FEW IMPORTANT QUESTIONS ASKED IN THE INTERVIEW:
1. Tell me about yourself.
This is a common question—and sometimes the hardest. It's a broad, general question, and the worst thing you can do is give a
broad, general answer.
So how do you make the most of this question? Use it as a springboard to introduce the topics you want to discuss. Decide in
advance what you want the interviewer to know: Your favorite job experience, your most valuable activities in college, your goals
and dreams. Focus your answer by picking one or two things and then use specific details to bring the topic alive.
Example:
I'm a hard worker and I think I generally have good organizational skills. In college, I led a team of designers to create the Web
site for each of the University's volunteer organizations...
2. i) Why Should We Hire You?
Summarize your experiences: "With five years' experience working in the financial industry and my proven record of saving the
company money, I could make a big difference in your company. I'm confident I would be a great addition to your team."
ii) Why should we hire you?
Stress your knowledge, work experience, skills, and abilities. Always highlight specifics, not generalities. Anyone can make a bold
statement, but what sells you is when you can back it up with proven experience.
3. What are your major weaknesses?
"I used to have a tendency to procrastinate. So now I am always sure to set a strict schedule for all of my projects well in
advance and I set personal deadlines. This organization has really helped."
I tend to be a perfectionist.
I sometimes work too hard, leading to unnecessary stress.
I am always working on improving my communication skills to be a more effective presenter.
4. What is your greatest Strength?
Just be positive.
Try Our Tip.
You should highlight your communication skill, problem solving skills, your ability to work better under pressure, your ability to
focus on projects and your leadership skills.
5. Why did you leave your last job?
If You Quit: Again, be honest and stay positive. State that the work being offered wasn't challenging enough, that you are
seeking higher levels of responsibility or simply that you are ready to make the next step on your career ladder -- and that the job
for which you are interviewing is the ideal next step.
6. Do you have any questions for us? Or do you want to ask any question?
I'm very interested in this job. It's exactly the kind of job that I'm looking for. What is the next step in the interview process?
7. What prompted your decision to apply for this position? Or Why do you want to join a Bank?
The question behind this question may be:
Do you know what motivates you?
How much do you really want this job?
Do you really understand what it takes to be successful in this job?
Why us? How do you know you would be happy in our organization?
Suggestions:
If you apply for positions that match your true needs, this should be an easy question. Link your interest and enthusiasm to the
skills and knowledge that are most relevant for the position. Mention what you like about the organization and the people who
work there.
8. Where do you see yourself five years from now?
Suggestions:
Focus on tackling the challenges within the job to which you are applying. For the longer term, you can underline how you wish to
develop your career by developing new skills and knowledge that are meaningful both to you and to the organization.
9. Do you believe in teamwork?
You should always say YES. You should have some examples ready to deliver. It should seem that you are a good performer in
team rather than solo. Always remember that you should not brag, just say it in a natural tone.
Wait patiently for this question and answer cleverly.
Try Our Tip.
You should highlight the best points that relate to your position of job. Never highlight things, which you can't do.
10. Do you rate MONEY or WORK more important?
MONEY is always important but WORK is most important.
11. Describe your work ethic?
Try to give benefits of the organization
Try Our Tip.
Always try to show that you are determined to get the job done and enjoy hard work
12. Why Do You Want to join this organisation?
The interviewer is listening for an answer that indicates you've given this some thought and are not sending out resumes just
because there is an opening. For example, "I've selected key companies whose mission statements are in line with my values,
where I know I could be excited about what the company does, and this company is very high on my list of desirable choices."
13. What Can You Do for Us That Other Candidates Can't?
What makes you unique? This will take an assessment of your experiences, skills and traits. Summarize concisely: "I have a unique
combination of strong technical skills, and the ability to build strong customer relationships. This allows me to use my knowledge
and break down information to be more user-friendly."
14. How long will you stay with the company?
Short, direct comments that express that you want to stay on board as long as you are contributing successfully to the company
and growing as a professional are sufficient. There is no need to discuss how many years you have left on station.
W hat are your strengths and weakness?
Suppose you could choose any particular post in the new scale/ grade, what would it Be and why?
W hat does success means to you and how do you measure it?
What motivates you?
Narrate any two strengths/weaknesses of yours. Have you done anything?
In the last one year to improve yourself? If yes, what?
What has been your greatest achievement in the Bank/in your personal life ?
And your biggest disappointment?
Say something about your best and worst bosses.
What qualities do you value most in those who report directly to you?
Why you should be promoted?
In your view, what were your shortcomings in the earlier tests/ interviews?
What are your hobbies?
W ho is the editor of newspaper your read?
In our Bank, what impressed you much?
How do you handle stress?
Is there anything else you would like to tell us about yourself?
In addition to these general questions, you may face certain questions
About your previous assignments. Some of these questions can include the following
W hat do you like and dislike most about your current assignment?
Do you work independently in your current assignment or a part of a team?
Do you prefer working independently or as part of a team?
W hat are some of the problems you encountered in your earlier Assignments and how did you solve them?
To understand your future ambitions and the reasons for seeking Promotions, the board may ask questions like:
Why do you want to work in the new grade /scale
W hat kind of experience do you think this assignment will provide that Your earlier assignment did not provide?
How do you feel about working late in the evenings ? And working During the weekends
What do you see as your future in the Bank?
Are you considering premature retirement at this point? Why?
How does this job compare with your earlier job?
How can you contribute more to our Bank?
How do you feel about transfer to other Module / Circle?
There is no correct answer as such. What you need to do is to answer this question calmly. Even during the real interview, you
should think before answering the questions. You need to pause before answering as it will help you put together all the points,
substantiating your response. Though you should not gloss over your weaknesses, you need to focus on your success and your
achievements /strengths. You need to convince the interviewer that you are the correct person for the higher position.
SOME MORE TIPS
Take Full advantage of Your Speech & Body language
Project Positive Attitude & avoid the Display of aggression
Must understand your Strength
Cover your weakness
Focus on Your Professional achievement rather than Performance
Do Self Evaluation as to how do you deserve this promotion
Structure your reactions for adverse situations
Hypothetical Questions should be handled by reflecting Positive attitude
Your hobbof the interesties are the reflection of your overall Personality
All questions are Important
Avoid half attempted Responses
Listen Carefully & not to be in a hurry to answer
Be Concise & take care of the Interest of the Members on Board
Practice Before the Interview
Make the experience of Interview Memorable.
BAD BODY LANGUAGE FOR INTERVIEW
TOP 10 BODY LANGUAGE MISTAKES THAT WILL TURN POTENTIAL EMPLOYERS OFF
Failure to make eye contact
Weak handshake
Failure to smile
Crossing arms over chest
Playing with something on the table
Playing with hair or touching the face
Fidgeting toomuch
Bad posture
Using too many hand gestures
A handshake that is too strong
You can manage nerves by giving yourself plenty of time to get to the interview, avoiding caffeine and
by taking deep breaths. But, what will help you impress INTERVIEWER?
Having a good sense of humour
Being well dressed
Being involved in your local community
Being up to date with current affairs and pop culture
Being physically fit
Being up to speed with social media
Final Shots at Interview
FACING INTERVIEW SUCCESSFULLY?
Interview is an opportunity for you to present your personality consisting of his attitude, views and awareness level before the
interview board, so that your potential is easily judged by the members on the Interview Board.
What is evaluated during the interview?
The interview board, in order to judge your POTENTIAL evaluate your Performance in the recent past, Operating style, Team
building capabilities, Effectiveness, Neutral judgment level, Transparency in dealings, Initiatives, Attitude and Leadership qualities.
Though the interview is not a new process for us, being already in job, we have no way of knowing exactly what is going to be
asked and how that would be tackled. The following general tips can help in appearing for an interview, and face the questions
confidently.
Should we prepare pre-scripted questions?
It is important that we must not venture to go for an interview with a pre-determined script of exactly what we are going to say.
What is actually required, is the tactics that enable us to navigate successfully through the interview. Accordingly, we can adhere to
following strategy.
What we should prepare?
We should spend good time to make the choice of the relevant contents. Broadly these can be disintegrated into macro and micro
aspects.
At Macro level we should have an understanding of:
Important happening(economic and political) taking place globally and their bearing on the performance of our
organization.
Status of Indian economy and its impact on the banking system in India in terms of growth of business ,quality of assets
and profits.
Vision and Mission of the bank and its strengths and weaknesses(in terms of quality of manpower, geographical spread,
level of use of information technology, introduction of new customer oriented products, pricing in terms of interest rates
offered and the effectiveness in terms of delivery), our market share , the challenges, our banking industry is facing and
the priorities laid down by the top management of our bank.
At Micro level we should have appropriate information about;
Professional achievements during the recent 3-4 years
Strength of family background(including dislocation on promotion, problems of growing children, serving wife, old parents)
and educational and professional background.
Some information about the subjects studied in the last academic examination
All important happening around work place(frauds ,shift of big accounts from the bank etc)
Hobbies, leisure time activities
Important development reported in the Newspaper of recent weeks.
Take full advantage of speech and body language
We should bear in mind that the employer or the members of the interview board want to know and interview is the medium for
interaction. Hence, we should express ourselves freely as expressions would flow through speech, gestures and body language.
Please remember that we would normally not get a 2nd chance, to improve our 1st impression.
Project the positive attitude and avoid display of aggression
In the interview, our attitude, the confidence with which we communicate and the depth we have about what we know, is
generally given importance. Hence, care should be taken for not reflecting negative frame of mind or negative attitude or shallow
knowledge or aggressive postures.
Must understand our strengths
Before going for an interview, you should draw a list of all your strengths. Your strengths should be projected whether opportunity
arises without making any one feel that it is self-appreciation. You should also have clarity as to , in what way your strengths alone
that you can support for the promotion.
Cover the weakness
We should also understand one weakness and prepare ourselves to cover our weak points, particularly what steps have been
initiated by you in the past to negate the impact of weaknesses. If asked to explain weakness, we should choose a weakness that
is not critical to the success on the job or assignment. The weakness, should preferably relate to the knowledge content in few
areas as opposed to the lack of personal effectiveness. For instance, a weakness relating to lack of knowledge of a particular skill,
say foreign exchange, is preferable to stating that one finds it difficult to manage people. Further, the weakness to be discussed
should be the one which the members of the Interview Board are either already aware of or will discover through the interview
process. While discussing the weakness, one should always concentrate on as to how we have been working on the problem, to
find a solution. We must try to give a tangible account of the efforts we have been making, to convert the weakness into a
strength.
Focus on professional achievement rather than personal performance
In the interviews ”Tell us about yourself” is a generally inquired question which requires much more preparation than other
questions of factual nature, since a candidate is generally not very certain, “from where to begin and how to complete.” However,
if a candidate structures the fats relating to himself carefully in advance, covering the highlights of one’s current assignment , the
past professional experience in brief and also the value we offer to the organization, we can be comfortable with the Interview
Board. It should be taken care that we focus on professional achievements rather than personal performance.
Do self evaluation as to how we, deserve this promotion
“Why do you deserve this promotion” is a frequently asked question and is required to be handled carefully. To answer this
question well, one should be aware of the requirement of Organistaion and should have clarity about what we can offer to satisfy
such requirement. The answer , should reflect the distinction which we have, compared to others, based on which we deserve the
promotion. Putting answers such as having a good job knowledge or being a hard worker, really does not help as everyone else
would claim so, under such circumstances.
Structure the reaction for adverse situation
On a no. of occasions, the candidates are asked about adverse happening in the work place where he has been working till
recently.In such circumstances, one should reflect a positive attitude, be tactful, and diplomatic in the way one describe the
situation. It is desirable that the problem is first defined to make sure that there was a breach of some system of some human
failure.It may be concluded by stating as to what lesson did one learn from the incident?
Hypothetical questions should be handled by reflecting positive attitude
At times a hypothetical situations is given to working out a strategy. For instance, if the candidate is asked as to how he would
increase the profits of a Zone/Branch , he should not start directly with the strategy. Instead, should first talk about the SWOT
analysis with a view to understand the potential available to make a strategy work.The strategy should be based on the potential
available in a particular position.
Hobbies are the reflection of overall personality
We should also be very specific about hobbies, extra curricular activities and other activities and also as to how and why we
pursue those hobbies or activities. How do we spend spare time and how do we manage the time .Additionally, we must be able to
give proper account and thorough understanding of recent assignment and your academic background.
All questions are important
In an interview, all the questions are important and no question is less difficult than the other .Even, simple question, like which
newspaper we read and which TV channel we watch and what is interesting about that could be important to understand
commitment and interests. Hence, only few questions should not be singled out as the toughest or desirable or expected.It is the
working of a question being asked, which makes one question uncomfortable from the other.We should focus not on the actual
wording of the question but on the spirit and context also. Effort should be made that the wording of a question is interpreted to
one’s advantage.
Avoid half-attempted responses
Before answering a question, for a while, one should collect thoughts, so that are able to answer appropriately as blurred or casual
or half-attempted response cannot help.
Listen carefully and do not be in a hurry to answer
Please listen very carefully, to what is being asked. One should not be in a hurry to answer the question. Be patient,stay fresh,
enthusiastic and cooperative. One should not be evasive or hesitant answering the question. Even if a question makes
uncomfortable, make earnest effort to answer it. Please endeavor to answer all question as not answering amounts to loss of
opportunity. However, if one does not have clarity, please humbly express inability to answer so that process of interview
continues.
Be concise and take care of the interest of the members on the Board
Be concise,being careful that the point mentioned is not incoherent or boring not lose the interest of the members of the interview
board and give an impression that one cannot organise his thoughts.
Practice before the interview
Before appearing for an interview, practice interview by involving your family members or colleagues. Seeking guidance from
experienced persons or Institutes can certainly bring much improvement.
What if tough questions are asked or one is not able to answer a question?
Inspite of best of the practice and preparation, very often one may be asked questions which he considers tough and unable to
answer.Donot try to give vague answers to such questions.It is better to let the interview Board know so that another question is
asked which is one more opportunity for you to cover your position.
Outside the Interview room
It is pertinent to add that one should avoid anxiety or doing something which one does not do on normal days. Handling an
interview is both an art and science and each interview differs from the other, depending upon the members in the interview
board, the time available with the Board members, the no.of candidates and the vacancies. One has to look into these aspects and
prepare himself, to be successful.
Make the experience of interview members memorable
Please remember, it is the candidate only, who can make this experience memorable and rewarding for himself and his
organisation.
1. Tell me about yourself.
This is a common question—and sometimes the hardest. It's a broad, general question, and the worst thing you can do is give a
broad, general answer.
So how do you make the most of this question? Use it as a springboard to introduce the topics you want to discuss. Decide in
advance what you want the interviewer to know: Your favorite job experience, your most valuable activities in college, your goals
and dreams. Focus your answer by picking one or two things and then use specific details to bring the topic alive.
Example:
I'm a hard worker and I think I generally have good organizational skills. In college, I led a team of designers to create the Web
site for each of the University's volunteer organizations...
2. i) Why Should We Hire You?
Summarize your experiences: "With five years' experience working in the financial industry and my proven record of saving the
company money, I could make a big difference in your company. I'm confident I would be a great addition to your team."
ii) Why should we hire you?
Stress your knowledge, work experience, skills, and abilities. Always highlight specifics, not generalities. Anyone can make a bold
statement, but what sells you is when you can back it up with proven experience.
3. What are your major weaknesses?
"I used to have a tendency to procrastinate. So now I am always sure to set a strict schedule for all of my projects well in
advance and I set personal deadlines. This organization has really helped."
I tend to be a perfectionist.
I sometimes work too hard, leading to unnecessary stress.
I am always working on improving my communication skills to be a more effective presenter.
4. What is your greatest Strength?
Just be positive.
Try Our Tip.
You should highlight your communication skill, problem solving skills, your ability to work better under pressure, your ability to
focus on projects and your leadership skills.
5. Why did you leave your last job?
If You Quit: Again, be honest and stay positive. State that the work being offered wasn't challenging enough, that you are
seeking higher levels of responsibility or simply that you are ready to make the next step on your career ladder -- and that the job
for which you are interviewing is the ideal next step.
6. Do you have any questions for us? Or do you want to ask any question?
I'm very interested in this job. It's exactly the kind of job that I'm looking for. What is the next step in the interview process?
7. What prompted your decision to apply for this position? Or Why do you want to join a Bank?
The question behind this question may be:
Do you know what motivates you?
How much do you really want this job?
Do you really understand what it takes to be successful in this job?
Why us? How do you know you would be happy in our organization?
Suggestions:
If you apply for positions that match your true needs, this should be an easy question. Link your interest and enthusiasm to the
skills and knowledge that are most relevant for the position. Mention what you like about the organization and the people who
work there.
8. Where do you see yourself five years from now?
Suggestions:
Focus on tackling the challenges within the job to which you are applying. For the longer term, you can underline how you wish to
develop your career by developing new skills and knowledge that are meaningful both to you and to the organization.
9. Do you believe in teamwork?
You should always say YES. You should have some examples ready to deliver. It should seem that you are a good performer in
team rather than solo. Always remember that you should not brag, just say it in a natural tone.
Wait patiently for this question and answer cleverly.
Try Our Tip.
You should highlight the best points that relate to your position of job. Never highlight things, which you can't do.
10. Do you rate MONEY or WORK more important?
MONEY is always important but WORK is most important.
11. Describe your work ethic?
Try to give benefits of the organization
Try Our Tip.
Always try to show that you are determined to get the job done and enjoy hard work
12. Why Do You Want to join this organisation?
The interviewer is listening for an answer that indicates you've given this some thought and are not sending out resumes just
because there is an opening. For example, "I've selected key companies whose mission statements are in line with my values,
where I know I could be excited about what the company does, and this company is very high on my list of desirable choices."
13. What Can You Do for Us That Other Candidates Can't?
What makes you unique? This will take an assessment of your experiences, skills and traits. Summarize concisely: "I have a unique
combination of strong technical skills, and the ability to build strong customer relationships. This allows me to use my knowledge
and break down information to be more user-friendly."
14. How long will you stay with the company?
Short, direct comments that express that you want to stay on board as long as you are contributing successfully to the company
and growing as a professional are sufficient. There is no need to discuss how many years you have left on station.
W hat are your strengths and weakness?
Suppose you could choose any particular post in the new scale/ grade, what would it Be and why?
W hat does success means to you and how do you measure it?
What motivates you?
Narrate any two strengths/weaknesses of yours. Have you done anything?
In the last one year to improve yourself? If yes, what?
What has been your greatest achievement in the Bank/in your personal life ?
And your biggest disappointment?
Say something about your best and worst bosses.
What qualities do you value most in those who report directly to you?
Why you should be promoted?
In your view, what were your shortcomings in the earlier tests/ interviews?
What are your hobbies?
W ho is the editor of newspaper your read?
In our Bank, what impressed you much?
How do you handle stress?
Is there anything else you would like to tell us about yourself?
In addition to these general questions, you may face certain questions
About your previous assignments. Some of these questions can include the following
W hat do you like and dislike most about your current assignment?
Do you work independently in your current assignment or a part of a team?
Do you prefer working independently or as part of a team?
W hat are some of the problems you encountered in your earlier Assignments and how did you solve them?
To understand your future ambitions and the reasons for seeking Promotions, the board may ask questions like:
Why do you want to work in the new grade /scale
W hat kind of experience do you think this assignment will provide that Your earlier assignment did not provide?
How do you feel about working late in the evenings ? And working During the weekends
What do you see as your future in the Bank?
Are you considering premature retirement at this point? Why?
How does this job compare with your earlier job?
How can you contribute more to our Bank?
How do you feel about transfer to other Module / Circle?
There is no correct answer as such. What you need to do is to answer this question calmly. Even during the real interview, you
should think before answering the questions. You need to pause before answering as it will help you put together all the points,
substantiating your response. Though you should not gloss over your weaknesses, you need to focus on your success and your
achievements /strengths. You need to convince the interviewer that you are the correct person for the higher position.
SOME MORE TIPS
Take Full advantage of Your Speech & Body language
Project Positive Attitude & avoid the Display of aggression
Must understand your Strength
Cover your weakness
Focus on Your Professional achievement rather than Performance
Do Self Evaluation as to how do you deserve this promotion
Structure your reactions for adverse situations
Hypothetical Questions should be handled by reflecting Positive attitude
Your hobbof the interesties are the reflection of your overall Personality
All questions are Important
Avoid half attempted Responses
Listen Carefully & not to be in a hurry to answer
Be Concise & take care of the Interest of the Members on Board
Practice Before the Interview
Make the experience of Interview Memorable.
BAD BODY LANGUAGE FOR INTERVIEW
TOP 10 BODY LANGUAGE MISTAKES THAT WILL TURN POTENTIAL EMPLOYERS OFF
Failure to make eye contact
Weak handshake
Failure to smile
Crossing arms over chest
Playing with something on the table
Playing with hair or touching the face
Fidgeting toomuch
Bad posture
Using too many hand gestures
A handshake that is too strong
You can manage nerves by giving yourself plenty of time to get to the interview, avoiding caffeine and
by taking deep breaths. But, what will help you impress INTERVIEWER?
Having a good sense of humour
Being well dressed
Being involved in your local community
Being up to date with current affairs and pop culture
Being physically fit
Being up to speed with social media
Final Shots at Interview
FACING INTERVIEW SUCCESSFULLY?
Interview is an opportunity for you to present your personality consisting of his attitude, views and awareness level before the
interview board, so that your potential is easily judged by the members on the Interview Board.
What is evaluated during the interview?
The interview board, in order to judge your POTENTIAL evaluate your Performance in the recent past, Operating style, Team
building capabilities, Effectiveness, Neutral judgment level, Transparency in dealings, Initiatives, Attitude and Leadership qualities.
Though the interview is not a new process for us, being already in job, we have no way of knowing exactly what is going to be
asked and how that would be tackled. The following general tips can help in appearing for an interview, and face the questions
confidently.
Should we prepare pre-scripted questions?
It is important that we must not venture to go for an interview with a pre-determined script of exactly what we are going to say.
What is actually required, is the tactics that enable us to navigate successfully through the interview. Accordingly, we can adhere to
following strategy.
What we should prepare?
We should spend good time to make the choice of the relevant contents. Broadly these can be disintegrated into macro and micro
aspects.
At Macro level we should have an understanding of:
Important happening(economic and political) taking place globally and their bearing on the performance of our
organization.
Status of Indian economy and its impact on the banking system in India in terms of growth of business ,quality of assets
and profits.
Vision and Mission of the bank and its strengths and weaknesses(in terms of quality of manpower, geographical spread,
level of use of information technology, introduction of new customer oriented products, pricing in terms of interest rates
offered and the effectiveness in terms of delivery), our market share , the challenges, our banking industry is facing and
the priorities laid down by the top management of our bank.
At Micro level we should have appropriate information about;
Professional achievements during the recent 3-4 years
Strength of family background(including dislocation on promotion, problems of growing children, serving wife, old parents)
and educational and professional background.
Some information about the subjects studied in the last academic examination
All important happening around work place(frauds ,shift of big accounts from the bank etc)
Hobbies, leisure time activities
Important development reported in the Newspaper of recent weeks.
Take full advantage of speech and body language
We should bear in mind that the employer or the members of the interview board want to know and interview is the medium for
interaction. Hence, we should express ourselves freely as expressions would flow through speech, gestures and body language.
Please remember that we would normally not get a 2nd chance, to improve our 1st impression.
Project the positive attitude and avoid display of aggression
In the interview, our attitude, the confidence with which we communicate and the depth we have about what we know, is
generally given importance. Hence, care should be taken for not reflecting negative frame of mind or negative attitude or shallow
knowledge or aggressive postures.
Must understand our strengths
Before going for an interview, you should draw a list of all your strengths. Your strengths should be projected whether opportunity
arises without making any one feel that it is self-appreciation. You should also have clarity as to , in what way your strengths alone
that you can support for the promotion.
Cover the weakness
We should also understand one weakness and prepare ourselves to cover our weak points, particularly what steps have been
initiated by you in the past to negate the impact of weaknesses. If asked to explain weakness, we should choose a weakness that
is not critical to the success on the job or assignment. The weakness, should preferably relate to the knowledge content in few
areas as opposed to the lack of personal effectiveness. For instance, a weakness relating to lack of knowledge of a particular skill,
say foreign exchange, is preferable to stating that one finds it difficult to manage people. Further, the weakness to be discussed
should be the one which the members of the Interview Board are either already aware of or will discover through the interview
process. While discussing the weakness, one should always concentrate on as to how we have been working on the problem, to
find a solution. We must try to give a tangible account of the efforts we have been making, to convert the weakness into a
strength.
Focus on professional achievement rather than personal performance
In the interviews ”Tell us about yourself” is a generally inquired question which requires much more preparation than other
questions of factual nature, since a candidate is generally not very certain, “from where to begin and how to complete.” However,
if a candidate structures the fats relating to himself carefully in advance, covering the highlights of one’s current assignment , the
past professional experience in brief and also the value we offer to the organization, we can be comfortable with the Interview
Board. It should be taken care that we focus on professional achievements rather than personal performance.
Do self evaluation as to how we, deserve this promotion
“Why do you deserve this promotion” is a frequently asked question and is required to be handled carefully. To answer this
question well, one should be aware of the requirement of Organistaion and should have clarity about what we can offer to satisfy
such requirement. The answer , should reflect the distinction which we have, compared to others, based on which we deserve the
promotion. Putting answers such as having a good job knowledge or being a hard worker, really does not help as everyone else
would claim so, under such circumstances.
Structure the reaction for adverse situation
On a no. of occasions, the candidates are asked about adverse happening in the work place where he has been working till
recently.In such circumstances, one should reflect a positive attitude, be tactful, and diplomatic in the way one describe the
situation. It is desirable that the problem is first defined to make sure that there was a breach of some system of some human
failure.It may be concluded by stating as to what lesson did one learn from the incident?
Hypothetical questions should be handled by reflecting positive attitude
At times a hypothetical situations is given to working out a strategy. For instance, if the candidate is asked as to how he would
increase the profits of a Zone/Branch , he should not start directly with the strategy. Instead, should first talk about the SWOT
analysis with a view to understand the potential available to make a strategy work.The strategy should be based on the potential
available in a particular position.
Hobbies are the reflection of overall personality
We should also be very specific about hobbies, extra curricular activities and other activities and also as to how and why we
pursue those hobbies or activities. How do we spend spare time and how do we manage the time .Additionally, we must be able to
give proper account and thorough understanding of recent assignment and your academic background.
All questions are important
In an interview, all the questions are important and no question is less difficult than the other .Even, simple question, like which
newspaper we read and which TV channel we watch and what is interesting about that could be important to understand
commitment and interests. Hence, only few questions should not be singled out as the toughest or desirable or expected.It is the
working of a question being asked, which makes one question uncomfortable from the other.We should focus not on the actual
wording of the question but on the spirit and context also. Effort should be made that the wording of a question is interpreted to
one’s advantage.
Avoid half-attempted responses
Before answering a question, for a while, one should collect thoughts, so that are able to answer appropriately as blurred or casual
or half-attempted response cannot help.
Listen carefully and do not be in a hurry to answer
Please listen very carefully, to what is being asked. One should not be in a hurry to answer the question. Be patient,stay fresh,
enthusiastic and cooperative. One should not be evasive or hesitant answering the question. Even if a question makes
uncomfortable, make earnest effort to answer it. Please endeavor to answer all question as not answering amounts to loss of
opportunity. However, if one does not have clarity, please humbly express inability to answer so that process of interview
continues.
Be concise and take care of the interest of the members on the Board
Be concise,being careful that the point mentioned is not incoherent or boring not lose the interest of the members of the interview
board and give an impression that one cannot organise his thoughts.
Practice before the interview
Before appearing for an interview, practice interview by involving your family members or colleagues. Seeking guidance from
experienced persons or Institutes can certainly bring much improvement.
What if tough questions are asked or one is not able to answer a question?
Inspite of best of the practice and preparation, very often one may be asked questions which he considers tough and unable to
answer.Donot try to give vague answers to such questions.It is better to let the interview Board know so that another question is
asked which is one more opportunity for you to cover your position.
Outside the Interview room
It is pertinent to add that one should avoid anxiety or doing something which one does not do on normal days. Handling an
interview is both an art and science and each interview differs from the other, depending upon the members in the interview
board, the time available with the Board members, the no.of candidates and the vacancies. One has to look into these aspects and
prepare himself, to be successful.
Make the experience of interview members memorable
Please remember, it is the candidate only, who can make this experience memorable and rewarding for himself and his
organisation.