Interview prep 101: The ultimate guide to acing your interview

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Congratulations on securing a job interview! To help you prepare for your interview, alongside your On Target Recruitment consultant being available for assistance, we've put together a list of tips to help you ace your interview.

Before the interview:

• Check your route - is there anything that may cause disruption to your journey?
• Thoroughly review the job specification.
• Check that you know where to go on arrival and who you need to ask for
• Make sure you have your On Target Recruitment consultant's phone number handy in case anything happens that is out of control - the earlier we know about this, the more likely we'll be able to help you.

Upon arrival:

• First impressions count, with anyone that you may have an interaction with. Remember to be polite to everyone that you encounter.
• You may have to walk to the interview room – someone else may take you to the room, be prepared to talk whilst you walk, build a rapport.
• Talk about the building, the products, the founder etc.
• Have any documents to hand and your questions ready. Use a folder for any documentation.

During the interview

• Make sure you listen to the questions asked. Don’t answer the question you want to answer – answer the one you have been asked.
• Think about your body language, try not to slouch and think about what to do with your hands.
• Don’t interrupt. If you think of something important, make a note and come back to it.
• If you believe you would be perfect for the job, tell them exactly why. What makes you stand out to other candidates?

Remember people buy people. This is an interview, but they'll also be calculating if you will fit into their existing team, whether your future success will help them and how well you can work together.

Competency-based interviewing – the ‘STAR’ Method

Competency-based interviewing is a popular interview style that many of our clients will use. It requires you to draw on past experiences and describe specific examples of incidents that demonstrate your competence in particular areas. The theory behind this is that past work behaviour is a good predictor of future job performance.

The key thing to remember is that when an interviewer asks you a competency-based question, they want you to actually talk about how you have handled a real situation in the past. Interviewers will probe your answers to gain further understanding of how you behaved, so it is important to use real-life situations about which you will be able to talk in detail.

An easy way to think about answering a competency question is the ‘STAR’ method… so for each question you are asked, think of:

 

 

The 'STAR' Method is a universally recognised communication technique designed to enable you to provide a meaningful and complete answer to questions asking for examples. At the same time, it has the advantage of being simple enough to be applied easily.

Many interviewers will have been trained in using the STAR structure. Even if they have not, they will recognise its value when they see it. The information will be given to them in a structured manner and, as a result, they will become more receptive to the messages you are trying to communicate.

Step 1: Situation

Describe the situation that you were confronted with. With the STAR approach you need to set the context. Make it concise and informative, concentrating solely on what is useful to the story. For example, if the question is asking you to describe a situation where you had to deal with a difficult person, explain how you came to meet that person and why they were being difficult.

Step 2: Task

Describe your exact role or responsibility in the situation. Make sure that the hiring manager knows what you were specifically assigned to do, rather than what everyone did. For example, if the question is asking for an example of teamwork, explain the task that you had to undertake as a team.

Step 3: Actions

This is the most important section of the STAR approach as it is where you will need to demonstrate and highlight the skills and personal attributes that the question is testing. Now that you have set the context of your story, you need to explain what you did. In doing so, you will need to remember the following:

• Be personal, i.e. talk about yourself, not the rest of the team.
• Go into some detail. Don't assume that they will guess what you mean.
• Steer clear of technical information unless it is crucial to your story.
• Explain what you did, how you did it and why you did it.

What you're trying to communicate is your assessment of the situation and your response to the problem as well as how you got the team involved. Share as many details as possible so the interviewer can follow you. As you do so, avoid acronyms and company-specific jargon.

Step 4: Results

Close the story by stating the positive outcome of your actions and what lessons you learned. Interviewers want to know that you are using a variety of generic skills in order to achieve your objectives. Therefore, you must be able to demonstrate in your answer that you are taking specific actions because you are trying to achieve a specific objective and not simply by chance.

If possible, quantify the results and show the effects of your actions. Examples may include a 10% increase in sales, getting repeat business or saving your team five hours of work in a week.

It's a good idea before any interview to practice answering some competency-based questions. Use the examples below to help you prepare for your interview. 

Communication competency-based questions:

1. Tell me about a time when you had to present complex information.
2. When have you had to present to a group of people with little or no preparation? What obstacles did you face? How did you handle them?

Customer orientated competency-based questions:

1. When have you had to deal with a difficult customer?
2. Give an example of a time that you went out of your way to ensure a customer received the best possible service from you and the organisation.

Motivation and leadership competency-based questions:

1. Tell me about a time when you have influenced the outcome of a project by taking a leadership role.
2. Give me an example of when you involved others in making a decision.

Organisation and prioritisation competency-based questions:

1. Describe a situation when you had many projects due at the same time. What steps did you take to ensure successful delivery on time?
2. Give me an example of a time when you have worked on multiple projects to a tight deadline with all tasks assuming the same level of priority. How did you manage your workload?

Process improvements competency-based questions:

1. Tell me about a new process you have implemented.
2. Tell me about a situation where you have had to work outside process to complete a task. Explain why this happened and how you managed the situation?

Ownership / Accountability competency-based questions:

1. Tell me about a time when you failed to meet a deadline. What did you do which caused you to fail and what were the repercussions?
2. Tell me about a recent project of which you had sole ownership and what the end result was.

Self-development competency-based questions:

1. Give an example of an important career goal which you set yourself and tell me how you reached it.
2. Tell me about a professional goal that you set that you did not reach. How did it make you feel?

Change and adaptability competency-based questions:

1. Describe a time where you were faced with problems and stresses that tested your coping skills.
2. Tell me about a situation in which you have had to adjust to changes over which you had no control. How did you handle it?

Aside from being prepared to answer competency-based questions, you should also be prepared to answer 'classic' style interview questions. Use the examples below to help you prepare.

Other questions you should be prepared to answer if you were asked:

1. What skills/attributes do you think are required for this role?
2. What can you contribute?
3. What do you know about us?
4. How long will it be before you can effectively contribute to the team?
5. What would your colleagues say about you?
6. What concerns you about the role?
7. What’s the biggest mistake you’ve made?
8. What would your current manager say about you?
9. What motivates you?
10. How would you drive change through an organisation?
11. How do you handle conflict?
12. What management style do you prefer?

At the end of your interview, there will be an opportunity for you to ask your interviewer some questions. This is your opportunity to find out more about the company, the team you could be joining and iron out any concerns. 

Questions you could ask your interviewer:

1. What is the culture of the organisation?
2. Please can you tell me about the team?
3. What do you enjoy about working for the organisation?
4. How long is the project likely to run for and may it extend?
5. What do you see the priorities for this job in the first three months?
6. How do you think the company might grow over the next five years?
7. What type of training opportunities do you offer?
8. How does my role fit with the overall vision of the organisation?
9. How will you measure my performance?
10. Do you have any doubts about my ability to do this job?
11. When will I hear about the outcome of this interview?

Final preparation checklist:

1. Have you researched the company?
2. Are you familiar with the company’s achievements, successes etc?
3. Have you checked your route and planned for delays?
4. Have you got extra copies of your CV on standby?
5. Have you got your On Target Recruitment consultants contact number in case of any last-minute delays or questions?
6. Have you got some questions ready to ask the interviewer?
7. Have you prepared for the interview questions ‘classics’ – ie. Can you easily list your strengths, weaknesses and achievements?
8. If you are applying for a permanent role: can you speak clearly about why you have left/want to leave your current employer?
9. Do you know what your ‘bottom line’ salary is?

Good luck! Remember, your On Target Recruitment consultant is on hand to answer any questions you may have, or further assist you with your preparation. You can speak to one of our friendly consultants today on 020 8397 4114.

 

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