There are 6 key areas an employer will evaluate you on. Aim to outshine in every one of them.

The interview seat looks tired and worn and you know you have a difficult task ahead of you, competing with all those candidates who occupied the chair before you. The next time you find yourself seated across the desk from a potential employer, bear in mind that there are 6 key areas you will be evaluated on and aim to outshine in every one of them!

1. Work Experience and Education

Your skills, credentials and training will be paramount in placing you above the fray. Have all your relevant work experience at the tip of your tongue and ready to recite. There is no substitute for the right experience and qualifications and you need to be able to recite a history and general aptitude for success in the given role and industry. The right credentials coupled with sound examples of how these credentials have been professionally applied in different positions to add to productivity will be the main determinants of your suitability for any role.

2. Business Sensibility

Employers look for candidates with a sound understanding of how businesses in general, and this business in particular, are run. They are looking for efficiency-minded people with an eye for productivity and the bottom line and a keen sense of business policies and procedures. In any position you apply for, the employers are looking for individuals with finely honed problem-solving skills who can identify and define a problem with clarity and find and implement the optimal business solution.

3. Enthusiasm and Willingness to Learn

Attitude alone will not get you the job but goes a long way in bridging the gap between you and a potential employer. Enthusiastic employees with a positive attitude typically show more initiative in their role and are more likely to go the extra mile. In any role, your initial learning curve will probably be steep and employers want to be sure that you are willing to make the effort and put in the time to learn the ropes, perfect the role and continue to take the initiative to make positive strides forward. Moreover, employers know that enthusiasm is contagious and they hope that adding an employee with a positive attitude and unbounded energy will rub off positively on the rest of the team and elevate the general morale and spirit of the unit.

4. Work Ethic

A professional attitude, work style and work ethic are critical in any business setting. You need to demonstrate dedication and commitment to the company and your career, honesty, integrity, sound business judgement, motivation and reliability. Make sure you always present yourself in a professional light and have a keen understanding of how your professional role impacts the company and the bottom line.

5. Interpersonal Skills

Your emotional intelligence and ability to get along well with peers, management and clients will play a key role in your success and will be under the spotlight during the interview. Be sure to demonstrate that you are a cooperative teamplayer and have no problems interacting with other people.

6. Manageability

Even star performers have to report to their boss and have to follow company rules and procedures. An employer’s worst nightmare is an entrepreneurial type who cannot take directions and is focused on outperforming in his own little domain independent of the team and the manager. Make sure you emphasize your ability to work in a team, follow the chain of command and take instructions, advice and constructive criticism positively.

Direct Questions

These types of questions predetermine the focus of your answer. e.g. “What skills do you have that relate to this position”. Your information should be clear and specific. These types of questions, whether they relate to technical or soft skills, should be easy to answer if you have completed the research on yourself.

Non-Direct Questions

Non-direct questions are general and do not ask for specific information. e.g. “Tell us a bit about yourself”. You determine the focus of your answer. In response to this particular quesion, you should briefly summarize approximately four areas: education, experience, skills, and personal attributes. If possible, make your response relevant to the job you are seeking.

Hypothetical or Situational Questions

These questions use a problem solving approach to determine your analytical skills and critical thinking abilities. These “What if” questions are presented in the form of case examples or problem situations. You will be asked to imagine yourself experiencing a situation and will then be evaluated on how you would handle that situation. e.g. “It’s 3 p.m. and you have a report due to your manager at 5:00 p.m. Suddenly a major customer calls and says she has a crisis and need your help immediately. What would you do?”

Provide your answer in a logical sequence relating to the situation. There are many different problem solving models. The following is merely one model you could use to shape your answer:

• gather information
• evaluate
• prioritize
• seek advice (if necessary)
• weigh alternatives
• make and communicate your decision
• monitor results
• modify if necessary

Take a bit of time to think before responding. Don’t rush.

Behaviourial Descriptive Questions

Behavioural questions offer the opportunity to provide examples of past performance that may help determine future performance. Interviewers are asking what you did in a particular situation rather than what you would do. e.g. “Tell us about a time when you displayed good leadership skills.” Your answer could be delivered using the STAR model.

Situation
Task or Problem
Action
Result

For example:

(S) “While I was working at McDonalds as a shift supervisor, (T) I noticed that the over-all performance of the employees seemed to be deteriorating. (A) I decided in order to try and improve staff performance, I would start leading by example rather than speaking to individual staff members about their performance. (R) As a result of this initiative, the staff on my shift raised their customer service performance and I was rewarded with the Employee of the Month Award.”

“Hi guys, my apologies for the long period of inactivity. I have been busy working on a personal project (Kenyacarbazaar) that required a lot of attention. In addition to this, I have also been working on improving Joblesscorner so that we can have a section for jobs. More information on this is to come soon.”

Ok, lets get back to today’s article. While scouring the Internet, I came across Bhuvans site that provides answers to the most common interview questions, you will also find some tips and advice with it.

(Excerpted from the book The Accelerated Job Search by Wayne D. Ford, Ph.D, published by The Management Advantage, Inc.)

1. Tell me about yourself:
The most often asked question in interviews. You need to have a short statement prepared in your mind. Be careful that it does not sound rehearsed. Limit it to work-related items unless instructed otherwise. Talk about things you have done and jobs you have held that relate to the position you are interviewing for. Start with the item farthest back and work up to the present.

2. Why did you leave your last job?
Stay positive regardless of the circumstances. Never refer to a major problem with management and never speak ill of supervisors, co-workers or the organization. If you do, you will be the one looking bad. Keep
smiling and talk about leaving for a positive reason such as an opportunity, a chance to do something special or other forward-looking reasons.

3. What experience do you have in this field?
Speak about specifics that relate to the position you are applying for. If you do not have specific experience, get as close as you can.

4. Do you consider yourself successful?
You should always answer yes and briefly explain why. A good explanation is that you have set goals, and you have met some and are on track to achieve the others.

5. What do co-workers say about you?
Be prepared with a quote or two from co-workers. Either a specific statement or a paraphrase will work. Jill Clark, a co-worker at Smith Company, always said I was the hardest workers she had ever known. It is as powerful as Jill having said it at the interview herself.

6. What do you know about this organization?
This question is one reason to do some research on the organization before the interview. Find out where they have been and where they are going. What are the current issues and who are the major players?

7. What have you done to improve your knowledge in the last year?
Try to include improvement activities that relate to the job. A wide variety of activities can be mentioned as positive self-improvement. Have some good ones handy to mention.

8. Are you applying for other jobs?
Be honest but do not spend a lot of time in this area. Keep the focus on this job and what you can do for this organization. Anything else is a distraction.

9. Why do you want to work for this organization?
This may take some thought and certainly, should be based on the research you have done on the organization. Sincerity is extremely important here and will easily be sensed. Relate it to your long-term
career goals.

10. Do you know anyone who works for us?
Be aware of the policy on relatives working for the organization. This can affect your answer even though they asked about friends not relatives. Be careful to mention a friend only if they are well thought of.

11. What kind of salary do you need?
A loaded question. A nasty little game that you will probably lose if you answer first. So, do not answer it. Instead, say something like, That’s a tough question. Can you tell me the range for this position? In most cases, the interviewer, taken off guard, will tell you. If not, say that it can depend on the details of the job. Then give a wide range.

12. Are you a team player?
You are, of course, a team player. Be sure to have examples ready. Specifics that show you often perform for the good of the team rather than for yourself are good evidence of your team attitude. Do not brag, just say it in a matter-of-fact tone. This is a key point.

13. How long would you expect to work for us if hired?
Specifics here are not good. Something like this should work: I’d like it to be a long time. Or As long as we both feel I’m doing a good job.

14. Have you ever had to fire anyone? How did you feel about that?
This is serious. Do not make light of it or in any way seem like you like to fire people. At the same time, you will do it when it is the right thing to do. When it comes to the organization versus the individual who has created a harmful situation, you will protect the organization. Remember firing is not the same as layoff or reduction in force.

15. What is your philosophy towards work?
The interviewer is not looking for a long or flowery dissertation here. Do you have strong feelings that the job gets done? Yes. That’s the type of answer that works best here. Short and positive, showing a benefit to the organization.

16. If you had enough money to retire right now, would you?
Answer yes if you would. But since you need to work, this is the type of work you prefer. Do not say yes if you do not mean it.

17. Have you ever been asked to leave a position?
If you have not, say no. If you have, be honest, brief and avoid saying negative things about the people or organization involved.

18. Explain how you would be an asset to this organization
You should be anxious for this question. It gives you a chance to highlight your best points as they relate to the position being discussed. Give a little advance thought to this relationship.

19. Why should we hire you?
Point out how your assets meet what the organization needs. Do not mention any other candidates to make a comparison.

20. Tell me about a suggestion you have made
Have a good one ready. Be sure and use a suggestion that was accepted and was then considered successful. One related to the type of work applied for is a real plus.

21. What irritates you about co-workers?
This is a trap question. Think real hard but fail to come up with anything that irritates you. A short statement that you seem to get along with folks is great.

22. What is your greatest strength?
Numerous answers are good, just stay positive. A few good examples: Your ability to prioritize, Your problem-solving skills, Your ability to work under pressure, Your ability to focus on projects, Your professional expertise, Your leadership skills, Your positive attitude

23. Tell me about your dream job.
Stay away from a specific job. You cannot win. If you say the job you are contending for is it, you strain credibility. If you say another job is it, you plant the suspicion that you will be dissatisfied with this position if hired. The best is to stay genetic and say something like: A job where I love the work, like the people, can contribute and can’t wait to get to work.

24. Why do you think you would do well at this job?
Give several reasons and include skills, experience and interest.

25. What are you looking for in a job?
See answer # 23

26. What kind of person would you refuse to work with?
Do not be trivial. It would take disloyalty to the organization, violence or lawbreaking to get you to object. Minor objections will label you as a whiner.

27. What is more important to you: the money or the work?
Money is always important, but the work is the most important. There is no better answer.

28. What would your previous supervisor say your strongest point is?
There are numerous good possibilities: Loyalty, Energy, Positive attitude, Leadership, Team player, Expertise,
Initiative, Patience, Hard work, Creativity, Problem solver

29. Tell me about a problem you had with a supervisor
Biggest trap of all. This is a test to see if you will speak ill of your boss. If you fall for it and tell about a problem with a former boss, you may well below the interview right there. Stay positive and develop a poor memory about any trouble with a supervisor.

30. What has disappointed you about a job?
Don’t get trivial or negative. Safe areas are few but can include: Not enough of a challenge. You were laid off in a reduction Company did not win a contract, which would have given you more responsibility.

31. Tell me about your ability to work under pressure.
You may say that you thrive under certain types of pressure. Give an example that relates to the type of position applied for.

32. Do your skills match this job or another job more closely?
Probably this one. Do not give fuel to the suspicion that you may want another job more than this one.

33. What motivates you to do your best on the job?
This is a personal trait that only you can say, but good examples are: Challenge, Achievement, Recognition

34. Are you willing to work overtime? Nights? Weekends?
This is up to you. Be totally honest.

35. How would you know you were successful on this job?
Several ways are good measures: You set high standards for yourself and meet them. Your outcomes are a
success.Your boss tell you that you are successful

36. Would you be willing to relocate if required?
You should be clear on this with your family prior to the interview if you think there is a chance it may come up. Do not say yes just to get the job if the real answer is no. This can create a lot of problems later on in your career. Be honest at this point and save yourself future grief.

37. Are you willing to put the interests of the organization ahead of your own?
This is a straight loyalty and dedication question. Do not worry about the deep ethical and philosophical implications. Just say yes.

38. Describe your management style.
Try to avoid labels. Some of the more common labels, like progressive, salesman or consensus, can have several meanings or descriptions depending on which management expert you listen to. The situational
style is safe, because it says you will manage according to the situation, instead of one size fits all.

39. What have you learned from mistakes on the job?
Here you have to come up with something or you strain credibility. Make it small, well intentioned mistake with a positive lesson learned. An example would be working too far ahead of colleagues on a project and
thus throwing coordination off.

40. Do you have any blind spots?
Trick question. If you know about blind spots, they are no longer blind spots. Do not reveal any personal areas of concern here. Let them do their own discovery on your bad points. Do not hand it to them.

41. If you were hiring a person for this job, what would you look for?
Be careful to mention traits that are needed and that you have.

42. Do you think you are overqualified for this position?
Regardless of your qualifications, state that you are very well qualified for the position.

43. How do you propose to compensate for your lack of experience?
First, if you have experience that the interviewer does not know about, bring that up: Then, point out (if true) that you are a hard working quick learner.

44. What qualities do you look for in a boss?
Be generic and positive. Safe qualities are knowledgeable, a sense of humor, fair, loyal to subordinates and holder of high standards. All bosses think they have these traits.

45. Tell me about a time when you helped resolve a dispute betweenothers.
Pick a specific incident. Concentrate on your problem solving technique and not the dispute you settled.

46. What position do you prefer on a team working on a project?
Be honest. If you are comfortable in different roles, point that out.

47. Describe your work ethic.
Emphasize benefits to the organization. Things like, determination to get the job done and work hard but enjoy your work are good.

48. What has been your biggest professional disappointment?
Be sure that you refer to something that was beyond your control. Show acceptance and no negative feelings.

49. Tell me about the most fun you have had on the job.
Talk about having fun by accomplishing something for the organization.

50. Do you have any questions for me?
Always have some questions prepared. Questions prepared where you will be an asset to the organization are good. How soon will I be able to be productive? and What type of projects will I be able to assist on? are
examples.

If you have any additions, feel free to include them here.

There are usually some questions that you as the interviewee are expected to ask your prospective boss about the job that you are applying for. Asking the right questions helps present a candidate who is more interested in the job advertised.

I have collected some questions that can assist you when you are given a chance to ask questions and you end up having a blank mind cleared from fighting through the barrage of interview questions by your interviewer.

1. What are the major responsibilities for this position?
2. Are there any changes expected in the responsibilities of this job?
3. What personal qualities would you expect the successful candidate to possess?
4. What are the greatest challenges facing the person in this position?
5. What are the prospects for future growth and expansion of the company/organization?
6. What new products/services is your organization thinking of implementing?
7. What organizational changes do you anticipate?
8. Why is this position open?
9. Who would I be interacting with the most in this position?
10. How does this position fit in with the structure of this organization?
11. Are there opportunities for advancement within the organization?
12. What opportunities are available for staff development?
13. Do you have an employee training program?
14. How will I be trained or introduced to the job?
15. How is the training program structured?
16. What are the day-to-day duties involved in this position?
17. When can I expect to know your decision?
18. How are performance reviews or evaluations done?
19. Can you describe the clients you work with?
20. What skills are you seeking in the individual selected for this position?
21. How much, if any, travel is expected?
22. How would you describe the company’s culture?
23. What is the long-range plan for this company?
24. What would a normal working day be like?
25. Where does this position fit within the organizationalstructure?
26. Where is the person who previously held this position?
27. What is the typical career path for a person in this position?
28. Describe the corporate culture and values og the organization?
29. What do you like most about working for this organization?
30. Other questions related to theposition/organization.

I had the opportunity to attend a job interview last week at the Kenya Commercial Law courts which was interesting and I thought I would share with you some of the questions that I was asked. After the interview, I listed some of the questions asked and added a list of questions that everyone could use - both for interviewers and interviewees.

The list is not specific to any particular type of development position, but I tried to balance it between both the design/html/usability side of things and the back-end/database/programming side. I’m just focusing on web development related questions - you should obviously ask the usual barrage of questions like “Why do you want to work for [some company?]”  I’m not covering those types here. Also, this list isn’t in any particular order.

1. What industry sites and blogs do you read regularly?
   This question can give you an idea of how in-tune they are with the latest industry trends and technologies, as well as how passionate they are about webdev. It’ll help separate the people who do it as a career AS WELL as a hobby from those who might simply be in it for the big developer paychecks.
   _
2. Do you prefer to work alone or on a team?
   This is an important question to ask depending on the work environment. If your project is going to require close interaction with other developers it’s very handy to have someone who has had that kind of experience. On the other hand, many developers thrive while going solo.  Try to find a developer that fits your needs.
   _
3. How comfortable are you with writing HTML entirely by hand? (+exercise)
   Although their resume may state that they’re an HTML expert, often times many developers can’t actually write an HTML document from top to bottom.  They rely on an external publisher or have to constantly flip back to a reference manual.  Any developer worth a damn should at least be able to write a simple HTML document without relying on external resources. A possible exercise is to draw up a fake website and ask them to write the HTML for it. Keep it simple and just make sure they have the basics down - watch for mistakes like forgetting the <head> </head> tags or serious misuse of certain elements.  If they write something like: <image src=”/some/image.gif”>, it might be a good hint to wrap things up and call the next interviewee.
   _
4. What is the w3c?
   Standards compliance in web development is where everything is (hopefully?) going. Don’t ask them to recite the w3c’s mission statement or anything, but they should at least have a general idea of who they are.
   _
5. Can you write table-less XHTML?  Do you validate your code?
   Weed out the old-school table-driven design junkies! Find a developer who uses HTML elements for what they were actually intended. Also, many developers will say they can go table-less, but when actually building sites they still use tables out of habit and/or convenience. Possibly draw up a quick navigation menu or article and have them write the markup for it. To be tricky, you could draw up tabular data - give them bonus points if they point out that a table should be used in that scenario
   _
6. What are a few of your favorite development tools and why?
   If they say notepad you’ve obviously got the wrong person for the job. Not only can this help you gauge their level of competence, but it’ll also see if they match the tools everyone else uses in-house.
   _
7. Describe/demonstrate your level of competence in a *nix shell environment
   See how well they work without their precious GUI. Ask some basic questions like how they would recursively copy a directory from one place to another, or how you’d make a file only readable by the owner. Find out what OSs they have experience with.
   _
8. What skills and technologies are you the most interested in improving upon or learning?
   Find out if their future interests match the direction of the position (or the company in general).
   _
9. Show me your portfolio!
   A portfolio can say a lot about a developer. Do they have an eye for aesthetics? Are they more creatively or logically oriented? The most important thing is to look for is solid, extensive, COMPLETED projects. A half dozen mockups and/or hacked-out scripts is a sign of inexperience or incompetence.
   _
10. What sized websites have you worked on in the past?
    Find a developer that has experience similar in size to the project you’re putting together. Developers with high traffic, large scale site expertise may offer skills that smaller-sized developers don’t, such as fine tuning apache or optimizing heavily hit SQL queries. On the other hand, developers who typically build smaller sites may have an eye for things that large scale developers don’t, such as offering a greater level of visual creativity.
    _
11. Show me your code!
    Whether it’s plain old HTML or freakishly advanced ruby on rails, ask for code samples.   Source code can say more about a persons work habits than you think. Clean, elegant code can often be indicative of a methodical, capable developer. A resume may say 7+ years of perl experience, but that could mean 7 years of bad, unreadable perl. Also, make sure you ask for a lot of source code, not just a few isolated functions or pieces of HTML. Anyone can clean up 20-30 lines of code for an interview, you want to see the whole shebang. Don’t ask for a full, functional app, but make sure it’s enough that you can tell it’s really what their code is like.
    _
12. What are a few sites you admire and why? (from a webdev perspective)
    Find out what inspires them. While it doesn’t necessarily “take one to know one,” a great developer should always have a few impressive favorites.
    _
13. Fix this code, please.
    Give them some broken code written in the development language they are expected to know for the position. Have them go through it line by line and point out all the mistakes.
    _
14. I just pulled up the website you built and the browser is displaying a blank page.  Walk me through the steps you’d take to troubleshoot the problem.
    This is a great question to determine how well rounded their abilites are. It tests everything from basic support skills all the way up to troubleshooting the webserver itself.
    _
15. What’s your favorite development language and why?  What other features (if any) do you wish you could add to this language?
    Asking about feature additions is a particularly valuable question - it can reveal if they’re skilled in programming in general or if their skillset is pigeonholed into their language of choice.
    _
16. Do you find any particular languages or technologies intimidating?
    I’ve often felt that the more I learn, the less I feel like I know. Solving one mystery opens up ten others. Having the interviewee tell you their faults can reveal a lot about what they know.
    _
17. Acronym time (oh boy!)
    Some might argue that knowing what acronyms actually stand for is trivial, but there are certain acronyms that a developer should have hard-wired into their head ( HTML or CSS, for example). This is the kind of question that might be better reserved for the phone interview to weed out those who are very unqualified.
    _
18. What web browser do you use?
    There is a right answer to this question: all of them. A competent developer should be familiar with testing cross-browser compatibility by using all the major web browsers.  Obviously they’ll have a primary browser they use for surfing, but their answer to this question might be a good way for you to segue to asking how extensively they test cross-browser issues. Also, if it’s some kind of css/html position seeing what toolbars they have installed can be a good metric of their skillset (I personally find the web developer toolbar for firefox to be invaluable)
    _
19. Rank your interest in these development tasks from 1 to 5 (1 being not interested at all, 5 being extremely interested) Write up a list of tasks the job requires. Having them rank these items according to their interest level can help you find who is the best suited for the position.  I know debugging uncommented perl code from 1997 sounds seriously awesome to me.
    _
20. What are a few personal web projects you’ve got going on?
    Almost all developers have personal web projects they like to plug away at in their spare time. This is another question that can help differentiate the passionate developers from the clock-punchers. It’s also a good question to end an interview with, as it’s usually easy (and fun) for them to answer.

Any more great questions you can think of?

Let’s describe the typical job interview. You might be the one looking for a job but there’s no reason to just sit there and respond to their questions. It’s your prime opportunity to get to know more about the position, the work, and the company apart from what you already know.

Most human resource officers are now paying attention to both verbal and non-verbal cues. They can read your body language whether you’re scared half-witted or too complacent. They also profile your personality through the way you ask questions. By forcing a two-way conversation, it gives the impression that your are a person with keen attention to detail and that you’re not the person who would blindly rush decisions since you are interested in knowing more.

This also tells you much about a companies that do not allow interviewees to ask some questions about themselves. If they’re just too keen on getting information from you, and not return the favor, then you just might have to consider your decision to pursue the position. This may just reflect their company culture and ways of working.

Provided that you really aced the questions and have discussed the offer and other arrangements, it’s probably your turn to ask questions. Some of the things that you might want to ask are:

1. Corporate mission and vision These cheesy tags reflect how the company perceives itself. Are they all for creativity and dynamism? Or are they for traditional ways of working? Are these consistent with what you know so far?
2. Corporate structure Examining corporate hierarchy may give you an idea whether you have a chance to grow within the company or not. Knowing what the departments and reporting lines are gives you an idea if they’re all for a streamlined process or a bureaucratic set-up.
3. Turn-over rates High turn-over rates reflect much about the dissatisfaction of employees. Most people I know would not trade their job even for higher pay if they really get satisfaction from the work and the workplace.
4. Typical office day and routine Will you be a) bored to death, b)be dead with stress, or c)enjoy a challenging yet satisfying job?

Be keen yourself. Interviewers are often instructed to sell the company and the position depending on the company’s urgent need.

Still hesitant to ask? Now, perhaps one block that prevents interviewees from turning the tables is that they hold the interviewer in such a god-like status. Sure, your interviewer will definitely affect the company’s decision whether to hire you or not. But that doesn’t mean that you’d have to limit yourself to mere responses.

Next time your interviewer asks if you have any questions, take advantage of it. Keeping the interviews two-way can help you better gauge whether you’re landing your dream job or not.

You have just been through a grueling interview process and you are still wondering how well you did, then you hear the interviewer asking you, “Have you got any questions?”. You then look straight at the interviewer as you try to remember or ask yourself where to start.

Here are some of the questions that you can ask.

1. If I want to buy something like a book or a tool, how does the process work (how hard is it?). What’s the cost limit before the approval must go up the management chain?
2. What’s the noise level like during the day?
3. How many meetings am I expected to attend, and how long do they usually last?
4. Is there a dress code?
5. Can I work from home sometimes?
6. Does it matter when I work, as long as I come to meetings?
7. How many projects have succeeded/failed in the last five years? To what do you attribute the failures?

What questions do you wish you had asked? In case you feel that I left out any questions, go ahead and add them below….

For her Apprentice interview, Claire turned up in a jumper of such bilious luminescence that it was extraordinary that none of the Rottweiler interviewers mentioned it. Alex’s problem was his low energy and soft speech. “Big night out?” snarled one attack dog.

As well as dress, there’s body language, the way people shake hands, the way they sit, the tone and pitch of their voice - every mannerism is being scrutinised.

“You only get one time to make a first impression. Within the first 60 seconds you already make an impression,” says Mr Tkachuk.

The trick again is preparation. If you’re dressed smartly and thought about the way you will interact with the interviewer, this can help smooth your path.

But it’s hard to guard against doing something impulsive, as Lee found when he winked at Paul Kemsley at the end of the interview.

“That’s what a door-to-door salesman would do,” was Mr Kemsley’s verdict. Not quite the impression a go-getting entrepreneur might want to give.

When asked the bog-standard question, “tell me what you think about the company?” it’s fairly clear that something more than a one-word answer is required. And even running out of steam after 20 seconds is unlikely to impress.

It’s a bugbear for Mr Tkachuk, who has tripped up more than one Apprentice by asking them to explain what Sir Alan’s companies do. “I’m really very interested in their understanding of the company… [I] push it to some depth. It’s easy for anyone to do a search on the internet and come up with a few superficial things.”

Sadly, unless you’re Derren Brown, a wily interviewer is likely to see through the veneer if you really know nothing about the company. The only sure solution is to genuinely prepare.

“Contact the company, ask for some brochures,” says Mr Tkachuk. “Do some research on what the company does, who are the key players, who is the competition.”

Welcome back to our series of interview traps. Today we shall look at being hoaxed. If inducing sheer rage to test the candidate isn’t an option, then confusion, bewilderment and embarrassment may suffice.

Upon entry to one of his interviews, the Apprentice’s Lee was asked to do a dinosaur impression. After initially demurring, he commenced flapping and squawking.

His interviewer, property developer Paul Kemsley, told him that he shouldn’t have agreed to the demonstration. This forced the explanation from Lee: “I wouldn’t do a reverse pterodactyl in front of Sir Alan.”

Away from the arena of the job market, tales abound of bizarre techniques in Oxbridge interviews. Can one truly concentrate when the interviewer is conducting the questioning sitting cross-legged underneath the table?

But there can be entirely non-surreal tactics and questions that can flummox the unprepared. “When did you last truly fail?” is a tricky one. As is “imagine that tomorrow the UK changed from driving on the left to driving on the right and you are the change co-ordinator, what would you do?”

“Don’t let yourself be put on the spot,” says Dr Rob Yeung, psychologist and author of Should I Tell the Truth. “Ask for a moment to think about it or if you’ve not understood ask for it to be repeated or rephrased. It’s perfectly acceptable to take 15 or 20 seconds.”