COMM 202W12: Interviews

T35 & T36

The last tutorial L

Tutorial 8

Agenda

1. Employment Interview Assignment

2. Interview Questions

3. Closing

4. Words of Wisdom

5. Action Items

Employment Interview

Employment Interview (10%)

When: April 4th, 5th, and 7th

o Check in with “reception” in Birmingham 10 minutes beforeyour scheduled time; your interviewer will come to waiting area to get you

o Not there when interviewer comes out = automatic “0”o The interview will last 20 minutes with 1-2 Commerce 202 team

members o Please bring your pen, resume, job posting, and cover

letter in a padfolio

Dress to Impress

Business Formal

Interview Questions

Questions to Expect

1. Tell me about yourself / Walk me through your resume

2. What are your strengths?

3. What are your weaknesses?

4. Tell me about a time when…

5. WILD CARD / Problem-solving

6. Do you have any questions?

1. Tell Me About Yourself.

o Keep it 2 minutes or lesso Brand yourself – give them something to remember you byo Sound natural, not like you’re reading off a script!o Speak to your skills and accomplishmentso Show passion o Provide a well-rounded picture

The MOST COMMON QUESTION you will get in an interview.Can be asked in different ways… PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

Your Story

The Beginning

Growing Interest

The Spark

Your Future

Why you are here

Introduction – quick background

Realization that this was the career for you

Your formula that makes you perfect for the job!

Where you see yourself

How this position ties into it all

What is Your Story’s Formula?

? + ? ?+

THE GOAL: Tell them a story that no one else can replicate and impress them in the first 2 minutes

Grading Rubric: About Yourself

I would hire you on the spot (2 points)

I would like to interview you again (1 point)

I would not hire you (0 points)

TELL ME ABOUT YOURSELF

Student provides a relevant, chronological “story” highlighting their beginning, spark, growing interest, goals and fit to the organization in a concise manner (2 minutemax)

The student provides a chronological “story” highlighting most but not all of the 5 aspects listed in the first column in a concise manner and/or answer was longer than 2 minutes

Student provided “story” that is neither concise (more than 2 minutes) nor chronological/logical

My Story

/+ + /1) strategic visionary thinking, 2) collaborating people/teams

together, and 3) technical challenges

Current SWD @ Visier: front-end development, customer-facing features,

working with UX. WRASA: great management experience,

team building, entrepreneurial

JDCW: previous competitor, current coach for MIS team

NVD: Building a startup from the ground up w/ 3 Bus. & 3 Eng.

Activity

Grab a partner and share“tell me about yourself”

stories

Give some feedback!

2. What are your Strengths?

o A way for the interviewer to tell if you know yourself and that you know you have what it takes to do the job

o Can also be asked in different ways!

o There is no right answer – just good answers and bad answerso Link experiences to the position/company

Grading Rubric: Strengths

I would hire you on the spot (2 points)

I would like to interview you again (1 point)

I would not hire you (0 points)

STRENGTHS

Student is able to choose strengths relevant to the position, give a strong example with proof of execution and links the experience to the job opportunity

Student is able to choose strengths relevant to the position, gives a strong example of execution, but may lack a link to the position

Student’s strength may be irrelevant to the position and/or lacks proof ofexecution or link to job opportunity

3. What are your Weaknesses?

Do not flip WEAKNESSES

intoSTRENGTHS!

3. What are your Weaknesses

✘ “I’m such a perfectionist”✘ “Too detail-oriented”✘ “Over-achiever”✘ “I work too hard sometimes”

üWeakness wouldn’t impair you from doing the jobüShow you have a plan to improve these weaknesses

üShow the “lesson learned”

Grading Rubric: WeaknessesI would hire you on the spot (2 points)

I would like to interview you again (1 point)

I would not hire you (0 points)

WEAKNESSES Student is able to choose a developmental area not key to the function of the position and share how they overcame the situation, the lesson learned and action plan moving forward, while demonstrating self reflection and resilience

Student is able to choose a developmental area not key to the function of the position and share how they overcame the situation,however is not able to articulate the lesson learned or action plan moving forward and/or student choose cliché answer ex. “My greatest weakness is my greatest strength”

Student either chose a skill essential to the position or was not able to clearly convey the lesson and/or action plan moving forward; student was unable to provide a weakness

4. Tell me about a time when…

S T A RSituation Task Action Result

What position and where were you?

What was the challenge you faced?

What did YOU do and how did you do it?

What was the accomplishment &

impact?

+ LINK back to job and why the story is relevant

5. Wild Card Questions

5. Wild Card QuestionsIndustry/job specific or… A SURPRISE!

YOUR GOAL

o Walk them through your thought processo Stay calm and provide a clear answer

o A way for the interviewer to gauge your interest and knowledge of the position and industry

o Test your ability to communicate clearlyo Shows the interviewer how you thinko TESTS BUSINESS ACUMEN: news, trends, etc.

FINANCE

PITCHMEASTOCKWHATARETHEBENEFITSVSDOWNSIDESOFUSINGDEBTVSEQUITYFINANCING?HOWWOULDVALUEAPERPETUALZEROCOUPONBOND?DOYOUTHINKTHEFINANCIALMARKETSAREEFFICIENT?

ACCOUNTINGWHYDOYOUWANTTOPURSUEACPA?WHYTHISFIRM?WALK METHROUGHTHEMAJORLINESOFACASHFLOWSTATEMENT?

MANAGEMENTCONSULTING

HOWMANYWORDSONTHEFRONTPAGEOFTHENYTIMES?TELLMEYOUR5WEAKNESSES…ANDANOTHER…ANOTHERDESCRIBEAPROJECTYOUHAVEWORKEDONTHATCHALLENGEDYOU?CASE-BASEDQUESTIONS…

MARKETINGHOWWOULD YOUINCREASESALESOFXPRODUCTBYX%?SELL METHISPEN.HOW DOYOUTHINKOURBLOGISDOING?WHATCANBEDONEBETTER?

TLOGHOW COULDYOUIMPROVETHECOMPANY’SPRODUCTIVITY?HOWWOULDYOUDEALWITHADIFFICULTFACTORYWORKER?TELLMEABOUTATIMEYOUIMPROVEDSOMETHINGWHEREYOUWORKED?

HRTELLMEABOUTATIMEWHEREYOUHADTOMOTIVATEATEAMASSUMINGYOUARESELECTED,WHATWOULDBETHEFIRSTCHANGEYOUWOULDMAKE?

RANDOM

WHATIS3/16 INDECIMAL?TELLMEABOUTSOMETHING INTHENEWS,HOWITRELATESTOTHISJOB?WHYAREMANHOLESROUND?TEACHMESOMETHINGYOULEARNEDINSCHOOL?WHATMOTIVATESYOU?

Grading Rubric: Wild Card

I would hire you on the spot (2 points)

I would like to interview you again (1 point)

I would not hire you (0 points)

CREATIVE/STUMPER QUESTIONS

Student “aces” every opportunity to differentiate themselves during the interview: e.g., they offer a credible, logically-organized, and concise answer for every question. If on the rare occasion, they don’t know the answer, they then respond by asking clarifying questions and/or outlining the problem-solving approach they would use. Maintains composure.

Student “handles” some opportunities to differentiate themselves during the interview: e.g., they offer credible and/or logically-organized and/or concise answers for many questions. They sometimes respond by asking clarifying questions and/or outlining the problem-solving approach they would use

They “miss” too many opportunities to differentiatethemselves during interview: e.g., they offer widely varying answers in terms of credibility and/or logical organization and/or conciseness. If they don’t know the answer, they often don’t seem to know how to respond by asking clarifying questions and/or outlining a problem-solving approach

6. Do you have any questions?

o Always have at least 2 questionso Avoid asking questions you could find the answer to on Googleo Never ask a question like, “What do you look for in

candidates?” o Do not ask something that has already been addressed in the

interviewo Always safe to get them talking about themselves – maybe ask

something directly related to their job/industry or some career advice.

ClosingTHANK them

Reiterate your INTEREST

End with a HANDSHAKE

Ask for their BUSINESS CARD

Ask if you can CALL to follow-up

Use their NAME

Follow-Up

REFER TO CONVERSATION

TAILOR TOREADER

EMAIL IN 24 HOURS

THANK THEM RE-ITERATE INTEREST

CHECK FOR TYPOS!

DO NOT WRITE AN ESSAY!!

Follow Up Example

Hi Michael,

I just wanted to say a quick thank you for taking the time to interview me. I really enjoyed our conversation, even though you did not like my top two classic rock bands, at least we could agree on Zeppelin. Good luck with your future at Goldman, hopefully the transition continues to be a smooth one for you.

Best Regards,

Curtis Kuznecov

General Tips

Listen to the question

Answer the darn question

Use your Skills Matrix

DON’T FORGET

TO SMILE J

o Attend company talks, information sessions, open houses, conferences, etc.

o Ask someone out for coffee, cold-email, etc.o Recruiters, current employees, upper-year students, UBC alumnio Be authentic

o Build a roadmap on how to accomplish your dreamo Explore and expand your network

Finding Your Fit

Words of Wisdom

Build Your Future.

Control what you can control.

Fail fast. Find a solution.

Discover Value

people will forgetwhat you said,people will forgetwhat you did,but people will never forgethow you made them feel.

- Maya Angelou

Action Items

Employment Interviews April 4th, 5th & 7th

Lecture next week! (except for Friday)

Informational Interview due April 14th @ TurnItIn

Informational Interview due April 14th @ TurnItIn

Info Interview Assignment

o Contact details (name, company, title, phone, email)

o List of questions askedo Major insights gained – What did you learn during

your informational interview? **This is the most important part, should be 40% of final paper.

o Did you request/receive any information regarding additional connections?

o Follow up action – What will you do to maintain this connection? *Screen shot of thank you email required

o What are your next steps having conducted this information interview?

Assignment Guidelines

10% of your final gradeDue Thursday April 14th

Minimum of one pageIn-person and not current UBC student/staff/faculty or family member

Landing Your Info Interview

1. Find 4 or 5 potential contacts – WHERE?!

2. Research them (Google, LinkedIn) and reach out to contacts you have in common

3. Decide what you want to talk to them about and brainstorm questions and points of commonality

4. Send out your invites! Don’t be offended if they don’t immediately reply