Lauren Celano Founder and CEO Lauren@propelcareers.com

1. Acing the Interview Lauren Celano Founder and CEO Lauren@propelcareers.com www.propelcareers.com

2. OUTLINE • Preparing for the interview • Advice during the interview • Interview Formats • Types of Interview Questions • Typical Responses • Questions candidates should ask the company • Interview follow-up

3. Preparing for the Interview

4. RESEARCH THE COMPANY • Company Website • Press releases • Other company news • Publications • Presentations • Industry Reports • Newsfeeds – i.e. Google reader • Through people you know

5. RESEARCH THE INTERVIEWRS • Social Networks. i.e. LinkedIn • Public databases • Search engine results • Press releases • Papers • Presentations • Through people you know

6. Self Reflect • What are you looking for in a role? • Why does this company / role interest you? • What is your career goal? • What other skills do you bring to the company? • Why is your background relevant? • Why is this role a good fit for you?

7. Practice • Run through scenarios so that you become more comfortable • Receive unbiased feedback about your interview style • What emotions trigger your confidence? • What emotions make you more nervous? • How you are branding yourself (who are you, and how are you different from 1000 other people?)

8. During the Interview

9. Interview Formats • Phone interviews • Skype interviews • One-on-one in-person interviews • Panel interviews • Tests

10. Phone Interview Advice • Stand up • Walk around as you talk • Maintains energy level • Speak slowly • Write notes down

11. Skype interview advice • Dress professionally • Put a blank wall behind you • No distractions • Speak slowly • Maintain eye contact

12. In-person interview advice • Maintain eye contact • Speak slow and articulate • Dress professionally • Have a note pad for notes and a list of what you want to cover • your skills / relevancy to the job description • your interest in the role • questions tailored for each interviewer

13. Tests • Quantitative tests assess specific skills and competencies • i.e. disease knowledge, familiarity with a specific data analysis program, software program, or other system/application • Tests can be done • Before the interview, as a pre-screen • During the interview • Post-interview • These tests are hard to prepare for – they assess specific skills based upon experience • Most companies will let candidates know before a test is given

14. Interview Tips • Wait for the interviewer to finish asking a question, then speak • Listening is Key! • Do not talk over an interviewer • If you don’t know the answer to something, say so, and that you will follow up later. Then DO follow-up.

15. Interview Questions • Why are you looking to make a career move? • What type of environment do you thrive in? • Why are you interested in our company? • Tell me more about your background… • What applicable skills do you have that are relevant to this role? • What are your career goals? (i.e. where do you see yourself in 5 or 10 years) • What biggest benefit would you bring to this firm if you were to join us? • What type of management style are you looking to work in?

16. Why are you looking to make a career move? • Appealing • growth potential • the chance to take on additional responsibility • the desire to apply skills to a new area, • the ability to focus further on a specific area • Avoid • I want to get away from my boss • I want only more money • I cannot get along with my team and therefore, need to find a new role • Further Tailored • I want to work in a research setting where I can apply my molecular background to characterize lung cancer targets • I am looking for a role as a medical science liaison where I can apply my disease knowledge to educate clinicians and other professionals on the cutting edge research

17. why are you interested in our company Companies want to hear that you are passionate about the work they are doing and that you know about their company’s history, goals, and expectations. Appealing responses include: • “I want to work at your Company because you are the leader in leukemia research, a disease that I have a personal interest in.” • “With my experience, I can help you characterize your lead drug to advance this into the clinic” • “I will be able to apply both my programming and wet lab experience to your research challenges”

18. Tell me more about your background Have your 30 second elevator pitch developed so that you can quickly tell interviewers about yourself. i.e. • “I have over 10 years of research experience spanning oncology and neurobiology. I am skilled in many molecular and cellular biology techniques and recently learned programming so that I could round out my skills. I excel when I wear many hats and use my communication and scientific skills to further research. Because of this, I am looking to work in an entrepreneurial biotech company where I can be exposed to all aspects of drug discovery.”

19. What are you most Proud of? Companies want to see passion and gain some insight into what makes you tick. They also want to see a genuine response. i.e.: • “I am most proud of completing the Pan-Mass Challenge to raise money in my father’s memory.” This individual was interviewing with an oncology company and wanted to ensure their passion for cancer research came through. • Another candidate who interviewed with a late stage clinical company said that they were most proud of the late stage clinical trial work they were involved in did which lead to the approval of a first-in-class therapeutic for a life threatening disease. This individual showed a passion and desire for moving a drug from clinical into commercial.

20. Behavioral interviewing tips • Interviewers want concrete examples of how your background is relevant to their needs. • They pay attention to how you articulate your experiences, the lessons you learned, and your communication, decision-making, and team work skills. • To prepare, write down specific examples for each question. • Practice to refine the responses, so that they are concise, but detailed enough to provide the interviewer context. • Most examples taken from your work/research experience, • in some cases, other experiences, charity work or activities (i.e. President of a local organization), are reasonable

21. Behavioral interview Questions • Describe a time when you were faced with a stressful situation that demonstrated your coping skills. • Give me a specific example of a time when you used good judgment and logic in solving a problem. • Tell me about a time when you had to use your speaking and presentation skills to influence a group’s opinion. • Explain a situation when you had to go above and beyond the call of duty in order to get a job done. • Have you ever had too many things to do, and were you required to prioritize your tasks? • Give me an example of a time when you had to make a split second decision. • What is your typical way of dealing with conflict? rovidean example. • Have you ever had to motivate others? Tell me about such an experience.

22. Questions to Ask the company • How would you describe the company’s culture? • What type of people thrive here the most? What are the growth plans/strategy for the company over the next 1, 3, 5 years? • What excites you most about the company? • What is an area that the company needs to work on? • What are the career progression options for someone in this role? • Can you describe a typical day or week? • What are the top three things that I could do upon joining the company to assist you and help achieve company goals? • “Describe your management style.” (If you are talking with your future boss.)

23. Do’s and dont’s

24. Interview Follow-up

25. Thank you letter • Send within 48 hrs. • Write an email thanking the individuals that you met with for their time. • Mention something that you talked about during your interview, so that it is customized. • Do not send everyone the same email, since the interviewing team oftentimes compares follow-up emails. • Optional: follow up with a hand written note – this will definitely help you to stand out. • Show your interest again in the role and state your desire to be a part of the team.

26. USING LINKEDIN - ADVICE • DO NOT LinkedIn to people right away post interview • Wait to see how the interview process turns out

27. At Interview End, COMPANY SHOULD KNOW • You are serious in planning your career • You are always prepared • You are interested in the company/role, and you articulated why • You want to make sure the company/role is a good fit for you. • You will be an excellent hire from a culture/personality fit; not just a skill set fit • You will be able to make an impact right away • You are excited to join their team