Professional Documents
Culture Documents
This is an oldie, and NOT a goodie. This one will come up 100% of the time, so have a minispeech ready. Do not mention parts of your personal life, as they don't care. Start off with an
introduction of yourself, talk about your education and then go into your work history. Go in
order from oldest to newest and discuss the job tasks that are relevant to the position you
are applying for.
2. Why are you seeking a new job?
This is a nice way of asking why you are leaving your old job. Be honest and brief unless you
were fired. Talk about wanting a more challenging opportunity, or wanting to try a new field.
3. What do you know about this company/organization?
You obviously need to research the company before going into the interview. Find out what
the company does and use the good ole' Who, What, Where, When and some current
events. If you drop a line about the acquisition of a new company in a merger, they'll be
pleased to know you keep up with current events in the field.
4. What experience do you have in this field pertaining to this position?
Go through your past positions and explain how it correlates to the current position. If the
position is not exactly parallel to the position you are applying for, explain how it relates in an
unexpected way. Try and plan this ahead of time, because it will be difficult to think up great
answers on the spot.
5. Why do you want to work at this company/organization?
You now know a little bit about this company, so explain why you feel passionate about the
mission of the company or the position. Try and tie in your own career goals.
6. Have you done anything to further your skills and/or experiences?
This can range widely from learning a new language through Rosetta Stone to taking an
Adobe Photoshop class. Talk about why you care about furthering your knowledge and skill
set.
7. What is your greatest strength?
There are numerous positive answers you can reply with. Don't gush off 20 different positive
qualities, stick to a few and expand on them. Try and relate it to the position. Are they looking
for a good team worker? Do they need someone who is extremely meticulous? Keep what
qualities they are looking for in mind when selecting yours. My favorite is: results-oriented.
8. What is your biggest weakness?
This one is quite tricky. The most common thing interviewees do is turn a positive into a
negative. Obviously the hr rep will see straight through that, since the 20 people before you
did the same thing. I would stay honest, but mention something minor, or something
completely unrelated to the position. If you're applying for a public relations job, you can talk
about how bad you are with math.
9. Are you a team player?
Yes, you're a team player. Never say no. Describe an experience that displays that you are a
team player.
10. If a co-worker were here, what would he/she say about you?
Think back to any compliments you were given by a co-worker. Don't say "I think he would
have said ....". Be specific. Mention the occurrence such as "Well, last year, my co-worker
Don said about me.....after I helped him complete a project".
11. Why do you think we should hire you?
Don't give a short answer here. Sound enthusiastic and give lots of reasons. Point out how
your skills and ideas will directly benefit the company. Make sure they know what you can
bring to the position.
12. Tell me about a time you made a suggestion that was implemented?
Think of a real suggestion you have made that netted positive results. Be very detailed. Don't
just say, my idea had positive results, talk about how sales went up 26% within the next three
months for example.
13. How do you cope with pressure or stress on the job?
You work great under pressure and stress.
14. Have you ever had issues with any previous employers?
This is a trick question. They are testing you to see if you'd ever speak bad about an
employer/colleague. Say "no".
Talk about a real situation and how you handled it. It's not negative as everyone has had a
professional disappointment.
23. Have you ever learned from a mistake you made on the job?
Talk about a mistake and what you learned. Be sure the mistake isn't something so dramatic
though. Be sure to emphasize the lesson learned and how your behavior has changed from
it!
24. Tell me about the most fun you've had on a job.
This is straight-forward. Describe something you had fun doing, like accomplishing a huge
project or landing a big-name client.
25. What is your dream job?
Be honest here. Especially if the job is entry-level or mid-level. They are aware that you don't
want to be an assistant for the rest of your life! However, if you're going for a very high-level
position, be wary. No company wants to hire someone who doesn't like doing what they do.
26. How would you describe your work ethic?
They are simply trying to gauge your laziness meter. Be confident and answer "it's great!"
27. Do you know anyone who works for this company?
This is tricky. If someone referred you or if it's a family member, you obviously shouldn't lie.
However, be cautious in mentioning a bunch of friends you know, in case your employer
doesn't have such a hot impression of them.
28. Are you comfortable with travel? How much?
Be honest here. You're the one that's going to have to travel. Give a percentage you're
comfortable with. Ask about gas reimbursement.
29. Would you be willing to work overtime? night & weekends?
Be honest here as well, since you'll have to work those hours.
30. Do you have any questions for me?
Yes! You must always have questions prepared! Have at least six, since some of them could
get answered along the way if you and the interviewer get caught up in conversation. Have a
mix of general and specific questions related to the position.
Author Note*
Obviously these are the 30 Most Common Interview Questions, but this varies depending
upon your field. If you're applying for a fashion designer position, they may ask you about
fashion projects, designers and fabrics. Same goes for a position in the food industry and
etc. Be sure to brush up on specialized questions as well.
degree. I then enrolled at a university to finish a business degree, then after graduating the
company offered me an even greater responsibility. That for me is one of my greatest
achievements
Give me an example of a time when you motivated others
The recent financial crisis led many companies to downsize; it affected almost every
industry including ours. Many of my co-workers back then were looking for other jobs
because they were afraid that they might get laid off. Recognizing the problem, I started
talking with my team and told them that we cannot abandon the company, if we do our job
well the management will notice and well be too valuable to let go of. So we stuck with the
company and started multi-tasking since a lot of jobs were left vacant. The company made it
through the crisis and we all got a reward for doing a good job.
Those are 3 examples of behavioral interview questions and answers that you can model
from. Do not copy those answers especially if it does not apply to you. Recruiters are really
good when it comes to spotting dishonesty.
And if youve been reading closely, you should've noticed that the answers start with a
situation, followed by an action, then an outcome. Go over the answers again and check.
That is how you answer these type of questions. Situation, action, then outcome. There are
loads of other behavioral interview questions and answers out there but the most important
thing is that you answer them with honesty and practice delivering them in an effective way.
The CEO decided it was time for a change. The Vice President of Human Resources
hired a consulting company to shake the organization up. I was asked to be part of
the change management team with about 60 other people from across the
organization. We were all invited to corporate headquarters for two weeks of
training. At first I was nervous because I am very introverted and I was worried
about getting to know all those new people.
Behaviors:
However, I told myself that we were all in the same position and I decided to make
the most of the opportunity. Once there, I took it upon myself to get to know several
members of the team on a one-on-one basis. I invited one for coffee, another for
dinner, asked another to go for a walk, etc., etc. until I felt comfortable with them.
This helped me participate in group sessions and gave me the confidence I needed to
start implementing the change processes when I returned to my country. The first
thing I did when I got back to the office was to debrief the senior management team,
present a plan and a budget for going forward and ask for approval to put the plan in
place.
Then I prepared a deck and organized a series of briefings. Next, I asked for
volunteers to be part of a change management team that would spread out across
the country to develop a critical mass for change.
Outcome:
By working together and sharing our knowledge and experiences we were eventually
able to create a buzz around change. It was a slow process, but after several months
we started to see some changes in the organization. We are not there yet, but sales
are beginning to pick up.
Competencies Used:
Change Leadership, Decision making, Teamwork/Team Leadership, Communication,
Initiative, Adaptability, Self-confidence
ANOTHER QUESTION:
Tell me about a time when you had to change your presentation at the last minute to
suit the audience
Situation and Timeframe:
Three months ago I was asked to make a presentation on a new piece of software we
were introducing to the Human Resources Branch. I was pretty nervous because I
had never made a presentation in front of more than three or four people before and
then it was always in front of y team members.
At first didnt think much about the audience because I was focusing on developing
my slides and on what I would say. Then on the morning of the presentation it
occurred to me that perhaps the HR team wouldnt understand some of the jargon I
was using.
Behaviors:
There wasnt much time so I called a friend in the HR department and asked her if I
could go and see her. I asked her to look at my presentation and tell me if she could
follow it. She had difficulty understanding some of the technical terms and she
thought her colleagues would have the same problem. So, I went to see my team
leader and asked her if she would help me explain things in plain language.
We worked on it together for over an hour then it was time for me to deliver it. I
spoke confidently using the right language for my audience.
Outcome:
The HR team understood everything I said and gave me a great round of applause at
the end. I felt really good about this and volunteered to make the same presentation
to other branches in the organization.
Competencies Used:
Change Leadership, Communication, Client Focus, Teamwork, Initiative
A FINAL QUESTION:
Tell me about a time when you were working on a favourite project and your
manager told you the project was cancelled and that she needed you to start
working on something else right away.
Situation and Timeframe:
Two years ago, I was working on a project to develop some new tools to help
implement my company's competency profiles. I had been contacted by someone
from HR who wanted me to help them develop some self-assessment tools for
employees and an interview guide for hiring managers.
My contact in HR had some good ideas about what he wanted but did not have the
technical skills to do it. We had been working together for about six weeks and were
in the middle of development when my manager told me that a new priority was to
take precedence over this one.
Behaviors:
I told my manager I could do both, but she said that was not possible and suggested
I contact HR right way to let them know. I was very disappointed and I knew they
would be too, but I accepted my managers explanation without complaining.
That night, however, I had an idea. I knew that we were getting two new Co-op
students in the coming weeks, so the next morning I suggested to my manager that
if one of the Co-op students could work on the HR project, I could oversee it without
compromising my own work on the new priority.
My manager agreed with the understanding that if I got behind with my own work, I
would have to give up the HR project altogether. I agreed to that. The Co-op student
was excellent and with very little supervision from me he completed the project in
record time.
Outcome:
HR was very happy with the new tools, my manager was pleased because we had a
happy client, the Co-op student was pleased because he had had the opportunity to
use his developers skills and I was happy because my pet project was up and
running for everyone to see.
Competencies Used:
Client Focus, Innovation, Flexibility/Adaptability, Teamwork, Initiative