Prepare for that next interview!

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Resources of the Week!

1. Saw this list of HR jobs that all have lower app-volume! This recruiter seems to share lists like this regularly.

2. Got specific questions? That’s what my question form is for! (And I share responses each week in the section below). I’m not able to respond consistently to email or LinkedIn messages, but I hope this helps as an avenue to get responses!

3. Curious about that whole “recruiters only look at resumes for 7-seconds” thing? Well here’s more on that in a blog post I wrote for Teal.

4. And sign up for a free networking chat!

Nailing the Interview

I did an overview of this in a video if you prefer to consume content this way!

So - you got an interview!

But if you’re like me, perhaps interviews are overwhelming or don’t play to your strengths. Personally, I prefer writing to talking so interviews can be intimidating!

But the good news is that you can prepare for interviews!

The Seven Types of Interview Questions

There are 7 types of interview questions that 99% of interviews will fall into. You can use these, along with the job posting to anticipate most interview questions so you can prepare your responses.

1. Background/experience (recruiter screens will usually be heavy here)
   -Walk me through your resume
   -What were your primary responsibilities in your last role?
   
   Prepare by: reviewing your resume and the job posting so you come ready highlight how your experiences align with the expectations in the role
   

2. Behavioral - look to the past - how did you navigate a specific situation? (Hiring Manager interviews are typically focused on these kinds of questions)
   -Tell me a time when you missed a goal.
   -Tell me about a time you led a major cross-functional initiative.
   
   Prepare by: Looking through the job responsibilities and finding specific stories/examples that align, practice STARR
   S: Situation/Context
   T: Task/Goal/Desired Outcome
   A: Actions you took
   R: Results
   R: Reflection: What you learned, how you would approach things differently if you met this challenge again
   

3. Situational - look to the future - how might you navigate a hypothetical situation, these often want to assess your problem solving and critical thinking skills.  (You’ll usually see these in Hiring Manager or Cross-Functional interviews)
   
   Prepare by: thinking through your strategy for how you’d tackle situations
   During the interview, ask questions, think aloud how you’d approach it, emphasize soft skills (like team work, communication, etc) and hard skills (like a project management fame work, leveraging data, etc.) that you might lean on.
   

4. Technical - assessing specific skills necessary for the role - this could be through an in-interview assessment, a take-home, work samples, etc.
   
   Prepare by: identifying any hard skills, tools, etc. that are noted on the job posting so you can brush up on knowledge in these areas.
   

5. Competency - these could be behavioral, situational, etc. but designed to give insight into competencies like leading projects, management, etc.
   

6. Opinions - these might ask your point of view on industry-related topics (these are typically seen in more senior interviews, and may be asked by a Hiring Manager or Executive)
   -Tell me your thoughts on the use of AI in content creation?
   -What do you think are some of the biggest shifts a support organization needs to make in the next 5 years?

   
   Prepare by: check company blogs and social media to see if there are certain topics that seem relevant or top of mind for the company. Do some research into the industry ahead of time.
   

7. Reflection/Self-Awareness/Culture - these might be questions about who you are, how you align with their core values, how you approach work, what others think of you, etc.
   -What are your strengths?
   -What’s something you need to get better at?
   -What might your direct reports say about working with you?
   
   Prepare by: Reviewing company core values and thinking of examples for how you align with them (and so you can touch on these in responses). Be ready for some of the typical questions around strengths/weaknesses!

There may be a handful of other question types - certain fields (like consulting) use Case Studies - you’ll usually get a lot of guidance on how to navigate that as well as materials to review. Some companies may still use brainteasers.

But most interviews will be a mix of the questions above!

Three Other Helpful Tips

Three other things that will really help you are:

1. Save the job posting in a doc you can access - many companies take down postings when they have enough applicants which may make your preparation harder.

2. Use ChatGPT - input the job posting and ask for same interview questions. There are other AI interview tools that may help with this as well.

3. Ask the recruiter - recruiters will be able to offer insights into what to expect in an interview. They may even share the exact questions. They can also be a great resource for any other questions (like who you’re interviewing with, dress code, etc.)

🙋Answering Your Questions🙋

Each week, I’ll answer a few of your questions in this section. You can submit your questions here.

When you’re not getting interviews, I think the first question I’d have is whether there’s an issue with your resume, or the jobs you’re applying to.

1. I would get some honest feedback on your resume - ask a few friends (preferably ones who are managers or currently working in the space you want to be in) and see if they have thoughts or are willing to share their own resumes to help you with designing your own. A few thoughts that come to mind:
   -is your resume too lengthy/exhaustive? We usually suggest just focusing on the last 10 years or so.
   -does your resume read more like a job description, or do you include outcomes and examples of projects you’ve led?
   -if you have graphic design experience, including a portfolio is really helpful!

2. I would do an honest assessment of the jobs you’re applying for. In a difficult market, most people are making lateral moves within the same industry. I would also target on site jobs as opposed to remote ones.

Finding agencies that work on roles in marketing and sharing your resume with recruiters can always help though they are generally going to be most focused on those who align with the roles they are working on.

I’m not super knowledgeable about reverse recruiters or career coaches that help connect candidates with jobs so I don’t have any great recommendations on that front.

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