My next 2 posts will focus on the job interview. In this post I explore how to prepare for job interviews, the different types of interview questions, how to approach them and how to create a great impression. Part 2 will cover questions to ask the interview panel.
When you’re going for a job interview, fundamentally, employers ask themselves 4 questions:
- Can you do the job?
- Do you want the job?
- Do you have the potential to progress?
- Will you fit in?
The first 3 of these you have some control over. They involve:
- Matching your skills to the person specification and making it clear you understand the role, department and organisation
- Being clear about why you want the role.
- Your track record- demonstrating how you’ve developed in your career to date.
- The 4th– you can see what you’re able to find out about the role and department- but it is the most subjective of the 4 questions . Do the panel think they could work with you?
Something to bear in mind about the panel…
Some of the things you won’t be privy to are what’s going through the panel’s minds. The Chair may be desperate to fill a post- perhaps this is not the first time they’ve tried to fill a role. Perhaps it’s been hard to narrow down interviewees from a really strong field. Panel members or the Chair may have been pulled in a short notice. Another may have given scant attention to your carefully crafted application. Someone new to interviewing may be as nervous as you are being an interviewee. I mention this only to point out that interview panel members are just like you and I- they are imperfect human beings. So take some solace from that-especially if it makes you approach the interview without assumptions.
Their inner dialogue may be different to what you imagine.
Examples:
‘Let’s hope to goodness we can recruit someone from this list today- it was difficult to find anyone who really stood out.’
‘It was hard to narrow down the field- so many good applications!’
The easier you make it for the panel to see how you are the answer, the more likely you are to receive an offer.
Common pitfalls
From the interviewee’s perspective, the following are some of the reasons why you may not be successful.
- Not providing evidence for your achievements, skills and qualities
- Insufficient research
- Not answering the actual questions asked
- Not demonstrating enthusiasm- assuming it’s obvious you want the job
- Underselling yourself- especially when you’re an internal candidate
- Inappropriate questions for the interviewer, demonstrating a lack of research or judgement
- Not bothering to contact the person mentioned on the job details where it says: ‘for more information please contact x’ – and missing a great opportunity to really find out more about the role as a result.
Tip: Hardly anyone bothers to do this!
5 Interview question types and how to prepare
When you’re preparing for job interviews it’s helpful to be aware of the questions recruiters are likely to ask. There are five kinds of interview question you may encounter. It makes sense to understand what the differences are and how to be prepared for them.
1. Questions to put you at your ease
The interview will start with questions designed to build rapport and help you settle in. Examples might include: ‘how was your journey here today?’ How are you coping with this hot/cold/wet weather?’ ‘Can I get you some water?’ etc.
Tip: Use these questions as your warm-up. They are an opportunity for you to make a positive and enthusiastic start and to help build rapport with the panel.
2. Motivational and Sector awareness questions
Motivational questions are designed to identify how much you want the role. Questions may be direct: for example, ‘tell us what’s made you decide to apply for this position?’
The recruiter will be aiming to find out how much effort you’ve put into researching the sector, organisation and job role. They may ask: ‘What has attracted you our company?’ Or ‘what has caught your attention in the news about the sector recently?’ Whilst it’s harder to predict motivational questions, if you’ve genuinely done your homework then you should be well-prepared, regardless of the questions you’re asked.
Looking at the company’s website is a good starting point for your research.
Tip: All candidates need to be able to demonstrate sector, or commercial awareness. This is not limited to commercial organisations.
For example, if you’re applying within the University sector, depending on the area of professional services you’re applying to, you need to consider:
- What’s happening within HE politically?
- What changes are taking place within the curriculum? examinations? Assessment? Funding? Student Experience? Internationally? etc
- Have you been keeping up to date by reading key publications such as WONKHE or AHEP newsletters?
3. Competency questions
Competency questions are designed to test how the skills you’ve developed through the jobs you’ve done can be applied to the role. Recruiters will ask questions based on the skills identified in the person specification, making them largely predictable. For example, if Problem solving or Teamwork are highlighted in the Person Spec, then you may be asked: ‘tell me about a time when you solved a particularly difficult problem’, or ‘what was your role in contributing to a team project?’
Highlight each ‘Essential’ and ‘Desirable’ skill from the Person Specification and have 1 or 2 examples against each skill listed. Prepare for these by using the STAR technique (Situation, Task, Action, Result).
- Identify the Situation you used the skill in;
- Describe the Task you undertook that will demonstrate it.
- Outline the Action that you took
- Capture the Result
Each STAR example will read as a min- story so will be easy for you to recall on the day.
Tip: Focus not only on what you Achieved and the Result but also reflect on what you learned. For example, what would you have done differently with hindsight or what contributed to your success? So Star becomes STARR with a double R for Reflection.
4. Scenario-based questions
Whilst competency-based questions look for evidence of what you’ve done, scenario-based questions explore potential performance. These are the hardest questions to predict, though doing your research will help. Examples: ’How would you handle a customer who had unrealistic expectations of the service you can provide?’. ‘What would you do if you were suddenly presented with additional work you’d not planned for?’
Tip: The better you know yourself and how you are inclined to behave or respond, especially when dealing with change or the unexpected, the easier it will be to respond to scenario-based questions.
5. Strengths
Strengths questions are designed to find out what genuinely energises and enthuses you. There are no right or wrong answers, although recruiters will have a list of strengths they will find particularly helpful in the role you’re applying for.
Example questions include: ‘what activities energise you?’ ‘Tell me about something you’re particularly proud of’, ‘Are you a big picture or a detail person?’ ’What is one of your weaknesses?’ Questions are often quick-fire, giving you little time to plan a response.
Tip: How you respond will demonstrate whether you are genuinely enthusiastic. It’s therefore hard (and unwise) to fake a response to attempt to guess what you think the recruiter wants to hear.
It can be hard to gauge how long to spend answering a question. If you’re not sure whether you should provide more information you can ask ‘would you like me to expand on my answer?’ This is a generalisation but most interviews will have around 8 or so questions and last 30-45 minutes. You can use this to calculate approximately how long you have to respond to each question- taking out a few minutes for intros, and any questions you may have.
Lack of clarity
Not all interviewers are skilled at designing questions. If you’re unclear what they are asking, do ask ‘could you repeat that question please, so I’m clear I’ve understood what you’re looking for?’
If you realised you’ve gone off track- apologies- and say ‘I’m sorry – I’m not sure I’m giving you what you asked for- can you repeat the question?’
My next post will cover questions to ask the panel.
Good luck is when opportunity meets preparation, while bad luck is when lack of preparation meets reality.
Eliyahu Goldratt
