Successful interviews every time

190 Pages·2004·13.483 MB·English

by  Yeung, Rob

Successful Interviews
Every Time
If you want to know how . . .

Passing Psychometric Tests
Know what to expect and get the job you want

The Job Application Handbook
Sell yourself to an employer using proven strategies and
effective techniques

Returning to Work
How to work out what you want and then go out and get it

The Ten Career Commandments
Equip yourself with the 10 most important skills to move up the
career ladder

Passing That Interview
Your step-by-step guide to coming out on top

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Successful
Interviews
Every Time
Second edition
Dr ROB YEUNG
howtobooks
Published by How To Content,
A division of How To Books Ltd,
Spring Hill House, Spring Hill Road,
Begbroke, Oxford 0X5 1RX. United Kingdom.
Tel: [phone]. Fax: [phone].
email: [email protected]
http://www.howtobooks.co.uk

All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or stored in an
information retrieval system (other than for purposes of review) without the express
permission of the publisher in writing.

The right of Rob Yeung to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted
by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

© Copyright 2004 Rob Yeung

First published in paperback 2002
Second edition 2004
Reprinted 2004
Reprinted 2005
First published in electronic form 2007

ISBN: 978 1 84803 103 6

Produced for How To Books by Deer Park Productions, Tavistock, Devon, UK
Edited by Diana Brueton
Cover design by Baseline Arts Ltd, Oxford, UK
Typeset by Kestrel Data, Exeter, Devon, UK

NOTE: The material contained in this book is set out in good faith for general
guidance and no liability can be accepted for loss or expense incurred as a result of
relying in particular circumstances on statements made in the book. The laws and
regulations are complex and liable to change, and readers should check the current
position with the relevant authorities before making personal arrangements.
Contents
Preface ix
1 Doing Your Homework 1
Preparing, rehearsing, researching the job,
understanding interviewers, and planning for your
interview.
2 Making the Right Impression 12
Dressing appropriately, handling nerves, making
chit-chat, building rapport, and handling the
preamble to an interview.
3 Dealing with Standard Questions 26
Handling the favourite questions that nearly all
interviewers ask - as well as technical questions
that may relate to your field.
4 Responding to Competency-based Questions 46
Employers are increasingly using these sort of
questions to probe candidates in detail. So, what
is a competency and what is it all about?
V
vi / SUCCESSFUL INTERVIEWS EVERY TIME
5 Talking about Your Personal Qualities 66
Many questions focus on what you think about
yourself - so here's how to talk confidently
about yourself.
6 Fending Off Trick Questions 86
Handling the uncomfortable, peculiar and
downright illegal questions that you may
sometimes face.
7 Handling Questions for Different Career Stages 101
Whether you're a school leaver, graduate,
experienced manager, or returning to work
after maternity - here are the questions that you
need to be ready for.
8 Coping with other Types of Interview 114
Getting ready for panel interviews, case study
interviews, brainteasers and other common
variations on the basic interview.
9 Succeeding at Assessment Centres 130
Assessment centres are becoming increasingly
popular. So how can you pass in-tray exercises,
psychometric tests, group exercises and role play
simulations with flying colours?
10 Asking the Right Questions 145
Posing questions back at your prospective
employer to find out all you need to know to
decide whether you want the job or not.
CONTENTS / vii
11 Ending on a High Note 153
Making a lasting impression and chasing till you
get that job offer.
12 Crossing the Finish Line 159
Negotiating a package and accepting a job offer. Or
learning what went wrong if you don't get the job.
Index 171
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Preface
to the Second edition
Do you ever feel frustrated that you are not putting yourself
across to the very best of your ability in interviews? I wrote
the first edition of this book because in my job as an inter-
viewer on behalf of companies big and small, I have seen too
many candidates who were just not doing themselves justice.
And it is always a shame because in most cases it is some-
thing that they could quite easily resolve.
Interviews come in all shapes and sizes. There could be just a
single interviewer or a panel of interviewers. You might be
put at your ease and asked a handful of straightforward
questions. Or you might be subjected to a traumatic inter-
view designed to wear you down.
You might be ready for just one interview lasting a couple of
hours, but what if you are faced with a dozen interviews each
lasting an hour? And what if you are given a case study
interview, a presentation to prepare, or even a group discus-
sion to contend with?
No matter, this book covers them all. Filled with just about
every question that you might be asked and examples of
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