Breaking down the interview process

Breaking down the interview process

Interviews can be a daunting experience. Advance preparation will allow you to walk in, feeling confident and capable. It’s a good idea to think about what types of questions you will be asked, so that you can prepare answers.

Turning failures into success

You may be asked about your achievements and past failures. Remember that everybody is human. The employer is not trying to catch you out. They also don’t want to hear a completely negative response. What they’re looking for is a clear explanation as to why you failed to complete this task, and whether or not you changed this behaviour/learned from this in future tasks.

Know the job description inside out

Reading and fully understanding the job description is important as many of your questions will be based around these requirements. Take a look at how some of these qualities could be explored:

  • Customer Service – Talk about a time when you exceeded customer expectations
  • Flexibility – Describe a situation where you had to change your approach half-way through a project
  • Leadership – Explain a situation where you influenced others on an important issue. What approaches or strategies did you use?
  • Communication – Talk about a time where you had to explain something complex to a colleague or client.

Prepare your own questions

Interviewers will often end an interview by asking if you have any questions for them. This is an opportunity for you to highlight your interest in the role. Have at least three questions prepared in case any are answered during the interview. Questions covering company processes or the next steps of the recruitment process, are excellent ways to show that you have thought about your future with the organisation.

If you found this useful, why not look at Why body language is important for interviews.



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