Prepared by: Dr.

Karima MECHOUAT
A two party conversation in which (at least) one
person has serious, specific purpose (goal).
Personal Skills Technical Skills
 Behavioral in  Often related to
nature a specific
 Learned over a field/industry
longer period of  Learned by
time osmosis,
 Shared by the training, or
general population practice
Interviewer Candidate

-Analyze & define -Analyze posting

skills & qualifications -Research organization
-Prepare job profile -Apply for position

-Develop questions -Develop potential

-Prepare for interview questions / responses
-Prepare for interview

-Conduct interview -Respond to questions

-Ask questions -Build rapport
-Ask questions

-Rate & Select -Follow up

Interview = A meeting with an objective

Employer’s objective: is to find the best person for the job

Employer: reviews candidate’s experience and abilities
 Can you do the job? (skills, abilities, qualifications)
 Will you do the job? (interest, attitude & motivation)
 How will you fit into the organisation? (personality)

You: impress employer and assess position on offer

 What does this position offer me?
 How does it fit with my career plans?

→ You must prove that you are the most suitable candidate
for this position
Always purposeful
Always structured (in different degrees)
Has several distinct phases and involves question-and-
answer format
Has an element of control
Is bipolar – 2 parties participate
Amount of speech - Pareto principle
Highly scheduled (structured conversation) –
standardized list of questions

Nonscheduled – free conversation

Moderately scheduled – directed by interviewer

 Situational Interview

Assessing different situations

Better predictors of performance

Test

Test for candidates to predict job performance more

accurate

Cognitive Ability test

Personality test

Performance test
Personality Tests

 Assess unique blend of characteristics that define the

individual

 Assess the individual personality

 Assess the individual Consciousness

Performance Test

 Requires candidate to perform simulations of actual job

tasks

e.g., a code-writing test for computer programmers

Review own skills, experiences and qualities
 Check CV
 Anticipate questions and identify relevant examples
 Prepare key selling points

Research organisation
 Websites, reports, articles, company literature, etc
 Contacts with knowledge of organisation or sector
 Relevant articles in the press
 Personal visit or telephone call

Research job and occupational area

 Job description – or similar
 Current issues

Prepare your questions

Practice
Successful job seekers know what to expect. They prepare for
the interview by:

 Researching the organization to determine the skills and qualifications a

successful candidate will need.

 Preparing sample questions with complete responses.

 Rehearsing their responses, including one to two minute stories.

 Practising their rapport building skills.

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First impressions are very powerful

Allow time to relax

Dress appropriately
Entrance, introductions & handshake
Smile and make eye contact
Be aware of own movements
Watch body language of interviewer
Open vs closed qs
Factual vs opinion qs
Primary and secondary qs
Direct vs indirect qs
Hypothetical qs
Leading and loaded qs
Question Formats
Job-Related
To determine your current knowledge and capabilities for the
position.
What do you know about our competition?
How will you help the organization?

Behavioral
To define your experience looking back.
Describe a time when you…
Give an example of a time when you…

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Question Formats
Situational
To determine your likely behavior in the future based on
hypothetical situations.
What if you and your team disagree?
In this position how will you . . .?

Stress
To determine how you deal with stress.

Stay calm
Don’t take it personally
Endure the ‘silent treatment’

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Question Formats

Brain Teaser

To determine how well candidates can logically and creatively think

on their feet.

How far apart are the minute and hour hand of a clock at 3:15?
Why is a manhole cover round?

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About you
Tell me about yourself - Bring me up to date with your CV?
Why did you choose that particular degree programme?
What experience have you had that is relevant to this post?
What would you consider your major achievements to date?

About the job

What interests you about this job?
What do you know about this organisation?
What other options are you considering?
How do you see your career developing – 5 years?
If you were Head of Department, what would be your priorities?

General knowledge
What do you think of the Government’s policy on college fees?
What’s your opinion of the economic situation of Morocco?
“What if” Questions
 No experience - how are you likely to respond to a situation?

Probing Questions
 How exactly did you deal with the situation?
 How did you know it worked?
 How did you feel about the outcome?
 Could you have handled it differently?
Creating Job-Related Questions

Job Related questions may test your knowledge of the position,

the company, the institution, and the industry.

 Create 3 job related questions:

1.

2.

 3.

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Creating Job-Related Questions

Job Related questions may test your knowledge of the position,

the company, the institution, and the industry.

Create 3 job related questions:

1. What interests you about this job?

2. What do you know about this organisation?

3. If you were Head of Department, what would be your

priorities?
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 Traditional Method

 “Why did you make that

decision?”

OR

 “What can you tell me about

this job?”
 Case Interviewing

 Cognitive Testing

 Role Play/Simulation Exercises

 Behavioral Interviewing
“ The best way to predict one’s future
behavior is:

Past
behaviour”
______________
 The questioning requires a specific
scenario….s

 “Tell me about a time when…..”

 “Give of an example of a time when….”

 As opposed to a hypothetical scenario

 “ What would you do if….?”

 “How would you handle this situation?”
S - Situation: Setting the scene

T - Task: What needs to be done

A - Action: The steps you took

R - Result: The end product

Creating Behavioral Questions

Behavioral questions are about past experiences and are used as

predictors of future success.

Create 2 behavioral questions:

1
.

2
.
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Creating Behavioral Questions

Behavioral questions are about past experiences and are used as

predictors of future success.

Create 2 behavioral questions:

1. What kinds of people did you find it difficult to work with?
How did you handle those situations? What were the
outcomes?

2. Tell about a time when you had several tasks to manage at

one time with conflicting deadlines.

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The creation of one-to-two minute stories of your experiences,
skills and accomplishments are especially useful for behavioral
based questions.

Define a challenge, a problem or situation you

faced, such as being required to:

• Meet objectives with same or fewer resources. Challenge:

Challenge:
• Increase efficiency.
• Develop something for the first time.
• Prepare original papers, reports, articles.
• Manage work group or department. Actions:
• Save the organization money. Actions:
• Increase production.
• Identify problem others did not see.
• Meet goals under difficult circumstances. Results:
Results:
Describe the actions you took to meet the challenge.
Explain the results of your actions.
 Energy
Self Belief Teamwork

Empathy Intellect

Communication Skills YOU Self Awareness

Initiative Self Motivation

Knowledge Flexibility
IT Skills
 Intelligence
Research skills
Managing Information
IT skills
Intelligence People Numeracy
/Technical Skills Problem Solving
Skills Ongoing development
Attention to detail
Personal
Development ????????
Skills ?????? - Grades
- Projects
- Extracurricular courses
- Hobbies
 People Skills
Interpersonal Skills
Communication
Leadership
Intelligence People Teamwork
/Technical Skills Customer Focus
Skills Influence
Empathy
Personal
Development ???????? Conflict resolution

Skills ??????
Dealing with customers &
colleagues, Work
experience, College
projects & presentations
 Personal Development
Self Awareness/Self
Confidence
Negotiation
Intelligence People
Energy & Enthusiasm
/Technical Skills
Resilience
Skills Initiative
Adaptability
Personal
Motivation
Developmen ????????
?????? Ability to deal with change
t
Networking
Skills
Work Experience / Sports/
Clubs
Arranging Events /Elections
 10
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20
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Preparing a Job Profile

Prepare for your interview by developing a “working” job profile.

Using a job posting or job description:

1. List the key skills necessary for job-required duties and

responsibilities.
2. List the important qualifications for the position.

-Starting point in designing a job

-Build from this foundation
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Preparing a Job Profile

Prepare for your interview by developing a “working” job profile.

Using a job posting or job description:

1. List the key skills necessary for job-required duties and

responsibilities.
2. List the important qualifications for the position.

-Starting point in designing a job

-Build from this foundation
41
Usually one-on-one
Formal and appears stilted at times
You are asked to describe your behaviour according
to:
The Situation in which it occurred
The Task
The Action you took
S T
The Result

A R
 Company identifies key skills required for job
 Designs questions to elicit evidence of skills
 Emphasis on past behaviour as predictor of success

 Teamwork:
Describe a team project you worked on. What problems arose? How did you deal with
them?

 Communication Skills:
Describe situation when you had to persuade others to support your view. Give an
example of any reports you’ve written which illustrate your writing skills

 Interpersonal skills:
What kinds of people do you find it difficult to work with? How do you handle those
situations?

 Taking Responsibility:
Describe a time when you took responsibility to achieve a challenging goal

 Problem-solving:
Tell about a time when you had several tasks to manage at one time with conflicting
deadlines.
Identify the competencies required for job
Review job description or ask for information
Define each competency in behavioural terms
Identify past experience to illustrate how you
demonstrated that behaviour
Prepare examples for each competency
Practice talking about your experience
Try to give a complete answer - STAR
Describe a time when you were faced with problems or
stresses at work that tested your coping skills. What did you
do?
Give an example of a time when you had to be relatively quick
in coming to a decision.
Give me an example of an important goal you had to set and
tell me about your progress in reaching that goal.
Give me an example of a problem you faced on the job, and
tell me how you solved it.
Tell me about a situation in the past year in which you had to
deal with a very upset customer or co-worker.
Be specific, not general or vague!

Don’t describe how you would behave.

Describe how you DID behave.

If you later decided you should have behaved

differently, explain this. The interviewer will see that
you learned something from experience.
Question:

 Give me an example of a problem you encountered. How did you

approach it. What was the outcome?

STAR response

S: Describe the situation

T: Explain the task/problem that arose
A: What action did you take?
R: What was the result or outcome?
What did you learn from this experience?
Employer needs Your evidence
Communication Presentation to class
Team work Example from Co-op
Leadership Class rep, Committee
Initiative Fundraising for charity
Customer Care Giving services to
IT customers
Commercial awareness Designed website
Business pages/
marketing and
mangement of a
company department
Listen carefully, seek clarification
Illustrate answers with real examples and evidence
Be positive – constructive criticism
Keep answers specific, concise and succinct
Take time to respond
Be alert to interviewer’s body language
Speak clearly, smile and show enthusiasm
Know what you want to say, and find the
opportunity
Good all-round intelligence
Enthusiasm, commitment and motivation
Good communication skills
Team work ability
Ability to solve problems
Capacity to work hard
Initiative and self-reliance
Balanced personality
Adaptability
Integrity
Innovation
Teamwork
Initiative
Drive for Results
Know the Business
Open Exchange of Information
Makes Difficult Decisions
[email protected]
Your personal statement summarising:

 Education
 Skills
 Experience
 Career Objective

Theme: what I can do for YOUR company

90 seconds maximum, then STOP
No jokes
No “as you can see from my CV..”
Practise out loud and often
Give the people what they want
Tailor it a little for each employer
[email protected]
Devise a response to “the tell me about
yourself question” by including the
following elements:

Education

Skills
Experience
Career Objective
Education
I am a Final Year student at the University of Limerick studying for
a BA in Accounting and Finance. I have specialised in
International Financial Markets and am completing my
dissertation on the systematic effect of the weak dollar on
international currency markets. I have achieved 2.1’s
throughout my time at UL and am confident of achieving a 2.1
or perhaps a 1st this year
Skills
I am motivated and driven and have shown this by combining
working and studying over the last three years. I’m a confident
communicator and have led and facilitated many debating and
sports society activities in university. I enjoy interacting with
people and have been heavily involved with customer facing
activities for many years. I like setting challenges for myself and
last year completed the Dublin City Marathon as well as reaching
the national final of the advanced Suduko Championships.
Experience
I have spent two summers working in the funds accounting
industry and have become proficient on the industry specific IT
systems as well as having a strong working knowledge of all
the key terms in the industry. I have maintained a good
network of friends and ex colleagues in the industry and they
keep me up to date on the latest developments in the
industry. In my part time job I am responsible for generating
direct marketing revenues from 45 clients so I know what is
involved in maintaining client relationships.
Career Objective
I want to build on my knowledge of the funds industry and become
a Fund Accountant with my own portfolio of clients. I want to do
this with one of the largest global players where my skills and
enthusiasm will be recognised and rewarded, and where I can make
a real difference to the company’s profitability and success
1. Tell me about you?
2. Why are you leaving your current position?
Personal Infomation: Reason for Leaving Statement:
Be brief, positive, truthful.
I’ve enjoyed working at XX for the
Memorize a 30-60 second summary. past XX years, and now I’m looking
for an opportunity to make a new
contribution.

I was hired as an XX, and after a few

months it was clear that the position
was not a good fit for my skills.
-Who you are
-Where you have been
-Where you are going
OPENING - DO NOT FORGET THAT:

 50 % of decisions are made during the first 30-60

seconds

 Next 25 % - in the first 15 min

 The rest 25 % are very difficult decisions

BODY: exchange questions and answers

 Interviewer:

Controls and focuses the conversation

Listens actively

Uses different types of questions

BODY: exchange questions and answers

 Interviewee:

Reviews and clarifies the results

Corrects any misunderstanding

Covers his/her own agenda

CLOSING

Review and clarify the results

Establish future answers

Conclude with pleasantries

Not only is it acceptable, it is recommended. By asking
questions, you are showing your active participation in
determininng if the job is right for you?

Example Questions May Be:

What kind of training would I receive for the position?
How long is it?
Will I receive a company handbook detailing the company
policies?
What does the company value on its business activities?
What are the goals of the company and its department?
Training programmes
Career development opportunities
Types of projects & responsibilities
Reporting structure
Performance appraisal
Profile of staff
Questions about topics raised in interview
What happens next?
 What are your company’s plans for expansion?
 Is the department a profit center?
 How important are the department’s functions to the senior
management?
 Are you ready to hire now?
 How long has the position been open?
 How many employees have held the position in the last five
years?
 Why are the former employees no longer in the position?
 How many employees have been promoted from this position
during the past five years?
 What do you expect the person you hire to accomplish?
Poor personal appearance
Negative attitude – evasive, using excuses
Lack of interest and enthusiasm
Lack of preparation
Poor knowledge of role
Failure to give concrete examples of skills
Over emphasis on money/rewards
Lack of career plan
•Self Reflection

•Feedback

•Follow up Letter
Review own performance
what went well
what went badly
what you wished you had said
prepare for next stage

Rejection letter / email

if you can request feedback - use it
Was it evident that you have a clear understanding
of yourself?

Did you prove that you researched the company

and the job?

Did you show the match between the job, your

technical skills and experience?

What can you do to improve for the next interview?

Did you successfully discuss your education and
extracurricular activities?

Were you composed, honest, confident?

Did you look and act professional?

Were you energetic, enthusiastic and positive?

Courteously thank the interviewer(s) for the
opportunity to interview with the agency.

Extend a handshake and exhibit enthusiasm about

the career opportunity.

Consider following up with a thank you note or e-

mail of appreciation to the interviewer(s) to
further show your interest.
 Interviewers want you to succeed
 Ask about the next steps in the process
 Either a thank-you note or an email should be
acceptable

Most Importantly: LOVE WHAT YOU DO!