Interview question - part 1

Interviews questions are unpredictable!

First Round interview

Tell me about yourself.

They already have read your CV so do not repeat instead focus on your choice of education and career path and choices made with respect to career if you have changed several jobs. Try to link them.

What the main project you handled or did at work or at university if you are a fresher?

Focus on the:

• Project objective

• For who was it? The stakeholders?

• Challenges you faced

• Outcome

How do you handle stress?deadlines?

Reply should focus on:

• Time management

• Prioritizing work

• Support those points with example from past experiences.

What are the qualities you possess which makes you suitable for this job?

Know the job description and relate it to your skills and experience plus most importantly how will be applicable and valuable to the job.

Your strength and weakness?

• Strength : Can be any skill or personality traits

Always remember to link it to your work experience. On how you use it in your day to day job or projects.

• Weakness: Think about your one weakness and how to overcome it or use it in a good way.

Always focus on solutions and positive sides when explaining your weakness and how you turn it into strength.

Conflicts between colleagues: how did you solve it?

Focus on how you:

• analyze the issue and propose a meeting with the colleague to come to an agreement. And if it still did not work. Gather their point of views and yours and go to a higher level ( only when matter not solved).

• use the step above with an example from your experience.

Where do you see yourself in some years (or in 5 years)

• For experienced candidate:

Start by showing the trend in your career; the direction you have been going and target a high level leadership position by also highlighting how you prepare yourself to achieve it , eg, by gaining more work experience and going for continuous development programs.

• For fresher:

Highlight the link between your degree and the post applied and check the career growth you can achieve in that particular field. Again emphasize how you want to achieve it.

For first round interview focus is normally your education and skills and work experience. In case you didn't like your previous company, do not talk negative things but instead focus on what you have learned.

Second interview varies from company to company

• Aptitude test ( numerical, verbal or case study - google search sample question to prepare yourself)

• Face to face interview including a test.

• Test will depend on the job you applied for but in end it tests your ability to handle situation or how you would go about the work or analyze the report.

• Case study where you are given some excel data and questions for which you have to prepare a presentation. Here be sure to know the technicalities you are presenting well.

For some this second interview can be the final one depending on the position or size of company.

Usually the last interview is with the department in which you will work.

Questions are based on technical level and they will analyze if you really fit in the role. It will be a matching of your experience or education with that role’s requirement.

It doesn't need to be a 100% match. If it is 80%, it is fine as 20% will be new things which you will learn on job.

Note if you are going through several rounds, there might be some repeated behavioral questions like.