The Final Round
Many employers will utilize a “super day” or a full day of interviews for their internship and full time job recruitment.  It is important to be prepared for these events because they are very different than a regular one-on-one interview.  Harish Pathak, a senior econ major, just had the opportunity to experience one of these “super days” and wanted to share his experiences with YOU!  Read closely…because he got the job!

 

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  So you made it through the career fair, then the phone interview, and now you landed your first major interview.  But you soon realize that this isn’t your ordinary interview, it’s a whole day event with multiple interviews, group discussions with other candidates, and most scary, lunch with your potential employer!  Nervousness is the first reaction but with preparation you can tackle it.

Pre-Interview

• Know precisely how to get to the interview location and how long it will take you to get there.  A navigation system saves the hassle of dealing with maps.  If you know the route might have traffic you should think about going by train.
• Know what you are going to wear in advance.  Press it the night before to save time.
• It might seem redundant at this point, but know everything possible about your potential employer.  There are numerous sites but there is nothing more effective than good ol’ google.com.  Every company has well known attributes that set them apart and you should know these by heart.  Not only should you know their strengths but more importantly their weaknesses in the market place.  Fortune, Business Week, and Wall Street Journal all have the latest imformation about the company you are interviewing for.  An interview should be treated just like any other midterm; you need to study for it!
• Talk to your professors!  They know their stuff!  Most professors will be mor than happy to prep students before interviews.  In addition to that, network with previous hires.  They will be experienced in the interviewing process, so they can tell you what to expect.
• Keep ahead of the daily news and sports.  When you are not being interviewed, you will be waiting with representatives of the company or other interviewees.  Awkward silence is…well…awkward.  Make sure you have something to talk about and remember to leave topics like elections or such for your political science class.

Interview

• Take a look at the resume that you submitted.  You should know exactly what is on it and what is not on it.  Any talking points you have regarding education or activities should be on that resume.  “I forgot to put that on my resume” seems unprepared.
• Sleep! I cannot overemphasize this enough.  So you “studied” for your interview but can your brain retain all that informaitonw ith 4 hours of sleep?  No, it cant.  Interivews are like a tennis match, where conversation points are a tennis ball bouncing from side (interviewer) to side (interviewee).  If you are mentally lethargic you might hit that ball out of bounds, on the net, or even worse whiff (uhh….ummmmm….what was the question?).  Whiffing is not only bad, but it’s embarassing and shows that you have poor listening comprehension.
• Be personable.  Your interview can be conducted with other potential hires.  You might see them as your competition but they also might be your potential co-worker so keep that in mind before you try to show off.
• Do you sometimes have food on your face or hair after you eat?  Do you eat that piece of food when you realize that it is there?  If you answered yes, you might want to learn some basic dining etiquette.  Interview breakfast/lunch/dinners are merely a check to see if you can conduct yourself eating in a business setting.  You think you might know all the etiquette there is, but sometimes the basics are forgotten.  A lunch during an interview day is not “Old Country Buffet” where you are encouraged to stuff your face.  Conversation is an important part of the meal, not your roast beef sandwich, so concentrate on those around you.

 After the Interview

• Send your Thank You Letters and make sure they are not the generic “Thank you for the opportunity to blah blah blah…” A thank you letter should reflect what you learned at your interview to show that you are a good listener and that you were engaged during the day.
• Highly organized companies will let you know the specific waiting period before they give a response so dont bother them too much.  However, some companies are not as specific (or organized!) thus a follow-up call or email might be a good idea.
• After all of this, you can relax and wait, and hope for the best!

Spring Connection is not too far away and many of you may have phone interviews before a face-to-face interview. You need to be prepared so do not take it lightly.

Make sure you have your resume in front of you because you will talk about things related to what you have stated there. Have a notebook and a pen handy to jot down any questions, concerns, and details of the job.

I just recently had a phone interview and it is not the casual phone conversation that many people may think. It was like a full blown interview except I didn’t have to be dressed business professional. I was asked all the questions that you would expect to hear in a traditional interview. Here are some.

1. Tell me about yourself.

2. Why do you want to work for our company?

3. What kind of things are you learning in your courses?

4. State a time when you faced adversity. What did you do?

5. What do you feel is your greatest accomplishment in your life?

6. Tell me about a time when working on a group project you had to step up and take the leadership role. How did you accomplish your goals?

7. How do you manage when faced with multiple assignments? What do you do to keep your priorities in line?

8. What are your strengths/weaknesses? ( In life & In your course work).

These are some thing that you would want to ask your self. Many of these phone interviews are to screen potential candidates for traditional interviews.  Here are some tips taken directly from the CSPD website for interviews.

Step One - Prepare

• Know yourself, know the employer, know the position
• Obtain a detailed job description if possible

Based on your research of the organization and understanding of the position, you should be able to discuss the following:

• Business direction & goals
• Business philosophy and style of management
• The position
• The organization

Step Two - Practice

Interviewers often form opinions quickly. From the moment you meet the interviewer, you make an impression with your verbal and non-verbal communication. Analyze and improve your communication skills:

• Check the tone of your voice
• Use good language, grammar and diction
• Practice well thought-out answers
• Rehearse your responses
• Schedule a mock interview with CSPD
• Restate long or complex questions for clarity before you answer
• Take time to think before you answer. Short pauses are acceptable

Step Three - Perform

During your interview your primary objective is to stress what you can do to meet the needs and goals of the employer.

• Focus on skills that relate to the position
• Demonstrate your enthusiasm and self-confidence
• Relax and smile
• Think before you answer a question

Step Four - Follow-up

Thank the interviewer for his or her time

Make sure you understand the employer’s timing and process for filling the job

Remember to take phone interviews as serious as real interviews. You want to sound professional and confident. Visit http://sbm.temple.edu/cspd/interview.html for more interview tips from the CSPD!

So in light of Obama’s recent accomplishment, I thought it was only fitting to write a blog about him and what we can all learn from his wisdom and eloquence.  Barack Obama is wonderful at storytelling.  How many times throughout his campaign did you hear him talk about this situation or that situation and after his description were you able to place yourself into the story?  He has a great talent at creating a very strong image and allowing people to make a strong personal connection to that image.  This type of storytelling can be extremely effective in an interview as well.  It is important to show a hiring manager what you have done in the past and this is not the part of the interview where you want to be brief and trite.  It is important that you allow the interviewer to gain a feeling of what it would be like to work with you. 

One of the many other things Obama did exceptionally well was his strength in the use of a tricolon.  “A tricolon is a sentence with three clearly defined parts of equal length, usually independent clauses and of increasing power. ” Popular examples of a tricolon are “Veni, vidi, Vici” or “I came, I saw, I conquered.”  Now I can see how these types of examples would be hard to incorporate into an interview but there are very practical ways of utilizing this strong communication tool.  Take for example a small exerpt from one of Barack Obama’s speeches…

It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give [1] five dollars [2] and ten dollars [3] and twenty dollars to this cause. It grew strength [1] from the young people who rejected the myth of their generation’s apathy; who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep; [2] from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on the doors of perfect strangers; [3] from the millions of Americans who [1] volunteered, [2] and organized, [3] and proved that more than two centuries later, a government [1] of the people, [2] by the people [3] and for the people has not perished from this Earth. This is your victory.”

So think about this the next time you are in an interview.  If you are asked ”Why do you want this job,” try to answer in 3 parts! 

You might say, “I want this job because I feel I understand the needs of your organization, because I love company X’s commitment to the professional development of their employees, and I feel that this is the right next step for me in my career.” 

It is always helpful to listen to other great speakers and employ what was learned in your own personal life.  Obama is a great example of someone who uses small techniques to make a big impact.

http://grammar.about.com/b/2008/11/06/barack-obamas-secret-for-stirring-a-crowd.htm