Frequently asked interview questions

The key to a successful interview is preparation and it is advisable to put together a bank of examples and prepared answers. Although you may not be able to repeat them verbatim, you should be able to use them as a basis for the vast majority of the questions posed.

The structure of an interview very much depends on the interviewer and their preferred approach. Some may prefer an informal method and will have a chat over a cup of coffee, whilst others may prefer the less popular “stress interview”; firing aggressive and sometimes insulting questions at you to see how you react. No matter what the interviewer’s preferred method, remember they are all trying to find the same information: Can he/she do the job? Does he/she really want the job? and finally will he/she fit in, culturally within the organisation?

Interview types and how you should approach each one, are addressed in the article “Types of Interview” but below are just a few of the most popular questions aked at interview:

Company / job specific questions

What do you know about our organisation / industry / competitors / products?
What key qualities do you feel are important in this role?
If successful, how will you approach this role and what key issues will you address in the first three months?
In your opinion, what is the biggest challenge facing our organisation / sector at the moment?

Biographical interview

Tell me about yourself?
What are you strengths?
What are you weaknesses?
What five adjectives would you use to describe yourself?
Why are you leaving your current job?
Why have you applied to us?
What motivates you?
Where do you see yourself in five years / ten years?
What is your greatest achievement?
Do you prefer to work as part of a team or independently?
We have had applications from a number of highly qualified candidates, why should we hire you?
If I were to speak to your family / friends / boss, how would they describe you?
What is your management style?
What do you enjoy about your current role?
What do you dislike about your current role?
What element of this role do you think you would dislike the most?
What type of boss do you prefer?
What is your current remuneration?
What are your salary expectations?
What is your biggest achievement?
What is your biggest disappointment?
What other jobs have you applied for and at what stage in the recruitment process are you at?
Why did you chose this career?

Competency based interview

These questions will almost always start with “Give me an example of when you…”

took a difficult / unpopular decision and how did you deal with this
disagreed with your boss and what action did you take to address the dispute
were part of a badly performing team and how did you address this
demonstrated initiative
identified and addressed a serious operational / financial problem
delivered results within a highly pressurised situation

Stress interview / difficult questions

You seem a little over qualified?
You seem a little under qualified?
This role requires extensive sales experience, but this does seem to be lacking in your CV?
You have a number of employment gaps in your CV?
How do you feel this interview is going?
Some people may consider your attitude to be a little “cocky” – what would you say to this?
What is the biggest mistake you have ever made?

Finally at the end of an interview, you will be asked whether you have any questions ready for them. Make sure you have prepared a few pertinent questions but ensure, when asking them that you don’t cover old ground. If the answer has already been covered during the interview, don’t repeat this. Good questions to ask include:

Referring to a new technology or competitor advancement and asking how the company are planning to address this?

Asking how they are dealing with a new regulatory / legislative change?
How will my performance be monitored?
What will be expected of me in my first six months / one year?

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