Question
1. Please tell me something about
yourself.
Answer: Your answer should start with a
smile on the face; it must be very short
and Since this is often the opening
question in an interview, be extra
careful. Keep your answer to a minute or
two at most. Don't show any weakness or
bad habits like smoking, drinking and
careless behavior. Cover four topics:
early years, education, work history,
and recent job experience.
Question 2. Why Should we hire you?
Answer: Tell them about your strengths
in terms of your educational history,
ability, past work experience, and your
energy.
Question
3. What do you know about our company?
Answer: Before going to interview you
must have collected sufficient
information about the company. You must
discuss about products or services of
the company, its philosophy, share
value, last dividend payments, total
revenues, reputation, image, strengths,
goals, problems, management style,
people and history. Don't show that you
are over clever. Don't discuss weakness
of the company.
Question
4. Why you want to work in our company?
Answer: You can say that your research
has shown that the company is doing
things you would like to be involved
with, and that it's doing them in ways
that greatly interest you. For example,
if the organization is known for strong
management, your answer should mention
that fact and show that you would like
to be a part of that team. If the
company places a great deal of emphasis
on research and development, emphasize
the fact that you want to create new
things and that you know this is a place
in which such activity is encouraged. If
the organization stresses financial
controls, your answer should mention a
reverence for numbers.
Question
5. What can you do for us that someone
else cannot?
Answer: Here you have every right, and
perhaps an obligation, to toot your own
horn and be a bit egotistical. Talk
about your record of getting things
done, and mention specifics from your
resume or list of career
accomplishments. Say that your skills
and interests, combined with this
history of getting results, make you
valuable. Mention your ability to set
priorities, identify problems, and use
your experience and energy to solve
them.
Question
6.
What do you find most attractive about
this position? What seems least
attractive about it?
Answer: tell them three or four attractive
factors of the job, and mention a
single, minor, unattractive item.
Question
7.
What do you look for in this job?
Answer: Just talk
about your desire to perform and be
recognized for your contributions. Make
your answer oriented toward opportunity
rather than personal security.
Question
8. Why
did you leave your last job?
Answer: Stay
positive regardless of the
circumstances. Never refer to a major
problem with management and never speak
ill of supervisors, co-workers or the
organization. If you do, you will be the
one looking bad. Keep smiling and talk
about leaving for a positive reason such
as an opportunity, a chance to do
something special or other
forward-looking reasons.
Question
9.
What do co-workers say about you? Answer:
Be prepared with a quote
or two from co-workers. Either a
specific statement or a paraphrase will
work. Jill Clark, a co-worker at Smith
Company, always said I was the hardest
workers she had ever known. It is as
powerful as Jill having said it at the
interview herself.
Question
10.
Are
you applying for other jobs as well? Answer:
Be honest but do not spend a lot of time
in this area. Keep the focus on this job
and what you can do for this
organization. Anything else is a
distraction.
Question
11.
Are you a
team player? Answer:
You are, of course, a
team player. Be sure to have examples
ready Specifics that show you often
perform for the good of the team rather
than for yourself are good evidence of
your team attitude. Do not brag, just
say it in a matter-of-fact tone. This is
a key point.
Question
12. Have you ever been
asked to leave a position? Answer:
If
you have not, say no. If you have, be
honest, brief and avoid saying negative
things about the people or organization
involved.
Question
13. What is your greatest
strength? Answer:
Numerous answers are good, just stay
positive. A few good examples: Your
ability to prioritize, Your
problem-solving skills, Your ability to
work under pressure, Your ability to
focus on projects, Your professional
expertise, Your leadership skills, Your
positive attitude
Question 14.
Tell me about your ability to work under
pressure. Answer:
You may say that you
thrive under certain types of pressure.
Give an example that relates to the type
of position applied for.
Question
15. Please give me your
definition of the position for which you
are being interviewed.
Answer:
Keep your answer brief and work oriented.
Think in in terms of responsibilities
and accountability. Make sure that you
really do understand what the position
involves before you attempt an answer.
If you are not certain. ask the
interviewer; he or she may answer the
question for you.
Question 16. How long would it take you to make a
meaningful contribution to our firm?
Answer:
Be realistic. Say that, while you would
expect to meet pressing demands and pull
your own weight from the first day, it
might take six months to a year before
you could expect to know the
organization and its needs well enough
to make a major contribution.
Question 17. How long would you stay with us?
Answer: You should say that you want to
work for life here in this prestigious
organization.
Say that you are interested in a career
with the organization, but admit that
you would have to continue to feel
challenged to remain with any
organization. Think in terms of, "As
long as we both feel
achievement-oriented."
Question18. Your resume suggests that you may be
over-qualified or too experienced for
this position. What's Your opinion?
Answer:
Emphasize your interest in establishing
a long-term association with the
organization, and say that you assume
that if you perform well in his job, new
opportunities will open up for you.
Mention that a strong company needs a
strong staff. Observe that experienced
executives are always at a premium.
Suggest that since you are so
well qualified, the employer will get a
fast return on his investment. Say that
a growing, energetic company can never
have too much talent.
Question 19. What is your management style?
Answer:
You should know enough about the
company's style to know that your
management style will complement it.
Possible styles include: task oriented
(I'll enjoy problem-solving identifying
what's wrong, choosing a solution and
implementing it"), results-oriented
("Every management decision I make is
determined by how it will affect the
bottom line"), or even paternalistic
("I'm committed to taking care of my
subordinates and pointing them in the
right direction").
A participative style is currently quite
popular: an open-door method of managing
in which you get things done by
motivating people and delegating
responsibility.
As you consider this question, think
about whether your style will let you
work hatppily and effectively within the
organization.
Question
20. Do you feel that you
have top managerial capabilities or potential?
Answer:
Keep your answer achievement and
ask-oriented. Rely on examples from your
career to buttress your argument. Stress
your experience and your energy.
Question 21. What do you look for when You hire
people?
Answer:
Think in terms of skills. initiative,
and the adaptability to be able to work
comfortably and effectively with others.
Mention that you like to hire people who
appear capable of moving up in the
organization.
Question
22. Have you ever fired
staff members?
What were the reasons, and how did you
handle the situation?
Answer:
Admit that the situation was not easy,
but say that it worked out well, both
for the company and, you think, for the
individual. Show that, like anyone else,
you don't enjoy unpleasant tasks but
that you can resolve them efficiently
and -in the case of firing someone-
humanely.
Question
23. What do you think is the most
difficult thing about being a manager or
executive?
Answer:
Mention planning, execution, and
cost-control. The most difficult task is
to motivate and manage employess to get
something planned and completed on time
and within the budget.
Question
24. What important trends do you see in
our industry?
Answer:
Be prepared with two or three trends
that illustrate how well you understand
your industry. You might consider
technological challenges or
opportunities, economic conditions, or
even regulatory demands as you collect
your thoughts about the direction in
which your business is heading.
Question
25. Why are you leaving
your present job?
Be brief, to the point, and as honest as
you can without hurting yourself. Refer
back to the planning phase of your job
search. where you considered this topic
as you set your reference statements. If
you were laid off in an across-the-board
cutback, say so; otherwise, indicate
that the move was your decision, the
result of your action. Do not mention
personality conflicts.
The interviewer may spend some time
probing you on this issue, particularly
if it is clear that you were terminated.
The "We agreed to disagree" approach may
be useful. Remember hat your references
are likely to be checked, so don't
concoct a story for an interview.
Question
26. How do you feel about leaving all
your benefits to find a new job?
Answer:
Mention that you are concerned,
naturally, but not panicked. You are
willing to accept some risk to find the
right job for yourself. Don't suggest
that security might interest you more
than getting the job done successfully.
Question 27. In your current position,
what features do you like the
most? The least?
Answer:
Be careful and be positive. Describe
more features that you liked than
disliked. Don't cite personality
problems. If you make your last job
sound terrible, an interviewer may
wonder why you remained there until now.
Question 28. What do you think of your boss?
Answer: Don't say that my boss is bad.
Be as positive as you can. A potential
boss is likely to wonder if you might
talk about him in similar terms at some
point in the future.
Question 29. Why aren't you earning more at your
age?
Answer:
Say that this is one reason that you are
conducting this job search. Don't be
defensive.
Question
30. What
should be your salary if we hire you?
Answer: you can say, "You know that I'm making
Rs.35000 now. Like everyone else, I'd
like to improve on that figure, but my
major interest is with the job itself."
Remember that the act of taking a new
job does not, in and of itself, make you
worth more money.
Question
31.
Where you see yourself after ten years? What are your long-range goals?
Answer Say that I want to be the General
Manager marketing or Head of Human
Resource etc.
Question
32. How successful do you you've been so
far?
Answer:Say that, all-in-all, you're
happy with the way your career has
progressed so far. Given the normal ups
and downs of life, you feel that you've
done quite well and have no complaints.