JOB INTERVIEW TIPS - 10 NEW Job Interview Questions For You To Prepare For
Posted 27th November 2020 • Written by People First • • • • • • •
Job Seekers! Those dastardly folk at Linkedin have a new post about Interview Questions. Helpful you might think. The problem job seekers is that it’s a list of 10 NEW questions for Hiring Managers to ask to try and get you to think on your feet. You’d better get preparing because you can be sure some managers will read it and start using the questions…
Here they are:
1.Describe yourself in one word
Linkedin’s tip for interviewers:
Craig Myers, director of talent acquisition at Cadence Design Systems sayd. “There is no right answer to this question,” Craig explains. “We just want to see how people think on their feet and outside their comfort zone."
For a challenging follow-up question, consider asking them to name one negative adjective that describes them. It’s easy to boast of positive traits, but if your candidate can admit a flaw, it shows that they’re self-aware and always looking to improve.
People First Recruitment’s tip for interviewees:
This might be a fresh, new question, but don’t give a tired, old answer, like “Perfect”.
It’s quite a similar question to this https://www.people-first.co.uk/news-article?title=Job+Interview+Tips-How+Would+Your+Boss+or+Colleagues+Describe+You%3F&id=202, so you could adapt the answer you have prepared for this question and choose one of those positive words, something that was used to describe you in an appraisal / performance review, etc.
This article, https://www.cnbc.com/2018/04/09/what-to-say-when-an-interviewer-says-describe-yourself-in-3-words.html is about choosing three words but the ideas work for this question too:
- Describe how your mind works-words like “conceptual,” “creative,” “curious,” “analytical” or “methodical” describe your thought process.
- Reveal your character-a way to impress a hiring manager is to make sure that your word explains your personality, words like “resilient,” “kind” and “honest” are all good examples of this.
- Say something interesting about yourself-positive terms like “optimistic,” “responsible”, “calm and ”decisive,” are all great for describing yourself.
But, whichever word you choose, be prepared to elaborate. They might ask for one word, but will then ask “Why?”
2.Tell me about an interesting experience or encounter you’ve had recently.
Linkedin’s tip for interviewers:
The best recruits come equipped with insatiable curiosity and a creative edge — two key traits that make an employee ready to contribute to a company looking to stand out in an ever-changing, competitive consumer landscape. As Nancy Brown, CEO of The American Heart Association, wrote for Fortune, “Creative thinking serves as a catalyst; it inspires us to engage in conversation and analysis, and to assess all that might be possible.”
You’ll also get a sense of their perspective and person: what they like, dislike, and value.
People First Recruitment’s tip for interviewees:
This could be from your personal life or from your work. Either way, if they want to see what you “like, dislike, and value”, make sure it’s a positive story about you, and shows that your values match the company’s values.
If the main thing on your mind is the nightmare start to the day you’ve had, or an argument with your boss/partner, etc, that might be “interesting” but it probably won’t show you in the best light. Think of something else! It could still be something personal but related to your hobbies that show what you achieved or learned from an incident; or job related from an incident or project at work.
If you can show how you learned/developed from the experience, then you’re going in the right direction.
3. What is your biggest pet peeve?
Linkedin’s tip for interviewers:
While no one wants to stump candidates just for the fun of it, you do want to get to know the real them — and that means both the good and the bad. No one’s perfect: we all have things that push our buttons.
Workplace expert and author Lynn Taylor says: “[We] want to learn: How do you handle minor frustrations? Are you easily rattled?”
Ultimately, you’re getting towards a solid understanding of what it will be like to work with the candidate on a daily basis.
People First Recruitment’s tip for interviewees:
Be careful!
Whatever you say, don’t make it about your job, your boss, your colleagues, etc.
You don’t want them to think you’re going to complain about them if you get the job.
And don’t see it as an opportunity to go on a 30 minute rant about your pet hate outside work either.
If possible, keep it lighthearted.
4.How do you define success?
Linkedin’s tip for interviewers:
This one can be tough for candidates. It probes into their personal vision, while also assessing questions of what candidates can add to your company's culture.
The best candidates might already have a well-defined sense of purpose — and can point out how it resonates with your company's values. While there is no real “correct” answer to a question like this, it does tell you a few things, like whether they’re more motivated by personal gain or collective causes, and whether their perspective aligns with the team they’d be working with.
People First Recruitment’s tip for interviewees:
The answer is in what Linkedin say:
“The best candidates might already have a well-defined sense of purpose — and can point out how it resonates with your company's values.”
And
Like so many interview questions “While there is no real “correct” answer to a question like this, it does tell you a few things, like whether they’re more motivated by personal gain or collective causes, and whether their perspective aligns with the team they’d be working with.”
Your answer will depend on the kind of job you are interviewing for and the kind of company it is with. As with answering any interview question, do your research into the company and the job. Know what kind of person they want (read the job spec) to do both that job and also to fit into the team and company as a whole.
Will you be working alone (your answer can be about you) or in a team (your answer will focus on success for you and others)?
Are you in sales (financial success for you, the team and the company) or admin (success will be measured in efficiency and saving in time and money)?
5. Do you consider yourself lucky?
Linkedin’s tip for interviewers:
Look for candidates who combine a sense of optimism and gratitude for those people and opportunities that have helped them, while still hitting on those skills that have ultimately allowed them to achieve their successes. Those that have trouble attributing their accomplishments to anyone besides themselves or focus more on missed chances might raise a red flag.
People First Recruitment’s tip for interviewees:
Linkedin’s tip again gives you a clue what to say.
Your answer needs to find a balance between you taking all the credit for your achievements and you attributing it to what you have learned from others.
Unless you’re going for a job that is 100% sales and all about you, “those that have trouble attributing their accomplishments to anyone besides themselves … might raise a red flag.”
6. Tell me about a time you disagreed with a manager’s instructions or point of view in the workplace. What did you do?
Linkedin’s tip for interviewers:
Their answer will uncover the candidate’s sense of professionalism and humility, along with their judgment and instincts. How a candidate goes about handling a disagreement with a fellow employee or manager speaks volumes about their character, and whether they’re actually ready to be a positive team player or not.
The best candidates will also have a natural understanding of when to take direction and when to ask questions, and will be able to tell you a story of a time when they felt the need to go against the grain and take a risk.
People First Recruitment’s tip for interviewees:
Definitely do not use this as a chance to rant about how bad your boss is!
Also, this is a little similar to question 8, and is a lot to do with how you adapted, your ability to work with others (in a team) and what you learned from the situation.
Preparation is key with all job interviews and their questions, so spend time thinking of situations you have faced at work, what the problem was, why you disagreed with your boss, what action you took (did you compromise or did you dig your heels in) and what did you take from the experience?
Depending on the job and its seniority, be careful about how you describe the level of disagreement. For most jobs it won’t be beneficial to you to describe how you disobeyed instructions. But for managerial roles the hirer might be looking for someone who can stand up for themselves and “go against the grain and take a risk.”
7. How will you tackle this specific project expected of the role?
Linkedin’s tip for interviewers:
Instead of having your interviewee tell their whole life story, this prompt forces them to focus on one key selling point of their resume — which will likely require them to think a bit more before answering.
To really get them thinking, ask the candidate how they would go about tackling a project expected of them in the position they’re applying for. “Have them highlight key components, including goals, who they’ll consult with (by title), what data they’ll analyze, how they’ll communicate with their team, the metrics for assessing their plan’s success, etc.,” suggests Dr. John Sullivan, professor of management at San Francisco State University.
People First Recruitment’s tip for interviewees:
This question is unlikely to pop up in most interviews, it’s likely to be reserved for specific types of jobs with very specific aims as the answer may require a lot of detail.
That detail will come from your previous work experience. And pre-interview preparation.
It will call on you to be able to take examples and lessons from your career so far and, together with research you have done into the company and the job, apply them to the particular requirements of the role you are interviewing for.
8. When have you failed? What did you learn from this experience?
Linkedin’s tip for interviewers:
Getting back up, brushing the dirt off our shoulders, and pushing forward is critical in both our personal lives and careers, especially when we’re faced with an unforeseen obstacle. Even if they pause at first, see if your candidate can share a harrowing tale and how they’ve ultimately used the experience as a teachable moment. If they can’t talk about failure, you may have a case of an inflated ego on your hands, which is anything but a productive addition to your team.
People First Recruitment’s tip for interviewees:
This one isn’t as original as Linkedin think. So, you’ll have prepared for it anyway.
And you can also use your preparation for your answer to question 6 to help.
First, don’t try and pretend you haven’t failed at work (they’ll have heard that answer before). And as Linkedin say it may also make you appear too arrogant to fit the role/team/company.
Be honest.
But, most importantly, make the focus of your answer what you learned and how, since that failure, you have used that knowledge to succeed.
9. What two or three trends in our industry might disrupt our work, and how should we go about meeting these changes?
Linkedin’s tip for interviewers:
Change can be intimidating. But your best candidates won’t think so.
Instead, they’ll be revved up in the face of a challenge, utilizing their comprehensive knowledge of their industry, foresight, and creativity to brainstorm ways to approach shifts in the industry landscape that will benefit the company and put you at the leading edge.
People First Recruitment’s tip for interviewees:
You will succeed or fail with your answer depending on your pre-interview preparation.
If you don’t research the company and the challenges it and its industry face, then you will struggle to answer this question.
Your answer will not only show how much you have researched them, but also how interested you are in them.
And if you can show how much you are looking forward to facing those challenges, even better!
10. Why are you memorable?
Linkedin’s tip for interviewers:
This question forces candidates to not only think about what sets them apart from the other resumes in your stack, but also how others view them and the impact they’ll make at the company if hired. You’ll get a perspective into their honesty, humility, self-awareness, and confidence. Bonus points for candidates that can deliver an answer that’s clear and right to the point, just like a good elevator pitch.
People First Recruitment’s tip for interviewees:
A cruel question. One that the interviewers would probably hate to have to answer themselves! But it’s you that has to (though you could try and ask them to answer it too!)
It’s similar to question 1. Picking out 1 word to describe you and being able to explain why.
You could answer in a similar way with a series of adjectives that describe you. But those adjectives may also describe lots of other candidates. So back the adjectives up with examples that are unique to you. Give examples from your work experience of successes and promotions you’ve had, of company and industry awards you’ve won, praise and positive comments given to you in appraisals by managers, etc.
And you may be able to add some humour too, turning a negative to a positive if you were late due to an internet or transport failure, or spilled water over yourself in the interview and tell them they’ll remember you for that reason as well as all the other work related positive answers you gave.
Don’t let Linkedin’s wicked imagination ruin your interview chances. Prepare for these new questions, as well as for these https://www.people-first.co.uk/interview, and you’ll be on your way to a second interview.
Here’s the link to the original article https://business.linkedin.com/talent-solutions/blog/interview-questions/2018/10-unexpected-interview-questions-to-get-unrehearsed-answers