During ...

During …

You made it on time and you look great! The interviewer brings you into a room and, wham! There’s an entire panel waiting to interview you. You may have expected to speak with just one person, but sometimes a company likes to have an entire group of people ask questions. Wow. It may be intimidating, but don’t let this throw you. You are well prepared, you’ve done your research, and you’ve done a dry run. You’re ready!

Actually, the interview begins as soon as you meet your interviewer. It’s usually customary to shake hands; the interviewer will probably offer his or her hand first. A firm handshake shows confidence (just don’t break any fingers!). Look the person directly in the eye with a friendly smile on your face. Don’t sit down until the interviewer offers you a seat. And make sure you remember to turn off your cell phone! Leaving it on during an interview is a big no-no, even if it’s set to vibrate. (Very often people can hear the vibrating sound. This is almost as bad as letting the phone ring.) We don’t even want to think about this, but if you forget to turn the phone off and it rings, apologize, and turn the phone off immediately. Never answer your phone during a job interview!

Different hiring people have different styles of interviewing job candidates. Some will try to make you feel comfortable, and they may even sit in a chair next to you. Others will sit behind a big desk and have you sit on a small, uncomfortable chair. This can sometimes be intimidating, but the interviewer may just want to see how you handle a situation like this. Don’t let it shake your confidence!

During the interview, the interviewer may talk about the job and ask you about your experience. But he or she may also ask some tricky questions. For example, a popular job interview question is to ask, “What is your biggest strength?” This is a great time to talk about something you’ve done well in the past. You may say something like, “I think I’m a great team player. Even when I’m in charge, I know it takes everyone working together to do a great job.” The next question may be, “What is your biggest weakness?” This one isn’t so easy. It’s not a good idea to talk about a real weakness. You’ll never get the job if you say, “Well, sometimes it’s hard for me to get to work on time.” A good idea is to think of something that can actually be a strength. For example, you might say, “I really enjoy helping my co-workers with their projects, so I try to be careful not to take on too many extra duties.”

Near the end of the interview, the hiring manager will probably ask if you have any questions. Make sure that you do! Asking a question about the job shows interest in the position and the company. It’s also a chance for you to see if this job is a good fit for you.

INTERVIEWER: It’s nice to meet you, Alan. I see that you’ve been with our company for a while now, haven’t you? Why are you interested in the supervisor position?

ALAN: Well, I’ve really enjoyed my job so far, but I feel ready to take on more responsibilities. I think I have a lot to offer the company.

INTERVIEWER: Have you ever had any supervisory experience?

ALAN: Well, when my supervisor has a day off, he asks me to help manage the restaurant. That includes supervising the other workers—you know, answering any questions they have, making sure they get their breaks . . . responsibilities like that.

INTERVIEWER: Yes, your supervisor speaks very highly of you in his letter of recommendation. Well, Alan, can you think of a time when there was a problem you had to resolve when you were in charge? And tell us how you managed the situation.

ALAN: Well, I can’t say I’ve ever had any problems with my co-workers. But I guess sometimes, if an order wasn’t exactly right, a customer might get angry and nasty. I just made sure that I stayed calm. I listened politely to his or her complaint, and I redid the order. I always apologized for the mix-up. A lot of times I’d throw in a coupon to show goodwill. That usually seemed to do the trick.

INTERVIEWER: Customers can sometimes be tricky. Sounds like you handled those situations very well. It’s really important to us that our supervisor is able to deal in a friendly way with customer problems. You probably also know that we’re doing more and more work on the computer. Keeping spreadsheets is an important part of the job. How are your computer skills? Are you familiar with Excel?

ALAN: I do use my home computer a lot, but I haven’t needed to use Excel. I’m pretty good at figuring out computer stuff, and I catch on pretty quickly, so I’m sure I can get up to speed with that program. No problem.

INTERVIEWER: Great. Well, do you have any questions for me?

ALAN: Yes. I know that the company is growing and opening new locations in different cities. If I’m offered the job, where will I be based?

INTERVIEWER: Good question. I am glad you reminded me. The position is open in the Eldred location, but we really need someone who can be flexible. We’ll want this person to fill in at our other restaurants when another supervisor is on vacation. Would you be able to do that?

ALAN: Absolutely. I’d really enjoy getting to know different locations.

INTERVIEWER: Great. Well, Alan, thank you for your time. We’ll be in touch as soon as we make a decision.

ALAN: Thank you for taking the time to talk to me.