Simply Hired UK Blog

Interview Question: What Would Your Ideal Job Be?

While the all too obvious response to this question would be to simply name whichever role you were interviewing for at the time, in reality this would cut no ice with your potential employer. Never underestimate an experienced interviewer’s ability to distinguish honesty from unnecessary boot licking, especially at a time where positions of employment are sought after by an unusually high number of applicants. So how exactly should you approach this question, and what answer should you offer in response?

Why Do Employers Ask Candidates This Question?

On the face of it, this may seem like a fairly spurious question, especially given that your dream job is likely to be far removed from the one you have applied for. However, there are several reasons why employers pose this question, and many facets of information that it draws from the applicant. Remember: 

• Your dream job gives an indication as to your level of ambition and appreciation of real world goals, and whether you have developed a suitable understanding of the two. They can therefore determine driven candidates from those who are detached from the detail of reality.

• Your answer also reveals the type of industry and environment that you would like to work in, and give an insight into your preferred work place arrangement. This allows employers to decide how compatible you are with both the role and the individual work place.

• Employers are always keen to hire those who can articulate their thoughts honestly and in a professional manner, and this question tests your ability to remain true to yourself in an interview situation. Is your answer a genuine reflection of your interests and value, or something that you believe the employer wants to hear?

How to Answer This Question Effectively

With these points in mind, it is clear that any potential employer can gain a great deal of insight from your response to this question. It also emphasises the need to ensure that your answer is as honest and effective as it can possibly be without blurring the lines between fiction and reality. So: 

• While ambition is one thing, it is nothing if it is steered toward impossible or simply unobtainable goals. Employers are unlikely to hire someone who states that their dream job is to manage an experience company based on Mars, simply because they would appear to be unfocused and unable to channel their ambition with significant drive.

• Similarly, you should attempt to consider whether your dream job has anything at all in common with the role you have applied for. Your answer must draw at least some correlation to the job you are seeking, as otherwise employers will conclude that you will ultimately be dissatisfied in your post and seek new pastures.

• It goes without saying that you should avoid sycophantic answers at all costs, and stay as true to yourself as possible when contriving and delivering your response. As we have already discussed, interviewers are only too aware of the contrived sound bites that blight interviews, so the answer you offer must reflect your true goals, values and opinion.

Do you have any thoughts on how to answer this question? If so then we would love you to tweet your thoughts @simplyhireduk.

How to Tackle the Most Unusual Interview Questions

While job interviews can be daunting experiences, imagine how much more difficult they would be if employers posed a dazzling array of unusual and unpredictable questions? Well imagine no more, as various high profile companies and technology based firms have decided to introduce the element of surprise for candidates seeking employment with them. So now is the time to embrace the world of the strange interview question, and make thinking outside of the box outside of crucial part of your interview preparation.

What Unusual Questions Are Being Posed by Interviewers?

Various unusual interview questions have emerged over the last year One premier example is asking an interviewee whether or not he thought that "Mahatma Gandhi would make a good software engineer." Other examples include candidates being interviewed for Google roles asked direct questions about competitor Facebook, and technology based companies asking their applicants "how they would attempt to cure world hunger." Despite their seemingly light-hearted nature, these questions have been specifically designed to test aspects of your psyche and suitability as a candidate.

While anyone who has ever attended a job interview will have a preconceived notion of how they are conducted and the type of questions that can be expected, unusual questions have the advantage of making job seekers respond instinctively and think outside of their normal realm. Employers are increasingly aware that the business and technological worlds are subject to constant change, with the result that staff must be able to react to any given work place or external situation and respond appropriately. These unusual questions provide an insight into whether candidates are capable of this or not.

How to Respond to Unusual Interview Questions

While you cannot prepare for unusual questions that are conceived in the mind of an industry expert, you can at least understand the nature of strange interview questioning and the best possible methods for dealing with it. With the above examples in mind, consider the following as key to your success: 

• Begin by assessing the industry that you are applying to work in, and what skills companies are likely to seek from their employees. Taking the technology sector as an example, it is well known that problem solving is a much sought after skill amongst candidates, and so any unusual question will be posed to challenge your thought processes and the way in which you tackle, assess and plan to resolve even the most ridiculous of problems.

• Thinking is the key to successfully answering these types of unusual questions, and more specifically, whether you think in narrow or broad terms. While the former restricts you to addressing each question or challenge in its most rigid sense, it is the latter that encourages you to think beyond the wording of the question and understand exactly what the employer is seeking from you.

• By adopting a broad viewpoint of the challenge in hand, you are in a position to consider the general process of problem solving while even posing questions of your own to help showcase your level of understanding. Employers are looking for someone who is able to remain calm and think largely on their feet, while possessing the awareness to address interviewers and make their task easier.

Have you ever been asked an unusual interview question? If so, please tweet us your thoughts @simplyhireduk

How to Thrive in Part-Time Job Interviews

Part time work becomes something of a Godsend during times of economic hardship, not least because erstwhile job seekers are desperate to keep their feet firmly grounded in the world of work. It is an entirely different kettle of fish to a full time role however and as such boasts interviews that have an altogether more relaxed and less intense atmosphere. This does not devalue their importance however, but simply requires a different mindset for you to succeed.

What Questions Will I Be Asked in a Part Time Interview?

Aside from the generic questions that permeate full time and part time interview questions alike, there are some significant examples that apply only to part time vacancies. The following are core components of the part time interview, and demand your focus to deliver a quality response:

• Would you prefer full-time employment to part-time if a job were available?: This question pulls no punches, and is designed to assess whether you are keen on part time work because of your circumstances or because it provides an avenue back into full time employment. It gives the employer a clearer indication of your motivation to work and long term goals.

• Do you have any activities that would prevent you from working your schedule?: Part-time jobs often require you to work as part of a team, so employers will want to gauge whether you are able to commit to the hours of work that you are given. This question helps them to achieve this, without addressing your personal circumstances directly.

• How would you describe the pace at which you work?: With part time work prominent in busy shops and call centres, there is a clear emphasis on the pace at which you work and whether you can effectively maximize your time. Employers want their part time staff to be organized and especially efficient in their time management skills.

How to Deliver Your Part Time Interview Answers

These questions can be challenging if you are used to the bustle of full time work, and more crucially the interviews which precede the, Consider the following as key to a well thought out response, and answers which can help to take a huge step forward into employment.

• The key to answering the 1st question is to be entirely honest, both with yourself and a potential employer. Citing your circumstances and motivation for seeking part time work provides the foundations of open communication in the interview, and leaves the employer confident in the integrity of your application.

• You must be flexible in your approach to hold down a part time job, and more importantly you must take great care to sell this quality during your interview. The nature of part time work often demands a transition between alternative shifts, so it is important that you relay your commitment to work as and when required.

• While some of you will be faster and more efficient when it comes to completing physical tasks, others will be better at organizing a workload and its priority in the first place. Both are methods of ensuring a quick and desired pace at work, so emphasise whichever is relevant to you. Adapt the question to suit your strengths, and deliver your answer boldly.

Do you have any advice when it comes to handling the part time job interview? If so, our job seekers would love to hear your comments @simplyhireduk.

How Much Ambition Should You Show in the Interview?

Interviews often comprise of two clear categories of questioning: those which enquire as to what you have done, and others which demand to know what your goals and ambitions are for the future. Despite the deserved focus on competency based questioning and getting these answers right, it would be wrong to fall into the trap of paying lip service to those which concern our future. Employers like to understand applicant’s ambition and motivation to work, so consider this before you attend the interview.

Why Are Employers Interested in Your Long Term Plans?

Of course the level of an employer’s interest is dictated by the nature of the job role in question. However each employer is individual in their approach and values, and some will want you to have a clear understanding of your future regardless of the role you will play within the firm. Consider the following:

• Ambition is a key motivator of the human psyche, and someone who is driven to succeed is generally attractive to employers. However, they will be keen to understand exactly what your ambition is, and whether your core motivation as a candidate is financial gain, career progression or something entirely different.

• With this in mind, it should be remembered that too much ambition can deter a potential employer. If you are seeking an entry level role as a way to find employment after a redundancy for example, then having along term goal of management or achieving executive status can give the impression of someone who will not focus on the job in hand or be especially loyal.

• Remember that employers are looking for reliable people who they can both understand and trust with matters of importance. If you are unclear as to your long term career ambition, then how can you expect and employer to trust fully in your commitment and your ability to remain in a role for the foreseeable future.

Thinking About Your Future: Does Your CV Reflect Your Goals?

There is a great deal of correlation between what we have achieved and what we aspire to, and it is important that your resume supports everything that you claim during an interview. So:

• Evaluate your CV prior to an application or interview, and chart your career history to date. Pay special attention to your qualifications and how you have utilized them to further our career, and make sure that your history to date is a potential launch pad to achieve your goals.

• Then consider any anomalies between how you articulate yourself and what you resume says about you. If your aim is to prosper in one industry but your written experience celebrates your achievements in another, then employers will become confused as to your intentions and reliability as a candidate.

• Above all, think hard about where you are and where you desire to be, and consider the role you have applied for. Is it really a viable position for you, or is it something that you consider filler until something better comes along? Be honest with yourself and a potential employer, as otherwise both an organization and your resume will be the ones that suffer.

Do you enter an interview with a clear ambition for your future? If not, how do you answer this question? Please leave your comments here, or contact us @simplyhireduk

 

The Graduate Interview: What Questions Will You Face?

Graduates have had a tough time in recent years applying their newly acquired qualification to a working position, most notably because of hindered economic growth and a reduction in the number of jobs being created. With a limited number of graduate roles becoming increasingly coveted, it is important to consider the interviews for these and how best you can sell yourself to emerge ahead of your rival candidates. So what questions can you expect to face in your interview, and how can you deliver the best possible response?

The Top 3 Questions: What You Can Expect as a Graduate

As a graduate you are likely to have minimal job experience, so the focus of your interview will centre on your educational career and ability to organize your time. The following questions are all prominent in the contemporary graduate interview:

• What Extra Curricular Activities Were You Involved in at Uni?: Just a resume should include your achievements outside of the workplace, employers are also keen to know how graduates spent their time while at university. This may apply to paid or voluntary work, as well as personal interests and hobbies.

• What Did You Learn From Balancing University With Work?: For those of you who married studying with part time or summer work, this question provides you with a great platform to sell your ability to multi-task and organise your time efficiently. It also seeks to find out what skills you have developed through the experience.

• How Does Your Degree Prepare to Work in This Industry?: Perhaps one of the more challenging questions posed to graduates, this one requires you to possess an clear understanding of both what you have learned and how it can be applied to your career. This separates well qualified candidates from outstanding ones.

How Should You Respond to These Questions?

These question tap into the entire educational experience, from starting out and developing interests to applying your skills in the workplace environment. So consider the following as your prepare and deliver your answers:

• Some of your hobbies may well be extra-curricular but this does not mean they are suitable or relevant to a workplace application. Be selective as to which items of workplace experience and activity to reference, and focus on those that required a commitment to hard work and also reveal a strong motivation to achieve.

• Effective time management is up there with problem solving and negotiation when it comes to desired employee skills, and marrying work commitments with studies is a key example of this. Focus on your motivation for balancing the two and the steps that you took to organize your time, without compromising your ability to perform each task.

• For the final question, it is good practice to map out your educational journey prior to the interview. Consider why you chose the subject that you did for your degree, and why it is suitable to the industry in which you aim to thrive. You response should tap into your understanding of this journey, as well as a comprehension of the industry itself.

Do you have any ideas on how to answer this question? Perhaps you are an employer with some advice on what you are looking for from candidates? Please comment or send us your thoughts to @simplyhireduk