Your guide to:

Interviews
If you want your interview to go well (and we’d be a tad concerned if you didn’t - no
one likes interviews enough to do them just for fun), preparation is everything; but
it can be a bit tricky to put the leg work in when you don’t know exactly what you’re
preparing for.

Now, whilst we can’t offer you a script for said interview (we may be good, but sadly,
we’re not physic) we can gear you up for some of the most common questions, so
you have a better idea of what your interviewer wants to hear.

Traditional interview
Why don’t you start by telling me a bit how great you are. Before you go how your career is progressing,
about yourself? into the interview, think of a recent describe what makes you happy; such
It’s ok to mention your interests, but work-related achievement, the skills as gaining increased responsibility
don’t go off on tangents about your you used and the resulting benefits and being able to add value.
social life. Think about some of the for your employer. For example: “I
things you’re proud of from your thought we were paying a lot for our
career history or education, along with printer cartridges, so I proactively
Tell me about a difficult situation you
any relevant any skills. Such as: “I’m made several phone calls and found
encountered at work and how you
enthusiastic about cooking, which helps a fantastic alternative supplier which
approached it
me to unwind after a day at the office. saved us £200 a month.”
Make sure you keep this one brief
Relaxation is important to me, as I
and positive. Choose a problem that
always give 100% at work; but with the
you didn’t cause, describe the solution
time management skills I developed at Are you happy with where you are in
you came up with and explain how
university when writing my dissertation, your career?
you influenced the outcome. The
I enjoy each new challenge.” The answer you give here will say a interviewer wants to know how good
lot about your self-esteem, confidence you are at handling difficult situations
and aspirations, so make sure you’re and problem solving, so leave them
Can you describe one of your best constructive in your reply. If you feel in no doubt of your capabilities.
achievements at work? like you’ve hit a bit of a lull, positively
This is always a good question to be describe this as ‘looking for a new
asked because it lets you talk about challenge’. If you’re pleased with

Follow us on:

www.office-angels.com
What do you like about your current What are your strengths? deemed as a positive. For example:
job? It’s a pretty safe bet that this question “I’m a perfectionist so I often I make
It’s important that you’re honest here, will come up, so make sure you’re extra work for myself, but it means I
because if you do get the job, your armed with some strong examples. always do a good job.”
new employer might give you more The best way to decide which of your
work around what you’ve said you strengths to talk about (we know you
enjoy. So don’t say you like something have plenty) is to think about the skills Why do you want to leave your current
just to impress. Try to think about the that will add the most value to your job?
role you’re being interviewed for and new employer; such as how well you
This question should be approached
choose examples that are relevant - and work well in a team, your ‘can do’
with the same caution as “what don’t
remember, be as positive as you can. attitude, or your ability to learn new
you like about your current job”: it’s
things quickly.
not an invitation for overt negativity.
So think positively and talk about
What do you dislike about your current your need for a new challenge, or
job? What is your greatest weakness? your desire to gain more experience.
This question is a potential minefield. Nobody’s perfect, and your interviewer Don’t say you simply want more
When you’re interviewing for a new knows that; which is why they give money or hate your manager.
job, it can mean that you’re at the you the chance to talk about any
end of your tether with your current areas that you could improve in. But
one - but this is not an invitation to this isn’t the time to tell them that you Why did you apply for this role?
vent; the interviewer isn’t your best struggle getting to work on time, or find
You need to have a good understanding
friend (no matter how friendly they Mondays tough after a busy weekend.
of both the job and the company to
are). They’ll be far more impressed if You can describe a personal or
answer this question well. That’s where
you show that you respect your current professional weakness, but be selective,
research comes in. Find out as much as
employer, so be careful not to be too and talk about how you are trying to
you can about the company’s history,
negative. Cite something general, such tackle this weakness through training
aims and ethos, along with how you
as a lack of progression opportunities or regular performance reviews. You
could help them to achieve them. The
in your department. could talk about a lack of experience
interviewer wants to know that you’ll
in an area that doesn’t affect your
be a good fit for their team, so find out
ability to do the job, showing your
about their culture and show them how
willingness to learn and develop,
well suited you are.
or pick a ‘weakness’ that could be

Competency based interview

Competency based interviews are more The questions usually fall into the This measures your ability to take
popular than ever, so you really need following five areas: charge of other people through
to know how to tackle them. Employers leadership, empowerment, strategic
tend to use them as a way of predicting 1. Individual Competencies thinking, corporate sensitivity, project
your future performance through a Typical question: Tell me about a management and managerial control.
list of behavioural questions. Sound time when your work or an idea
complicated? Don’t worry, it’s really not. was challenged. 3. Analytical Competencies
This is to find out more about your Typical question: Tell me about a time
Your answers need to be structured,
personal attributes; such as flexibility, when you identified a new approach
so we always recommend using the
decisiveness, tenacity, knowledge, to a problem.
delightfully named STAR technique,
describing: independence, risk taking and This is to determine your decision
personal integrity. making abilities; testing innovation,
• Situation
analytical skills, problem solving,
• Task required 2. Managerial Competencies practical learning and attention
Typical question: Tell me about a time to detail.
• Action you took
when you led a group to achieve an
• Result of that action objective.

Follow us on:

www.office-angels.com
4. Interpersonal Competencies 5. Motivational Competencies
Typical question: Describe a situation Typical question: When did you work
where you got people to work together. hard and feel the greatest sense of
achievement?
This is all about your social competence.
Many workplaces function on the This is to understand what drives
basis of project teams and the more you, looking at resilience, energy,
collaborative they are, the more likely motivation, result orientation,
the company is to thrive. initiative and quality focus.

Remember
Always be yourself when answering So when you’re going for any kind To keep up with all of the other areas
competency based questions. Use of interview, make sure you do your that we’re experts in (and when it
real life examples and relate them research, prepare plenty of ‘material’ comes to recruitment, that’s a lot of
to your experience, how you reacted to use at the drop of a hat and stay areas), follow us on Facebook, Twitter
and how it made you feel. They’re not calm and collected. If you believe and LinkedIn, or download the free
trick questions; they’re just designed you’re the right person for the job, you Office Angels app. And if you’re keen
to create the best match between you stand a much better chance of turning to try out your newfound knowledge,
and a potential employer. If you’re well your interviewer into a believer too. check out our current office jobs.
prepared, competency based interviews
give you the opportunity to describe
some of your finer moments to a captive
audience. And who doesn’t enjoy telling
people how great they are?

Visit our website:: Download our app: Check out our other guides:
office-angels.com office-angels.com/app

Follow us on:

www.office-angels.com