Jobless Corner

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.

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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.

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5. Suffering presentational difficulty….

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.

4. Drill down questions….

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.”

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3. Getting Hoaxed….

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.

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