Interviews

Interviews give you an opportunity to impress employers with

your knowledge and personality

Interviewers ask candidates different questions to assess their

suitability for a given position

Depending on the type of job and the stage of the recruitment

process

Companies may use different types of interviews to narrow down

their search
Face-to-face interviews

• The interviewer meet in person to discuss your credentials

• The interviewer can be the employer, manager, someone from the HR
department
• Interviewer can be a third party recruitment consultant hired by the company
• The interview usually takes place on the company premises
• The interviewer usually proceeds to assess your subject matter expertise after
asking general questions related to your skills, education and experience.
Tips to prepare for Face to Face interview

• Research the company and their work culture while preparing for these interviews

• Understanding the company's business model and work ethics

• Keep in mind while attending face-to-face interviews is your body language

• The way you walk, sit and speak communicates your personality to the interviewer

• Be confident and comfortable while attending the interview

• Use this personal meeting as an opportunity to leave a positive impression on the interviewer
A Panel Interview
• In a panel interview, you would be facing questions from multiple interviewers.
• The interview panel may include people from different departments or disciplines.
• The panel usually takes a collective decision about your selection for the job.
For example,
• An interview panel may include a project lead, HR manager and subject matter
expert
• The project lead may focus on your suitability for the team
• The HR manager may evaluate you in terms of your salary expectations and long-
term career goals
• The subject matter expert may test your subject knowledge
Tips to prepare for Panel Interview

• In a panel interview, you are required to impress all the interviewers

to increase your chances of selection
• Greet the panel members when you enter the interview room
• Make eye contact with all the panel members during the interview.
• Direct your response to the interviewer who asked you the question.
• Ensure that your answers to questions and counter questions from
different interviewers are consistent.
Group interviews
• In this type of interview, companies interview several candidates simultaneously.

• Companies mostly use group interviews when they require to recruit multiple candidates in a
short period of time.

• The interviewer may ask questions to the entire group at a time or may ask each candidate to
answer individually.

• They may also ask you to interact with other candidates or may even give you a task to
perform in a team to assess your communication, interpersonal and teamwork skills.

• For example, the interviewer may ask all the candidates present to divide themselves into
several small teams:
• Each team may require to interact with its members to understand one another

• After giving some time to spend together, the interviewer may ask each candidate for their opinion
on who would be a good leader for their team and why.
Tips for preparing

• Look for ways to make yourself stand out from others

• Express your opinion clearly and confidently, whenever required

• Listen carefully when others are speaking

• Respect others' opinions and be polite to other candidates

• Try to present yourself as a positive individual with a problem-solving attitude

( detail given in GD PDF)

Telephonic interviews

• Companies often use a telephonic interview to shortlist candidates for a subsequent face-to-face
interview.

• When there are multiple rounds of interviews planned for a position, companies may conduct the
telephonic interview in the first round.

• They may ask you some basic questions like your background and why you applied for the position.

• If they decide to move further with your selection, they may call you for a face-to-face interview.

• In some types of jobs like telemarketing, receptionist and voice-based call centre positions,
companies may require to assess your telephone skills.

• In such cases, companies may use the telephonic interview as an additional round for finalising the
candidates.

• Similarly, in the case of remote positions, a telephonic interview may serve as a formal interview.
Tips for Preparing

• The advantage in the case of a telephonic interview is that you can refer to notes during the
interview.

• Try to prepare for it as you would for a formal face-to-face interview.

• Remember that you are required to express yourself only through your voice unlike in the
case of a face-to-face interview, where gestures and body language serve as an additional
means of communication.

• Hence, make sure that you speak clearly at a good pace without any long pauses.

• Try to find a quiet and distraction-free place for the interview.

Video interviews

• Companies usually conduct video interviews for remote positions or in cases where it is not
possible for the candidates to attend an interview in person.

• You can attend a video interview using a PC, laptop or smartphone.

• You may require to install the teleconferencing application your employer uses for the
interview.
Tips for Preparing

• In terms of interview questions, you can prepare for a video interview just like you would do
for a traditional face-to-face interview.

• Dress professionally in clean and tidy clothes

• Have a steady internet connection with reasonably good speed

• Find a quiet place with a neutral backdrop and organise your workstation well
Off-site interviews
• Off-site interviews are mostly informal in nature

• The recruitment manager may invite you for a personal meeting over lunch or dinner

• Etiquette and personality may be more in focus during these types of interviews

• The interviewer may observe you and assess your interpersonal skills and table manners

Tips for preparing

• Although the interviewer may try to make you feel comfortable by creating an informal atmosphere, be
sure to act professionally.

• If you require to order the food, choose something that would allow you to have a conversation while
eating.

• Be careful to eat and drink properly without spilling on the dress or table.

• Mind your professional etiquette

Stress interviews

• Companies use stress interviews to see how a candidate reacts in a stressful situation.

• You may encounter this type of interview if you are applying for a high-stress position.

• The interviewer may try to assess your ability to solve challenging problems, work in a
multi-tasking environment or deal with clients that are difficult to handle.
Tips for preparing
• To create a stressful situation, the interviewer may ask you unusual questions, interrupt frequently,
increase the pace of the interview, get rude with you, behave unusually or ask you to perform an odd task.

• You may feel uncomfortable or intimidated but be sure to remain calm, handle the situation gracefully and
focus on solving the problem.

• Prepare for some common stress interview questions and comments like:

• I do not think you are suitable for this position.

• What would you do if you were caught stealing?

• How would you sell this item to a customer?

• That is a stereotypical answer. Tell me something new.

• Take the time to breathe, regain composure and maintain your own pace.

• Try to keep smiling and remain cheerful throughout the interview.

Structured interviews
• In a structured interview, the interviewer asks the same set of questions to all the candidates.
The interviewer then compares the responses of the candidates to find the suitable one.

• The questions you encounter in a structured interview can either be open-ended or close-
ended.

• In the case of close-ended questions, you usually require to choose the right answer from a
list of alternatives.

• Open-ended questions can have several different answers and may allow you to elaborate
your response.

Tips for preparing

• The easiest way to prepare for a structured interview is to look for common questions asked
in such interviews and think of the answers beforehand.
• Ask yourself what skills you possess that can help you excel in the given position
Unstructured interviews
• In an unstructured interview, the interviewer may change the questions and ask follow-up
questions based on your response.

• They may have a few pre-determined questions in mind but may modify them or add more
questions based on how the interview progresses.

Tips for preparing

• To do well in an unstructured interview, prepare for the common types of questions related to
your area of expertise.

• Instead of memorising the answers, focus on understanding the logic behind them.
Case interviews

• In a case interview, the interviewer gives you a problem or explains a situation and asks you
to provide a solution.

• The problem or the situation given can be an imaginary one or based on a real-life
experience.

• The idea is to test your problem-solving aptitude at work.

Tips for preparing

• Listen patiently and pay attention to the details.

• Analyse the given situation and try to give a practical solution that would be apt for the given
scenario.