Common Asked Housing Officer Questions

A housing officer will often be employed for housing associations or the local authority, supporting clients with the assessment of needs in terms of housing applications.

The housing officer may also specialise in working with homeless people and/or service users with additional needs.

How competitive is a Housing Officer job Interview?

Interview Specifics

This article will list the commonly asked job interview questions for a housing officer.

By understanding the job interview structure and by knowing the commonly asked housing officer interview questions, applicants can prepare answers that highlight their level of competencies within this industry.

Common Asked Housing Officer Interview Questions

Can you tell me about your housing officer experience?

This housing officer interview question is asked for two reasons; 1 it is an open question to get you talking/feeling relax at the job interview start. 2, to gain a general overview of your experience (generic because the follow-up questions will go into more detail)

To answer this job interview question, start by summarising your experience as a housing officer, your relevant qualifications and a key unique skill relevant to the industry – something that makes you stand out, this could be a specialism you have IE working to house homeless service users.

How do you assess the needs of a client?

This interview question is key because this is the crux of the job role.

Split this answer into two sections. Section one is your people skills; explain how you build rapport, how you use effective listening skills, how open and closed questions have a powerful impact, and how you remain calm in stressful situations. Give a short example to highlight your level of expertise and competencies.

Section two should explain the interview structure; the questions you should ask, the information you need to collate, and how you follow GDPR, data protection and confidentiality legislation.

What does customer service mean to you?

You may be asked several customer services-related interview questions.

In the housing association sector often the service users can be stressed or angry. Some service users may have alcohol or drug addiction. In some cases, you will be speaking to clients who are struggling with finances and have been turned down for financial support.

When answering interview questions relating to customer service and communication, explain how you can handle these situations;

What was the situation – why was the service user angry or upset?

How did you handle the situation – what did you say or do to help calm down the client?

What was the positive outcome – how did the client respond to you?

What do you look for during a housing inspection?

Competency-based job interview questions require you to fall back on your experience.

Give an example of when you have carried out an inspection that had issues (you need to pick an inspection with issues to show that you can deal with this in a professional way)

In the example explain what you look for during a general inspection, the inspection process you follow and quote safeguarding regulations, and how you, when required, challenge a service user.

Follow this up with the example “one time during an inspection I saw…” Give details of what you found, the potential safeguarding issue, and what you did to address this

How would you have a positive effect on your colleagues and team?

A big part of the housing officers’ job criteria is to have the ability to work as part of a close-knit team. You will be asked one way or another about your ability to work within a team.

Open the teamwork answer by simply explaining how you enjoy working as part of a team and how in all previous housing roles teamwork has been an important aspect of the role. This opening confirmation statement shows how you have this required skill.

Now you have ticked the ‘teamwork’ box, you need to give a real-life example. A good frame for this job interview answer is to give a ‘helper’ perspective.

Describe how a colleague was having a problem with a housing issue and how this problem affected the output of the whole team.

Go on to describe how you took action and explain the action you took. Follow this up with the positive outcome focusing on how the whole team benefited from your quick actions.

You can also talk about the larger team – in this role, you will need to work with a range of agencies and stakeholders, including social services, jobcentre plus, citizens’ advice service.

Which other agencies would you refer a service user to?

Part of a housing officer’s job role is to work with the tenants to help them to be successful.

To be effective in this job duty you will need to work with, signpost or refer to a large number of partner agencies from social services to the local job center, from doctor surgeries to career advice officers.

In your answer list the relevant agencies you would partner with and give an example of when you would make a referral compared to signposting.

The example has to be specific. First, explain the service users situation and the key block that was holding them back. Explain the limitations of your roles and how the service user required expert advice.

Go on to explain how the service user had attempted to get support but had failed. End the interview answer by stating what you did to ensure the client got the support and advice they required.

Do you have any questions for me?

A guaranteed question is the “do you have any questions for me?” question. And your answer should be YES! Always ask a question.

Good questions to ask in a housing officer job interview are;

What is your approach to supporting service users with their many barriers?
What development opportunities do you have to help upskill a housing officer?
How many hostels/houses do the organisations look after?
What is the best part of your day?

November 6, 2017December 5, 2020

Aristotles Teaches How To Persuasion in a Job Interview

Aristotle’s Persuasion Technique

Persuasion is the goal of the job interview.

In the job interview, you need to influence, persuade and motivate through the answers of your job interview answers. You naturally persuade all the time, through the words you say and how you say these words. The problem is you may persuade people not to recruit rather than persuade them to offer you the desired job position.

Aristotle was a master of the persuasive language. We have taken the leanings of Aristotle’s rhetoric and made it relevant to the job interview.

Ethos, Pathos, Logos

Ethos is your character, how you come across to the interviewer. In a job interview, you need to be seen as credible, an authority. If the job interviewer believes in you, they will listen to you, if they listen to you, they will want to buy you (offer you the position) Aristotle said “We believe good men more fully and more readily than others.”

An example of an ethical appeal: “What I have learned from working in this industry for over 28 years is…” Your duration of experience has a direct path to your Ethos.

Pathos creates an emotional response from the interview panel. In the job interview situation, you need to appeal directly to the interviewer’s emotions. The great interviewee controllers the employer’s emotions throughout the job interview, taking them on an emotional roller coaster.

An example of an emotional interview answer is “have you ever been in a situation when a multi-pound deal was just about to be lost….what I did to turn things around was…” By getting an employer to imagine/remember a negative situation stirs up their negative emotions, before you create a positive emotional pull, by explaining your positive outcome.

Logos is a way to use logic; reasoning, data, statistics and even debates and arguments. Imagery creates an emotional pull, logos allows you to give the facts to back up the story. “This technique increased profit by 35%..” “9 out of 10 people benefited from X”

August 19, 2017

Job Interview Questions for a Job at Rise in Manchester

Rise Manchester offers a tailor-made space for the FinTech community, drawing together the city’s vibrant startup culture and its rich industrial past. In staff they are looking for friendly and fun staff who know there coffee and who can improve their customers experience.

If you want a job at rise, here is some questions you will need to answer

Below you can also access 101 Interview Questions and techniques to Influence the Job Interview. Good luck with your next job interview.

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Job Interview Questions for a Job at Rise in Manchester

Job Interview Question 1:

“Tell me about your customer service experience?”

The opening question at Rise, will be a generic interview question to gain an insight into your customer service and barista experience. Summarise your experience and have a focus on the key skills required for this position; how you welcome customers, how you promote the rise philosophy and how you go above and beyond

Ensure you mention

customer service skills
strong written and spoken communication skills
the ability to solve problems
the ability to deal tactfully with customers
your friendliness and rapport building skills

Job Interview Question 2:

“How do you handle difficult customers?”

For situational job interview questions, answer using a real life story or example

state the situation – why the customer was angry/difficult
explain how you remain calm and how this calmed down the customer
discuss what you did to support the customer while following processes and procedure
explain the outcome of the situation ***ensure this is positive

Job Interview Question 3:

“When have you gone and beyond to help a customer?”

Rise isn’t just a coffee shop, its an experience. In an employee Rise are looking for staff members who go that extra mile. Answer this interview question by first stating your work ethic and your temperament. Second give a real life example of when you went above and beyond to help a customer. Remember at Rise the customer base isn’t just shoppers, in fact the percentage of customer are entrepreneurs who spend their day at Rise working

Job Interview Question 4:

“What questions do you need when booking a room for a customer?”

Many customers book rooms and the stage area. This task requires a level of organisation. When answering this questions explain your strategy for keeping the administration side of things on point. How do you ensure that you have the correct details; customer detailsl, booking details

Job Interview Question 5:

“Why do you want to work at Rise?”

Be honest when answering this question – Rise has to be the right fit for you, and you need to be the right fit for Rise. What made you apply for this role? Why do you like the environment? To answer this question, start with “The three reasons I want to work at Rise are…” and then give 3 real reasons.

Job Interview Question 6:

“Do you have any questions for me?”

Good interview questions to ask interviewers at the end of the job interview include questions on the company growth or expansion, questions on personal development and training and questions on company values, staff retention and company achievements.

Conclusion

Many people are afraid of job interviews. The truth is if you prepare for your job interview, by predicting the job interview questions, you can easily prepare your job interview answers. If your job interview answers highlight your unique selling point, are stated in the positive and are said in a confident manner, then you can influence the job interview to increase job offer.

Interview Preparation Resources

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September 25, 2016November 21, 2020

Out Of The Box Interview Tips

Think Out Of The Box To Pass a Job Interview

Run of the mill interviewing techniques are becoming talk of the past.

“Tell me about yourself”?, A question that has been out there for so long that candidates tend to just learn the answer to it by heart with minor tweaks here and there.

If the questions aren’t going to change so will the same patented responses will be given during interviews. There is no advancement in the interviewing procedures and no learning for graduates coming fresh out of the universities.

career

Let’s consider a situation where a candidate (you) gets the call from HR representative of the company you applied to.

A unique feature about this call would be (we’ll get into that) but how normally a candidate would respond to one such call:

HR: “Hi, is this Mr. X I’m speaking to?”

Mr. X: “Yes, who’s this?”

HR: “This Ms. Y from ABC Co., you applied for the position of XYZ. Have you got a minute, I have to ask a couple of questions?”

Mr. X: “Please go on”

HR: “Ok, so have been you working somewhere?”

Mr. X: “Both yes and no, actually I resigned from my previous employment and am currently serving my notice period”

HR: “Ok, it says here you’ve been with the firm for last 5 years, what makes you want to switch?”

Mr. X: “Although, I have had no issues here during the tenure of my employment, all I feel is a bit stagnant where I’m and want to challenge myself in pursuit of new and better opportunities”

HR: “Alright, let me schedule an interview with you tomorrow say at 11am?”

Mr. X: “Sounds good to me, will be there.”

HR: “The directions to our office will be emailed to you shortly.”

Mr. X: “Sure thanks. Bye.”

That is how a normal telephonic interview appears as. But if we could improvise and candidate can earn the seat in front row? Startling? We pick it up from point no. 10 above and see how it changes.

Mr. X: “Can I suggest a date, as I have some things to take care of in the days to follow? Hence I won’t be able to squeeze time for the meet.”

HR (based on the availability): “When it would be possible for you to visit, then?”

Mr. X: “On so and so date (suggest a date for 2-3 days ahead)

The idea is to buy time so you can thoroughly search about the company, its stakeholders, review their profile on LinkedIn and prepare yourself well.

HR: “How does day after tomorrow sound?”

Mr. X: “Great!”

Now if the counter argument is not up to your liking, best lock in the day as it maybe that the organization is interviewing other candidates or the interviewing authority may not be available in those days.

At least by making a request you have made your presence felt and that you are not typical instead expressive. Just that is the purpose of asking to schedule at a later date. This gives you leverage in negotiations at the time of offer.

You don’t need to insist on scheduling for the day/date you have in mind or you’ll lose the opportunity, altogether. An attempt suffices and generally employer allows for a day or two in scheduling meets for candidates.

Secondly, the questions needs to be revisited to allow candidates to speak open-endedly and when someone is provided the platform to speak, their frame mind is reflected and the person interviewing can gauge whether or not the person would be a suitable fit for the organization.

Questions could be:

“How much element of fun is part of your life?”

“Do you cater to sarcasm?”

“What if I were to ring up a close friend of yours, will he/she be able to tell me your weaknesses?”

Author Bio

Rayanne Dany is an HR consultant and can be reached for assignment writing service via her twitter handle. She has tons of experience in different organizations amounting to a total of 10 years. Her insight over the years as an HR professional has paved way for writing improvement techniques.

November 4, 2015November 28, 2020

Interview Question “Have You Ever Been Asked To Leave a Job?”

This can be really scary if you have been asked to leave a position.

Don’t be tempted to lie in the job interview as the interviewer, once they find out you have lied, they can ask you to leave the company.

The trick to passing job interviews is to predict the interview question and to prepare a killer interview answer.

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Have You Ever Been Asked to Leave a Job?

Keep the answer brief, stay away from the negatives and if you can state how long ago this situation was and how it had nothing to do with your work ethic.

Example Interview Answer

“Once, several years ago, I had just left university and had started a part-time job. The role didn’t suit me, as I like to keep busy. I think the manager knew I was ready to move on so we both agreed I would go”

Interview Video Tutorial – have you ever been asked to leave a job?

November 1, 2015November 28, 2020

Interview Question What Do You Know About This Company?

What Do You Know About This Company?

Interview Question Help.

What Do You Know About This Company? Interview Question

This article will teach you how to answer the interview question ” What Do You Know About This Company?”

This is the most commonly asked interview question which is asked at the interview start, so it goes without saying that you need a well-rehearsed answer, as this will increase your interview confidence from the start of the job interview.

The trick to passing job interviews is to predict the interview question and to prepare a killer interview answer.

Set Up Your Own Coaching Business

What do you know about this organisation?

Often one of the first questions you will be asked during the interview, employers want employees who will stay with the company, this question and answer will show the employer that you know the company’s history and feel they will be a good employer to work for.

It also shows the employer that you think ahead and carries out research.

Answer this question with:

The length the organisation has been operating for.
How the company started
What services/products the company offers
Where they are going (have they won any new contracts)

All this information is normally found on the internet; on the company home page or about us page.

Example Interview Answer

“I know a great deal about your organisation, before I applied for the job position I researched the company.

I really like how the company started as a partnership company 10 years ago and has grown to a company of 70 staff working throughout 18 countries.

You started by operating in a niche market and have now expanded this to working in several areas of the same sector this highlights creatively and forward planning, this was one of the reasons why I applied for the position”

Interview Video Tutorial – what do you know about this company?

November 1, 2015November 28, 2020

If You Were What Type Of Person Would You Hire?

Interview Question If You Were Me What Type Of Person Would You Hire?

This article will teach you how to answer the interview question “If You Were What Type Of Person Would You Hire?”

This answer comes in two parts, first, you state the required skills (recorded on the job specification) and secondly, you mention your work ethic

The trick to passing job interviews is to predict the interview question and to prepare a killer interview answer.

Set Up Your Own Coaching Business

How to approach the interview question.

Mention the skills they are looking for, you will know them by now as this question is often asked in the middle of the job interview.

Follow this up with a sentence about your work ethic. This interview question explains two things, first you understand the job role and second, you possess the required job criteria

Example Interview Answer

“someone with the experience and more importantly the knowledge to ensure that all targets are met, they would have to have excellent communication skills as they will be working with a wide range of indiviuals from various backgrounds. You want someone, like me, who is hardworking and reliable.”

Interview Video Tutorial – If You Were What Type Of Person Would You Hire?

October 25, 2015November 28, 2020

What Qualities Do You Feel a Successful Manager Should Have?

Interveiw Question: What Qualities Do You Feel a Successful Manager Should Have?

This is a managerial interview question, but often similar questions are asked for all positions – change manager with “job title”

When answering questions regarding your role first research the position by checking the criteria required on the job spec and answer by stating that you possess said criteria. Finish by giving a real-life example of this.

Interview Question Video – “what qualities do you feel a successful manager should possess?”

How to Pass Job Interviews

To approach job interviews you need to research the position and company and match your past experience and current skill base to this role.

Also add a “unique selling point” to each interview answer, as this makes you stand out from the crowd.

When answering interview questions and state everything from a positive frame of reference.

May 31, 2015November 30, 2020

3 Rules to Maximize Your Job Interview

The best candidate doesn’t get the job.

Just because you have the experience, qualifications and skills required for the advertised role is the reason why you get offered the position.

Your ability to stand out in the job interview is key to securing more job offers.

To be offered more job positions you need to follow these 3 rules

Job Interview Rule 1 – Having a Unique Selling Point

People wrongly believe that because they have 10 years experience and several industry qualifications, along with a great work ethic that they should be guaranteed the position.

But everyone offered to interview has met the job criteria, which means to stand out you need a unique selling point

Re-read the job spec and record which key skill, duty or quality is the most desirable by the employer (think about skills that you have that others don’t)
Find evidence from past employment/projects where this key skill, duty or quality was used by yourself to successfully achieve a major achievement
During the job interview discuss the key skill, duty or quality – discuss both past successes and how you will you use this skill, duty or quality once employed

Job Interview Rule 2 – Perfection Through Practice

To be an expert in anything takes repetition and practice.

We rarely attend interviews and as with any new experience or skill, we sometimes fluke it but often we make many mistakes. The key rule to interview success is practice, practice and practice

Read the job spec and turn each desired criteria into an interview question
Record an answer per question and when you can add your unique selling point to the answer
Rehearse both the questions and answers over and over again until you discuss your unique selling point without having to refer to your notes

Job Interview Rule 3 – Reflect, Record and Redesign

To become an interview expert, which means that you can successfully pass interviews that offer higher salaries you need to learn from each job interview.

After each interview reflect and record each interview question and answer
Rate each question and answer between 1-10
With answer that rate below 7 redesign the interview answer