Doug A. Stowell is an experienced interviewer and recuriter. Here is a sample of 50 job interview questions and answers that are covered in his book.

Chapter 1 : Questions About You

The interviewer wants to know about you, what you are looking for and what motivates you. Expect some tough job interview questions with respect to some of the choices and decisions you have made to date. The key to job interview preparation is to ensure that you are clear what motivates you and where you want your career to go.

Here are some sample interview questions for this category

• What are the most important rewards you expect gain from your career?
• If you won the lottery tomorrow would you still work?
• What makes you get out of bed in the morning?
• What are your weakest points?
• Have you done your best work yet?
• What has been your biggest failure?
• Do you consider yourself lucky?
• What is your measure of success?

Chapter 2: Questions About Your Career To-Date

Job interview questions that specifically deal with your career are some of the toughest. They will delve into your leadership skill, your ability to be a team member and communications skills. Prepare your interview answers carefully by writing down the postives and negatives of your career todate. Your job interview preparation should include an understanding as what you did well and where you need to improve in your career.

Here are some sample common job interview questions for this category:

• How can one be successful in this industry?
• Can you give an example of your leadership qualities?
• Are you a big picture or a detailed person?
• What is the largest team you have led?
• Tell me about a situation where you used your creativity
• What is the worst job you ever had?
• Have you ever spoken at conferences?
• How adept at technology are you?
• Have you ever engineered a solution with an obvious answer?
• Can you give me an example of a time when you showed some initiative in the work place?

Chapter 3: Questions Pertaining To The Company And The Specific Role

There are always interview questions about the company you are applying to. They will have expected you to have researched the company and the role during your interview preparation. Always have interview questions to ask. This is a key interview tip.

Here are some sample job interview questions for this category:

• What is it about the company that attracts you here?
• Have you ever heard anything negative about this company?
• What changes would you make to the company?
• Are you not over qualified for this role?
• Do you have questions for me?

Chapter 4: Behavioral Interview Questions

All job interviews these days have some behavioral questions. This category will cover some piercing questions without pushing legal boundaries. The interviewer will delve into your relationships with colleagues, your boss and your clients. Your interview skills will need to be honed to answer such searching questions.

Here are some sample interview questions for this category:

• Have you ever got angry at work?
• What happens when some says no to you?
• What do you do if you fundamentally disagree with a company policy?
• Have you ever had a dispute with a boss?
• How do you deal with irate customers?
• How do you deal with failure?
• How do you establish credibility with your team?
• How long does it take you to make a decision?
• What kind of boss do you best work for?
• What happens when results do not meet your managers expectations?
• How Good are you at multi-tasking?

Chapter 5: Salary Expectation, Relocation and Resignation

This is a tricky interview area and salary questions are hard to answer. It depends on what stage of the process you are at and interview questions like these can be a bit of game during the early stages.

• Are you leaving your current role for monetary reasons?
• Will you take shares or options in lieu of cash?
• You will be required to travel 25% of the time – is that an issue?
• Will you find it difficult to leave your current company?
• We can’t pay you the kind of money you have been earning – are you willing to take a pay cut?

Chapter 6: Questions On Your Education

If this is your first job interview, then prepare for many questions. The further you are along in your career, the fewer questions you will get. The interviewer will want to know that you have appreciated the value of an education and the benefits.

Here are some sample job interview questions for this category:

• Are grades in reality and indication that you will do well in the workplace?
• What did you learn that is relevant?
• What is your ideal job after graduation?
• What would you change about your college?
• How do you rate the program there as against other schools?

Chapter 7: Career Breaks, Number of Previous Jobs and Other Prospects

If have jumped from job to job quite frequently, this may raise an alarm bell with the interviewer. Likewise if you have taken a number of career breaks, please ensure that any hole in your resume is accounted for. The reasons can range from personal reasons to being laid off to just wanting a break.

Here are some sample questions for this category:

• There is a long gap on your resume – what were you doing during that period?
• You have been at many different companies in a short period of time?
• What criteria are you using to select companies to interview with?
• Are you interviewing elsewhere?
• Do you intend taking another break?

Chapter 8: Interests Outside The Workplace

Interviewers are keen that people enjoy a work life balance. You can just as easily build a network outside a workplace as inside. In addition, the more healthy your lifestyle, the more productive you will be.

• What are your outside interests?
• What do you do for fun?

Interview preparation is an absolute must!

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Interview Questions as well as some Sample Answers

If you are called for such an interview (congratulations by the way – you must be highly thought  of!), prepare your answers on

a) leadership

b) communincation

c) change management

d) conflict resolution

e) team building

f) delivery

The book deals with all these topics in details. Congratulations on getting this far in your career, this is a huge opportunity for you,

Best of luck,

Doug

Any questions – please ask me,

Doug

An time-honored tradition is the mock interview. You can choose to get professional help (video interview), solicit help from a friend or even interview yourself (yes I did say that!).

Whatever method you choose, conducting a mock interview is a great preparation technique. Ask the question in your head, but listen to your answer out loud…Does it make sense? … Does it ring true?….Does it sound right to you?…Put yourself in the interviewer’s seat…What do you think?

Most professional interviewers (including myself) endorse this method of preparation. It helps you to give you conviction in your answers and adapt the ones that you are not 100% comfortable with.

Try it!

Best Wishes

Doug

Leadership interview questions can be similar to behavioral questions, you will be asked about your approach to decision making, conflict resolution, how to motivate staff, how to handle successes and indeed failures.

Communication interview questions focus on the ability to promote communication internal and external to the team. How do  you deal with customers. How can you persuade people and how do you choose the right product and message for your customer.

The Interview Master covers all these questions and answers. Please feel free to mail me if you have other questions,

Best wishes,

Doug

If you feel that I am missing some others, please feel free to contact me directly,

Doug

I have been asked many times if wearing a suit and tie is a sign of desperation, especially if you are heading to a place that has a casual policy.

The answer:  No!

Wearing a suit and tie (for the guys) shows that  you are really serious, you want to make a vital first impression on the interviewers. Show them that you are the person they need. You do not want them distracted by some item of clothing you are wearing.

Keep your clothing simple and professional.

Doug

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Make sure you understand the questions the interviewer is asking you and you will avoid interview mistakes. There is nothing more annoying for an interviewer when someone answers a question that is not being asked. Interviewers are shrewd enough to know when you are avoiding answering a certain type of question.

Make sure that you are telling the truth! Interviewers are usually very skilled and will sense if you tell something that is simply not true. Even if you do get something by them, they will have you checked out and it will come back to plague you later. Imagine being fired from a job because you lied about your background and then have to try to explain this at an interview for another job.

Another basic interview mistake is not to have any questions ready for the interviewer. You always need to have some questions ready for the interviewer. It is a strong signal of intent. You applied for this job and you mean business. You want to know all about it and the company. Even if this is the tenth person whom you have met at this company, ask them the same questions to see if the response is consistent.

Preparation is key!

Doug

1. Companies and Interviewers take recruiting very seriously and they spend many dollars and hours to make the correct decisions for their companies.

2. You should always thank an interviewer for taking time out to discuss the opportunity with you. Thank them at the end of the interview and take their card.

3.Sometimes, it is good to send a follow up email to thank them again. Also, it is a good opportunity to clarify or indeed ask them further questions regarding the role.