Email: payalkpatel1987@gmail.

com  Mobile: +61 474 115 308

General Questions for Interview

Q1: Tell me about yourself.

Ans: I am an innovative HR manager with 8 years of experience managing all aspects of the HR
function — from recruiting to training to benefits — for Fortune 500 companies.”

I have spent the last six years developing my skills as a customer service manager for
Megacompany Inc., where I have won several performance awards and been promoted twice. I
love managing teams and solving customer problems.

Although I love my current role, I feel I’m now ready for a more challenging assignment and this
position really excites me.”

Tips:
 Prepare for this question in advance and have a compelling story about your past experiences
 Pull prominent skills from the job description
 Be “SHE” (succinct, honest and engaging)

Q2: What do you know about the company?

Answer from companies ABOUT page

Q3: Why do you want this job?

First, identify a couple of key factors that make the role a great fit for you (e.g., “I love customer
support because I love the constant human interaction and the satisfaction that comes from
helping someone solve a problem"), then share why you love the company (e.g., “I’ve always
been passionate about education, and I think you guys are doing great things, so I want to be a
part of your company.

Q4: Why should we hire you?

This is the best question for you wherein you can sell yourself.

Industry experience
Experience in performing certain tasks or duties
Technical skills
Soft skills
Key accomplishments
Awards/accolades
Education/training

Example:
 Email: payalkpatel1987@gmail.com  Mobile: +61 474 115 308

Well, I have all of the skills and experience that you’re looking for and I’m confident that I
would be a superstar in this project management role.
It’s not just my background leading successful projects for top companies — or my people
skills, which have helped me develop great relationships with developers, vendors, and senior
managers alike. But I’m also passionate about this industry and I’m driven to deliver high-
quality work.”
Tips:
 Start with the three or four best reasons you’ve got
 Cite results, credentials, and other people’s praise so you don’t seem self-absorbed
 Be concise, and invite follow-up questions at the end

Q 5: Tell us about a time when you learned something quickly.

 Pick a vivid example and show why it was challenging
 Break down your learning and mastery into three or four distinct steps(“First, I . . . .)
 Share a tangible result and speak about it with pride

Q6: What are your strengths?

Ans: Soft skill relevant to your job.
Persuasive communication” or “relationship building”
Multitask, adapt, and learn quickly
Try to add your own achievements to make it real with facts and figures

Tips:
 Be authentic - don’t make up strengths that you think the employer wants to hear
 Tell a story about a work experience
 Be sure the strengths you share are aligned to the role you want

Q7: What is your weakness?

Sometimes I get involved in my work too much, but now am trying my best to have work life
balance.
or
I have fear of public speaking, but recently I have handled a meeting on my own and am working
on it.
Tips:
 Employers are looking for self-awareness and personal accountability
 It’s good to be honest about what you’re not great at
 Share what you are doing to actively improve on this weakness

Q8: What is your greatest achievement in your job?

Facts and figures
I have brought in 20 lakh business for my company in one month.
or
In one month, I streamlined the process, which saved my group 10 man-hours each month and
reduced errors on invoices by 25%.”
 Email: payalkpatel1987@gmail.com  Mobile: +61 474 115 308

Q9: Why do you want to work here?

This company has a wonderful reputation as a great place to work. You place high value on your
employees and encourage them to learn, grow, and innovate inside the company. This means that
employees happily work here for many years, far beyond the average length with one employer.
And, according to your customers, the high quality of your products and services reflect your
high employee satisfaction, which is not surprising. This feels like a win-win-win for
stockholders, employees, and customers, and I would be very happy to join this organization.

 Make it about them first

 Show you’ve done your research
 Use this as a key opportunity to outshine the competition
 Speak from the heart

Q 10: Tell me about a time you showed leadership

In my previous company, we had a challenging situation to complete an order and dispatch
within two days time. We as a team worked together and I lead my team to achieve the target in
the stipulated time. I and my team achieved the target under my leadership which is to be proud
about.
Tip;
 Describe a situation where there was a lack of leadership
 Use the word “lead” to help describe the actions you took
 Give credit to your ‘leadership skills’ when explaining the positive results.

Q 11: Tell us about a time you were successful on a team.

 Describe a problem that arose with a team
 Outline your key actions with the team
 Explain the positive result based on the work you did
 Give credit to your teamwork skills

Q 12: What would a coworker say about you?

Tips
Share something that relates to the job description and back it with an example
Look to your recommendations and reviews for ideas
Be confident and succinct. It’s OK to shine!

Q 13: Why are you looking for change?

 Don’t talk negatively about past roles or former bosses - employers don’t want to work with
people who complain
 Be gracious when things haven’t worked out in the past
 Share some of the ways you’re working on improving

Q 14: Explain gap in your professional career.

Tip:
 Expect that they will ask about the gap - prepare for it
 Email: payalkpatel1987@gmail.com  Mobile: +61 474 115 308

 Answer honestly and strategically

 Be confident and succinct
 Shine a light on the good that came out of that time

Q 15: What are your salary requirements?

 Know the industry norms for similar jobs
 Talk about ranges, rather than exact numbers
 Make the case that you offer premium value
Ex. My salary expectation is negotiable according to the company norms, market trends, job
responsibility and compensation package.

Q 16: What are your hobbies?

 Share something that paints a favorable picture
 Keep it short and sweet
 Don’t bore them with long stories
 Steer clear of the inappropriate zone

Q 17: Tell us about a time when you handled conflicting situation? Tell me about a team
project when you had to work with someone difficult.
• Tell me about a time you had a conflict at work.
• Give an example of a time you had to respond to an unhappy
manager/customer/colleague.
• Tell me about a time that you disagreed with a rule or approach.
 Talk about the most important priority and then share additional priorities and how they conflicted
 Describe the steps you took to get the top priority done
 Discuss the impact this had on the company or team
Example: I was managing the creation of our new design booklet with a week time in hand. We had
to have brochures printed in time for THE LAUNCH. Managing with the printing and editing team
was a big task.

I was in charge of delivering on time and I had to manage team members from Marketing, Sales,
Graphic Design, and Product Management.

The designer that was assigned to the project was very talented, but unfortunately missed a deadline
that I assigned. When I approached him about it, he blew up at me.

Q 18: Where do you see yourself in coming 5 years?

 Break the answer down in two to three year chunks
 Focus on what you can give, rather than what you can get
 Don’t bring up a specific job title that you want to move into one day
 Make it specific to this particular company and position

Q 19: Tell us about a time when you failed.

 Use an honest example that’s believable
 Explain why it was a mistake
 Email: payalkpatel1987@gmail.com  Mobile: +61 474 115 308

 Talk about what you’ve learned and any steps you’ve taken to show that you’re “working on it.”
Example:
“I committed my client to complete a project in 2 week's time and ended up doing it in 3 weeks.
I realized that a client is not going to be upset if I clearly tell about the timeline in advance. I
took this experience and used it to become much better at managing expectations of clients
during projects I oversee. For example, on the next project with a different client, I told them it’d
take 3 weeks and we finished in 2. They were very happy about this.”

Q 20: Can you handle pressure?

 Be clear about the project goal
 Establish that you’re a strong person who doesn’t get flustered easily.
 Show your ingenious side, too, especially if your path to success involved redefining the task or
enlisting colleagues
Example: "I work well under pressure because I don't panic. I maintain self control and work as
efficiently as possible.

Thanking you
PAYAL PATEL
payalkpatel1987@gmail.com
Melbourne

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