Some keywords to remember:
Radiate enthusiasm
Link your qualifications and experience to the requirements of the prospective job. Make it clear why you are the right person for the job.
Never badmouth your current boss.
Emphasize your ability to work with others.
Keep your answers job-related and provide examples that illustrate how you’ve grown at work in measurable ways.
Talk about your accomplishments modestly and discuss your career dispassionately and objectively.
If they ask you an inappropriate question, put it aside with a polite answer.
Ask final questions, and when the interview is over, repeat the eye contact, smile, and handshake.
The correct answers are included under each question.
1. Why do you want to leave your current job?
I was originally interested in a position very similar to this one, but didn’t know when an ideal job would be available, so I started working at another smaller company that had many of the opportunities I was looking for. I have spent the last two years catching up in the industry and now I feel confident that I have the skills and experience to work for you.
2. This job involves some foreign travel and experience. So tell me, how did you come to speak Mandarin?
I have always been interested in China. I see it as one of the most important markets in the emerging global economy. So in college, I got a major in Chinese studies and was an exchange student for a year in Taipei.
3. Describe a difficult problem that you have had to deal with.
One Friday night I had to get a package out by air courier and our printer froze in the office. He didn’t know how he was going to do it. But two of my colleagues in another department found out about my situation and offered to take the files to a quick copy location for printing. He had helped them out of a similar predicament the month before and they wanted to return the favor.
4. What is your typical workday like?
I have several goals that I try to achieve every day. One is to clean my inbox. The second is to return all my phone calls from the day before. The third is to advance at least two of the five projects we have pending, even if it is just a meeting to decide our next step. And when I’m ready to go for the night, I make sure to answer two more emails and make one last call before I’m done.
5. What kinds of decisions are the most difficult for you?
It is difficult for me to decide how to divide my workday to give all my projects equal attention. But I signed up for a time management program offered by our company and it helped me organize my day.
6. Tell me about yourself.
I am flexible and goal oriented, traits that were instilled in me from a young age. These qualities have helped me succeed in difficult circumstances, especially after my father died while I was in college and I had to work to support myself and my younger siblings.
7. Do you prefer to work alone or with others?
In my previous jobs, I have always had to consult with a coworker to some degree, and I have really enjoyed sharing tasks with others and combining our efforts.
8. What do you consider your greatest achievement?
When an employee he supervised had personal problems that affected his work, he helped him find help to solve the problem and improved his job performance.
9. Would you be willing to move?
Yes, my husband and I have already discussed that possibility and we agree that we are willing to move, as long as we can find decent priced housing and good schools in the new locations.
10. Why did you get fired from your last job?
My department was downsized and I was short-lived.
11. What is your favorite, of all the jobs you have had?
Two years ago, I spent a year designing an interactive video game for an East Coast company. I teamed up with other creative guys, marketing managers, accountants, and lawyers, absorbing all aspects of the business. I have since developed those skills, so I believe that my combination of experience and talent will work well with your company.
12. Why do you want to work here?
In my last job, I spent two years developing my experience as a telecommunications engineer with applications in Latin America. I have read a lot about your company and I know this field in which it is expanding. I believe that my combination of skills and experience would fit in with your overall growth plans and I would like to be a part of your future.
13. How have you developed in your current job?
When I researched our company’s employee training and development programs, I discovered that I could receive an 80% refund for college classes. So in the last three years, I got an MBA, went to school at night, and took internet classes.
14. How do you feel about the progress you are making in your current job?
I got a promotion since I joined two years ago, which challenged my skills for about a year, but I feel like it’s time to move on. I’m not learning anymore, and I feel like my personality and skill mix would be much better suited to a large, industry-leading company like yours.
15. Why aren’t you married?
I have not found the right person.
16. What traits do you think you can improve?
I have been a workaholic for several years, since my marriage broke up. I realize that’s not healthy, but it’s just a pattern that I slipped into with all that extra time on my hands. However, I recently joined a softball team and am taking a marketing class one night a week. I think I am on my way to a more balanced life.
17. What are some of the things that motivate you?
I am motivated by the challenge of a new assignment, the awareness that I will be driven along with a team of like-minded people who will bring different talents to the task, and the opportunity to contribute what I know and learn new skills along the way. out of the way as we assemble the best new product on the market.
18. What do you think of overtime?
The most important thing to me is making sure the job is done correctly. If that means working overtime, and I know it is unavoidable in most jobs, I am willing to work some nights or weekends.
19. What kinds of people do you like to work with?
I am an administrator, and for that I always get paid, but I can, I like working with members of our creative team, because I find that I always learn something from artists. Your input broadens my knowledge and I find myself thinking in ways I have never considered before, which helps me in my work in general.
20. Do you have any more questions?
Yes indeed, can you tell me more about your employee training and development opportunities? Also, I would like to know what else I can do to prepare for this position while I await your response. Are there any books or articles that I should look at?