How To Successfully Ace a Job Interview

1. Workplace Readiness Series How To Successfully Ace a Job Interview 2014

2. Workplace Readiness Series • Resume Writing • Job Search 2014 • How To Successfully Ace a Job Interview • Workplace Etiquette • Taking Charge of Your Career

3. Types of interviews • Screening Interview • Telephone interview • Stress interviews • One-on-one interview • Panel interview • Committee interview • Surprise interviews

4. Top Interview Tips… • Know who you are interviewing with – research the company • Tailor your resume to fit the job (Resume Writing) • Practice, practice, practice! • Prepare for the phone interview • Dress for success (Workplace Etiquette) • Insider advantage – who you know (Workplace Etiquette) • Reinforce your interest

5. Tailor your resume to fit the job • Include ALL of your jobs if you are very young or have very little work experience. • Omit your earliest job if you’re worried about age discrimination. • Include ALL of the jobs that show experience related to your job objective, even if they were short-term or unpaid. • Omit jobs that are brief – unless they are needed to fill in a skimpy work history. • Include jobs that are not particularly related to your current job goal IF they help to create a picture of stability – but don’t describe them in detail • Include unpaid work if it helps you prove pertinent skills and experience or it fills a gap.

6. Common vs. Behavioral Interviewing Questions Behavioral based interviewing is interviewing based on discovering how the interviewee acted in specific employment-related situations. The logic is that how you behaved in the past will predict how you will behave in the future i.e. past performance predicts future performance.

7. Common Interview Questions • Tell me about yourself? • Why do you want to work here? • Why did you leave your last job? • What are your best skills? • What are your major weakness? • Do you prefer to work by yourself or with others? • What are your career goals? • What are your hobbies? • What salary are you expecting? • What have I forgotten to ask?

8. Practice, Practice, Practice Components of a Job Interview • Phone interview • Building rapport • Providing behavioral examples • Take notes • Ask inquiring questions

9. Dress for Success – for WOMEN • A straight-forward business suit is best. • Wear sensible pumps. • Be moderate with make-up and perfume. • Wear simple jewelry. • Hair and fingernails should be well-groomed. • Bring pen and notepad to jot down any information you may need to remember

10. Dress for Success – for MEN A clean, ironed shirt and conservative tie are a must. A simple jacket or business suit is a good idea as well. Shoes should be polished. Face should be clean-shaven; facial hair should be neatly trimmed. Hair and fingernails should be well-groomed. Use cologne or after-shave sparingly. Bring pen and notepad to jot down any information you may need to remember  

11. Part II - Role Play! Using the interviewing questions provided, be an interviewer and an interviewee. • Interviewer of a company looking for a very specific candidate with the following skills: • Communication • Customer Focus • Team work • Interviewee for a customer service position

12. Questions? Thank you for attending the How to Ace a Job Interview Workshop