It is becoming common for companies to conduct job interviews via Skype. Skype interviews are fast, easy and very inexpensive. Because you are online using your computer and a camera it can be a tad uncomfortable the first time. Here are 5 tips to help you excel at your Skype interview:
- Background: Believe it or not the background of your Skype interview is more important than you think. The idea is to face your computer toward a simple but not boring background. Try framing a bookshelf or desk behind you. You want to give yourself a little depth in the image. Avoid stark white walls or brightly colored and too busy backgrounds. Computers distort colors and can make it difficultly for the interviewer to focus.
- Lighting: Having the correct lighting will help your interviewer see you at your best and make it easy on their eyes. Overhead lights that are very bright or florescent tend to wash your face out or even darken your face. The best lighting is natural sunlight from a nearby window. Look toward the natural sunlight and/or a table lamp so that it illuminates your face.
- What to Wear: Just because you are having an interview in a less conventional way doesn’t mean the same business interview attire does not apply. Wear what you normally would for an interview. A nice blouse with a jacket for women or a nice shirt with a suit jacket and tie for men is appropriate. A tip for women: Log onto Skype beforehand to determine how much makeup you may need. Sometimes computer cameras can create the appearance of being tired.
- Where to look: Your natural reaction is to look directly at the screen as the interviewer speaks, try to look up into the computer camera. You and the interviewer should make the interview as close as an in person interview as possible. Looking into the camera will give the effect that you are speaking eye to eye.
- Practice: Practice with a friend or family member on Skype. Practice speaking up and looking right into the camera. Test out your interview outfit and background. Make sure your posture is strong and that you keep it throughout the interview. Practice makes perfect!
Remember these tips for your next Skype interview and you will succeed! A Skype interview is just like an in person interview but in the comfort of your own home. Have fun and remember to speak up and smile, good luck!
The main goal of a phone screen is to generate enough interest in your candidacy to have the company want to invite you in for a face to face interview
There are three main topics that are usually covered in a phone screen:
- Job Qualifications: The interviewer will review your qualifications as they apply to the job.
Prep Advice: Take your resume and compare it with the company job description. Look carefully at the main or highlighted job responsibilities and pull out relevant work that you have done that matches the job description. Make sure that you can strongly support your work experience in the areas they are looking for.
- Culture/Personality Fit: The interviewer will be assessing you to see if you are a “fit” for the culture and personality of the company/group.
Prep Advice: Understand that the “pharma” personality that is universally sought after is: energetic, scientifically inquisitive, confident, hard working, capable of working on teams and with diverse groups, an expert in their area of specialty, yet collaborative. In addition understand as much about the culture of this particular company as possible. Study their website, understand their corporate personality. If it is a different sized company than most of your experience, be prepared to explain how you will be a fit.
- Interest in this position: The interviewer will try to determine why you are currently open to new opportunities and why you are interested in this particular position.
Prep advice: Make sure you have excellent answers to those two questions. Be clear and concise about why you are looking for a new position. Be specific about why you are interested in this particular job, and make sure the specifics are meaningful (never use location of a company or territory as a reason). These two questions/answers are worth practicing a few times, so that they flow smoothly in your discussion.
Final piece of advice is to have questions to ask at the end of the conversation if they give you the opportunity. Make sure the questions are serious and thoughtful, not fluff questions. Really envision yourself in this position – what questions would you have?
Here is a brief checklist of things to do prior to your interview:
Visit the company website in advance and become familiar with the company, technology, products, and key players. Read press releases and bios. Prepare a list of questions you will want to ask–in advance.
Dress professionally! It shows that you respect them and their business. They’ll also know you are serious about the position you seek.
Make sure you have directions, phone numbers, your list of questions, and the agenda. Also, know something about the people you will be meeting. Bring several clean copies of your CV, a notebook and pens for taking notes.
Allow enough travel time so you are not rushed and plan to arrive early.
Be professional and cordial to everyone you meet (not only is this good professional behavior, it’s a good idea because you never know who has clout!). Smile, extend your hand, and give everyone a firm handshake!
Ask each person for a business card (or the correct spelling of their name and title). It is a good idea to send individual thank you letters to the people you meet during the interview process–within 24 hours–to help keep you “top of mind”.
During the interviews, sit up straight, don’t slouch, don’t eat anything, and don’t doodle or fiddle with your notes. Speak slowly and clearly and make good eye contact.
Be enthusiastic! They want to know that you want to work with them, too!
Have your updated CV and a list of your important milestones available for quick reference. Have a list your benefits and strengths to refer to when needed.
Have the job description and a list of questions to ask the hiring manager about the position. For instance: To whom would I report? What is his/her background? What is your background? How large is the group? How many direct reports would I have? How much time would you expect me to spend in the lab, managing people, traveling, etc. Interview them just as they are interviewing you!
LISTEN carefully to the questions and always answer in a positive way. Let them know you are listening to them. Respond to their questions with detailed and specific illustrations or accomplishments.
If you do not know the answer to a question, just say so. Don’t pretend to know. Instead, use it as an opportunity to find out more from the person conducting the interview.
It is okay to say you were downsized and that you are not currently working if they ask why you left your last position. Make your explanation brief and positive.
Never say anything negative about any of your previous positions or any of your coworkers. In fact, it is best never to say anything negative at all in an interview!
If you are impressed with the company and are interested in the position you should say so! Ask them what the next step will be.
Don’t discuss money at this time. We want the hiring manager to “fall in love” with your qualifications first. We will negotiate the best compensation for you later on.
Good Luck!
Toward the end of most job interviews, the interviewer will give you the opportunity to ask questions. You must ask a least one question; to do otherwise often signals the interviewer that you don’t really have any interest in the job or the company. On the other hand, do not ask questions where the answer is obvious or readily available — or when the topic has already been thoroughly discussed in the interview. And never ask about salary and beneift issues until those subjects are raised by the employer.
Questions you might ask at a job interview:
- Can you describe a typical day for someone in this position?
- What is the top priority of the person who accepts this job?
- What are the day-to-day expectations and responsibilities of this job?
- How will my leadership responsibilities and performance be measured? And by whom? How often?
- Can you describe the company’s management style?
- Can you discuss your take on the company’s corporate culture?
- What are the company’s values?
- How would you characterize the management philosophy of this organization? Of your department?
- What is the organization’s policy on transfers to other divisions or other offices?
- Are lateral or rotational job moves available?
- Does the organization support ongoing training and education for employees to stay current in their fields?
- What do you think is the greatest opportunity facing the organization in the near future? The biggest threat?
- Why did you come to work here? What keeps you here?
- How is this department perceived within the organization?
- Is there a formal process for advancement within the organization?
- What are the traits and skills of people who are the most successful within the organization?
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Does the thought of going on a job interview cause your palms to sweat and your body to break out in hives? Stop itching; you’re not alone. |
The STAR method is a structured manner of responding to a behavioral-based interview question by discussing the specific situation, task, action, and result of the situation you are describing.
Situation: Describe the situation that you were in or the task that you needed to accomplish. You must describe a specific event or situation, not a generalized description of what you have done in the past. Be sure to give enough detail for the interviewer to understand. This situation can be from a previous job, from a volunteer experience, or any relevant event.
Task: What goal were you working toward?
Action: Describe the actions you took to address the situation with an appropriate amount of detail and keep the focus on YOU. What specific steps did you take and what was your particular contribution? Be careful that you don’t describe what the team or group did when talking about a project, but what you actually did. Use the word “I,” not “we” when describing actions.
Result: Describe the outcome of your actions and don’t be shy about taking credit for your behavior. What happened? How did the event end? What did you accomplish? What did you learn? Make sure your answer contains multiple positive results.
Make sure that you follow all parts of the STAR method. Be as specific as possible at all times, without rambling or including too much information. Oftentimes students have to be prompted to include their
results, so try to include that without being asked. Also, eliminate any examples that do not paint you in a positive light. However, keep in mind that some examples that have a negative result (such as “lost the game”) can highlight your strengths in the face of adversity.
SAMPLE STAR RESPONSE:
Situation (S): Advertising revenue was falling off for my college newspaper, The Review, and
large numbers of long-term advertisers were not renewing contracts.
Task (T): My goal was to generate new ideas, materials and incentives that would result in at least a 15% increase in advertisers from the year before.
Action (A): I designed a new promotional packet to go with the rate sheet and compared the benefits of The Review circulation with other ad media in the area. I also set-up a special training session for the account executives with a School of Business Administration professor who discussed competitive selling strategies.
Result (R): We signed contracts with 15 former advertisers for daily ads and five for special supplements. We increased our new advertisers by 20 percent over the same period last year.
HOW TO PREPARE FOR A BEHAVIORAL INTERVIEW:
• Recall recent situations that show favorable behaviors or actions, especially involving course work, work experience, leadership, teamwork, initiative, planning, and customer service.
• Prepare short descriptions of each situation; be ready to give details if asked.
• Be sure each story has a beginning, middle, and an end, i.e., be ready to describe the situation, including the task at hand, your action, and the outcome or result.
• Be sure the outcome or result reflects positively on you (even if the result itself was not favorable).
• Be honest. Don’t embellish or omit any part of the story. The interviewer will find out if your story is built on a weak foundation.
• Be specific. Don’t generalize about several events; give a detailed accounting of one event.
• Vary your examples; don’t take them all from just one area of your life.
SAMPLE BEHAVIORAL INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:
Practice using the STAR Method on these common behavioral interviewing questions:
• Describe a situation in which you were able to use persuasion to successfully convince someone to see things your way.
• 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.
• Give me an example of a time when you set a goal and were able to meet or achieve it.
• Tell me about a time when you had to use your presentation skills to influence someone’s opinion.
• Give me a specific example of a time when you had to conform to a policy with which you did not agree.
• Please discuss an important written document you were required to complete.
• Tell me about a time when you had to go above and beyond the call of duty in order to get a job done.
• Tell me about a time when you had too many things to do and you were 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? Give me an example.
• Tell me about a time you were able to successfully deal with another person even when that individual may not have personally liked you (or vice versa).
• Tell me about a difficult decision you’ve made in the last year.
• Give me an example of a time when something you tried to accomplish and failed.
• Give me an example of when you showed initiative and took the lead.
• Tell me about a recent situation in which you had to deal with a very upset customer or co- worker.
• Give me an example of a time when you motivated others.
• Tell me about a time when you delegated a project effectively.
• Give me an example of a time when you used your fact-finding skills to solve a problem.
• Tell me about a time when you missed an obvious solution to a problem.
• Describe a time when you anticipated potential problems and developed preventive measures.
• Tell me about a time when you were forced to make an unpopular decision.
• Please tell me about a time you had to fire a friend.
• Describe a time when you set your sights too high (or too low).
An informed recruiter will give you background information on the company, its corporate culture, the projects, the people, etc. This will give you an idea of what to expect so you can relax and focus on the opportunity instead of constantly worrying, “What will happen to me next?” If you or the company have questions which arise from the interview, a recruiter usually can find the answers before doubts become concerns and then turn into problems.
A good recruiter will spend time getting to know your professional and personal needs. What would the “right opportunity” include for you? What is important versus what would just be nice? They should help you consider the professional challenge, job location, advancement potential, money and stability. In order to effectively work together, an open exchange of information is necessary. A good recruiter will help you work through the entire interview and hiring process. Open, honest communication and cooperation are considered your part of the bargain.
At Brighton Research, we’re here to help.
Please contact us to answer your questions.