FSS Newsletter :: December 2003
Career Corner
Isn't an Interview Just an Interview? by Barbara Reinhold
Getting ready for an interview isn't what it used to be. Now
you must contend with many different kinds of questions and
formats. Here are three types of interviews you may face and
how to prepare for them.
1. Phone Interviews
Employers want to do things cheaply these days, so many conduct
their first screening rounds with Ma Bell's help.
Upside: You can prepare notes and keep them in front of you
while you talk. Also, the absence of ties and pantyhose during
the process is a big plus!
Downside: It's often hard on people who count on talking
to a live person to get energized.
Strategy: There is hope for people who take a while to warm
up or who like to read an interviewer's face as they talk.
About 10 minutes before the interview, go to a quiet place,
close your eyes, and visualize a time when you were really
successful at something. It could be last week at a sales
presentation or even when you won a fourth-grade spelling
bee. Hold that
memory for several minutes and absorb all the positive energy
from it. Remember where you were, who was there, what people
said to you about it and feelings, colors, smells and sounds
you recall. When the phone finally rings, your voice will
have the zip it needs to seem alive over the wires.
2. Case Interviews
The case interview is a widely used screening torture for
consulting, finance and executive positions.
Problem: Case interviews test your ability to problem solve
and think around corners without having real data in front
of you. Questions like, "Why are manholes round?"
or "How many square yards of pizza are eaten in the US
each year?" are just warm-ups. Sometimes business problems
are presented, such as the following: "Toyota is considering
the release of a new model. What issues does the company need
to think about?"
Strategy: It's almost impossible to become a logical thinker
who possesses business savvy overnight if you're not one already.
But you could subscribe to The Wall Street Journal, take a
logic course, read some books, or contact the Bain and Company
consulting firm in San Francisco for a copy of its monograph
"How to Ace the Case Interview."
3. Behavioral Interviews
In an age of inflated egos and "creative" resume
production, behavioral interviews involve lots of no-nonsense
"show me" questions. Problem: Employers want to
have evidence to back up possibly exaggerated claims.
Strategy: Don't even think about saying, "I have excellent
organizational skills," without having two or three examples
of when you used those skills. For every positive statement
you plan to make about yourself, prepare a STAR analysis:
** S = name a SITUATION facing you or
** T = a TASK you had to complete
**A = describe what ACTION you took
** R = tell the RESULTS of your actions
Interviewing for Success
The most important elements of interviewing success are preparation
and practice. If you try to scrimp on either one, it will
show and you'll get a disappointing "thanks, but no thanks"
letter. The bottom line: Not since high school has homework
been so critical.
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