The interview process: Preparing for the interview

The interview process: Preparing for the interview

Professor Ram Lakhan Meena

For those of you feeling anxious about interviews! relax. Interviewers aren’t there to grill you, or laser in on your weaknesses, or destabilize you with trick questions. In fact, they’re smart and caring people who are eager to find your strengths, especially in unexpected places.

Preparing for the interview

There are two types of interviews for those who’ve been welcomed to the next stage of the process. We call them the experience interview and the case interview. Some information about each follows below. One word of advice about both: please do not over-prepare. Familiarizing yourself with the content and structure of the interviews–and broadly framing the areas you want to cover based on the attributes we’ve described above–is enough. We are not looking for “the most prepped.”

Personal experience assessment interview

You wouldn’t be invited to interview unless we were impressed by your achievements. But we’re really interested in learning about how you see them–what you view as your strengths, what particularly made you proud, and what you accomplished as an individual and as part of a team.

Our interviewers are naturally curious about your accomplishments, so be prepared to discuss them in some depth.

Case interview

Some of our candidates know exactly what a case interview is; if that’s you, feel free to skip ahead. Others who have never heard of a case interview, fear not–but read on.

Case interviews are two-way conversations that demonstrate an ability to think creatively in unfamiliar businesses. Your interviewer will describe a strategic or operational challenge, and using the available facts, you’ll structure your thinking and reach defensible conclusions in a short period of time. Among others, these skills are common to successful consultants.

We’ve found that the people who succeed here are those who are drawn to problem-solving as a form of intellectual stimulation and challenge. So we’re looking to identify the ability to unpack a problem by analyzing it inside out and upside down. Most of the time, our clients bring us challenges that are three-dimensional. So we need people who think in chess, not checkers. We value non-linear thinking and the ability to fuse discipline and instinct.

You know the phrase “there are no right or wrong answers.” Well, you just heard it again. There are no predetermined answers in case interviews; we’re less interested in the conclusion than how you got there. In other words, we’re looking for your intuitive, natural judgment in a business setting.

Someone whose answer is strategically closer to a “right” answer–but who arrived at it with superficial insight and a flimsy rationale–will not do as well as someone whose answer might be more off the mark because they don’t have the business background, but whose thinking is cogent and well supported. We look for intrinsic mental agility and curiosity in our hires, knowing we will apprentice, train, and coach them with content and knowledge.

Preparing for the interview

Problem-solving test

Just what you’re waiting to hear–one more test. Don’t get stressed. As part of the interview process, we ask most candidates to complete a problem-solving test. We use this multiple choice test to better understand how you approach problem-solving and can size up a situation. McKinsey is more interested in how you think than in how much you’ve memorized.

Some more details:

·         You can’t bring a calculator or anything else, except your natural abilities.

·         No business background is necessary.

·         There are 26 questions to answer in an hour; you are not expected to answer all of them.

If you would like to familiarize yourself with the practice test format, we have provided practice tests for download, along with analyses of the answers. You may also want to take advantage of the coaching guide to work on the practice tests.

A Job Interview is an official meeting in which one or more Interviewer Interrogate, consult, or judges another person. An interview is a last step to get selected in any job. It may be screening, panel, Group, Telephone, Video conferencing, one on one Interview. Qualified for giving interview means that the candidates have right ability and knowledge for the job, he has required knowledge about the subject.

For giving an Interview a person must go through Interview Tips for Freshers 2014 given below by the team of privatejobshub.blogspot.in.

Different types of interview Questions

·                     Tell me about yourself.

·                     Why should I hire you?

·                     What are your strengths and weaknesses?

·                     Why do you want to work at our company?

·                     What is the difference between confidence and over confidence?

·                     What is the difference between hard work and smart work?

·                     How do you feel about working nights and weekends?

·                     Can you work under pressure?

·                     Are you willing to relocate or travel?

·                     What are your goals?

·                     What motivates you to do good job?

·                     What makes you angry?

·                     Give me an example of your creativity.

·                     How long would you expect to work for us if hired?

·                     Are not you overqualified for this position?

·                     What are your career options right now?

·                     Explain how would be an asset to this organization?

·                     What are your outside interests?

·                     Would you lie for the company?

·                     Who has inspired you in your life and why?

·                     What was the toughest decision you ever had to make?

·                     Have you considered starting your own business?

·                     How do you define success and how do you measure up to your own definition?

·                     How much salary do you expect?

·                     Where do you see yourself five years from now?

·                     Do you have any questions for me?

Preparation tips for interview round

Planning

·                     How to prepare?

·                     What to prepare?

Searching/Reading About

·                     Company

·                     Applied Profile and its Duties and Responsibilities.

·                     Working Conditions

·                     Interviewer

Preparation

·                     Read your resume properly

·                     Prepare questions to ask or to be asked

·                     Rehearse interview

·                     Anticipate the obvious questions during the interview

·                     Work out a strategy for dealing with stress

·                     Read vacancy details, employer's literature - what they are and what they want

Dressing

·                     Conservative two-piece business suit (solid dark blue or grey is best)

·                     Conservative long-sleeved shirt / blouse (white is best, pastel is next best)

·                     Clean, polished conservative shoes

·                     Well-groomed hairstyle

·                     Clean, trimmed fingernails

·                     Minimal cologne or perfume

·                     Empty pockets--no bulges or tinkling coins

·                     No gum, candy or cigarettes

·                     Light briefcase or portfolio case

·                     No visible body piercing (nose rings, eyebrow rings, etc)

First Impression

·                     Arrive 15 minutes before time

·                     Make a good entrance.

·                     Good Body language - handshake, posture, eye contact.

·                     Smile

At Interview

·                     Be yourself

·                     Be honest

·                     Be prepared to talk - but not too much

·                     Don't be afraid to ask for clarification

·                     Illustrate your answers with examples

·                     Be ready to sell yourself

·                     Be interested

Follow up/Closing the Interview

·                     Read employer's body language

·                     Thank him/her for his/her time

·                     Learn from the experience - ask for feedback if necessary

These top interview tips will help you cover everything you need to know to successfully ace a job interview. From checking out the company to sending an interview thank you note, these job interview tips cover all the basics needed for interviewing success.