • Avoid questions on salary, fringe benefits, vacations: these questions will be answered at the appropriate time

Attitude:

  • Maintain strong interest throughout the interview; it will be too late to decide you're interested if you've been "just curious" throughout the interview
  • Smile, be friendly and relaxed, but never casual; show enthusiasm for the things you see and hear that you like
  • Be positive, answering questions in terms of past performance
  • Never be negative (or overly positive) about past/present employers

Additional tips:

  • Answer questions directly, and be careful not to digress
  • Don’t monopolize the conversation; make sure your interviewer has time to respond to your responses.

Conclusion:

  • Ask your interviewer "what's the next step"
  • Thank your interviewer and express interest again
  • Call your associate at Whitaker immediately after interview
  • Write a brief thank you note to your interviewer. The Interview Preparation Process answer questions directly, be careful that you don't digress
  • Don't monopolize the conversation, give the interviewer opportunities to respond


Goal:

  • Your first goal of each job interview is to get an offer. Remember, you can always turn it down. But you can never go back and change a "first impression."
  • Strive for every interview to be a "winning interview," that is, find out about the job and convince them you can do the job.