Interviews

Struggling to Answer the Question Asked?  How a Timer Can Transform Your Interview Performance  One of the most common challenges candidates face during interviews is over explaining themselves, or going off on a tangent. When nerves kick in, it’s easy to lose structure in your answer. You begin with a clear point but as you dive into unnecessary detail, your answer has now stretched to five or six minutes.  What's the Risk?   There is an important insight from behavioural science about how humans really listen. We only tend to remember the beginning, parts of the middle, and the end of what we are being told.  This May Mean Job Application Rejection for You in an Interview Context. [...]

What is the STAR Method of Interviewing? There are many ways to interview people for employment.  Often, each employer will have preferred interview techniques.  Individually, some hiring managers may have developed their own styles.  One of these interview techniques in the STAR method. What is the STAR Method of Interviewing? The STAR method is a structured approach to answering behavioural interview questions.  It is widely used and recommended for its effectiveness in providing clear, concise, and relevant responses to interview questions. What does "STAR" stand for? Situation Task Action Result Essentially, if your interviewer will use the STAR model during your [...]

Do You Have Any Questions For Us? This question is one of the most dreaded interview questions (next to the one on strengths and weaknesses)! Effective Interviews will have a Structure Most interviewers' last question will be to ask if the interviewee has any questions they would like to ask them. At this point of the interview, the interviewee is often tired, curious if they're doing well and their energy may be lagging.  Questions that were prepared in advance have often been answered during the course of the interview and there can be a sense of panic felt when the interviewee [...]

How to Stand Out in a Competitive Job Market The job market is more competitive than ever.  Ireland is at full employment and even with that, certain key roles remain highly attractive to job seekers.  Standing out from the crowd can be challenging for these key roles which are part of your planned career path ahead.   Here are Some Ways You Can Stand Out Build a Strong Personal Brand Create a powerful LinkedIn profile.  Make sure it's up to date.  Use a professional headshot, a great headline and a summary that highlights your unique strengths.  Interviewers will often view your [...]

Where has the Art of Conversation Gone? Daily life in business in Ireland involves various methods of communication. Business communication methods include e-mail, phone calls, online meetings, in person meetings, trade shows, exhibitions, networking events, webinars, very occasional letters, and of course general conversation. Increased use of Hybrid Working and Remote Working Increased use of hybrid working and remote working methods during 2020 and 2021 in particular, meant that the in person communication frequency dramatically declined. Naturally, this resulted in employees having to remind themselves of the previously normally accepted methods of communicating in person and returning to use those methods. [...]

Tips for Interviewing on Teams or Zoom It's safe to say that most of us are now very familiar with using online video conferencing!  Zoom was a piece of software that most of us were not aware of until the Covid-19 pandemic hit and we moved our office environments into our homes.  Teams were groups of people to most of us and now we use the word interchangeable with Zoom and video conferencing, in a way none of us could have envisaged three years ago! Recruiters could never have imagined the effect of completing entire hiring processes without never meeting a [...]

Competency Based Interviewing What is Competency Based Interviewing? Competency Based Interviewing is interviewing a person so that the interviewer can determine if the person has the competencies necessary for the job on offer. Every Job Requires Certain Competencies Each job requires a specific set of competencies and skills.  The purpose of an interview is to find out if the person has the necessary competencies. It is best establish competencies by asking appropriate questions.  Interview questions that ask the person to describe examples from their work life to date are most effective.  When interviewees describe situations in which they previously experienced particular difficulties [...]

Interview Tips When Wearing a Face Mask Masks have Become Commonplace post Covid-19 Lockdown in Ireland As of this week, it is now mandatory for everyone entering shops to wear a mask.  We have come through a particularly challenging few months since the first Covid-19 confirmed case in Ireland earlier this year. The Last Few Months have been Challenging The Irish Government is still advising those who can work from home to continue to do so for the moment.  A lot of organisations have commenced the re-introduction of their employees back into the work place.  Demand still exists in a lot [...]

How to "Sell" Yourself at Interview Recruiters often advise candidates to "sell" themselves at interview.  First of all, this is vague advice and furthermore, often off putting.  "Selling" to some people feels forced, pushy and unnatural. Candidates often think of the stereotypical 1980's salesperson who says whatever it takes to get the sale over the line.  This is in direct contrast to modern sales techniques which focus more on matching the solution on offer to those who can benefit from it.  Consequently, this is a more successful and honourable sales technique! The same applies to "selling" yourself at interview. Interviews are [...]

Strengths and Weaknesses - The Interview Question We All Dislike! This is the question most dreaded in interviews.  People dread being asked about their strengths and weaknesses for a number of reasons.  Interviewees can feel under pressure to give an answer.  They dislike boasting about their strengths and equally don't want to give a weakness that will cost them the job offer! This question is usually asked at the end of an interview when all of the questions have been answered.  Interviewers often ask this question off the cuff.  This can catch people out.  Often, interviewees will have a number of [...]