The Interview
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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A woman brought her large dog to the
interview.
A man interrupted the interview to phone
his therapist for advice on how to answer
one of the questions.
A man pulled out a camera and took a
picture of the interviewer. He said he
collected photos of everyone who
interviewed him.
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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Impress upon you the
preparation of yourself, and
for hire or promotion.
Giving you some important
suggesting some strategies
edge during your interview.
importance of
your application
information and
to give you an
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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When you reach the
interview stage of your job
search, you are one step
away from a job offer.
Maybe 5 people interviewed.
People usually underestimate
how much preparation and
practice it takes to have a
really great interview.
The Job Offer
An Affirmative Action/Equal
Employment Opportunity Employer
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The Agency’s own web site.
The work the Unit does.
The job specifications.
Conduct a self-assessment
of your own competencies,
skills, and accomplishments.
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
What’s a competency?
…a specific skill necessary to do a job.
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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Initiative
Utilization of Computer Skills
Impact and Influence
Integrity
Communication
Analytical Thinking
Problem Solving
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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Achievement/Results Orientation
Initiative
Impact and Influence
Customer Service Orientation-if the
position has contact with the public.
Interpersonal Understanding
Organizational Awareness
Analytical Thinking
Conceptual Thinking
Information Seeking
Integrity
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
What are they looking
for:
● 3 years
management/supervisory
experience
What you bring:
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● Experience working with CORE
CT Programs
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● Proven ability to complete
projects on time.
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● Supervisory experience
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
Develop your success
stories focusing on what
they’re looking for:
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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Dress appropriately for the interview. When in doubt, go
conservative. Personal grooming and cleanliness should
be impeccable. Keep cologne or perfume to a minimum.
Pay particular attention to hands and fingernails.
Arrive 10 minutes early.
Know the exact time and
location of your interview; know how long it takes to get
there, park, and find a restroom to freshen up.
Treat other people you encounter with courtesy and
respect. Their opinions of you might be solicited during
the hiring/promotion process.
Offer a firm handshake, make eye contact, and have a
friendly expression when you are greeted by the
interviewer.
Listen to be sure you understand your interviewer’s name
and the correct pronunciation.
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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Treat the interview seriously and show interest in the
employer and the opportunity presented and
respond to questions in a positive manner.
Watch the tone of your voice.
Answer the question and use professional
experiences
or
descriptive
information
to
demonstrate how you would react or respond to a
situation.
Make sure answers have a definite flow. In the
beginning state major points you want to make; in
the middle expand upon those points or ideas, and
in the end reinforce your key points and end on a
positive note.
Make sure you understand the employer’s next step
in the hiring/promotion process; know when and
from whom you should expect to hear next.
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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Maintain good eye contact during the interview.
Sit still in your seat; avoid fidgeting and
slouching.
Respond to questions and back up your
statements about yourself with specific
examples whenever possible.
Ask for clarification if you don’t understand a
question; and be thorough in your responses
while being concise in your wording.
Use good grammar and good diction. Say “yes”,
not “yeah.” Don’t fill pauses with “um,” uh” or
“ah”.
Don’t punctuate sentences with “you
know”, “like”, “see” or “okay”.
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
As soon as they are convinced
that you can do the job, the
degree to which the interviewer
feels comfortable with you is
probably the single most
important determinant of your
acceptability as a applicant or
candidate to be selected for the
position.
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
√ Can and will you do the job.
(do you have the required
experience and
competencies)
√ How will you fit in the
organization.
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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Teamwork
Strengths
Weaknesses
Career Goals
Salary
Stress
Anger
Leadership
Ethics
Project Management
Creativity
Specific skills
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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Tell me about yourself?
Remember:
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They don’t want your life story.
Prepare a tight, well-rehearsed two minute commercial
about why you are the right person for the job.
Your response to this first question will set the tone for the
entire interview.
Finish your response with a question for them.
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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Them: Tell me about yourself
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You: Answer and pause at the end and ask, “From your
experience, what are the two or three most important
things you’re looking for in the ideal candidate.”
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Them: Someone with A, B, and C
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You: “Interesting. Those are all areas I regard as strengths.
Could I take a minute or two and tell you about myself in
regard to those things?”
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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What is the most important thing you want them to
know about you?
What is the second most important thing I want them
to know about me?
What are the key selling points/accomplishments that
prove the first two statements?
What separates you from the competition?
What are some other selling points?
What objections might they have and how are you
going to overcome them?
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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A kind of show and tell about the things you’ve
done relevant to the position: certificates,
samples of your writing, brochures you
developed, formal letters of commendation,
notes thanking you for something you did, etc…
Done in a quality manner
Use it during the interview and/or leave it
behind when you leave
Reduces your nervousness
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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Writing Samples
Training certificates
MS Project spreadsheets
Letters of Recommendation
Detailed Project Descriptions
Performance Appraisal Excerpts
Examples of Best Work performed
Graphs or Charts documenting success
Awards and Certificates of Achievement
Commendations by customers or direct
reports
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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These are questions designed to draw out
how you are likely to respond to situations
once you are on the job, i.e. do you have the
requisite competency
“Tell me about a time when…”; “What would
you do if…”
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
 S/T- Situation and/or Task (paint a
picture for the interviewer)
 A- Action (what did you actually do)
 R- Result (what was the outcome
of your actions)
► Tell me about a time when you demonstrated superior
leadership skills?
► Can you give me an example of your problem solving
skills?
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
Interviewer: Can you tell me about a time when you
had a disagreement with you supervisor? (How did
you resolve it?)
You:
My supervisor and I disagreed about a
completion date of a project that was assigned to
me. Together we went over the tasks that had to be
accomplished and determined I needed to have
estimates from our financial dept. that would take
about three days for them to complete before I
received them.
By communication we both
determined we needed to add three days to the
project to be completed and my supervisor will
contact the manager in the financial dept., so that I
would receive the information needed in time.
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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On what basis will you be making your decision?
Could you talk a little bit about what it will take to
be successful in this position?
What are the key responsibilities of this position?
What’s the most important things I can do in the
first 90 days?
What do you enjoy most about working here?
Could you describe a typical day in the office for
the position you are hiring for.
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
The last person interviewed gets the job 58% of the
time.
The first person, 14% of the time.
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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Avoid one word answers.
Anticipate reasons why they might feel that
you’re not the exact person they want ; be
prepared to tell them something that
overcomes their reservations.
What about illegal questions?
Have questions to ask them-go to google.com
and use <interview questions> as the
keyword.
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
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Be sure to write a thank you note. You not only
want to thank them for the interview, but also want
to restate the case for why you’re the right person.
You have the additional knowledge you gained
through the interview. Put it to work.
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
 Practice
 Practice
 Practice
An Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer