Why You 101 Interview Questions You’ll Never Fear Again by James Reed (z-lib.org).epub PDF

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JamesReed

WHYYOU? 101InterviewQuestions You’llNeverFearAgain

Contents 1AllintheMind Onemoment Your3Gmindset So,youwantajob? Whatrecruitmentconsultantswant Thedayoftheinterview Interviewquestionsandtheinterviewerswholovethem 2ClassicInterviewQuestions:the‘Fateful15’ 1.Tellmeaboutyourself 2.Whyareyouapplying? 3.Whatareyourgreateststrengths? 4.Whatareyourgreatestweaknesses? 5.Whatwillyourskillsandideasbringtothiscompany? 6.What’syourpreferredmanagementstyle? 7.Wheredoyouseeyourselfinfiveyears’time? 8.Howwouldyouapproachthisjob? 9.Whathaveyouachievedelsewhere? 10.Whatdidyoulikeanddislikeaboutyourlastjob? 11.Tellmeaboutatimeyouworkedinateam 12.Whatdoyourco-workerssayaboutyou? 13.Howdoyoudealwithstressandfailure? 14.Howmuchmoneydoyouwant? 15.Showmeyourcreativity 3CareerGoalQuestions 16.Pleasedescribethejobyou’veappliedfor 17.Howdidyouhearabouttheposition?

18.Whydoyouwanttoworkatthiscompany? 19.Whatmotivatesyou? 20.Wouldyoustaywithyourcurrentemployeriftheyofferedyouapayrise? 21.WouldyoubeOKwiththecommutetothisjob? 22.Howdoesthisjobfitinwithyourcareerplan? 23.Givemethenamesofthreecompaniesyouwouldliketoworkfor 24.Whereelsehaveyouapplied?/Whoelseareyouinterviewingwith? 25.Whyhaveyouchangedjobssofrequently? 26.Whatisyourdreamjob? 27.What’syouridealworkenvironment? 28.Whydoyouwanttoleaveyourcurrentjob? 29.Talkmethrough(thegapsin)yourCV/careerhistory 4CharacterQuestions 30.Howwasyourjourneyhere? 31.Wheredoesyourbossthinkyouarenow? 32.Whatareyourcorevalues? 33.Whatareyourhobbiesandinterests? 34.Tellmeaboutyourfirstjob 35.Whodoyouadmireandwhy? 36.Ifyoucouldbringanyonetothiscompanyfromwhereyoucurrentlywork,whowoulditbe? 37.Tellmeaboutatimeyoudealtwithadifficultperson 38.Whenwereyoulastangry–andwhy? 39.Tellmeaboutsomethingfunnythathashappenedtoyouatwork 40.Whatisitaboutthisjobthatyouwouldleastlookforwardto? 41.Tellmesomethingaboutyourselfthatisn’tonyourCV 42.Whatdoyoumostdislikeaboutyourself? 43.HowwouldyoureactifItoldyouthatyouarenotthestrongestcandidatewehaveinterviewed sofar? 44.Isitacceptabletolieinbusiness? 45.Ifyoucouldgobackandchangeonethingaboutyourcareertodate,whatwoulditbe? 46.Whatdopeopleassumeaboutyouthatwouldbewrong? 47.Canyoutellmeaboutatimewhenyoustoodupfortherightthingtodo? 48.Haveyoueverstolenapenfromwork?

49.Didyouenjoyschool/university? 50.Doyouknowanyoneatthiscompany? 51.Howdoyoumaintainagoodwork/lifebalance? 52.Areyourgradesagoodindicatorofsuccessinthisbusiness? 53.Wouldyouratherbelikedorfeared? 54.Whatareyourthoughtsontheinterviewprocesssofar? 55.WhyshouldIchooseyouoverothercandidates? 56.IsitOKtospendtimeatworkonnon-workstuff,likeFacebookorYouTube? 57.Whatarethreepositivethingsyourboss/colleagueswouldsayaboutyou? 58.Whathasbeenthebiggestsetbackinyourcareer? 59.Yourbossoversleptandisnowlateforaclientmeeting.Hecallsandasksyoutotelltheclient thatheisstuckintraffic–inotherwordstolieforhim.Whatdoyoudo? 5CompetencyQuestions 60.Whatwasthelastbigdecisionyouhadtomake? 61.Tellmeaboutatimeyou’veworkedto/missedadeadline 62.Tellmeaboutabigchangeyou’vehadtodealwith 63.Tellmeaboutatimeyou’vehadtopersuadesomeonetodosomething 64.Givemeanexampleofsomethingyou’vetriedinyourjobthathasn’tworked.Howdidyou learnfromit? 65.Tellmeaboutatimeyou’vedisagreedwithaseniormemberofstaff 66.Ifofferedthejob,whatwouldbeyourfirstpriorityorthingyouwouldchange? 67.Whyareyouagoodfitforthecompany? 68.Whatwasthelastthingyoutaught? 69.Howhaveyouensuredmaximumvalueformoneywhenmanagingresources? 70.Namesometopopinioninfluencersinthisindustry 71.Mostpeoplearegoodatmanagingupordown,butusuallynotboth.Whichoneareyou? 72.Whichwebsitesdoyouusepersonally?Why? 73.Howdoesyourpersonalsocialmediapresenceaffectyouremployer? 74.Howhaveyouimprovedinthelastyear? 75.Tellmeaboutatimeaclientwasespeciallyunhappyandwhatyoudidtoresolvethesituation 76.Tellmeaboutatimeyoumadeanimportantdecisionintheabsenceofamanager.Whydidyou reachthatdecision? 77.Canyoutellmeaboutarecentsituationwhereyoutooktheinitiativeandmadesomething happen?

78.Whatisthebiggestissuebetweenyouandyourcurrent/previousmanager? 79.Whatisyourfavouriteproduct/serviceintheindustry? 80.Whatis10percentof100? 81.Tellmeaboutatimeyousupportedamemberofyourteamwhowasstruggling 82.Inyourcurrentjob,howmanyhoursaweekmustyouworktogetitalldone? 83.Giveanexampleofatimeyou’vehadtoimprovisetoachieveyourgoal 6CurveballandCreativityQuestions 84.Ifyouwereananimalwhatwouldyoube? 85.EveryCVhasatleastonelieinit.What’syours? 86.Haveyoueverbeenfired? 87.Tellmeaboutatimeyouwentagainstcompanypolicy 88.Tellmeaboutyourfamily 89.Areyoumarried?Planningtohavekids?Whendidyoustartyourcareer?Whereareyoufrom originally?Doyoucelebrateanyspecificreligiousholidays? 90.Wheredidyoulastgoonholiday? 91.Tellmeaboutthelastgoodideayouhad 92.WouldyoumindifIapproachedyourformer/currentemployerforareference? 93.Whatwouldyouguessisthemostsearched-forphraseonYouTube? 94.Whatbooksandnewspapersdoyouread? 95.Aren’tyouoverqualifiedforthisjob? 96.Sellmethispen 97.GiveyourCVamarkoutoften 98.Ourproducthasseriouslyantisocialsideeffects.Howdoyoufeelaboutthat? 99.HowmanytrafficlightsarethereinLondon? 100.Whathaven’tIaskedyouthatIshouldhave? 101.Whencanyoustart? 7PartingShots Whenit’syourturn Lastimpressions–howtowrapuptheinterview Howtofollowupwithoutbeingastalker Therealanswer BonusChapter:TenExtraTechQuestions

102.Howdoyoukeepupwithnewtechnologyinthisindustry? 103.Whatwilltechdoforusinthefuture? 104.Tellmeaboutthebiggesttechnicalchallengeyou’vecomeupagainst 105.Tellmeaboutatimeyouworkedonaprojectinvolvingatechnologythatwasnewtoyou.How didyouapproachit? 106.What’syourfavouritepieceofsoftwarethatyouusetohelpyoudoyourjobandwhy? 107.Howdoyoumanageremoteworkingrelationships? 108.Howwouldyouimproveourwebsite/app? 109.Ifyouwereatechbrand,whichonewouldyoubeandwhy? 110.Ifyoucouldcreateanappthatcoulddoanythingtoimproveyourlife,whatwoulditbe? 111.Howwouldyouexplainadatabasetoaneight-year-oldinthreesentences? Acknowledgements FollowPenguin

WHYYOU?

JamesReedistheChairmanofREED,therecruitmentspecialists.Hefirstjoined thecompanyin1992aftergraduatingfromHarvardBusinessSchool;sincethen REEDhasmorethanquadrupledinsizeandreed.co.ukhasbecomethenumber onejobsiteintheUKandEurope.REEDnowreceivesmorethan50millionjob applicationsayearandhasdeliveredover100programmeshelpingmorethan 140,000long-termunemployedpeoplebackintowork.Jamesisco-authorofPu YourMindsettoWork,winneroftheCommuter’sReadPrizeattheCMI ManagementBookAwards2012.HeisalsoaFellowoftheCharteredInstitute ofPersonnelandDevelopment(CIPD).

PRAISEFORWHYYOU?:

‘Takesmuchofthefearoutofpreparingforajobinterview’SundayPost ‘AmazonUK’sfastest-sellingnewreadoninterviewtechniques’CityA.M. FromAmazon: *****‘Gotthejob!’ *****‘Amustforallinterviewees’ *****‘Worthapermanentplaceonyourbookshelf’ *****‘Perfectpreparationforanyinterview’ *****‘Goodforemployerstoo!’ *****‘Ireadthisfromcovertocoverbeforeaninterviewforaverymuch wantedjob.Ididalltheexercisesitrecommendand…Igotthejob!’ *****‘Ifyouareseriouslyafterajobthisisessentialreading’ *****‘Helpedmegetmycurrentjob!’ *****‘Reallyuseful,givesclearexamplesandwellexplained–Igotthejobso musthavebeenagoodbuy!’ *****‘Helpedmeprepareperfectlyforinterview,givingmerealquestionsthat comeup–alongwithexcellenttipsforhowtoanswerthem.Wouldn’thavegot thejobwithoutthisbook’

Forthemoment

ONE

AllintheMind

‘Well,lifeallcomesdowntoafewmoments.Thisisoneofthem’ WallStreet,1987,20thCenturyFox

Onemoment Canthepathofaperson’sentirelifecomedowntowhattheydoinjustoneor twodecisivemoments?TheguitaristAndySummerscertainlythinksso. YoumightnotrecognizeSummers’namebutyou’llknowhiswork.Summers wasone-thirdofThePolice,oneofthemostsuccessfulrockbandsofalltime. Maybeyou’renotafan,butyouwouldhavetoagreethatSummers,inbeinga guitaristinarockband,landedajobthatmanyofuswouldlovetohave.Hisjob tookhimtoalmosteverycountryintheworld.Hedidcreativethingsallday.He metinterestingpeopleanddevotedfans.Hewaspaidatonofmoneyfordoing somethingheloved,somethingthatcamenaturallytohim.Truly,greatworkif youcangetit.Sohowdidhegetit? HegotitbyboardingaLondonTubetrainandsittingdownatrandomnextto adrummernamedStewartCopeland.Peopledon’tusuallytalkontheTube,but forsomereasonthosetwostruckupaconversationthatday.Itwasa conversationinwhichtheytoldeachotherwhatkindofmusictheywantedto make.Eachconvincedtheotherthathewassincereandsuitable.Theyclicked. Theyformedaband.TheymetSting.Theywenttowork. TakeoutthatlastbitaboutStingandyou’vegotaperfectdescriptionofwhat happensatagoodjobinterview:twopeopletalkingfromtheheartabouta

commoninterest,eachsettingoutwhattheyhavetooffer.(Admittedly,thisis differentfromtheritualizedjobinterviewthatmanyofusarefamiliarwith.) WhenthetimecameforSummerstowritehisautobiography,hecalleditOne TrainLater,becauseifhe’dtakenthenexttrainalonghewouldn’thavemet Copelandandnoneofhisenchantedcareerwouldhavehappened.Clearly,itwa oneofthosemomentswhentheentirecourseofhislifecouldhavegoneone wayoranother–justasoccursinajobinterview. MaybeyoufeelthatSummersdidn’tinterviewforhisjob,thathesucceeded byhavingaskill(inhiscase,playingtheguitar)andbyhoningthatskillwith hoursofpracticeeveryday.You’dberight,butskillsareneverthefullpicture. It’smoreaccuratetosaySummerswasfullypreparedwhenhismomentof destinypresenteditself.Hewasatapointinhislifewhereheknewwhathewas goodat,andcouldcommunicateittoatotalstrangerinawaythatmadehim seemlikethesortofpersonyouwouldwantaround. Thisisabookabouthowyoucanlearntodoexactlythesamething. Knowingyourmoment Alltheevidenceisthatthesemomentsoflife-changingdestinyaremostlikelyto presentthemselvesintheformofajobinterview. Howyouperforminthatthirty-to-ninety-minutewindowwilldeterminewhat youdoforaliving,whichinturnwillshapemuchofyourtimeonEarth, including: Whatyoudoallday:Approximatelyone-thirdofyouradultlifeisspent atwork.Ifyoudon’tenjoyyourwork,that’sone-thirdofyourexistence hammered,withnorefundsandnore-runs.(Toputthisintoevensharper relief,halftheremainingtwo-thirdsofyouradultlifeisspentasleep,or maybelyingawakeatnightthinkingaboutwork.) Whereyouliveandwhatyouseeallday:Wherewespendourlimited timeonthisplanetisdeterminedlargelybywherewework,with90per centofuslivingwithinanhourofourjob.Yourjobinterviewisgoingto determinewhatyouseeoutofthewindowallday,beitcityskylineor sunriseoverthePacificat35,000ft. Yourincome:WhenareallygoodPAcanearnmorethanajuniorpilot, whocaresaboutsunrises?

Yourlifepartner:Ifyougotonightclubshopingtofindthatspecial someone,statisticallyyou’llhavemoreluckworkingbehindthebarthan onthedancefloor.Nineteenpercentofusmeetourspousesatwork– it’sthemostcommonplaceforlovetostart,byfar.Andshouldyouget luckywithacolleague,youcanrejoiceinthefactthatdivorceratesare lowerthanaverageamongcoupleswhomeetatwork,probablybecause theyhaveacommoninterest. Whenyou’lldie:There’sagoodreasonyourlife-assurancecompany askswhatyoudoforaliving.It’saprovenfactthat,whetheryou’rea personaltrainerorsomeonewhositsdowninanofficeallday,your healthissubjecttothephysicalimpactofyourjob. Yoursocialstatus:Youarewhatyoudo.Ofalltheprofessions,itseems doctorsandnursesgetmostofouradmirationandtrust.(Politiciansand bankers,notsomuch.) Yourpersonalhappiness:Jobsatisfactionis,ofcourse,hugely important.Interestingly,morethanonestudyhasshownthatifyouwant tobehappilyemployedyoushouldpickupsomescissorsandlearntocut hair.Mosthairdressingsalonownersarehappierintheirworkthanany oftheirclients. Sothat’syourtime,yourmoney,yourlovelife,yourhorizon,yourhealth,your socialstatusandyourhappiness–alldeterminedinpartatajobinterview.Iflife reallydoesboildowntoafewdecisivemoments,theinterviewissurelyoneof them.Likeitornot,peoplewhoaregoodatinterviewstendtobegoodatlife. Withsomuchrestingontheoutcome,it’snowonderintervieweesget nervous.Butasscaryasitistomeetone’sdestinyinajobinterview,youareat leasttoldaboutthemeetinginadvanceandgivenachancetoprepare.Youget morenoticeofyourkeymomentthanAndySummersgotforhis.Betterstill, withinterviewsyouonlyneedtopractisealittleharderthantherest,notfor hoursadaylikemusiciansdo. Ifyouthinkofinterviewsthatway,they’llsuddenlyseemlesslikeatrialand morelikealuckybigbreak,atip-off,aninsideadvantage,onethatyoushould seizewitheverythingyouhave. Whathaveyoudonefordestinylately?

Learninghowtogetjustalittlebetteratjobinterviewsisoneofthebest-value thingsyoucandoforyourself,poundforpoundandminuteforminute. Despitethis,mostpeoplespendmoretimepreparingtheirdinnerthan preparingforaninterview.Maybethey’rescared,knowingthereissomuchat risk.Fearoftencreepsinwheneverthestakesarehigh,closelyfollowedby procrastination,resultinginmanycandidatesfeelingthesamewayabout interviewpreparationasOrsonWellesfeltaboutflying:amixtureof‘boredom andterror’. Intruth,almosteverybodyprocrastinatesaboutjobinterviews–whichmeans lesscompetitionforyou.Employersrarelycomplainabouthavingtoomany great-performingintervieweestochoosefrom.So,forthosewhowouldpusha littleharderthantherest,successatinterviewisthereforthetaking. Thebestpreparationconsistsoffindingheartfeltandusefulanswerstocertain keyquestions–andtherearen’tsomanyquestionsthattheycan’tallbe masteredbytheaveragepersoninafewevenings’work. AtReed,webelievethateventhemostthornyandexoticinterviewquestions arejustpermutationsofatinysupersetofkeyquestions.Getgoodatthesekey questionsandalltheotherquestionswilltakecareofthemselves.Ifyouwantto makeastartrightnow,gostraighttothe‘ClassicInterviewQuestions’sectionin Chapter2. Howtousethisbook It’simportanttoknowthatthisbookwillnotteachyouhowto‘game’ interviewsbyusingcannedanswers.Youwillbeofferedsomebroadillustrative responses,butIstronglysuggestthatyoudon’tparrotthoseillustrationsword forword.Believeme,cannedanswersdon’twork.Iemployapproximately 3,000peopleandmostofthemconductjobinterviewsforaliving.Icanassure youthattheyhearcannedanswerseveryday,asdotheemployerswhomakeup Reed’sclients–andeverysingleoneofthosecannedanswersisplayedout. Theproblemisgettingworseallthetime,thankstotheinternetbeingonebig echochamber.Thephrase‘interviewquestions’aloneissearchedhalfamillion timesamonthonGoogle,nottomentionalltheothersimilarsearches,suchas ‘Whattosayininterview’. Whathappensisthatcandidatesclickonthefirstoneortworesults,memorize theanswersandthenfeelthey’vedonealltheinterviewpreptheyneed,whenin factthey’vejustmadeitharderforemployerstofindoutwhotheyreallyare.It’s asthoughsomepeoplethinkofinterviewsasagameofcatchphrasebingo, ratherthanasincereconversationbetweentwostrangers.

Pretendingtobesomeoneyou’renotiswrong.Itisalsomuchharderworkfor youinthelongrun.Nobodyevergotfiredforturningouttobeexactlythe persontheyseemedtobeininterview,butplentyofpeoplehavebeenfiredfor spoofingtheirwayintoaposttheyweren’trightfor,and,beforebeingfired, theyprobablysufferedforalongtime,thrashingawayatajobtheycouldn’t actuallydo. Theotherreasontoavoidcannedresponsesisthatthereissurprisinglylittle consensusamonginterviewersaboutwhatconstitutesagoodanswer.Thatmuch becameclearwhenReedconductedtwentyorsoworkshopsamongits recruitmentconsultantsforthisbook.Inthosesessions,abadanswerwaseasily identifiedbutagoodonewasoftenamatteroftasteandmuchdebate. Butasuselessascannedanswersare,theirexampledoesatleastbringusto theheartofthisbook.Cannedanswersarebadbecausetheygetinthewayof lettingtheemployerfindoutwhoyouare.Andwhoyoureallyareisbecoming justasimportantaswhatyoucando.Gobackacoupleofdecadesandajob interviewwouldhavebeenalmostexclusivelyaboutskillsandexperience;these daysyourinterviewisjustaslikelytobeaboutyourpersonalityandyour mindset.Ashasbeenwrittenamilliontimeselsewhere,theworldischanging veryrapidlythesedays,partlybecauseskillsandexpertisearebecoming increasinglycommodifiedanddistributed.Inthisenvironment,yourpersonality comestothefore.Whatthatmeansforjobinterviewsisthatacomputer programmer’sabilitytoconveytheirhopesanddreamsandquirksnowhas almostasmuchbearingontheirchancesofsuccessastheirabilitytoprogram. Onceagain,youmightnotlikesuchastateofaffairs–butitabsolutelyishow thingsarenow.Firmsdon’thireCVs,theyhirepeople.Theyalwayshave,but moresonowthanever. HowIwrotethisbook I’vealwaysbelievedintheideathatateamisagenius.Consequently,itwas cleartomethattheinterviewwisdomfoundinthisbookshouldbe crowdsourced.AndsinceI’mproudtobetheChairmanoftheReedGroup,the recruitmentagencystartedin1960bymyfatherSirAlecReedandnowthe UK’ssinglelargestaggregatorofjobsandjobinterviews,Iwasfortunateto haveaccesstotheviewsofaverylargecrowdindeed.(Bytheway,what followsisthefirstandonlybitoftub-thumpingforReedyou’llseeinthisbook, although,unavoidably,itcan’tbethelastmention.) OnanygivendayReed’swebsitefeatures250,000jobsfrom12,000 employers;wereceivemorethan180millionvisitsayearandhaveover11 illi CV d b M i l l 2 000 i

millionCVsonourdatabase.Moreimportantly,weemploy2,000recruitment consultants.Theseconsultantsspendtheirentireworkingdaymatchingjobsto candidates.Inmostcasestheymeetthefirmofferingthejobandtheyalsomeet orspeakwiththecandidateslookingtowinthatjob.Thisgivesconsultantsa uniqueinsightintowhatworks,bothfromtheemployers’pointofviewand fromthatofthesuccessfulandunsu...