Tell Me About Your Work Experience
An interviewer may or may not already be familiar with your background. Regardless, this question gives you the chance to detail your experiences that are most valuable to the prospective role. Employers want to know that youve reflected on their expectations for a qualified candidate and that you have directly relevant or transferable skills. Consider these tips for answering:
1. Quantify your experience:I have 10 years of experience in personal finance management, and I have assisted 45 repeat clients in increasing their capital by an average of 15% every year.
2. Illustrate connections to role:As a financial analyst, Ive used visual growth charts to show my clients how each saving plan option can impact their goals. When I became a senior financial analyst, I supervised other analysts and trained them in providing the most helpful experience to our customers.
3. End with a goal statement:”As your senior financial consultant, I aim to integrate my individualized approach to helping clients build the retirement fund they will depend on.
Read more: Interview Question: Tell Me About Your Work Experience
What Percentage Of Employees Was Brought In By Current Employees
Employees who love their jobs naturally recommend their company to their friends and peers. The same is true for people in leadership positions — people naturally try to bring on board talented people they previously worked with. They’ve built relationships, developed trust, and shown a level of competence that made someone go out of their way to follow them to a new organization.
And all of that speaks incredibly well to the quality of the workplace and the culture.
Can You Explain These Gaps In Your Cv
They’re quite common, but sometimes gaps in a CV can be seen as a red flag. Whether it’s a gap year, a sabbatical or just bad luck, if you have a big gap there’s a high chance you’ll be asked about it so the interviewer can find out how reliable you are as an employee.
The key is to be open, honest and natural with your answer. Talk about the reason behind your career break, what you did with the time and what you learned during it. The most important thing is to show that you made careful decisions and planned ahead, so they trust you won’t suddenly decide to swan off to Thailand for six months on a whim. The good news is that gaps on the CV are very common, and they are just not seen as the red flag they used to be – but prepare your answers anyway.
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Whats One Essential Skill You Learned In Your Most Recent Job
When you hear the candidates answer, ask yourself, Will that skill bring value to my company? If youre unsure about their answer, ask follow-up questions about their other skills to see if they can fill a void in your business.
It should also raise a red flag if the candidate cant think of anything they learned in their most recent job.
We should never stop learning. And even something as seemingly mundane as learning how to stay better organized shows that the candidate is always looking for ways to improve.
Tips For Asking The Interviewer Questions
- Write down your questions on a professional looking padfolio prior to the interview and bring it with you .
- Incorporate research you did on the company into the questions you ask.
- Ask open-ended questions that require more than a yes/no answer.
- Do not ask questions that could have been found with a quick internet search.
- Do not ask questions the interviewer cant answer do not try to stump him/her.
- Identify the important information or examples of your skills and abilities you want to share with the interviewer. If the interviewer does not ask you about this information during the interview, find a way to fit this information into a question you ask.
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Describe A Difficult Work Situation And What You Did To Overcome It
This is one of those pesky behavioral interview questions and is one of the most common. You need to have a success story ready to go for this. Relate a story where you dealt with a problem successfully. The key here is to pick a success story that shows you exhibiting the qualities/skills required at the job and company you are interviewing for.
- Pick an example that shows you tackling a problem that could arise at the new company youre interviewing for. This shows your value.
- Be specific and fairly concise.
- Use the S.T.A.R. Method
DONT:
- Dont bash anyone in your success story.
- Dont ramble.
Do You Have Any Serious Medical Conditions
When asking this question, the interviewer wants to learn if you have any medical conditions that could impair your ability to do the job correctly.
In most cases, youre not obliged to give an answer. If you do have a health condition, and it doesnt have anything to do with your career, you can simply choose not to answer, or to say No.
However, you might want to disclose anything that could potentially have an impact on how you perform.
For example, if the job requires you to lift heavy boxes, for example, and youre not able to do so because of a condition, you should let the HR manager know.
Possible answers:
I dont have any serious medical conditions
Im unable to lift heavy objects because of issues with my back, but it wont have any impact on how I perform at an office job
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If You Had A Choice Between Two Superpowers Being Invisible Or Flying Which Would You Choose
On the surface, this sounds like a question you heard at sleepaway camp when you were 12. But Forbes found it to be an indicator of potential leadership ability, with 72% of surveyed leaders choosing the ability to fly over being invisible.
If you think about it, this question is really asking, “Do you prefer to be in the spotlight, or more behind-the-scenes?” Of course, this shouldn’t be the only question you ask to determine a candidate’s personality and culture fit, but it’s nonetheless a good initial indicator of where someone will have the most impact on your team.
Tell Me About Yourself/your Work Experience
Begin your answer with an overview of your highest qualification then run through the jobs you’ve held so far in your career.
You can follow the same structure as your CV, giving examples of achievements and the skills you’ve picked up along the way. Don’t go into too much detail – your interviewer will ask you to expand on any areas where they’d like more information.
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Do You Have Any Serious Medical Issues
Note: Please make sure that you talk about relevant health conditions, wherever needed while having a discussion during your HR interview questions and answers round.
A serious health condition generally includes pregnancy or any chronic disease such as epilepsy and cancer.
If you do not have any of the above, do not give out too many details about your illness.
For example, if you are suffering from cold flu, say so.
Do not exaggerate the situation as it might create a negative impression wherein your HR will start to anticipate your absence in the near future.
If you do so, you might bid goodbye to goodies such as travel opportunities, promotions, hikes and even ripe leadership positions.
It is permissible for your future employer to question you. Some might ask you to get a complete medical check-up done and submit the report during joining.
While giving out the answer, be brief and summarize the health condition in a few short sentences.
B Technical Interview Questions To Ask Candidates
These questions are at the core of technical interviews. If youre the hiring manager or a team member who does a similar job as the position youre hiring for, youll want to ask these questions. Note that technical does not mean tech-related in this case, it means specific and job-related.
To find the best technical interview questions to ask potential employees, search for the role youre hiring for in our vast library of 350+ interview question samples. Here are examples of jobs companies are often looking to fill:
Technical questions are usually part of the second interview questions to ask candidates who have been shortlisted after the initial interview or screening call. In this stage, youre evaluating the candidates ability to actually do the job.
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Tell Me About A Conflict You Faced At Work And How You Dealt With It
This question is important to ace because it helps an interviewer understand how you deal with conflict. It also helps test how well you think on your feetâso if you prepare ahead of time with a specific example, youâll avoid the awkward moment of silence while you try to think of an example.
Once you have an example in mind, simply explain what happened, how you resolved the issue in a professional manner, and try to end the story with a happy note about how you reached a resolution or compromise with your co-worker.
What Will Your Previous Manager Or Supervisor Say When I Ask Where You Needed To Improve
A good answer goes in-depth and reflects positively on both their manager and the work they did, and lines up with other information you’ve been able to gather. This is one of the top 10 interview questions we recommend for all hiring managers. Candidates will often reveal information here they would not reveal if you asked them “What do you need to improve?”
Red flags: Candidates that speak badly of their previous manager, provide vague answers or seem unprepared for this common question.
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Tell Me Something About Yourself
How hard can it be to talk about yourself? We do it on a daily basis without much thought to it.
However, recruitment managers are not looking for your whole life story, your third-grade achievements, or what you had for dinner last night. Instead, they are looking for a pitch.
This is usually the first question asked in an interview, so it acts as your introduction. Make sure your answer is relevant to the position you are applying for. What you should be aiming for here is to present yourself as the ideal candidate for the job.
A good rule of thumb is to structure your talking points as follows:
- Briefly introduce yourself: Whats your name? How long have you been working as ?
- What do you love about your job?
- What are your top 2-3 achievements that are relevant to the job youre applying for?
Now, lets go through some examples:
Possible Answers for “Tell me About Yourself”:
- Sample Answer 1:
Hey! So, my name is John Doe and Ive worked as a business analyst for 5+ years in Company X and Company Y.
I have some background in data analysis, having studied Information Systems at University.
Throughout my career, Ive done some pretty impressive stuff .
For example, at Company X, I led a project for migrating all operations data to a new data warehousing system to cut down on costs. The new solution was a much better fit for our business, which eventually led to savings of up to $200,000 annually.
- Sample Answer 2:
How Will You Be An Asset To This Organisation
This isn’t about whether or not you’re qualified to undertake the work it’s about how you’ll fit in with the company’s culture and what added value you’ll bring beyond being a competent colleague.
A good answer involves an element of tooting your own horn. That can make some people feel uncomfortable, but remember that the other candidates will be doing it too, and who’s going to shout about your best qualities if you don’t? Think about what you do that makes you different. Are you a social butterfly who loves arranging fun things to do? A quirky thinker who brings ideas nobody else has considered? Or someone who can think fast under the most stressful situations? Now’s the time to let them know.
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Why Do You Think Youd Perform This Job Well
An answer to this question gives you insight into what the candidate has to offer and is essential for making an informed decision.
Asking why they think they would perform well as a manager in your business helps you understand their unique strengths, skills, and level of experience.
Armed with that knowledge, you can choose the best candidate that most closely matches the unique needs of your company.
The valuable thing about this question is that it often elicits a response that, while similar to the biggest management strength question, is different enough that it provides a more complete picture of the individual you are interviewing.
What Makes You Unique
They genuinely want to know the answer, Dea promises. Give them a reason to pick you over other similar candidates. The key is to keep your answer relevant to the role youre applying to. So the fact that you can run a six-minute mile or crush a trivia challenge might not help you get the job . Use this opportunity to tell them something that would give you an edge over your competition for this position. To figure out what that is, you can ask some former colleagues, think back to patterns youve seen in feedback you get, or try to distill why people tend to turn to you. Focus on one or two things and dont forget to back up whatever you say with evidence.
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Figure Out What Comes Naturally To You
Part of determining what your strengths are as an entrepreneur, is taking an inward look back into the past and figuring out what you’ve always been a natural at.
What have your friends, coaches, teachers, managers, or even your parents always told you you’re a natural at? This can fall into many different categories, so don’t get hung up on thinking of this as a strictly “on the court” or “in the classroom” type of strength. Start by asking yourself these questions:
- Did you always find yourself being the mediator between your group of friends?
- Was is always easier for you to pick up complex physics in class?
- Were you often the one making plans and figuring out the logistics of getting from point A to point B?
- Are you a naturally talented athlete?
- Do you have the ability to make others smile and laugh?
Focus on coming up with at least five things you’re a natural at, and then breaking down which soft skills of yours have helped you be such a natural. These are most likely your strongest soft skills – ones you’ve possessed since very early on in your life.
How Long Do You Think It Will Take For You To Make A Significant Contribution To This Company
This is a difficult question to answer and should be asked towards the end of the interview process. If the candidate has researched the company and the position, they should have a good idea of what they can bring to the table with their experience and skills. Based on this, they should be able to give you a well-thought-out response using deductive logic.
Red flags: The candidate suggests much too long or short a time frame or doesn’t know.
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+ Interview Questions And Answers
The time has come!
After creating a killer resume and cover letter and passing the first round, it is time to face the final challenge:
Your job interview.
And that scares even to the best of us.
Being judged and evaluated by people who have your future in their hands is more anxiety-inducing than meeting the in-laws.
Youve heard the interviewers and hiring managers say there are no right or wrong answers to calm you down before an interview.
But heres the thing:
They are almost always looking for a specific way of answering.
Which brings us to this guide. Were going to cover the most common interview questions and answers, turning you into a bona fide interview expert by the time youre done reading.
So, lets get started!
To make this guide as practical as possible, we covered just about every interview question out there.
Dont let that put you off, though. You dont have to read the whole thing end-to-end. To get the most out of the guide, wed recommend:
Most Common Interview Questions:
Behavioral Questions in an Interview:
How Do You Evaluate Success
What They Want to Know: Your answer to this question will give the interviewer a sense of your work ethic, your career goals, and your life goals. Tailor your response to fit what you expect to achieve if you were to be hired by this employer.
When I wake up each morning enthusiastic about going to work, then lock the clinic at night knowing that weve made a difference in peoples lives, I figure the day has been a success.
More Answers: Job Interview Question: How Do You Define Success?
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Tell Me About A Challenge Or Conflict Youve Faced At Work And How You Dealt With It
Youre probably not eager to talk about conflicts youve had at work during a job interview. But if youre asked directly, dont pretend youve never had one. Be honest about a difficult situation youve faced . Most people who ask are only looking for evidence that youre willing to face these kinds of issues head-on and make a sincere attempt at coming to a resolution, former recruiter Richard Moy says. Stay calm and professional as you tell the story , spend more time talking about the resolution than the conflict, and mention what youd do differently next time to show youre open to learning from tough experiences.
