Personal Interview Hints and Tips

                                                  INTERVIEW

Tell me something about your self. 

Go prepared for this question, as this is the most frequently asked question in the

interview. Answer it covering your work experience, educational qualifications and a

little information about your family background. Try to focus on key areas of your

work while talking about your professional experience. This is an open ended

question and can help you in taking the interview in which ever direction you want it

to go. You should know where to put a full stop to provoke the desired question from

the interviewer.

Ex:

         

Ø  I am Ashok kumar.J. I am from Coimbatore. I completed my BTech Information Technology in IRTT college at Erode on 2007 and secured 71% and 12 th I got 83.3%.
I have 7 years Experience in SQL Server 2005/2008/2012.
I started my career at Mindlogicx infra tech ltd and Worked 3 Yrs 5 Months. Currently Working in UVJ Technologies(Calpine Group) for 3 Yrs 7 Months. I completed the Oracle certificate of DBA for Developer course @ oracle education.

Ø  I strongly believe the constant hard work altimatively give success if once I planned in my mind I could dedicatively apply my whole efforts to achieve that goal. I used to read company magazines and attended many computer expos to encourage the curiosity about learning.

My hobbies include meeting blogging of SQL  and browsing and playing cricket.

Ø   My strength is flexible to work and tacking the atmosphere very well or Task oriented or curiosity

Ø   My Weakness  is  tendency to over-work   or I do not thing my weakness would affect company’s growth. I am undergone some meditation to overcome this.i would expect result soon.

Do you want to ask us something about the company? 

      1)    What is the history of the company in the country?
2) Is the role a new vacancy or a replacement?
if it is new, ask why? could it be because of expansion plans? or existing demands?
if it is a replacement, ask why the previous person left. Was he/she there for several years and it was their time to go, or were they terminated?
3) Ask how many people are in your team and how your department is structured

       4)How many projects currently running in your company?
     5)what kind of project currently running in that location?
     6)can you explain work culture of company?

Why do you want to quit your present job?

 A search for newer opportunities and challenges and career Growth

ex:

 I am currently looking for a position/job like this which is an excellent match for my skills and experience and I am not able to fully utilize them in my present job as there is very limited scope of growth. I am interested in a new challenge and an opportunity to use my technical skills and experience in a different capacity than I have in the past.


1) The company where I was working is a very large company and hence it’s difficult to do and learn different tasks. We had routine work that never changed. So I am looking for a work in an environment where I can utilize more of my skills.


2) I am looking forward to work in a company where there are more opportunities. My previous organization was very small and didn’t have opportunities for growth. I’m looking for a bigger challenge and to grow my career. After learning the work environment here, I felt this is exactly the type of place I want to work.


3) I was looking for a position like this which is an excellent match for my skills and experience and I am not able to fully utilize them in my present job as there is very limited scope for growth.


4) Recently my family relocated to this area to provide better education to my brothers and small sisters. So I am looking forward to work for a company closer to my new home. My previous job was far too away to commute.


5) I really enjoyed what I was doing but I felt I was following a routine. I looked around for more opportunities to grow, but because the company is small, I was very limited. I want to work in an environment that will help me to realize my full potential and a place I can contribute everything I’m capable of doing. My current position doesn’t provide these things for me; therefore I want to work here. I know this company has a lot of opportunities for growth and encourages employees to take on challenging projects to learn more. That’s what I’m looking for.

Q: What are your strengths?

A: This is one question that you know you are going to get so there is no excuse for being unprepared. Concentrate on discussing your main strengths. List three or four proficiencies e.g. your ability to learn quickly, determination to succeed, positive attitude, your ability to relate to people and achieve a common goal. You may be asked to give examples of the above so be prepared.

Example: Curiosity, Honesty, Leadership,loyalty

Ø  ability to be flexible

Q: What are your Greatest strengths?

"I have quite a few strengths…(pause to think)…probably my greatest strength is my reliability. Part of my reliability is consistently being there, I have a 100% on time record at work and have had it for the last three years. But it's more than that. People know that they can trust me to do what I say I will do, they trust me to deliver. For example, my boss had a difficult project that needed to be completed in a short amount of time. He asked me in a meeting with the rest of our team to take on this project. After the meeting, he told me that he gave me the project because he knows that I will deliver on time. He's right. I just delivered the project yesterday, a day ahead of schedule. And it was right the first time, no corrections needed."


my greatest strength is my task oriented,Curiosity

Q: What is your greatest weakness?

A: Do not say you have none - this will lead to further problems. You have two options - use a professed weakness such as a lack of experience (not ability) on your part in an area that is not vital for the job. The second option is to describe a personal or professional weakness that could also be considered to be a strength, and the steps you have taken to combat it. An example would be, 'I know my team think I'm too demanding at times - I tend to drive them pretty hard but I'm getting much better at using the carrot and not the stick'.

 You should answer with things you "are improving upon," e.g., "I believe I should always be improving upon myself, good or bad." You are answering the dreaded question without looking like an egotistical maniac, and showing the interviewer that you see yourself as a work in progress, trying to better all of your qualities.

For your weakness, just pick one that is not going to disqualify you from the job, and then follow up with - this is what really matters - the examples of what you are doing (or have done) to fix your weakness. The most important point here is to show that you learn from your mistakes and your weakness, and you are taking the corrective action to fix the situation - and stress that! For example, if the job does not require public speaking, you can say that your weakness is you are afraid of speaking in front of the public. Then tell the interviewers that you have joined a Toastmaster club or public speech course to overcome the problem. Remind them that when you identify a problem, you actively take actions to correct it, and that is how you do things.

I would say that I can be too much of a perfectionist in my work. Sometimes, I spend more time than necessary on a task, or take on tasks personally that could easily be delegated to someone else. Although I've never missed a deadline, it is still an effort for me to know when to move on to the next task, and to be confident when assigning others work.

Ø  tendency to over-work

Strengths and weakness:

My strengths are my ability to be flexible; I've seen companies go through changes in structure and management philosophy. I've had to adjust my style to the new environment several times. My weakness is my tendency to over-work so I pace myself now." 


Example 1: Communication

Honestly, I would say that Communication  is an area that I could work on Because I am from Tamil Medium Background But I cant give up. I started few months back read newspapaers and listen english news and talking with my friends with english, it improves my english skills and confident. I hope result of this hardwork become success soon.

Example 2: Too Direct

“Sometimes I can be a bit too honest when I provide feedback to coworkers. My personality is naturally very straightforward and to the point, and most of my colleagues really value that, but I have learned that there are times on the job when more diplomacy is required.

I took a training class on conflict management and it really opened my eyes to the need to communicate differently with different people. So now I am much better at providing constructive feedback, even if it doesn’t always come naturally.”

Example 3: Public Speaking

“Honestly, I would say that public speaking is an area that I could work on. I tend to get nervous when asked to present to a large group of people. In small team meetings, I’m the first one to stand up and present. But put me in front of a big group and I can get flustered.

I actually spoke to my manager about this and we set it as one of my development goals for this year. I took an internal presentation skills class and attended some meetings of Toastmasters, a networking group for people who want to practice public speaking. With some practice, I started to feel more comfortable. Last month, I even volunteered to represent our team at a division-wide town hall. I only had to present for 10 minutes, but I did it and got great feedback! It was actually kind of fun, so I plan on continuing to seek out opportunities to improve in this area.”

“Well, I have all of the skills and experience that you’re looking for and I’m confident that I would be a superstar in this project management role.

• Why Should We Hire You?

“Well, I have all of the skills and experience that you’re looking for and I’m confident that I would be a Right fit for your organization in this  DBA role"

• Industry experience
• Experience in performing certain tasks or duties
• Technical skills
• Soft skills
• Key accomplishments
• Awards/accolades
• Education/training

Most job seekers should be able to develop a standard answer to this question that can be customized a bit for each opportunity. Here’s how:

Step 1: Brainstorm

To get started, review the job description (or a representative job description if you don’t have an interview lined up right now) and your resume and ask yourself these questions:

• What are the most important qualifications for this position from the company’s perspective?
• In which of these areas do I really shine?
• What are my most impressive accomplishments?
• What makes me different from the typical candidate?

Brainstorm and jot down everything that comes to mind.

Step 2: Structure Your Sales Pitch

Next, choose the 3-4  bullet points that make the strongest argument for you. Use those bullet points to structure your sales pitch. Don’t write a script to memorize — simply capture the bullet points that you want to convey. Each bullet will describe the selling point with a brief explanation and/or example for context.

Keep it concise — you still want to keep your answer in the 1-2 minute range so you won’t be able to rattle off every skill and accomplishment on your resume. You have to really think about what sets you apart from the competition.

Step 3: Practice

Once you feel pretty good about the points you want to make, it’s time to practice. Again, it’s not a good idea to memorize a script — you can end up sounding like a robot or feel more nervous because of pressure to remember specific wording.

The better approach is to capture your bullet points, study them, and then practice until you feel comfortable talking about them off the cuff.  Your answer should come out a little bit different each time, but it should always cover the points that you want to make.

Remember: It’s also very important to come across as confident and enthusiasticwhen you deliver your pitch. Make them believe in you — your abilities and your commitment.

If you project confidence (even if you have to fake it a little), you’re more likely to make a strong impression. As for enthusiasm, keep in mind that true passion for the work required is a pretty compelling selling point. Yes, experience and qualifications are important, but the right attitude can definitely give you an edge over those with similar professional backgrounds.

After many years of experience in recruiting and hiring, I’d rather hire someone who has a little less experience, but who is driven and motivated to learn and succeed.

I have loved my time at Acme Financial and am really proud of the successful marketing campaigns that I have conceived and managed. However, I think the time has come for a change. We are going through some management changes right now and a lot of projects are on hold.

• Why did you leave your last company?

Sample Answer:

I have been thinking for a while that I’d like to work for a bigger company with more opportunities for growth. This position seems like a great fit because of my successful background in online marketing and my experience running a team.

• Why are you looking for new Opportunity now or company?

Sample Answer:

“I have been at my company for three years now and have learned a lot from working with some amazing salespeople.  I worked my way up to regional sales manager 18 months ago and my region has beat our sales projections by at least 25% each quarter since. However, I am starting to feel like I need some new challenges. This position really appeals to me because it would allow me to manage a bigger team and sell more innovative products.”

• Where do you see yourself in Next Five Years?

My goal right now is to find a position at a company where I can grow and take on new challenges over time. Ultimately, I’d like to get more management responsibilities and get involved in product strategy. But most importantly, I want to work for an organization where I can build a career.”