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Interviewing: The Employer's Perspective (w/sample questions)
An interview requires two active participants. It is your responsibility to research the company and the opening so that you can determine whether the position is right for you. Access to employer information, job listings and descriptions may be accessed via the WWW.
Review the job description to connect your skills to those being sought. List your skills and experiences as they relate to the position so you can explain them clearly. Your answers to the employer's questions should focus on drawing connections between your abilities and experience and the requirements of the position for which you are applying.
Candidates that perform best during the interview process are those that have anticipated the questions and have prepared and practiced their responses. Practice your responses with someone to get feedback or in front of a mirror to get a sense of what the interviewer will see.
Questions Commonly Asked by Employers
- Tell me about yourself. (Answer should focus on information pertinent to only the position, i.e. skills, accomplishments.)
- What do you consider to be your greatest strength? Greatest weakness? (Be sure not to divulge information that would deter employer from hiring you. Highlight a weakness that can be turned into a positive.) Give examples.
- Why do you think you are qualified for this position?
- Can you give me an example of skills you have utilized that are related to this position?
- How do you determine or evaluate success?
- Why are you interested in this field?
- Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
- Why should I hire you?
- Have you ever been fired or asked to resign?
- Give me an example of a time when you have failed.
- Describe your worst day ever.
- How would your friends describe you in 3 words?
- What is your greatest achievement?
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Behavior Based Interview Questions Asked by Employers
Prepare yourself for the event that the interview may include some Behavioral Based Interviewing (BBI) techniques. Stated simply, BBI encourages applicants to describe situations in which they have utilized skills and abilities similar to those required by the job. The BBI approach is based on the premise that past performance is the best predictor of future performance.
The interviewer asks questions targeted at the behavior, asking the candidate about particular situations or experiences that s/he has had. Candidates, in turn, offer behavioral examples from almost any life experience -- current or previous employment, internships, volunteer activities, class projects, hobbies and leisure time, or even family life.
Success in BBI depends upon two components:
- Articulating examples that best illustrate what they can do for an employer.
- Telling stories with a beginning, middle and an end. Candidates must identify the problem or tasks, for which they are responsible, tell what they did, and the results.
Essentially, a complete answer to a behavior-based question has three parts:
- Situation - what was the situation that the applicant was facing?
- Behavior - specifically what did the applicant do or say?
- Outcome - what was the result of the applicant's behavior?
Problem Solving
When was the last time you solved a difficult problem that would have significant impact? What was the situation? How did you go about analyzing the problem? What alternative solutions did you consider? Tell me how you implemented your solution? What was the outcome?
Handling Details
Tell me about the most significant project you have worked on in which it was crucial to keep track of details while still managing the "big picture." What was the project? What skills did you utilize in managing it? How did you make sure the work got done? How did you keep focused on the overall goal of the project while still managing all of the specific parts? How did the project turn out? What feedback did you receive on your management of the task?
Oral Communication
Describe a time when you had great difficulty communicating your thoughts clearly to another person or group. What was the situation? What message were you trying to convey? What did you do to get your point across more clearly? What was the outcome?
Conflict Management
Tell me about a time when you voiced a concern or disagreement to a co-worker or supervisor. Where did the disagreement originate? What did you say to the other person? What was his/her reaction? What was the outcome of the disagreement?
Initiative
Describe the best example of taking the initiative to do something that needed to be done, even though it wasn't your responsibility. What circumstances required you to act? What actions did you take? What impact did your initiative have on the situation?
Managing Stress
Describe your most disappointing experience. How did you cope with it? What did you do to move beyond it?
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