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FORBESWOMAN | 10/18/2013 @ 11:26AM | 49.401 views

What To Expect During An HRInterview? -- Five Questions

ou'll Be Asked During A

Screening Interview

By Melissa Llarena

Screening interviews with human resources professionals are a

crucial step to getting the job. A good or bad interview with HR will

determine how far you go in the interviewing process, so its best to

know what to expect and go in prepared.

As a career coach, I have worked with job candidates on how to

answer the most common questions asked by HR. My mock

interviewsplace clients in situations similar to ones they will

actually face and prepare them to ace their interviews and land the

ob.

Lets take a look at the five most common questions asked by HR

during screening interviewsand how you should approach them.

1. Why are you interested in this position?

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HR professionals love this question so

use it as your chance to reiterate your

strengths and highlight your applicable skill set and

passion for the company and the role. Speak to how

your past experiences match the qualifications forthe job using keywords from the job description to

make the connection stronger. By clearly linking

your skills to the position, you are helping the HR

manager envision you in the role.

Sample Answer: Having worked within the financial

services sector for five years, I have gained an

appreciation for the power of client-facing roles in

terms of my professional development and

organizational impact. As a relationship manager in

your firm, I envision bringing my ability to

resourcefully optimize any given clients portfolio as

the best way I can help your companys five-year

strategic goal of retaining its client base at a 50%

rate. I have done this in the past in X capacity while

working for my previous employer and am

confident that I can help you accelerate yourcurrent goals while growing my career.

2. Tell me about yourself.

As an age-old prompt that will likely never go away,

its important to know how to provide a compelling

answer for an HR manager. Instead of the typical

chronological progression of your background, I

recommend doing a SWOT analysis within thecontext of a professional interview. Analyze the sector, the company, and the

ob function using a SWOT and look for opportunities to market yourself. I go

into this in more detail in my blog post on how to tell your professional story

in a way that will entice an interviewer to hire you.

Sample Answer: I have been a sales manager for X years, with experiences

that include being able to lead a sales force toward the accomplishment of

aggressive goals. In light of your organizations core strength in hiring the

brightest salespeople, I would know exactly how to coach them to sell both

new and legacy products in new markets quickly. While atCompany X, I

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I

created the gold standard incentive program that resulted in helping us sell-in

potential charge volume that exceeded our goals by 20% in both travel

expenses and daily expenses. Prior to that, I worked at X where I completed

X, etc. Side note: figure out the assets of the hiring firm or its needs and tailor

your response accordingly.

3. Why are you leaving your current job?

HR managers ask this question to determine if there are any red flags related

to your departure. Are you leaving on good terms or bad? Are you looking to

escape from your current job or grow within a new one? These are a few of the

questions running through the interviewers mind. Take this opportunity to

speak positively of your current employer but communicate that youre

looking at this new position as the next step in your career. By framing your

answer positively, youre making the interviewer focus on your potential

contributions rather than any red flags.

Sample Answer: My business unit started with 50 full-time employees and

today it has 10. While this reduction in personnel enabled me to showcase my

ability to produce results with limited resources in an organization where

management has turned over, I am interested in transitioning to an

organization like yours where there is growth potential. For example, in my

current role I managed to acquire 100K clients with only one other salesmanager and a dwindling budget. In your company, I would be managing a

team of 20 sales managers, where I stand to make a significant impact not

only for your firm but on the firms market share.

4. What do you know about the company?

This is a test and one you should be able to pass easily. Doing research on a

company prior to an interview is a necessity. You need to know the history

and makeup of the company, who the key players are, recentaccomplishments and mentions in the press, and any other relevant

information. Communicate the positive information you learned about the

company, from awards to new product launches, to demonstrate your

knowledge.

Sample Answer: Your firm competes with firm A, firm B, and firm C in the

U.S. My understanding is that you are better positioned in this area vs. firms

A, B, or C. Meanwhile, firms B and C bring these strengths to the table. Given

my skill set, I know that I can help you optimize your strength in this andoffset the strengths that firms B and C plan to invest more heavily in during

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