You’ve perfected your CV, applied for the job and now you’ve been invited for an interview.
Whether it’s virtual or in-person, the prospect
of a job interview can be daunting and it’s completely
normal to feel nervous. Planning how you’ll answer some of the questions likely to come up will give
you a head start and build your confidence ahead of the interview.
While the exact format of the interview will vary according to the role and industry, you can expect
to be asked some behavioural questions as well as job-specific, skills-based ones. We’ve put together
some top interview tips on how to respond to the most common interview questions. Discover how
you can use your answers to let your personality and experience shine through, so that your future
employer knows you are the right person for the job.
Classic interview questions and answers:
- “Tell me about yourself.”
This question is a popular opener for interviews and it is often used as an icebreaker to ease
candidates into the interview before moving on to more in-depth or technical questions. The
interviewer will have already read your CV and now they want to know if you are the right fit
for the role. When answering this question, don’t be tempted to simply recite your CV – on
the other hand, they aren’t looking for your life story either! Talk a bit about
your current role, the scope of it, and perhaps a recent accomplishment. Next, cover some
work history so that the interviewer can understand how you got there. Mention previous
experience that is relevant to the job you’re applying for.
- “Why do you want to work at this company?”
Your employer to-be will want to understand why you applied for this position at this
company. This is where you can show the interviewers that you have taken the time
to research the company and that your
values and ways of working are aligned with theirs.
Explain to them what attracted you to the company, which aspects of the workplace cultureappeal to you and the
elements of the job role you are most excited about. Showing them
that you’ve done your homework doesn’t just demonstrate your professionalism, it conveys
that you have really thought about how you would fit in at the company and that you can
see a long-term future there.
- "What do you think are your biggest weaknesses?"
You’ll find lots of information online about what to do when you’re asked about your biggest
weakness in an interview. You’ve probably read a lot about how to showcase a strength as
weakness - “I work too hard” or “I’m a perfectionist” are always popular answers, and the
chances are that your prospective employer will have heard them many times before. Try to
be honest – talk about a real weakness and how you are overcoming it. For example: “I used
to find it difficult to speak up in social situations. As a computer programmer, I rarely had to
give presentations. However, this changed when I moved into a managerial position. I signed
up for an online public speaking course and am now comfortable speaking to small
audiences”. An answer like this shows potential employers that you aware of your
weaknesses and that you’re working to overcome them.
- “What do you think are your greatest strengths?”
On the flip side of the ‘biggest weaknesses’ question, this question gives you the opportunity
to demonstrate what makes you stand out from other candidates. Instead of simply listing
lots of adjectives, pick one or two specific qualities that you can relate back to the position,
and back them up with examples. The great thing about this question is that it’s pretty
versatile, so you can use your answer to talk about something you haven’t had the chance to
share in the interview yet. With the job role in mind, think about the skills you really want to
emphasise or any attributes you have which you know would be a great fit within the
company culture, such as teamwork, creative problem-solving or open communication.
Competency Based Questions
Competency based interview questions are used to assess how you have used specific skills in your
career so far. They help interviewers understand how you approach tasks and challenges, how well
you work with other people, if you can think on your feet, and how you cope with stressful
situations. How you answer these questions can highlight how well you match the desired qualities
mentioned in the job profile, what you have
learnt from your past professional experiences, and how well your personality fits with the traits the
company is looking for.
Key competencies which employers often look for include:
- Adaptability
- Communication
- Organisation
- Decisiveness
- Teamwork
- Commercial awareness
- Conflict resolution
- Resilience
Expect questions starting with 'Give an example of…', 'Tell us about a time when you…', or 'Describe
how you…'.
How to answer competency based questions
Ahead of your interview, re-read the job description carefully. For example, if it says that they are
looking for someone with good verbal and written communication skills, the chances are that you
will be asked to speak about a time when you have used those skills to your advantage. Questions
might be about your failures too - it is okay to admit your failures, but it is also important to highlight
what you learnt from them and how you plan to handle similar situations in the future.
To prepare for competency based questions:
- Analyse how your skills fit in with the company’s needs
- Reflect on your previous experience
- Outline situations where you used your skills to your advantage
- UUse the STAR model to structure your answers
The STAR interview technique
The STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) approach is a good way to structure your responses to
competency based interview questions. Provide the context of the situation or background to your
example, keeping it concise. Next, explain the task or activity, then outline describe the action you
took to resolve the situation. Finish off by summarising the result you achieved or what you learnt.
When asking competency based questions, the interviewer will want to understand what you learnt
from your experience, and how you might have done things differently, so preparing a few examples
in advance using the STAR model can be a good way to build your confidence ahead of the interview.
Common competency based interview questions and answers
Here’s an example of how to use the
STAR technique to answer competency based interview
questions.
Question: “Describe a time in which you had to adhere to a tight deadline.”
How you answer this interview question can demonstrate your time-management skills.
Outline the Situation: A core member of the financial team had to go on leave due to a personal
emergency. There were reports that needed to be compiled within a couple of weeks.
Task: While I had never handled a task of this size before, I had been on the team for a while and felt
that it was time for me to step up and make sure the reports were finished on time.
Action: I made a checklist of all the components needed for the reports and cross-checked them
with the team member over a telephone call. I then broke down the various sections needed intosmaller, manageable
pieces and allocated them to the rest of the members of our team, including
myself. I continued putting the information together as my team finished it and asked my supervisor
for some time off from my non-pressing tasks to compile the reports.
Result: My hard work paid off and the necessary reports were filed on time, saving my company
unnecessary delays.
Behavioural Questions
Interviewers ask behavioural questions to gain an insight into a candidate’s personality and abilities.
While competency based questions are more about assessing the skills and experience you would
bring to the role, behavioural questions help interviewers to understand whether you fit the culture
of the organisation and the mould of the type of person they think can do the job. Behavioural
questions are often used to assess how you’ve handled past situations in the workplace, to reveal
the way you approach problems to achieve a successful outcome. Interviewers are usually looking
for descriptive answers to behavioural questions rather than a simple yes/no.
Using the STAR technique to answer these questions can help you give context to your responses.
Here are some example behavioural interview questions and answers:
- “Tell us about how you dealt with a situation where you had to work with a
colleague whose personality or work style was very different to yours.”
This type of question lets you demonstrate valuable soft skills such as flexibility and
collaboration. You could describe how you took the initiative to organize the task at
hand so that it was completed using both your strengths to the fullest. As well as
showing off your communication skills, you can also use this question to show the
interviewer how well you work in a team.
- “How do you deal with difficult clients?”
Although it might be tempting to skirt past the difficult customer question, giving a
generic answer might suggest that you don’t have a lot of experience in conflict
resolution. Keep your answer professional, describe your role in the situation,
explain what you did to solve the problem and what the outcome was.
- “How you do approach problems?”
When answering this question, you’ll want to describe the tools and techniques you
use to work through a problem, such breaking it down into steps to be tackled one
at a time. Try to emphasise that you take the initiative and that you are able to think
critically about a situation before taking action. You'll want to show you can:
- Identify the problem
- Analyse the situation
- Implement the solution
Remember, an interview is also your golden opportunity to get to know your potential employers
better, work out if the company would be a good fit for you and ask any questions you may have.
For more career advice, check out our other candidate blogs here.
Once you’ve prepped your answers, why not check out some of our other career guides:
If you need help updating your CV or to find out about our latest roles, contact your local Adecco branch and connect with a recruiter today!