Twelve questions you should expect to be asked
1. What do you know about our company?
You need to be able to succinctly describe the nature of company to which you’re applying, and the business in which it operates. You should be familiar with key facts and figures including when it was established, number of employees, annual turnover and perhaps profitability, growth rate. NB Senior roles require a more informed answer – see advanced interviewing.
2. Questions about your CV
Consider the hiring requirement from the employer’s perspective and what is written in their job spec (if you have a copy). Then examine your CV and think about the questions you may be asked about things about it.
3. What do you like about your current job?
Talk about things you like, which are transferable to your new employer and ideally those which will be of most value to the employer.
4. What don’t you like about your current job?
Don’t bad mouth your current or previous employer/s. And think twice about expressing the frustrations you experience at your current company – you may face similar ones in your new job.
5. What is your current situation?
If you have been made redundant don’t project any negative feelings. It’s best to show that you’ve accepted the situation as fate and put a positive spin on it. Say you see this is an opportunity to move on, and that you are really quite keen on this particular opening.
6. What kind of opportunity are you looking for now?
Angle your answer so it relates to the kind of opportunity that you’re interviewing for.
7. What attracts you to this position with us?
Think of your value to the employer – a good answer might be: “from what I can understand, this position makes particularly good use of my skills and experience, and offers me a challenging position in which to grow my career”.
8. What would you bring to the role?
Often candidates ignore this question and talk about what a company can do for them, not what they can bring to the company. Failing to answer the question which was asked is a common interview mistake!
Talk about all the relevant qualifications, experience and skills you possess – which are relevant to the demands of the job.
These must be substantiated with specifics information: financial facts like profit, sales, budget and growth. Other facts such as how long you have had the job or the number of reports that you have managed and your technical capabilities or regulatory qualifications.
Choosing facts and figures which show you in the best light will make you appear more convincing. A lack of facts and figures makes you appear unconvincing.
9. How will this position fit in with your longer term career goals?
Your focus must always be on the job for which you are being interviewed there and then. It’s a common mistake to start talking about a future job rather than the job in hand.
10. Who else have you applied to?
You may be asked: "Who else have you applied to or what kind of other positions you have applied for. Make a judgement call and give the answer you think is going to put you in the best possible light. Say you’ve applied for very similar positions and possibly that one is at a quite an advanced stage.
11. What are your strengths and weaknesses?
A word of warning many – sometimes this questions is phrased in a different way, such as: “How would your colleagues describe you”?
This can be a tricky question. Emphasise your strengths and align them with the job you’re being interviewed for.
Think of a past weakness, that you either identified yourself or that has been pointed out to you. Tell them how you overcame that particular weakness and explain that because of your corrective action it is now either no longer a weakness or it is less of a weakness.
12. Why should we choose you?
An important question to prepare for!
- Tell them that you want the job.
- Tell them that in your view, you have the necessary skills and experience to do the job. It is important to illustrate this with facts and figures, and emphasise your skills which are relevant to them.
- Tell them that from everything you have seen and heard, you think you would fit in well and make a positive contribution to the business.
