Interview questions - Be prepared
Basic interview questions that you are likely to be asked
Why have you applied for this position?
Why do you believe you are suitable for this role?
What key skills or attributes would you bring to the job?
Tell me more about yourself?
Tell me about your achievements?
What is your greatest achievement?
Why should we hire you for this position?
What is your preference in terms of working alone or as part of a team? Why?
Describe your current role and specific duties?
What do you know about our company?
Why did you leave you last position?
What are your career goals?
What are your 3 main strengths / weaknesses?
Describe your ideal role?
What interests do you have and what do you enjoy about them?
What are the key challenges facing our sector / industry today?
What are your training and development needs?
How do you prioritise your workload?
What do you know about our competitors and what do you think makes us different?
What is your salary expectation?
More detailed interview questions
These will depend upon the role and the seniority of the position.
What is your management style?
How would others describe you?
What is the biggest challenge in your career to date? How did you overcome it?
How do you build valuable relationships with your clients?
Describe how you plan for success in your role?
How do you ensure that you meet your sales targets each month?
What qualities should a successful manager possess?
How do you develop your staff to reach their full potential?
Competency Based Interviews and questions
Competency based interviews and questions are increasingly being utilised in a competitive candidate market and as a technique for hiring companies to identify strong candidates.
Interviewers are looking to establish facts, evidence and a deeper understanding of your actual work experiences which may range from handling complaints on a 'low level’ to business leadership style or change management on a more 'higher’ level. Competence based interviews evolve around actual work scenarios and usually open with the interviewer requiring an example of a particular kind and then secondary questions will be asked to expand. Example competency areas are:
- Customer Focus
- Sales Orientation
- Communication
- Influence
- Resilience
- Leadership / Management
Sample competence questions:
Give me an example of working to tight time deadlines and under pressure?
Tell me about an example of your project management experience?
Describe an occasion when you have not reached your goals? How did you overcome the setback?
Give me an example of a time when you have had to handle a difficult work situation?