Preparing to answer any interview question presented to you is arduous, to say the least. Often, it seems that there just isn’t a way to ease your anxiety. Time has proven, however, spending extra time preparing prior to an interview results in more improved your answers and that you will be more confident in giving them. Here are a few standard interview questions:
1. Why do you want to work for us?
Your answer should come from thoroughly researching the company including what they do and what the job they are advertising entails. If, through your research, you determine that the position deals with job aspects which you are uncomfortable with, then you would and should decline an interview. However, if the company offers a job or jobs which you find interesting and would like to be involved with, then you should stress your interest during the interview. As an example – if the company does a lot of cold calling of customers and you have a similar background, you can answer this question by stating that upon researching the company you found that they have a great deal of interaction with clients both old and new and that you have previous experience in a call center environment or in sales and really are enthusiastic about this type of work. Or, if the company is a financial organization and you just love working with numbers, you can discuss your aspiration to work with figures and statistics and stress your meticulous consideration to detail.
2. Why should we hire you?
If you have thoroughly researched the company, you should have an idea as to why you want to work for them (see #1). As an example, if the company is a research and development organization, then you might want to emphasize the fact that you like to create new things and possess an out-of-the-box thinking style and state that you appreciate that the company supports this type of ingenuity in its workers.
3. Tell me about yourself.
Your answer to this question (which is often the first question asked) should be no more than a minute or two in length and should include education, work history, and recent employment history. The interviewer is going to be more interested in the latter so this is part you should emphasize. Be sure to incorporate transferrable skills and duties from your past employment to highlight what you can do in the new position. Emphasize customer service abilities, dealing with deadlines, meeting quotas – to name a few.
4. What do you find most attractive about the position? What do you find least attractive?
You should let the employer know at least 3-4 factors about the job you find interesting (from reading the job description) and then add one minor, unattractive or uninteresting item (if you find one).
5. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Your response should not contain goals you may have for returning to school or moving to another company (the employer doesn’t want to hear this) but rather should clearly state that you are interested in obtaining a long standing and progressive career within the organization. In this answer, you also want to demonstrate that you desire to be an integral part of the organization and hope to augment your talents and abilities towards the company’s successes in the future.
6. What are you looking for in a position?
Your answer should be oriented to the opportunities which are offered by the company you are interviewing with. You should stress your desire to perform the job duties well and a desire to obtain recognition for great job performance. Your answer should be from the perspective of opportunity and not your personal well being.
© Copyright Vet2Work/Naturallysilver 2011. No re-publication of this article is permitted without express permission. This is an excerpt from "Successful Career Moves" by C.A. Stapleton. About the author: C.A. Stapleton, A.S., B.S., M.B.A., is an experienced, published professional career consultant, mentor, and résumé/ biographical writer.
No comments:
Post a Comment