Tag: job interview coaching

Most career professionals will state that the job interview is the most fearful activity they have to undertake. They are wrong! In fact, more people fear public speaking above all else.

Therefore, the job interview presentation is twice as scary.

To help applicants to have interview success, the following interview presentation guide gives a step-by-step process, from the construction of the interview presentation to the delivery, designed to help interviewees pass the job interveiw presentation section of the job interview.

How to create a good interview presentation

Presentation preparation is key.

The 3 steps to create an interview presentation are:

Step 1 – know your audience

Step 2 – time your speech

Step 3 – plan your delivery

Know your audience

The first task for any public speaker is to know what to say.

Employers will send candidates a presentation brief explaining the duration of the presentation (often 10-15 minutes), the topic/presentation title (or questions that need answering) and any additional requirements (must use slides, add a Q&A section to the presentation).

Once you have the ‘rule book’ or brief for the presentation, the next step is to think about the audience. Interviews that require a presentation will often have 2-3 interviewers assessing the interview performance.

Remember – the interviewers will want the applicants to perform well, as they are looking to hire the best applicant for the vacancy.

When the candidate enters the room, the lead interviewer will confirm the duration of the presentation and any of the key rules (Q&A).

It is up to the interviewee to start and stop the presentation within the allocated time slot. The audience, the interviewers, will remain quiet throughout the presentation. This can be off-putting for some presenters, or a positive for others.

The interviewers use the presentation to test presenting skills if that is a requirement of the job role, or for most non-teaching positions, the interviewers use a presentation to check the applicant’s level of industry knowledge.

How many slides do you need for a 10-minute interview presentation

A commonly asked question for interview presentations is how many slides to during a 10 minute presentation.

The answer is as many or as little as you like. Not the best answer I know, but what the presenter needs to decide is what will make them a more confident orator?

Two possible choices:

Maximum slides – having 10-20 slides to flick through has one key advantage; data, information and prompts can be added to the slide deck helping the interviewee to stay on track during the presentation, increasing delivery confidence.

Also, additional slides moves the audiences eye contact away from the speaker and onto the powerpoint (a positive for anxious speakers)

Having a high amount of slides can be a negative as some speakers, especially nervous speakers, will be overwhelmed by having to flick through slides that are linked to the speech.

In addition, some speakers with a large slide deck will rely on the slide deck in preference of practice – a big no-no!

Minimum slides – the second option, therefore, is to have minimum slides (2-3 slides) This shows confidence and encourages all eyes to be on the speaker.

By being the focus within the interview presentation, rather then beautiful visual slides being the main focus, employers will increase rapport through the confident, well-rehearsed, delivery of industry-related information.

If, however, the present lacks confidence the all eyes on them approach can be daunting.

The number of slides required for a 10-minute speech.

Returning to the question. A good rule of thumb is 1 slide per minute. This allows enough verbal communication vs visual data to create a professional style speech.

Interview presentation structure

When preparing for an interview presentation, applicants will no doubt google ‘presentation structures.’ There is a wealth of knowledge online, with speaking structure advice stating ‘add an intriguing hook’ ‘start at the end’ ‘use storytelling’ and any number of suggestions.

For an interview presentation keep it simple (unless you are an experience public speaker).

The easiest speech stuck to adopt is a 3 step speech structure:

1. State what you will be discussing
2. Discuss the topic
3. Summarise what you have discussed

Remember, for most interview presentations you are not being marked on your oration skills, rather the interviewer is looking for sector knowledge and insight.

Your presentation doesn’t have to be fancy, it simply has to highlight the applicant’s level of industry knowledge and experience.

By stating clearly what the presentation will cover makes it easier for the interviewers to record the essential criteria during the speech, as they know that each section is about particular criteria.

In the main, there will be 3 key points that each interviewee will be trying to get across, with sub-point for high skilled complex job roles. Step 2, discussing the topic, is the most important part of the interview presentation.

During step 2 give examples, state facts and discuss any relatable sector knowledge. If the presentation requires the applicant to discuss multiple criteria break the tep into 3 sections “to explain (criteria) I will discuss A, B and C. A is when….”

To end the presentation, it is important to summarise what has been discussed. The summary remains the interviewers of the applicants sector knowledge and experience as well as making it clear that the presentation has ended ” to conclude…..”

Body language tips

Non-verbal communication is just as important as verbal communication during an interview presentation.

The body language of a speaker can show confidence, reinforce the discussion and keep an audience engaged.

Start the presentation ‘planted’ on the stage.

Just before the applicant speaks, a good speaking trick is to pick a spot, front and centre, on the stage and stand with legs shoulder width apart. Stay silent for a few seconds, then open the speech with a solid line without moving from the chosen spot – this comes across as confident.

Move with purpose

After the first line the speaker can ‘move with purpose.’ After saying a statement, the speaker can move across the stage before discussing the next point. During the movement the sides can switch to the next one in line.

This creates hits 3 speaking element; visual aids from the slidedeck, movement which helps keeps an audience engaged and a focus on the speaker when they have an important point to make, achieved by speaking when standing still.

Eye contact

Confident speakers have a natural ability to hold eye contact. When making a point look at one of the interveiwers and hold their gaze through the point being made. at the end of the point flick yoru eyes across the other interveiwers. On the next point pick a different interview to maintain eye contact with.

Holding eye contact increases rapport, as the audience feels part of the speech – you are talking directly to them. It is also hard for an interviewer to lose concentration when they are maintaining eye contact, keeping the interview panel engaged throughout the presentation.

Open gestures

As well as highlighting the candidate’s competency level, the interview presentation also increases or decreases candidate likeability. Likeability can be increased through the speaker’s body language.

Crossed arms is a sign of defensiveness.

Open gestures; palms facing the audience highlights friendliness.

Smile increases warmth.

Talking with hands shows confidence and reinforces the vernal point the speaker is making.

Hand covering mouth, or ear rubbing while speaking is a sign of deceit.

Stay calm during the interview presentation

Each year psychologist poll people’s biggest fear and each year public speaking ranks as the number one fear.

Being anxious in a job interview only ends badly.

Increasing confidence is relatively easy. First, you need to understand how the nervous system affects the job interview outcome, by setting off the fight or flight response;

The thought of failing increases the heart rate which sends a signal to the brain stating that you, the applicant, are in danger. Once the brain detects a threat, the fight or flight response kicks in.

To be more confident in the job interview applicants can turn the fight or flight response off.

The power of imagination in a job interview.

The mind can only truly focus on one thought – if you imagine being confident in a job interview; seeing yourself as charismatic, charming and a great communicator, your emotions (through the mind/body cycle) will be in confidence mode.

List Interview Successes

Focusing the mind on interview strengths rather than interview failures, increasing job interview confidence. The same process is used for daily affirmations. If you repeat to yourself your strengths you will believe these to be true, therefore perform better in the job interview.

Interview Humour

It is well known that smiling increases likeability with an interviewer. But a second additional benefit comes from smiling – it relaxes you. Thinking of something humorous, or even laughing at the fact you feel so nervous when all you have to do is talk about yourself for 45 minutes, can be enough to make you smile, and therefore relax.

To help applicants pass job interviews, career professionals can take the job interview prediction test to determine their interview identity.

Job Interview Advice

Seven million years ago, when humans first roamed the world, the only job was survival.

To access this career, the ‘job seeker’ didn’t require career guidance, they were simply born into the tribe. The job in question was hunting and gathering, and of course reproduction.

The first job market

As the hunter and gatherers settled down and became farmers, ‘jobs’ as we know became more integrated into daily life with each tribe member (or now farmer or field hand) having an expertise.

Farmers, toolmakers, carpenters, the original doctors (or medicine men, as they were known) and other essential workers were required to keep the population well fed and safe, with each generation improving their skill set and knowledge to survive in the new world.

As farms became towns and towns turn into cities, more specialist careers were required; ironmongers, horse breeders, herbalist, butchers, jewelry makers. Before long, there were lawyers, politicians and soldiers.

Family Careers

Initially, skills were passed down from one generation to another, with each family teaching their children the skills of their trade. Observational learning started at an early age with children supporting their parents and older siblings to help keep food on the plate.

A career was necessary to survive. If a family couldn’t sell what they created, they could easily find themselves on the street.

Apprenticeships originally started when a family who didn’t have children (or enough children to keep up with demand) took on other children as apprentices. The first apprenticeships were originally a contract of servitude.

Industrial Revolution Jobs

By the 1800s the world had the industrial revolution. The industrial revolution saw the increase in a need for low-skilled workers, as large factors required hundreds of humans to be cogs in the industrial machine.

Career choices were made on where a person lived (and class status) rather than personal preference. Living in Manchester increased the likelihood of a factory career, or a fishing profession if you lived near the coast.

Careers and livelihoods depended on an areas success, not the skills of an individual.

Transport opened up the job market

As transport links (the invention of motorcars and railways) allowed people to move with ease to new areas, allowing individuals to chase the jobs of their dreams. This created competition for jobs.

The technology was also changing the job landscape, with machines being used to automate basic tasks, which led to the Luddites movement.

The first recorded job interview.

Thomas Edison, in 1921, was the first employer to be recorded to have used a recruitment process. The assessment used was to test the knowledge of job applicants.

When the famous inventor Edison required a new staff member he would receive hundreds of applications. But the problem Edison faced was his new employees did not have the required knowledge for the job role.

Instead of hiring ‘anyone’ Edison created a test to check the applicant’s knowledge and experience.

Edison Interview Questions

What is the first line in the Aeneid?

Who was the Roman Emperor when Jesus was born?

Where is the River Volga?

What is brass made of?

Who assassinated President Lincoln?

Modern Job Interviews

Next came face to face interviews, assessment centres and practical exams. Technology continues to influence the job interview; the invention of telephones leads to telephone screening interviews, the internet creating video interviewing and artificial intelligence creating an online automated (non-human) interview process.

To help applicants pass job interviews, career professionals can take the job interview prediction test to determine their interview identity.

Job Interview Advice

Graduating into Employment

Post higher education, accessing the world of work can not only be daunting it can be harder then expected.

Having a degree doesn’t guarantee job offers. In fact, for many industries, a degree is a minimum requirement, not a gold standard.

What is a graduate scheme?

One option for graduates is a ‘graduate scheme.’ A graduate scheme is a 1-3 year structured training programme designed by an employer to support a new graduate to gain a level of industry competencies.

Even though a graduate scheme is an employed training scheme, starting salaries can be high. The negative side of a well paid training programme for graduates is the competition for each graduate scheme vacancy.

Graduate schemes vacancies often go live between from July-Nov. The recruiting process is often long and can include a CV, application form, assessment centers and competency-based interviews, with most employers looking for graduates with a 2.1 grade.

In addition to a well paid graduate job, most employers will offer graduates a full time position once the graduate scheme has ended.

What is a graduate job?

A graduate job is essentially a job for graduates, often the first position the graduate accesses after university or higher education in a further education establishment.

Graduate positions are those roles that require the applicants to possess a certain level of knowledge and skills gained from completing a degree level course. This level of industry knowledge reassures the employer that the graduate will be able to complete sector related activities.

The application route for a graduate job is the same process for employed jobs in each sector, with a common recruitment process comprising off application form, assessment and panel interview.

What is an internship?

Another option for graduates (and current students) is to apply for an internship. The internship, which often last around 1-12 months and can be full or part-time, is a chance for the ‘intern’ to gain sector experience by becoming employed (some internships are voluntary) and taking on sector related duties.

Even with the voluntary internships and for all paid internships, the graduate needs to apply for the inten position as they would a full time role.

Graduate Job Interviews

For all 3 options; internship, graduate job or a graduate scheme, the graduate will be expected to attend and pass an interview as part of the recruitment process.

Questions asked to graduates vary from the commonly asked job interview questions, even though there is some overlap.

Graduate interviews will generally be split into 3 sections, with interview questions being asked on the applicant’s degree course, their industry knowledge in the form of technical questions and work ethic.

Graduate Interview Questions

Applicant’s degree course interview questions

Tell me about your degree course and what you have learnt from it?

What has been your biggest achievement during your time at university?

What grade did you achieve and was this what you expected to achieve?

What part of the degree course did you least enjoy?

Why did you choose that particular degree?

Technical (sector related) interview questions

Technical interview questions varying depending on each industry but will often come in the following format:

What does (add abbreviation) mean?

How would you complete X process or system?

What is your understanding of (sector model/theory)?

Do you have any (industry) related experience?

How is technology changing the future of our sector?

Work ethic interview questions

Did you have a job while studying?

What examples of working collaboratively can you provide?

What would your teacher/professor say about you?

Explain how you would contribute to meeting the organization objectives?

What would you do if a deadline was approaching but you only had 30 minutes until the end of the working day?

Job Interview Advice

The type of job interview questions being asked during recruitment processes has started to change. Why? Because commonly asked job interview questions are predictable, allowing interviewees to create and rehearse their answers prior to the job interview.

The well established, and easy to predict, job interview questions are being asked less frequently because a pre-rehearsed answer makes it difficult for an employer to accurately predict a candidate’s job performance – the goal of a job interview.

‘Are you a good team player?’ – to obvious for a modern day interview.

‘Have you ever taken a day off work?’ – the data is now gathered via an employer reference.

‘What motivates you?’ – predictable, with many answers lacking real substance and therefore insight into the employee’s work ethic.

Instead, a new style of personal-value interview questions are being asked, designed to uncover an applicant’s work ethic, motivational style and to predict a candidate’s job performance.

These interview questions are harder to predict as the questions don’t come up during a ‘job interview question’ Google search….until now!

New Interview Questions

What is the vision for your career?

At face value, this question feels like an employer is being friendly, asking about the applicant’s longer-term objective. Reading between the lines it is obvious that the employer is really asking about employee retention.

Open interviewees might well discuss different sectors they are interested in or mention starting up a business, some may talk about promotional opportunities and becoming an industry expert in the position they are applying for.

There are no right or wrong answers, from an applicant’s perspective, but to get hired employers are looking for a recruit who they can train up, support and develop, and in return an employee who desires to work, for a long timer within their organisation.

What was the decision for accepting the position at your last employer and the decision for leaving them?

A very cleverly worded interview question that strikes at the heart of the matter – an employees motivational pull.

Research shows that career professionals will spend a similar duration, give or take a year or two, with each employer. Answers like ‘I felt it was time to move on’ are clues to this employee’s mindset.

Mentioning a ‘challenge’ for both parts of the question indicates that the employee becomes easily bored.

‘Wanting to be part of a bigger organisation’ can show that an applicant has ambition.

One of the best ways to answer the second part of the question is for the applicant to state how they were very happy with their current employer and only decided to apply for another role after a friend shown them the job advert knowing that (the applicant) had always wanted to work for this organisation.

Imagine you had £7000 to spend on professional-development, what would you do with it?

Many of these new tricky interview questions can daunting, but often the roots of the question relate back to a traditional interview question(s). This question is a new version of the ‘what do you do to keep up with your professional development?’

When answering the question split the answer into two parts. Part 1 what you have currently done to develop your skills and Part 2 how you would spend the £7k

“I would love to have £70000 to spend on professional development. Over the past 2 years, I have focused on developing X and have completed X training courses, gaining skills that I have used to (give a unique selling point)…”

“…If I had £7000 I would want to develop (add specialist knowledge) as this could be used to (generate income)”

This interview answer template is saying 1) I am a lifelong learner 2) I utilise new learning to help to company achieve its objectives 3) I have all the basic industry knowledge so I would only require specific training that could add value to the organisation.

If you were me, what question would you ask you to uncover your weaknesses?

The framing of this question is perfect. The old ‘what are your weaknesses?’ interview question was pants, resulting in most interviewees saying ‘once I spot a weakness I develop my skills to overcome it.’ This response got a bit boring!

The update version is brilliant, with the interviewer putting the owness on the applicant. To be sure, the employer will be asking a follow up question to your reply.

(Candidate) ‘I would ask about X project I worked on’ (employer) ‘what happened on X project?’

Who has shaped you and what did they do?

Mentor-related interview questions are great as you can kill two birds with one stone by giving a two-part answer; requesting a mentor and how the mentor helped you to grow.

By explaining how, due to your passion for professional development, that you wanted to improve (a certain skill or knowledge) you approach a (mentor) This shows how you take it upon yourself to improve your skillset, that you can recognize potential areas of improvement and how you are proactive and confident enough to approach a work mentor.

When discussing the mentoring process stay away from when discussing the mentor’s experience in detail, just reference this before focusing on what you gain from being a mentee and more importantly how you implemented what you learnt into business as usual.

Why are you passionate about our brand?

The core of the interview question is ‘why do you want to work for us?’ But organisations, the bigger companies; Google, Microsoft, Coca-Cola, Disney, etc want to hire passionate employees.

Brands like Amazon are bringing to life their vision. Think about it, Amazon started off selling books and now have their ‘Prime’ services including; Prime TV, Prime Music, Alexa. This global vision is only achieved by hiring staff that can live the company values. To achieve this recruitment goal the hiring team requires passionate employees.

Discuss what it is you love about the company, their products, innovation, way of working.

Tell me about your current teammates?

Requesting an opinion about a team member, manager or organisation creates an insight into the candidate’s temperament.

Answering with ‘they are good but need me to lead them’ doesn’t show leadership, instead it hints to a poor teamwork attitude.

‘X team member was great, they would explain each project, set us a task, and check in to ensure we could meet the project deadlines.’ This type of interview answer highlights that the applicant will need micro-management and lacks initiative.

A good answer, to this question, would be one that explained how collectively you would share ideas to achieve an objective, but when required, for a project with a short deadline as an example, the applicant would take the lead. Giving a couple of different real-life examples will ensure the interview answers meets the marks for the interview scorecard.

What didn’t you add to your CV because you thought is was unprofessional?

On average a CV is only 2 pages long – far from enough to add all of a career professionals’ experiences and skills. In addition, many applicants will miss information as they will deem it unimportant for the job role they are applying for.

When answering interview questions about missing information, the applicant still needs to bear in mind the essential criteria recorded in the job description – don’t go to off-script.

Talking about an earlier job role (after leaving school) and how you gain a skill that you have continued to develop over the course of a career works well, as does joking about a random hobby, before relating how the skill gained from (hobby) is utilised in the day to day task in your current role.

How old was you when you started working?

With many career professionals now working from home or having flexible working contracts, work ethic is high on a recruiter’s radar.

Being asked about what seems an unimportant period in your career is one-way employers understand the motivation of the person they are interviewing. As for example, an applicant talks about how they started a part-time job at the age of 14 to earn extra money for a new pair of trainers shows a person’s attitude towards life, and work.

Applying for additional work experience or volunteering to gain new skills shows work ethic. Even for those who started work at a later stage in their life, answering the question by saying my first job was when I was 25, previously to this I….(give a detailed explanation of what the interviewee did and the reason for their choice) allows an employer to understand what drives the individual.

If we had a review session in 12 months’ time, what would you be discussing with me?

The answer to the review interview question depends on the industry each applicant works in. What is required for all sectors is the ability to think about the objectives of the advertised position; to increase sales, meet project targets, team leadership, increasing website hits) and explain how you be discussing the steps you took to achieve the objective (and then explain each step you took).

You could also say your pay rise, but that joke doesn’t always go down well!

Tell me about a time when you almost failed and what you did to succeed?

When discussing a negative, which this interview questioned is designed to make you do, interviewees need to think about how they will frame the negative.

To answer the ‘failed’ interview question, follow this simple 3 step process

Step 1 – explain the situation, task or project

Step 2 – detail the failure – here is where you set the new frame; you can reference the external forces that created the failure – a most recent example would the impact of COVID which was unpredictable.

Step 3 – showcase your ability and skill set by explaining the actions you took to make the failure into a success.

Personality Interview Questions

One new style of job interviewing is strength-based interviewing where questions are framed with options or to check an applicant’s preferred style of working. The interview question focuses on what the applicant enjoys doing rather than what they can do, allowing recruiters to hire candidates that match their way of working, while reviewing the interviewee’s ability to meet the minimum standard required to be hired.

Some example strength based interview questions are:

Are you better at finding a problem or a solution?

Do you prefer to start or finish task?

Don’t worry about answering these questions as there are no right or wrong answers, you are stating your preference. You can, if inclined to, research the company to understand how they operate to give you an idea of the ‘perfect’ answer.

As an example a ‘blue-sky thinking’ company may ask “to achieve an objective do you implement well-used methods or think out the box?” For a creative company, they may prefer an answer relating to being ‘innovative’.

Job Interview Advice

Interviews are changing.

Telephone interviews are now online video interviews, structured interviews have taken over the informal interview and 1 to 1 interviews are, in the main, 1 to 2 interviews.

Assessments are being completed by external recruitment companies and skill test are becoming a more popular way to assess candidates.

So, with all these changes – what do you say in a job interview?

Well, there might have been changes to the style of the interview but what you say in the job interview remains the same.

Here are 6 things you must always say in the job interview

What to say in the job interview – I have the required skills and experiences

Ok, this sounds obvious. But the number one reason for failing a job interview is not referencing enough of the job criteria

A job seeker has been invited to a job interview, therefore the employer deems the applicant as suitable. The real purpose of a job interview then is to hire the best of all the ‘suitable’ applicants.

To assist in the hiring of an excellent employee, employers will ask 6-10 job interview questions that ask for evidence from the interviewee to show that they have the much-needed experience.

Each answer is marked a job interview scorecard. To score high, and receive the job offer, candidates have to discuss or make reference to the positions essential criteria. Each mentioned criteria increases an applicant’s interview score.

To help prepare for a job interview it is good to know what questions are asked in a job interview as this will help a candidate to create a high point scoring interview answer(s).

What to say in the job interview – positive things about the organisation

The biggest concern of modern day employer is staff retention.

The millennial job seeker is a job hopper. Recruiters know that by hiring a career professional, who has the ambition to work for their organisation, they are more likely to stay with the company for a long period of time.

Organisations such as Google, Apple, the Walt Disney company, Tesla have seen the benefit of hiring individuals who want to be apart of their vision.

In the job interview, talk about the company mission, vision and values. State what it is about the company that drawn you to applying for the position. By completing research, interviewees can discuss the company culture, impressing the employer with detailed insights, creating likeability through reciprocal liking.

What to say in the job interview – you are a team player

One of the most required skills is teamwork. Every employee is part of a team (even if the position requires someone to work alone) It is the combination of many cogs that makes a machine operational.

In any job interview, the applicant should, no must, state they are a team player. Stand out by going one step further and explain the concept of workplace teamwork; how everyone, working collaboratively, can bring different ideas to a problem to find a collective solution

There is likely to be an obvious job interview question relating to this skill, but if not ensure that several of the interview answers reference; interpersonal communication, collective problem solving, team leadership decisions, colleague support

What to say in the job interview – that you are a lifelong learner

Technology, globalisation and artificial intelligence have a direct effect on the economy and the labour market.

From an employer’s perspective all these small, medium and big sector changes have a costly outcome. Businesses need to stay competitive, which means employees need to have the right knowledge and skill set.

Interviewers are looking to recruit lifelong learners; employees who have a passion for the industry, resulting in them developing their knowledge and skills in their own time.

Employers will willingly fund continuous professional development, but by hiring a lifelong learner they can be confident that the new employee won’t get ‘stuck’ in the ‘old ways of working’

Rapid industry changes require adaptable employees. Examples around responding to change, as well as bringing evidence of personal and career development, will be seen as highly favourable.

Personal development can be expensive courses but can also be cost-free development; reading industry articles, referencing publications and sector trends – here you need to show that you are keen to develop.

Job Interview Advice

How do you prepare for a competency based job interview?

Often referred to as a behavioral job interview, a competency-based job interview is a structured job interview where each applicant is asked the same competency-based job interview questions, in the same order before being scored against the marking criteria on an interview scorecard.

Each competency-based job interview question is designed to check the skill set, and if each applicant requires a certain level of knowledge and experience, for the advertised position.

Interview questions come in two forms: behavioral or situational job interview questions.

Behavioral job interview questions ask the applicant a question based on their past experience “tell me a time when you did X” whereas situational job interview questions ask hypothetical questions “what would you do if…”

Competency-based interviews are a logical process designed to predict the job performance level of each interviewed applicant, with high marks being given to interviewees who reference the essential job criteria (showing knowledge and experience) with confidence (increasing likeability) creating a positive or negative perception of the applicant, their interview identity.

An informal interview, therefore, is a conversational job interview that has no structure and scoring process, resulting in hiring decisions being made ’emotionally’.

10 Common asked competency-based job interview questions

Give me an example of when you have worked well within a team?

Tell me your approach to project management?

What has been your biggest career success to date?

Describe how you work with colleagues and/or stakeholders?

Give an example of going above and beyond?

How have you previously handled a workplace conflict?

Give me an example of your work ethic?

Tell about a time when you went out of your way to get a task completed?

Explain a time when you took charge?

Have you ever had to multitask? How did you prioritise your tasks?

Job Interview Advice

Large organisations such as Asda, Amazon, B&Q, the list continues, as well as medium size companies require a highly skilled warehouse manager to oversee receipt, storage, re-packaging, and dispatch of materials and goods.

As part of, often a global, supply chain process, efficient warehouse managers are skilled at working within a fast-paced industry to organise goods, processes, systems and people (as well as stakeholders) to ensure customers receive their products on time.

This is a technical position that only certain career professionals can gain. Therefore, employers will test applicants with a range of technical and competency-based job interview questions.

Predicting the questions for a warehouse manager position, allows candidates to prepare their example answers.

Warehouse Management Interview Questions (with answers)

Give me an overview of your warehouse management experience

It’s not enough just to state the number of years an applicant has had in warehouse management, or to talks about the entry route into this position. Instead, the employer is looking to hear an overview of the candidate’s skill set.

An example opening line could follow in the lines of; “In all my previous warehouse management roles I have created systems, processes and procedures to ensure the warehouse is a successful part of the supply-chain….”

Once an overview has been given, regarding the interviewee’s experience, specifics relevant to the warehouse sub-sector can be stated. There are too many warehouse niches to record here, but an example maybe “…With over 10 years of experience specialising in cold storage transportation, I have an excellent working knowledge of store temperature-controlled products, such as food and pharmaceuticals, and hazardous materials….”

The applicant does not need to go into too much detail here, as additional competency-based job interview questions will be asked throughout the interview. The goal, when answering this initial interview question, is to create interest.

The answer can then be ended with additional references to standard job duties; “…my ability to build strong working relationships with suppliers allows me to gain the best prices for materials….”

How does the warehouse contribute to the business objectives?

Employers understand the importance of warehouse operations in terms of having a successful business. For some businesses, such as retail, the outfacing store is viewed (by the public) to be the key element of the business, as many people don’t consider the importance of marketing, accounts, logistics, buyers and of course the warehouse operations.

When hiring a warehouse manager, the interviewer will want to ensure that the hired candidate understands how their department is one of many cogs in the successful business machine.

When replying to this job interview question, be sure to explain how the warehouse, along with all other departments, work collaboratively, but also explain how, as a warehouse manager, you help the individual cogs connect. Give an example of how you have worked with other department managers on new projects, or, as an example on specific processes “I have found one way to decrease overhead cost is to work closely with the finance manager when purchasing materials or goods. Most warehouse managers simply purchase the required materials when needed, instead, I make a point of working the finance manager to discuss projected volumes, prices and approved suppliers, and look at ways to decrease cost…”

Give an example of coordinating incoming and exporting goods and materials?

After a couple of ‘opening’ interview questions, the interviewer will ask all applicants competency based interview questions, checking that the applicant has the skills, knowledge and experience to be a suitable member of the management team.

To answer the ‘example’ interview question, start the reply by describing the warehouse environment to ensure the employer understands the barriers the applicant faced “While working at X organisation I was responsible for incoming of raw materials (give detail) that was manufactured into goods, that I exported all over Europe…”

Be specific with the problem “… the barrier we faced was the number of incoming goods that would arrive at any one time, creating a backlog in the yard….” When stating any problem, go into detail how the barrier disrupted the day to day operations of the warehouse.

To finish, the applicant can make themselves stand out by explaining the solution they created and the positive outcome that resulted from this “The solution was down to communication. A number of suppliers wouldn’t commit to a specific delivery time on the date of delivery and would turn up between 9-4 because of their busy schedule. I telephoned each individual supplier explaining that I wanted to help them meet their schedule targets, by offering them a timeslot, this way their drivers wouldn’t have to wait in the ques, which could last as long as 2hrs….”

Explain what process you use to manage stock?

Stock management, stock rotation and stock control is one of the key aspects of a warehouse manager’s job role. Each warehouse and each warehouse manager will have their own system for the management of stock based on its industry.

When answering a systems interview question, the interviewee can make it easy for the employer to understand by using a ‘step method’ interview technique. Simply, break the whole process into 3 steps. Each step depends on your industry, but the goal here is to describe a stock management system simply to show your high level of knowledge.

“There are 3 steps to managing stock; step 1 stock control…where I….Step 2 stock rotation…to ensure stock is used within….Step 3…stock control….”

How is technology changing this sector?

The whole sector is being changed due to the integration of technology, from Amazon using warehouse robots to live to track deliveries. A quick ‘google’ and anyone can find a list of warehouse technology that will be integrated into most warehouses over the next few years.

To answer the ‘warehouse technology’ question, start by listing a number of technologies and pick one, relevant to the employer’s sector to delve into. Give, both, the pro’s and con’s of the technology “robotics in the warehouse, like the amazon robots, are very useful as they streamline the supply chain process, saving on overhead cost, but unlike humans, the robots cant adapt, in the moment, to any unforeseen situations.”

Give an example of quality control?

Each organisation has its own systems for quality control. Once employed the successful candidate will be trained in the internal quality control processes. Therefore, this interview question isn’t looking for interviewees to state all the quality control steps for their current employer, instead, the employer is checking if each candidate understands the importance of quality control steps.

This answer is better started by stating that the candidate is very experienced in the implementation and checking of quality. Followed on by explaining the benefits of completing quality checks through storytelling; set the scene; how an order was ready for dispatch, create a hook; the issue with the product and the harm this could cause to a customer(s) and positive ending; how the quality checks uncovered the issue and saved the day.

What is the main points of the Health and Safety at work act in relation to warehouse management?

The Health and Safety at Work act describes all the key points a warehouse manager needs to know. When answering questions around H&S in the workplace you are not required to state each of the individual acts. Instead, you need to reassure the employer that you are fully aware of the day to day actions a warehouse manager needs to take to stop or minimise any workplace accidents.

Confirm, confidently, the importance of health and safety to you as a warehouse manager. Describe how you train, monitor and enforce that all team members follow the regulations set down to keep everyone safe. When working within a specialist area that uses chemical, plant machinery, industrial materials, give additional details on the specific steps you need to take within this industry.

What is the most important thing to consider when recruiting new staff

All managers will be involved in the recruit of new team members. There is always, at least one question relating to staff recruitment, staff retention, or staff development.

Experienced warehouse managers can answer this question easily relating to a previous experience. To gain additional points on the interview scorecard, think about the culture of the new organisation that you are interviewing for. To understand how an organisation operates applicants can embed company culture questions into their job interviews.

By gaining an insight to what this company value, you can link this to the answer of staff recruitment. As an example, if the employers deems staff development important, you can answer the interview question by focusing on how you always develop, train and coach your team, leading them to hit all targets.

Job Interview Advice

Successful job applicants are able to recognize, the often ambiguous, meaning of a stated job interview question.

This simple, but important interview rule is often overlooked. An unprepared interviewee, often feeling anxious, will answer the job interview questions without discovering the meaning of the question.

In this sense, even a well-delivered interview answer can be marked low on the interview scorecard because the answer doesn’t reference any of the essential criteria relating to the job role.

Employers use the ambiguous interview questions and scoring process as a tool to check the applicant’s knowledge and experience – their competencies. An experienced employee will answer sector related questions naturally hitting the scored criteria. This is a prediction of the candidate’s potential job performance

“Answering interview questions with natural references to the job criteria is a sure sign the interviewee is likely to perform well once employed”

Chris Delaney – Author and Interview Coach

To help job seekers to prepare for the job interview, we have created a list of commonly asked interview questions and there hidden meanings

The interviewer by asking all applicants this interview question is creating competition – who is the best fit or who can offer more? This may seem manipulative, but it isn’t its human nature. We all want to get the most for our money – when reviewing car insurance offers from two providers, if the price is the same, most people will pick the provider that also offers something additional for free.

Interviewees, to pass a job interview, need to identify the difference between a competency-based job interview question and an informal one, as well as recognising the hidden meaning of the interview question.

Job Interview Questions Meanings

Why have you applied for a position at this company? Interview Question

What is really being asked here is what do you know about the organisations vision, mission and values. By hiring an applicant who resonates with the company the employee is more likely to want to stay with the organisation for a longer duration.

With many career professionals job-hopping between organisations once every 3 years, businesses have realised the cost-saving advantage of recruiting employees who, due to shared values, will want to stay within the organisation.

Staff retention equals increased performance, increased performance equals higher profits

Tell me about yourself? Interview Question

This commonly asked interview question is one way of saying – can you meet the job criteria? Employers want to know if applicants have what it takes?

Each employer has a list of essential criteria that each interview applicant is scored against. The candidates with the highest-scoring interview scorecard are offered the position. This initial interview question, which is asked prior to the specific competency-based interview questions, is looking for an overview of the interviewees, attitude, work ethic and experiences.

Depending on the answer, an interview identity is created; if the identity is negative, the interviewer is likely to score the proceeding interview answers low, or high if the identity created is positive – the halo effect

What can you bring to the team? Interview Question

Organisations need an edge on their competitors. This question is nicely asking – how can hiring you benefit us? Employers want to know what applicant’s talents are, what skill sets they possess, and what their unique selling point is, so they can exploit this (positively) in the workplace.

The interview process is designed to predict an applicants job performance once employed. The barrier employers face is that most interviewees give a ‘best situation’ answer rather than business as normal. As an example if asked ‘give an example of working within a team’ the applicant will use the example of when they excelled, even if there normal teamwork practice is to sit back and do nothing.

The ‘what can you bring to the team’ question results in an employer knowing how you would act at your very best. The applicants best is compared to the expected workplace standard.

What are you most proud of in your career? Interview Question

By asking what an interviewee is most proud of the employer will hear about the applicant’s best career-related experience – this is the candidates key achievement. If the ‘best achievment’ answer is below par based on the employer’s standards, then it is unlikely that the applicant will have the right aptitude for the new role.

This question is also used by employers who look at personal values (and how they match, or don’t, the company values)

Applicants who answer with a dismissive answer will be seen as unpassionate. Employers more than ever are looking for employees who, at the minimum have an interest in the sector, but ideally those career professionals who desire to work for the organisation.

Job Interview Advice

Questions and Answers for a Supervisor Poistion at Greggs

After 75 years in the business, Greggs is one of the most famous bakery chains in the UK. Greggs not only provide affordable food, they also have a mission to make a difference. On the ‘about’ page of Greggs, they explain and discuss their commitment to making a difference with the Greggs foundation scheme, charity fundraisers and other community programmes.

When applying for a Greggs managerial role, candiates need to be aware that Greggs isn’t simply on organisation that is interested in profit – and how your interview answers have to reflect their vision, mission and values.

We have collated a list of commonly asked supervisory and managerial questions for a position at Greggs, and explain the type of answer the employer is looking to hear from a potential Greggs supervisor/manager.

Greggs Interview Questions and Answers

Each question is broken down into the reason the question has been asked and the appropriate interview answer, designed to be marked high on the interview scorecard.

Tell me why you have applied for a position at Greggs?

Opening job interview questions, no matter how they are worded, are designed to see if you have the experience, attitude as well as an understanding of the organisation.

Often this interview question is split into two; ‘tell me about yourself’ and ‘what do you know about Greggs?’

The approach to answering the ‘why have you applied for a position at Greggs’s’ question is relatively easy. The goal is to reference what you know about the organisation; there mission and values, while highlighting your supervisory skills and experiences with confident communication – creating a positive interview identity

A strong opening line can be worded similar to: “When applying for new roles I look for organisation that gives something back to the community, I was really interested in the foundation scheme that Greggs is committed to….” This type of opening line shows

1) a shared interest in helping the community (crossed values)

2) that you have researched the organisation (employee commitment)

3) that you applied for Greggs for a particular reason, not just for ‘any old job’ (staff retention)

With rapport being build from the initial answer, you next need to highlight what you can bring to the team “…as a supervisor with over 8 years experience working in busy retail outlets I am highlighly skilled at…..”

This middle section of the job interview answer showcases the interviewee’s knowledge and experience within a few simple lines – remember, in the following interview questions the applicant will have an opportunity to go into detail, explaining their unique selling point. Here though, the goal is to hook the interviewer’s interest.

Finally, end the interview answer with a strong summary wrapping up the reply “…so, to end, I know I have the skills and experience to be a valued team member of the Greggs family, and I know that I would excel in an organisation that has the community at the heart of its business”

This final line shows confidence by the assertiveness of the summary while reminding the interviewer that you have the shared values of the organisation (which hints at retention and commitment)

What is your approach to managing a teams working pattern to ensure that the store can be operational during opening times

When asked any interview question about the day to day operations of the job role, you know that from the employer’s perspective that they deem this skill as essential.

For Greggs, employing a supervisor or manager who can manage the working patterns of a mixed team (full, part and seasonal staff, and employees with different skill sets), is essential to ensure that stores are open for business.

When answering this interview question, you need to reply to the question with confidence. First, explain that you are aware of the complexity of staffing: “supervising staff in a Greggs store can be a little complicated. It’s not the same as a clothing store where all staff can cover all roles; stocktaking, tills, etc, In Greggs, we need to ensure that we have staff in the store who can operate the ovens, serve customers and those who have the relevant food safety training. In addition, extra staff are required during busy periods such as Christmas….”

By stating each problem the applicant is showing an awareness of the business. Once each barrier has been explained, a solution, the candidate’s approach, needs to be explained. “When starting a new supervisory position I first review the staffing; who works what shift patterns, with staff members have restrictions to working certain hours, having childcare as an example, the common busy periods of the store and the employees skill set and qualifications. A rota can then be created to ensure that each shift has the required team members included, such as a baker and an employee with the authorization to take the cash at night. Finally, I have back up staff members who I know can cover shifts is employees are ill. This way all eventualities are covered for.”

How do you ensure that all employees adhere to health and safety and hygiene regulations?

The food sector, more than most other industries, will always ask questions regarding health, safety, and food hygiene regulations due to the number of government guidelines an organisation has to adhere to.

As a supervisor, the successful applicant is responsible for ensuring that staff follows policies and procedures relating to this. Some interview questions are best answered with an example, and others more analytical. Questions regarding procedures, such as this one, come across stronger with a step by step explanation;

“There are 3 steps required to ensure that all staff adheres to H&S regulations. The initial step is ensuring that each member of staff attends company training and/or refreshers there training in the appropriate time frame. To monitor this I record staff training requirements in a training log. “

“Next, I ensure that all guidelines, regulations and company policies and procedures are on display in the store, as a visual reminder. And finally, I make spot inspections to check that all staff are implementing the legislation, and if required support staff to follow them.”

Give an example of motivating an employee?

Most interview questions are best answered with the use of an ‘example’. When asked to give an example, be certain to use a real-life story.

A manager ensures processes and procedures are followed, a leader motivates staff to work at their best.

With any ‘example’ answer; start by stating a problem or barrier “when I started at X organisation as a new manager, it was clear that there was a motivational issue with the whole team that was effecting customer retention…”

Next, the interviewee has to make it clear the steps they took to overcome the problem “to overcome the lack of employee motivation I…A, B and C…”

And finally, state the positive outcome “this resulted in …..”

How would you increase store profits?

Even though Greggs bakery has a positive attitude towards supporting the local community, it is still a business that is required to make a profit. As a Greggs supervisor or manager, you will need to prepare an answer to interview questions relating to profit margins.

Ideally using a real-life example of how you have previously increased store profit will help you gain extra points on the interview scorecard, but alternatively explaining what you would do in the future also highlights the applicant’s competencies.

Two ways to answer this question is either focus on decreasing overhead cost – explaining how to cut down on waste or over-ordering on goods is an established way to save cost or to discuss income generation through, as an example a promotion linked the national events; young carers day, Olympics, Christmas, etc

What questions would you like to ask us?

At the end of each interview, interviewees have an opportunity to ask the employer a question(s)

Ask about how the local Greggs store supports local charities to show that you have an interest, as Greggs does, in the local community.

Inquire about internal training and promotional opportunities to highlight that you are keen to work for Greggs, not just any old employer.

And finally, ask about the store manager’s managerial style to ensure that you would work well in this environment.

Job Interview Advice