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Succeed at interview – the Randstad way

A guide for candidates

Succeed at Interview

You have been selected to attend an interview. This guide is designed to give
you confidence during the interview process.

Prepare yourself
Understanding yourself is the first step when preparing for the interview. If you
have spent time objectively considering what you have to offer to a prospective
employer you will feel more comfortable presenting these strengths, skills and
aptitudes to an interviewer.
Taking the time to think through the following areas will help you to understand
yourself better. Completing the exercises yourself and asking for the opinions of
someone you trust will also help you to be objective and consider other peoples
perceptions of you.

ƒ Your skills and aptitudes

ƒ Your strengths
ƒ Your achievements
ƒ Your areas for improvement
ƒ The whole picture

The interview is an opportunity to stand out and be noticed. An interviewer will

often see many candidates in one day. The one who will be remembered is the
one who had something interesting to say and left a definite impression.

Your skills and aptitudes

An interviewer will be looking to establish your skills and aptitudes and to what
extent these match what they are looking for. You should aim to expand upon
you’re CV or application, focusing on when and in what context you have
performed well and the skills and aptitudes you have applied or gained in the
process.
Remember that you may have acquired or developed skills and aptitudes outside
of the work environment, possibly whilst pursuing interests or whilst raising a
family. Write down all the skills and aptitudes you believe you possess. Then
consider which of these are likely to be most useful in carrying out the job for
which you are being interviewed.

Once you have identified these relevant skills and aptitudes, it is important that
you feel able and confident to present them in an interview. You may find it
helpful to practice by saying them out loud to yourself as this enables you to get
used to talking about yourself without feeling embarrassed or apologetic.
Practice in front of a mirror or with a friend who can give you encouragement
and positive feedback.

Your strengths
The interviewer will be interested in how you will perform the job not just
whether you have the ability to do so. Your skills show what you can do and
your strengths show how you do them. Use the following list to help you identify
your strengths.

Think about the following traits and give yourself a rating on a scale of 1-3 to
show how often you believe you demonstrate the strength: 1= frequently 2=
occasionally 3= never

The list is not exhaustive and you should add any other strengths you believe
you have. Remember that if you believe you possess certain strengths, simply
stating
“I am an enthusiastic person” in an interview is unlikely to be convincing. Use
the same list to think of specific examples when you have actively demonstrated
these qualities either in a work environment or in your personal life.

ƒ Assertive
ƒ Conscientious
ƒ Creative
ƒ Determined
ƒ Displays initiative
ƒ Enthusiastic
ƒ Flexible
ƒ Quick to learn
ƒ Self motivated
ƒ Self reliant

Your achievements
To help you consider your achievements, make a list of all your
accomplishments, not just the important ones, but everything that other people
should know about.
This can be difficult so the list below gives you some ideas to work from.

ƒ Your academic record from school, college or university

ƒ Your qualifications, professional or technical
ƒ A difficulty you have overcome
ƒ A significant problem you have solved
 ƒ A skill you have mastered
ƒ A sporting accomplishment
ƒ A way in which you have improved results
ƒ An example of when you led or supervised a group
ƒ An initiative you came up with
ƒ Any other area which you have studied

Your areas for improvement

You may be asked about your weaknesses or limitations at interview. It can help
to think of these areas for improvement and look for the positive ways to present
them. For example, if you know you can take longer to accomplish some tasks,
view this from a positive slant and present to the interviewer that you are
conscientious and like to avoid errors. This is a way of being realistic about ways
in which you still need to develop whilst looking for the positive. Remember no
candidate is perfect and all of us can improve in some way.

The whole picture

You have now given thought to your skills, strengths and achievements and been
realistic about your areas for improvement. By putting all these together you will
have a whole picture of the sort of person you are. You may find it useful to
write down a number of phrases that you can then aim to use in the interview
setting to present yourself positively. Again remember to give specific examples
and always look to slant these examples to match the post for which you are
going to be interviewed.

Summary
An interview is often described as a “selling” exercise in which you sell your
skills, experience and personality to the interviewer. Your challenge is to
persuade an interviewer that you are worth “buying”. Remember that if the
Company recruits you they have taken a decision to make a long term
investment in you and it is in their interests to make the right choice.

Do your research
Now that you have prepared yourself, the next stage of your preparation should
be geared towards the interview you will be attending. The more research you
can do, the better prepared you will be and the bigger advantage you will have
over other candidates. The key areas to research are:
ƒ The interview
ƒ The job
ƒ The Company

The interview
Your consultant will provide you with the date, time and location of your
interview in order that you can plan your route and travel arrangements. If you
are unsure of the location or journey, you may want to do a “trial” run before the
day of the interview to make sure you can arrive in plenty of time.

The job
It is essential that you know as much as you can about the job for which you are
going to be interviewed. Make time to discuss this with your Consultant, prior to
your appointment.
If you have been sent a job description prior to the interview, make sure you
read this through several times and that you have an understanding of what the
job will involve.
If you know anyone who does the same or similar role, talk to them to obtain
first hand information about the job.

The Company
At the interview you are likely to be asked what you know about the company.
This can be one of the easiest ways to demonstrate that you have taken the time
and trouble to find out about the company and therefore stand out from other
candidates. You should try to find out as much as possible from as many
different sources as you can. Aim to discover in what areas and markets the
company operates, its size, structure and geographical locations, when the
company was formed, a brief history, how well the company is doing in terms of
profitability or its reputation, who are its competitors.
The company itself, possibly through its marketing or customer services
departments will usually be able to send you information. Ask for general
company literature, brochures, factsheets and annual reports. Other potential
sources of information are: directories and databases (available through public
libraries), personal contacts, newspaper articles, trade press, the Internet and
especially the company’s own website. Your Randstad Consultant will aim to
provide you with as much information as possible.

At the interview
We all tend to make initial judgements about other people within the first few
minutes of meeting them. Although many people who conduct interviews are
trained not to make too much of those first few minutes, your initial impact will
still be important if you want to create the right impression.
Your appearance can show the interviewer a good deal about your self image
and it is important to dress appropriately for the interview you are attending.
Overdressing can be as much a danger and it is preferable to appear well
groomed but comfortable, rather than extremely impressive but ill at ease.
Through non-verbal communication, we can end up revealing far more than we
may be aware. Although in the interview you will be concentrating on what you
are going to say, you should be aware of how you say it and the type of body
language you are displaying. Research shows:
Words account for 35% of the message
Tone of voice and body language 65% of the message
It is important to remember that the interview should be a two way discussion
and in any day to day discussion you would have with friends or family you
would be relaxed and would naturally indicate your interest in the person to
whom you were speaking. Whilst an interview may be a more formal style of
discussion, an interviewer will still appreciate it if you give your full attention to
them. Try to appear comfortable and relaxed and give signals that you are
listening by nodding, smiling and looking interested.

It is advisable to take a notepad with you with a list of prepared questions you
would like to ask. It is also worth noting that a key positive signal to an
interviewer is the act of note taking; you are showing an interest in what they
have to say.

Answer questions
As we have said, an interview should be a two way discussion and as with any
discussion there will be questions asked by both parties. An interviewer may ask
the same sort of questions to each candidate so they can compare answers. It is
possible to anticipate and prepare for many of the questions you will be asked in
advance as most interviews are conducted along similar lines. Questions are
likely to fall into the following categories:

ƒ You as a person
ƒ Your work history, skills and experience
ƒ The Company
ƒ The job

Listed below are some questions that are frequently asked at interview. Read
through the comments and prepare your own responses to the questions and
any others you anticipate may come up. Once you have written your responses,
read them through and perhaps share them with a close friend to see if you can
improve them. Try to keep your responses positive but as natural as you can.

You as a person
These questions aim to get you talking about yourself and are often “open”
questions that require more than a one word response. You can use this to your
advantage by directing the response in the way you want. However be aware of
how long you talk for and take your cue from the interviewer’s responses and
body language.

Tell me about yourself

An interviewer will often use this as the opening question. It is meant to
encourage you to start talking whilst the interviewer “tunes in” to what you are
saying. The problem can be that without any parameters many candidates say
too much. An interviewer will often expect a 5 or 10 minute summary of your
work history or main achievements rather than any in depth descriptive
information. Try to establish how much information the interviewer is looking for
by asking the questions “shall I begin from when I left full time education” or “
would you like me to give a 5 minute summary of my employment history to
date”.
What do you think are your strengths?
As mentioned earlier your strengths should reflect how you perform a job
whereas your skills and aptitudes show what you are capable of doing. Try to
avoid giving a list but give key strengths and provide examples when you have
demonstrated
these, preferably in the workplace.
What are your weaknesses?
Interpret weaknesses as areas you would like to improve upon. Having prepared
yourself as outlined, be brief about the area itself but give examples of how you
have already overcome that weakness in certain situations.
What can you do for us that someone else can’t?
This is an opportunity to stand out as different from other candidates.
Incorporate some of your strengths and focus on your personality as well as
what you are capable of doing.
What do you do outside work?
This type of question often comes near the end of the interview and is an
indication that the interviewer is interested in you as a person not just as a
potential employee. Try to give a brief answer that shows you have a variety of
interests and pursuits.
Work History, Skills and Experience
An interviewer will use these questions to establish what you have done in the
past as well as what you are capable of doing. An interviewer may have set
questions to ask or may be guided by your CV or application form.
Why are you leaving/did you leave your present position?
You need to avoid becoming defensive or negative at this point. If you have left
your previous position under difficult circumstances, focus on the opportunities
for development and improvement this has given you rather than the problems
you have experienced in the past. You should avoid criticising previous
employers or people you worked with.
In your current/last position what do/did you enjoy the most?
Try to give aspects of your current or previous job that are likely to feature in the
job for which you are being interviewed. Try and give reasons why you enjoyed
certain aspects. It will appear more positive if you can think of ways in which
these aspects of the job developed your skills and aptitudes or enhanced your
strengths.
In your current/last position what do/did you not enjoy?
It is best to only give one aspect of the job that you enjoyed the least and if
possible give the ways in which you coped with them. For example if at times in
your job there were not enough things to do and you were bored, you might
have used the time to improve upon systems or developed your knowledge in
other areas.
What contribution did you make in your current/last position?
Remember from your preparation earlier that an achievement does not have to
be major or highly visible for it to have made a difference.
The Company
The interviewer will be looking for what you have found out about the company
as well as questioning your motives for wanting to join them.
What do you know about our company?
Make sure your response shows that you have done some research but try not to
inundate the interviewer with facts and figures. If you have been unable to find
out as much as you would have liked, it is better to tell the interviewer of the
ways you tried to find out information.
Why do you want to work for us?
It is worth spending some time thinking through several reasons why you want
to work for the company. Try to ensure that some of the reasons are in the
company’s interest and not purely to serve your own purposes. Think about what
the company is looking for and will need from the person they appoint and try
and relate this to what you have to offer.
How long would you stay with us?
Most interviewers will know that employees no longer start and finish their career
with the same organisation. However a company invests in employees when they
recruit them and like any investment they will want to see some return. Try to
show how your career could continue with the company for some years and
outline what would encourage you to stay.
What sort of person do you think we are looking for?
An interviewer will often use this question to discover your level of understanding
about the company and its priorities. In your preparation about the company you
will have given some thought to this and hopefully discovered the type of person
that is likely to fit in and succeed in their organisation.
Again, your Consultant will assist you with the above.

The Job
An interviewer will use these types of questions to discover why and how you
would do the job not just whether you are able to do so.
Why should we appoint you?
From your preparation you will have a clear idea of your strengths and now is
the time to elaborate on these and not list your skills or previous experiences.
Remember to match your strengths to those the interviewer is likely to be
looking for.
What do you look for in a job?
Again you should try and ensure that your answers reflect what is on offer in the
opportunity in question.
 What do you think you would enjoy the most about this position?
Try and give the key feature of the job and remember to say why you would
enjoy it, preferably showing how it would allow you to demonstrate your
strengths and so benefit the company.
What do you think you would enjoy the least about this position?
It may be more diplomatic to say that at this stage you don’t feel you know
enough about the role to give an answer to this. If you are pushed to give an
answer, try to pick an aspect that you would be able to enjoy once you have
learnt more about it.
Here are some additional questions that you may be asked
1. What interested you most about our products or services.?
2. Why did you choose your particular field of work?
3. Which job did you like best? Which least? Why?
4. What do you want to avoid in your next job?
5. What praise have you received for good work?
6. What criticisms have you received in your job? How did you feel about that
criticism?
7. Did you make any changes in your last position? How do you think these
changes benefited the company or yourself?
8. Do you prefer to work under pressure or in a more relaxed environment?
9. Do you like routine work? Regular hours?
10. How long have you been looking for work? How have you gone about it?
11. Are you willing to relocate? Would this cause you any undue difficulty?
12. Would you accept a job requiring travel?
13. What qualifications do you have that make you feel you will be successful in
this position?
14. To what style of management do you respond best?
15. How do you manage people? Describe your style, method and relationship?
16. What size of organisation would you like to work in? Why?
17. What kind of job would you like to have in 5 years?
18. How do you handle direction? Do you like minimal direction or do you feel
secure with greater supervision?
19. Describe your working relationship with your previous employers.
20. Do you prefer working with others or by yourself?.
21. What do you really enjoy about your work?
22. What are you good at?
23. What is your greatest success/achievement/accomplishment?
24. What do you feel uncomfortable with?
25. What makes you angry/annoyed/furious/upset?
26. Who has influenced you the most?
27. How would your boss describe you?

Using the STAR technique

 When answering a competency based question, an interviewer is looking for a
beginning, middle and an end in the answer. It should tell a story without giving
too much information and without saying too little. It should not prompt the
interviewer to explore more questions within the question. A technique
commonly used that would help you feel confident that you are providing the
right kind of information is the ‘STAR’ Technique.

It allows the candidate to structure a scenario based question into 4 sub-

headings ensuring they tell a story with every answer. These are:

Situation – What was the situation that occurred

Task – What were you tasked to do
Action – What action did you take to ensure this was achieved
Result – What happened as a result?

An example of how to break this down would be:

Client – “Give me an example of when you provided exceptional customer
service”
Candidate – ‘(S/T) Well in my last role as a customer service advisor with
HSBC I received a call from Mrs Jones who was very angry with the service she
received at her local branch of HSBC. She was evidently irate and upset as she
was raising her voice whilst discussing her reasons for the complaint. (A) I
listened to her complaint thoroughly with no interruption and took notes as she
was highlighting particular areas of concern. I empathised with her throughout
the conversation and apologised for any inconvenience caused. I highlighted that
HSBC pride themselves on good customer service and suggested that this was an
isolated incident and a rare situation that shouldn’t have happened. (R) By
repeating to her the areas of the complaint she wished to highlight I displayed
that I understood her query and listened to her throughout. I explained that the
issue would be addressed immediately to enhance her understanding that she is
valued customer. At the end of the conversation she was more relaxed and
thanked me for my help. I immediately escalated the call to ensure the complaint
was dealt with.

Other examples of competency based questions that the ‘STAR’ technique could
be applied to are:

ƒ Give me an example of an occasion when you have worked as part of an

effective team.

How did that prove of benefit to the company?

ƒ How would you define the term ‘quality service’?

ƒ Describe the worst experience you have had working in a team.

How did it affect you?

ƒ Explain what you have done in the past, to build trust amongst fellow team
members?

ƒ Describe a situation where you have had to deal with conflict either between
others, or between yourself and another?

How did you deal with the situation, and how did you get your point across?
What did you learn from it?

ƒ Give an example of a difficult decision making situation. What important factors

did you consider when making that decision?

What would you do differently next time?

ƒ In past or current roles, how have you used your influencing skills to achieve a
set goal?

ƒ Give an example of a time when your opinions were not well received.

When answering a competency based question, an interviewer is looking for a

beginning, middle and an end in the answer. It should tell a story without giving
too much information. It should not prompt the interviewer to explore more
questions within the question.

Ask questions
You will usually have an opportunity to ask questions at the end of the interview
if it has not been possible to ask them as the interview has gone along.
Remember that the interview should be a two way process which means that it is
just as important for you to obtain information as it is for the interviewer.
Without asking questions, if a further interview or the job is offered to you, you
may not have all the relevant information to make your decision.
You could ask the interviewer to expand upon things that have been mentioned
in brief or to cover areas that have not been raised. You can also use this time to
ask about the next step in the selection process.
What questions you ask will depend on what has already been covered and how
much information you had prior to the interview. By asking questions you are
demonstrating to the interviewer that you are interested in the job and the
company and that you want to know more. The questions attached give you
some ideas.
Questions to ask at interview
There comes a point, in every interview when you are asked, ‘Have you any
questions?’ The worst response you can give is ‘No’! It pays to think through
some questions you may like to ask. The best questions are the ones you think
of, because they are important to you.
The following list is not intended as a script, but as food for thought. Use a
notepad to write down your questions and take the notebook into the interview.
Nerves will rob you of your memory. The notebook can act as a reminder. You
should prepare a minimum of six questions before you attend your interview that
you want to ask.

a. About the job and your appropriateness for it

The following questions are designed to get at the fundamental needs of the job
from different angles.
When you receive the answer to any of these questions, relate briefly what you
can do or have done in similar situations.
1. What are the immediate priorities?
2. What obstacles might I encounter?
3. How can the successful candidate best contribute to the objectives of this
department?
4. Is this a new position? If so, why was it created? If not, why was it
vacated?
5. What was the previous incumbent’s approach to the job? What were
his/her major successes?
6. What changes would you like to see in the way this job is performed?
7. Can you describe your ideal candidate to me?
8. Have any internal candidates been considered? If they have been rejected,
why?
9. How valuable would it be for a candidate to have ‘x’ skills or experience?
(Choose something you are good at). Don’t volunteer information about
what you can do without first asking how useful or important this skill
would be.
10. What do you consider to be my major strengths for this position? Are
there any drawbacks in your view?
11. What are some of the important personal traits the successful candidate
should have in order to fit effectively into your corporate culture?
12. Where would you see a successful person in this position progressing to in
the organisation?
13. If you recruited me, how would I know what you thought of my progress
and development in the role?

b. The people
1. Would you mind telling me about your career to date with the company?
2. What can you tell me about the people I will be working under? Also peers,
subordinates?
3. How would you describe the management style of the company?

c. The Company
Generally avoid questions you should have been able to answer with a little prior
research.

1. Have there been any major organisational changes recently? Are there any
planned?
2. Are there any major acquisitions or diversifications now being planned?
3. What are the company’s profit and turnover projections over the next few
years?

At the end of the interview

Overcoming reservations
It may help your chances by asking the interviewer, or finding out from the
interviewer, whether they have any reservations after meeting you. This would
also give you the opportunity to eliminate any doubt the interviewer may have.
Maybe you could have been more specific in relation to an example?

Business like close

Research shows that the way in which you leave an interview has a major effect
On your chances of getting a job offer. When an employer is faced with a choice
between two equally capable candidates, they will offer the job to the candidate
who showed most interest in their company and job. So, if you want the job, say
so at the end of the interview. Summarise you interest with a simple statement
suggesting that you think the environment would be a great place to work and
that you find the role really interesting and something that would challenge you
on a day to day basis.

Offer them a big handshake whilst maintaining eye contact and smiling
– body language plays as big a part at the end of the interview as it
does at the beginning.