Before attending and interview you should think of the
questions you might be asked, in today's market place you will be expected
to answer traditional questions and behavioural based questions. When
answering questions a golden rule to remember is "Honesty is the best
policy" do not lie, answer questions as honestly and precisely as
possible. And remember preparation will significantly help reduce stress and
enable to feel confident in your answers.
Examples of Traditional Questions:
- Why are you looking to leave your current role?
- What kind of role are you seeking?
- Why did you choose this particular career path/field?
- Why would you like to work for this organisation?
- What interests you about our products/service?
- What did you do in your previous role? What did you enjoy the
most/least about it? Accomplishments? Strengths/ Weaknesses?
- What do you want to be doing in your career in five years from now?
- How do you handle criticism of your work?
- What style of management do you work best with?
- Which role did you enjoy the most and why?
- What does teamwork mean to you?
- When was your last salary review?
Notes on Behavioural based Questions:
- Behavioural based questions focus on "core skills" that is
those specific skills and behaviours that are needed to succeed in a
role. They can include; knowledge, skills, abilities and personal
traits.
- Answers that you provide are matched to specific role requirements,
business objectives and company culture.
- Remember that you are being asked to provide the interviewer with
specific examples of a situation that you were involved in. Don't give
general answers.
- Choose an example that you remember clearly, it is important that you
remember as many details of the example you provide.
- When assessing what behavioural based questions the interviewer may
ask, consider the job description and requirements of the role.
Examples of Behavioural based Questions:
Coping with Pressure:
Describe a time when you were faced with problems or stresses at work that
tested your coping skills. What did you do?
Problem Solving:
Give me an example of a time you had to be relatively quick in coming to a
decision
Give me an example of a problem you faced on the job, and tell me how you
solved it
Can you tell me about a time you were able to anticipate a problem?
How did you know the problem was likely to occur? What did you do?
How effective was your action?
Drive and Motivation:
Can you give me an example of an important goal you had to set?
Tell me about your progress in reaching that goal.
What motivates you to put forward your greatest effort?
Describe a situation which you did so
Handling Conflict:
Tell me about a situation in the past year in which you had to deal with a
very upset customer or co-worker.
What us your typical way of dealing with conflict?
Can you give me an example?
Team Work:
Describe a contribution you have made to a project on which you have worked
on
Describe an occasion when you had difficulties working in a team
What caused the problems? How did you respond? What was the outcome?
Time Management:
Tell me about a time when you had too many things to do and you were
required to prioritise your tasks
Give me an example of when you had to work to an important deadline.
How manageable were your timescales? What did you do to ensure that the
deadline was met? If not, how would you organise your activities differently
next time?
