Effective Interview Tips for Job

 Effective Interview Tips for Job

               Getting an interview call is not easy and once you have secured one, it is important to make the most of it. Prior to attending an interview it is important to have a clear understanding of what the job is, how and why you would be suitable for the job, what the company does, who its competitors are etc.

Many graduates frequently forget under pressure that an interview is a two way process. An interview is a chance for the employer to find out more about you and your suitability for the role and for you to find out more about them, the suitability of the role for you.

The following tips would help you succeed in getting through the interview

•Research : 

Before attending the interview, ensure that you have all information about the company including its product range, businesses in which it operates and recent news features. Being informed revels that you are keen enthusiastic to join the company

•Body language :

 Always maintain eye contact with the interviewer. It reveals your confidence. Never droop in the chair. Sit upright and keep track of your hand movements while answering questions

• Prepare for basic open - ended questions :

The interview is a process by which the interviewer can judge whether you match the requirements both academically and as a person. Generally, the interviewer will throw up some open - ended question like "Tell me about yourself". This is meant to relax the applicant. This can be used as an opportunity to divert the interview into your areas of strength

Open - ended questions like those on hobbies, achievements, etc reveal a great deal about you as a person. Treat these questions very seriously

•Listen

Listen to the question before answering it. Understand what the interviewer is looking for. If you need time to think about the answer, request for the same. Most interviewers would comply with such a request. But after you have taken time to think, better come up with a good answer

•Ask questions

Generally, the last question of the interview is "Do you have any questions about the company?" Use this opportunity to ask something relevant about the company. If you do not ask any questions at this point, chances are that you may come across as a person who is not keen to join the company

•Be yourself

Do not try to be someone you are not during an interview. Be natural. An interview is a process by which the candidate and the interviewer get to know each other and the candidate's role in the organization is established. Any mask that you may don for the interview will wear down in no time

•Mock interviews

It is always a good idea to attend mock interviews and use the feedback to improve your interview skills

Group Discussion Tips:

•Stay calm

                 It is seen that many group discussions degenerate into a fish market. This is because the participants lose their sense of calm. They panic either due to the topic under discussion or due to other participants. Regardless of what the situation may be, it is important for you to maintain your composure. Stay calm in the face of adversity is the main quality of a leader

•Meaningful contribution

                                            Some participants enter a group discussion with the impression that the more they talk, the greater is the chance of being selected. This cannot be further from the truth. How long you talk is irrelevant, what you talk is important. Repeating the same points over and over again shows the lack of content in the candidate

•Reaching consensus

                                   Decisions in real life business situations are normally taken by a team. It is a case of give and take. Flexibility in your thought process is crucial. Being adamant on a point just because you do not want to be seen as backing down reflects very poorly on the individual. Understanding the other person's point of view is very important. If you feel strongly about what you believe in, push forth your point but in the form of clear reasons. Repeating the same point serves no purpose. It is well known that in a group discussion, reaching a consensus is extremely difficult. The fact that the group reached or did not reach a consensus is not relevant to your being selected. What is of relevance is what you did in order to try and reach a consensus

•Be seen

             Regardless of how many points you may have, unless you ensure that the group and the evaluators hear them out, they remain just what they are - ideas. To make them count you have to ensure that you are heard. Rarely will anyone gift you with an opportunity to speak. You will have to create that opportunity. And once you get that opportunity, make it count

•Listen

           Some candidates have so many points to put across that they find the time limit too short. So they end up occupying a lot of airtime. This shows favorably in terms of knowledge but is a poor commentary on team skills. In most business situations, decisions are seldom taken independently. You have to let others express their point of view

Sample open-ended questions for interviews

•             Tell me about yourself

•             Tell me about your background and accomplishments

•             What are your strengths and weaknesses?

•             How would you describe your most recent job performance?

•             What interests you about our company?

•             What outside activities are most significant to your personal development?

•             Why should we hire you?

•             What are your career goals?

•             Do you consider yourself a leader or a follower? Why?

•             Describe your greatest accomplishment in life

•             Describe your greatest failure in life

•             What is your favorite subject?

•             What are your hobbies/interests?

•             Where do you see yourself five years/ten years down the line?

•             How would your closest friend describe you?

•             How would your greatest enemy describe you?

•             Why did you join this B-school?

•             Why did you pick up this stream?

•             Describe a challenging situation that you had to face and how you dealt with it

•             What motivates you?

MORE IMPORTANT QUESTIONS FORCLERK

The clerk performs many tasks that are related to office paperwork.

Clerks prepare office documentation, answer/send e-mails, direct phone calls, and data entry, make invoices and compile records in database. They may work in government offices, law firms, insurance companies, accounting offices, banks, courts, hospitals, universities and commercial businesses.

The position of a clerk is important for any organization as he or she has to be highly responsible, accurate, good communicator and should have the tendency to work multi-tasking and in strict deadlines. Therefore, the questions in a clerk interview would be aimed at understanding whether the person has the said traits or not. This article provides sample of job interview questions for clerical positions and suggests answers for the same.

Clerical interview questions and answers

The below questions are generally asked after the initial questions that are posed at knowing the person on a personal level.

1. Tell me about yourself? What is your job experience?

This is the generally the first question that is asked by an interviewer. Although this is more of a formal question and does not hold much bearing on the final outcome of the interview, it is normally asked to check your general competence to the job in question.

Keep in mind that the interviewer would not have the time to listen to a detailed story.

Therefore, be ready to create a briefer about your work experience. Make sure that the answer to this question is quick and concise. You can briefly tell about your prior work history and highlight some of your important background points – your recent and relevant career experience and how it qualifies you for the said job.

2. What are your educational qualifications that would support your application for the job of a clerk?

Any job that has a responsibility attached to it has several qualifications that should be held by a person that applies for the said profile. Make sure that you carry your academic as well as other documents that support your application for the said position. Of course, not every interviewer would have the time to go through the documentation, but the very fact that you have the documents at hand would give you some brownie points when it comes to the aspect of first amongst equals.

Once these questions are answered, the questions may veer to those regarding a typical workday.

3. Tell me about your typical workday – how would you prioritize the work in a typical day?

A clerk is a company resource. It is necessary for the clerk to know how to prioritize the work he/she receives from many departments and individuals within the business organization.

To answer this question, the simplest answer would be that you would prioritize the work with regards to the level of seniority and the level of importance. This is the safest way to prioritize work in a business organization that has a vertical hierarchy. It is very common that the work process moves from bottom to top in such a hierarchy.

Therefore, in many cases, if the work has reached a higher authority, there are good chances that the work is of greater priority than the other assignments.

Then, the interviewer would be interested in asking you about your technological education. Here are the questions that are based about your technical knowledge:

4. What are the types of software that you are comfortable with? 

This is another question that is fast gaining precedence with the increase of technology and differences that we have seen since the past decade. This question is basically a no brainier. No employee today would be in a position to get a job if he is not computer knowledgeable and computer savvy.

The answer to this question should again be factual – the types of Windows based applications in addition to other business management applications you used and the level of knowledge for each of these software.

5. What is your ‘words per minute’ speed? What is the accuracy value that you have at that speed?

This is a typical question that is asked of anyone who has applied for a clerical job. A clerk spends most of their time typing up documents and other collateral.

            Therefore, make sure that you reply to this question with factual numbers. In fact, many a times, this question may be the only one why you are selected over other candidates for the position.

6. Can you tell us of a recent incident in your job where you had to handle an atmosphere of stress? How did you handle it?

As a clerk, it goes without saying that there would be stress in the job and that there would be some situations that would have got pretty ugly if not for saner minds having prevailed. If you have had any such experiences, feel free to share those experiences with the interviewer when asked. However, remember that you should not add any kind of spice to the incident.

7. Do you have experience in which you assigned to be the main person who handles an important project – the focal point?

This question is basically pitched at you to find out whether your recent employers gave you more responsibilities. The interviewer may want to observe whether you have personal management skills or leadership abilities that would make you the perfect candidate to be promoted down the road.

Answering this question in the affirmative can make or break your application.

Therefore, provide a briefer about your greatest achievements and highlight some of the major projects/responsibilities that were given to you.

8. Why do you want to do this job?

This is a question that is generally asked in the middle of the interview. It is basically asked as a way to find out whether the person who has applied for the interview knows the ins and outs of the job and whether the person has applied for the interview just as a lark or not.

The best way to answer this question is through giving a proper break down of the aspects of the job that you like, and also try to tell about the scope of the job that you have applied for AND how it fits your skills.

9. How many languages do you speak?

This is a very interesting and important question. With the advent of globalization and outsourcing, it is very important to know more than one language, so as to be better placed to interact with all kinds of clients.

To answer this question, provide the languages and the level of knowledge write/read/speak for each.

 

Tough Interview Questions

Question -- How do you define success and how will you make our company more successful? 

                  This is one of those make-or-break questions that determines hire ability. Based on your response you'll be ratcheted up the interview ladder, or eliminated from further consideration.

This is a two-part question. Begin with your definition of success, such as:

I learned early in my career, it's the passion that drives you toward your goals but it's the hard work that produces your success. I constantly strive to improve my performance by questioning today, how I could have accomplished more yesterday. This way, I'll always feel my next achievement will be greater than my last.

Now to the second part of the question, how will I make your company more successful? I am confident I can make an immediate contribution in the following ways... (State brief examples of your achievement stories that relate directly to the needs of the open position. This enables the interviewer to gauge more accurately how your talents, skills and accomplishments match up to the qualifications they're looking for).

Remember:      You never want to talk longer than two minutes at a time. State key points briefly, yet                             thoroughly. If the interviewer needs more information, they'll ask.

What the employer wants to know:
                                                               The interviewer wants to see if the candidate has placed the company's interests before their own. For example: Has the candidate adequately researched the company to determine how they can help solve a problem, increase profits, or reduce costs? What value-added benefit will this candidate contribute to the organization? Are the candidate's prior achievements indicative of how successful he or she will be in this position?

The interviewer will also try to assess your enthusiasm, confidence and ambition in determining whether you'll fit within their organization's culture and work environment.

Questions about Your Abilities

·         Describe a decision you made that was a failure. What happened and why?

·         Tell me about a time that you worked conveying technical information to a nontechnical audience.

·         Tell me about a time that you worked with data, interpreting data, and presenting data.

·         Why do you think you will be successful at this job?

·         Tell me about a time that you participated in a team, what was your role?

·         Tell me about a time when you were faced with conflicting priorities. How did you determine the top priority?

·         Tell me about a time when you failed.

Tough question No. 6: "Tell me about the worst boss you ever had."

Never, ever talk badly about your past bosses. A potential boss will anticipate that you'll talk about him or her in the same manner somewhere down the line.

Suggested answer:"While none of my past bosses were awful (terrible), there are some who taught me more than others did. I've definitely learned what types of management styles I work with the best."

Tough question No. 4: "What are your weaknesses?"

            The key to answering this age-old question is not to respond literally. Your future employer most likely won't care if your weak spot is that you can't cook, nor do they want to hear the generic responses, like you're "too detail oriented" or "work too hard."

Respond to this query by identifying areas in your work where you can improve and figure out how they can be assets to a future employer. If you didn't have the opportunity to develop certain skills at your previous job, explain how eager you are to gain that skill in a new position.

Suggested answer: "In my last position, I wasn't able to develop my public-speaking skills. I'd really like to be able to work in a place that will help me get better at giving presentations and talking in front of others."

Tough question No. 7: "How would others describe you?"

You should always be asking for feedback from your colleagues and supervisors in order to gauge your performance; this way, you can honestly answer the question based on their comments. Keep track of the feedback to be able to give to an employer, if asked. Doing so will also help you identify strengths and weaknesses.

Suggested answer: "My former colleagues have said that I'm easy to do business with and that I always hit the ground running with new projects. I have more specific feedback with me, if you'd like to take a look at it."

Tough question No. 8: "What can you offer me that another person can't?"

This is when you talk about your record of getting things done. Go into specifics from your résumé and portfolio; show an employer your value and how you'd be an asset.

Suggested answer: "I'm the best person for the job. I know there are other candidates who could fill this position, but my passion for excellence sets me apart from the pack. I am committed to always producing the best results. For example..."

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