During the typical job interview, you’ll be peppered with many
interview questions. But do you really understand what the interviewer needs to
know?
“Most [candidates] have no idea why a recruiter asks a particular
question,” says Brad Karsh, a former recruiting professional for advertising
giant Leo Burnett and current president of career consulting firm Job Bound.
“They tend to think it’s a competition to outwit the interviewer.”
The reality is that employers have neither the time nor
inclination to play games with you, especially when hiring. Your interviewer is
not trying to outguess you — he’s trying to assess your answers to six key
questions:
Do You Have the Skills to Do the Job?
According to Karsh, the employer must first determine whether you
have the necessary hard skills for the position, e.g., the programming
knowledge for a database administration job or the writing chops to be a
newspaper reporter. “By really probing into what the candidate has done in the
past, an interviewer can tap into hard skills.”
But the interviewer is also looking for key soft skills you’ll
need to succeed in the job and organization, such as the ability to work well
on teams or “the requisite common sense to figure things out with some basic
training,” says Terese Corey Blanck, director of student development at
internship company Student Experience and a partner in College to Career, a
consulting firm.
Do You Fit?
“Every organization’s first thought is about fit and potentially
fit in a certain department,” Corey Blanck says. That means the interviewer is
trying to pinpoint not only whether you match up well with both the company’s
and department’s activities but also whether you’ll complement the talents of
your potential coworkers.
Do You Understand the Company and Its Purpose?
If the organization fits well with your career aspirations, you’ll
naturally be motivated to do good work there — and stay more than a month or
two, Corey Blanck reasons. “I don’t want someone to take the position because
it’s a job and it fits their skills,” she says. “I want them to be excited
about our mission and what we do.”
How Do You Stack Up Against the Competition?
You’re being evaluated in relation to other candidates for the
job. In other words, this test is graded on a curve. So the interviewer will
constantly be comparing your performance with that of the other candidates’.
Do You Have the Right Mind-Set for the Job and
Company?
“I’m always looking for someone who has a can-do type of
attitude,” Corey Blanck explains. “I want someone who wants to be challenged
and is internally motivated to do well.
Corey Blanck points out that an employer can’t train for this
essential trait. “But you can hire for it,” she says. “And if you don’t, you’ll
end up with a lower-performing employee.”
Do You Want the Job?
Most employers know better than to believe everyone they interview
actually wants the position being offered. They understand some candidates are
exploring their options, while others are using an interview with a company
they don’t care about to hone their interview skills.
ABOUT
IIBM INSTITUTE
IIBM Institute aims at providing more than education in this
competitive environment to its candidates, so as they can work towards
attaining and achieving higher career growth.
Established in 2008, IIBM began its mission with the sole purpose
of imparting professional education to career aspirants even in the remotest
corners of India and the world.
The institute offers a wide range of Master Certifications, Executive Programs, Dual Programs and Professional Programs. All the programs have been designed with industry-oriented and updated curriculum considering the real-world business scenarios.
The institute offers a wide range of Master Certifications, Executive Programs, Dual Programs and Professional Programs. All the programs have been designed with industry-oriented and updated curriculum considering the real-world business scenarios.
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