Employment & Career Services Committee
THE JOB INTERVIEW
Part I - Preparation
Part II - The Interview
Train the Trainer
Cliff Wilcox – Atlanta, GA
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Employment & Career Services Committee
THE JOB INTERVIEW
Two Part Series
Part I – Preparation
www.ieeeusa.org/careers/help/
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Employment & Career Services Committee
Seminar Overview
• Interview types
• Preparation
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Employment & Career Services Committee
• Structured
Interview Types
– Prepared list of Questions (Interview Guide)
– Implications:
• Interviewer is prepared and serious
• All interviews may be structured
• All applicants are asked the same questions
• Unstructured
– Random questions (no list)
– Interviewers personal style and priorities
– Goal to get a good “feel” for the interviewee
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• CAD Example
Employment & Career Services Committee
Question Types
• Job Skills
– What are your major responsibilities?
– Tell me about a time when you had to control errors in your
work?
– Describe a situation in which you saw a problem and took
action to correct it, rather than wait for someone else to do it?
• Personality Traits & Fit
– Which classes did you like , and why?
– When were you most satisfied and dissatisfied in your work?
– How did you feel about a time when you had to work at a fast
pace?
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Interview Formats
• Interview Formats
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One-on-One interview
Group interview
Technical seminar
Simulations
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Interview Preparation
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Interviews “by instance” (Behavioral)
Self assessment
One-Minute Professional Autobiography
Company & Salary Research
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Interview Preparation
• Interviews “by instance” (Behavioral)
– Goal: Gather specific examples
– Premise: Past Behavior = Future Behavior
– Challenging to prepare for
– Asset and Weakness (negative) questions
Tell me about a time when you solved a conflict between
members of your team?
Tell me about a time when you failed to solve a conflict
between members of your team?
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Employment & Career Services Committee
Preparation through Self Assessment
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Typically done for Career Planning
What can you do?
What do you like to do?
What are your core values?
What type of person are you?
In what kind of work environment are you
at your best?
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Employment & Career Services Committee
Preparation
• Gather Important Experiences
• Convert Experiences into Stories
– A task or situation with a problem, and the
potential for conflict of some type
– The actions taken by the main character (you)
to follow through or solve the problem
– The resolution / result / Paul Harvey
– Append a moral, or a “lesson learned”
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• STAR Example
Employment & Career Services Committee
Preparation
• One Minute Professional Auto-biography
– Subset of your resume
– Typically is asked for at the beginning of an
interview
– Networking with a new contact
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Employment & Career Services Committee
Negative Questions
• Requests for negative information
– Describe a time when you overlooked a small
detail?
– Tell me about a time you sacrificed quality in
order to get work done on time?
– Tell me about your biggest failure?
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Employment & Career Services Committee
Addressing Negative Questions
• Restate the question in your own words, and ask if your
interpretation is correct
• Tactfully disagree OR admit to the flaw
• Answer the question and highlight what you did well
• Identify what you could have done differently and show
how you learned from the experience
• Back it up with an instance of what you have done
differently (try to stay away from what you “would” do)
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Illegal Questions
Sample topics:
Marital status, age, political and religious
affiliations
Options:
• Answer the question?
• Don’t answer the questions?
• Get a lawyer?
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Employment & Career Services Committee
Company Research
• The Industry as a whole
– Stock Points (www.stockpoint.com)
• The company
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Yahoo financial (www.yahoo.com)
Wall Street Journal Research Net (www.wsrn.com)
Companies online (www.companiesonline.com)
Hoovers (www.hoovers.com)
Biz Web (www.bizweb.com)
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• The specific position
Employment & Career Services Committee
Salary Comparisons
• What are you worth?
• How much do you need?
• IEEE-USA Salary Service
http://www.ieeeusa.org/careers/salary/
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Employment & Career Services Committee
Additional Tips
• Make a practice trip to the interview site
• The interviewer’s preparation is usually
very casual
Thorough preparation on your part will
enable you to relax and make a better
impression!
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Employment & Career Services Committee
Preparation Sources
• “Get Hired!” by Paul Green - Bard Books, Inc.
ISBN 1-885167-14-8
• “Engineer’s Guide to Lifelong Employability” IEEE Press ISBN 0-87942-314-5
• “What Color is Your Parachute?” by Richard
Bolles - Ten Speed Press ISBN 0-89815-633-5
• “Winning Through Intimidation” by Robert
Ringer - Fawcett Books ISBN 0449207862
• The Career Planning Guide & Beyond Job
Satisfaction Fieldbook
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Employment & Career Services Committee
THE JOB INTERVIEW
Two Part Series
Part II – The Interview
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Employment & Career Services Committee
Summary of Part I - Interview Preparation
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Structured vs. Unstructured Interviews
Interview Formats
Interviews “by instance”
Self assessment
One-Minute Professional Autobiography
Company & Salary Research
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Employment & Career Services Committee
Seminar Overview
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The interview
What really matters
Appearance
Behavior, good and
bad
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Topics to avoid
Questions to ask
Salary negotiations
Afterwards
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Impact of Your Presence
• Impact of one’s presence:
– 55% body language
– 38% voice tone
– 7% word content
• Cardinal Rule = Never distract the
interviewer
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Appearance
• Dress to blend
• Good grooming is
important
• Don’t be late
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Behavior
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Lean forward to show interest
Keep your hands away from face and head
Do not fold your arms across your chest
Make eye contact, but don’t stare
Try to smile occasionally
Try to sound enthusiastic
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Behavior
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Do not over-talk
Do not display arrogance
Do not use profanity or risqué humor
Restrain any distracting physical habits
Do not complain about peripheral items
Do not make negative references to others
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Employment & Career Services Committee
The First Few Minutes
• Try to establish rapport
• Thank the interviewer for
their time
• Ask where you should sit,
etc.
• Ask the interviewer if he
needs another copy of your
resume
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• Shake hands
Employment & Career Services Committee
Topics to Avoid
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Sex
Race and ethnicity
Religion
Money
Lunch
Who you know in the organization
Don’t compliment their appearance
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Questions You Should Ask
(earlier, if possible)
• What is your interviewing and hiring process?
• More of a detailed job description
• What are you most hoping to find in the person
you hire?
• What attributes are most needed to succeed in this
job?
• What would be my first priorities on the job?
• How is one evaluated in this role?
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Questions You Should Ask
(during)
• Was I clear on that?
• Did I give you enough detail?
• Would you like me to elaborate?
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Questions You Should Ask
(at the end)
• Based on what we talked about today, I feel
good about the position. What concerns do
you have about my ability to perform the
job?
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Employment & Career Services Committee
Questions You Should Ask
(at the end OR if offered the position, before you accept)
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What is it like to work for the group manager?
What is the corporate culture? The group culture?
The training and continuous education policy
The group structure & prospects for advancement
Turnover rate
Why did the previous person leave?
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Employment & Career Services Committee
Salary Negotiations
• Do not mention salary prematurely
• Know beforehand what you are worth and
how much you need
http://www.ieeeusa.org/careers/salary/ and
http://www.ieeeusa.org/communications/eBooks/default.asp
• Do not be the first one to mention a number
• Salary is not everything (understand the package)
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Last Minute Traps
• “What a relief. It’s almost over!”
• Lunch
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The Last Few Minutes
• Verify the next step.
• Say “Thank you”, and smile
• Leave
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Follow Up!
• Send Thank-You letter
• Debrief yourself
– What did you do
well?
– Did you say anything,
which could hurt
your chances?
– What questions were
challenging?
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Employment & Career Services Committee
Sources
• Slides - www.ieeeusa.org/careers/help/
• eBooks - www.ieeeusa.org/communications/eBooks/default.asp
“What R U Worth” / “Resumes” / “School to Work”
• “Get Hired”, by Paul Green, Bard Books, Inc. ISBN# 1885167-14-8
• “Engineer’s Guide to Lifelong Employability”, IEEE
Press, ISBN# 0-87942-314-5
• “What Color Is Your Parachute?” by Richard Bolles, Ten
Speed Press. ISBN# 0-89815-633-5
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