PROJECT PREPARATION GUIDELINE

1. The interview project groups will consist of only two members.

2. These groups will select a company from the Customs Sector.
3. The interview will be conducted with the manager from that company who has at
least five years of work experience.
4. You can find relevant person via LinkedIn, social media accounts or social media
professional groups, then you need to contact by email and any other means.
5. Each project group will interview with a different person and company. There will be
no re-interview with any manager who has been interviewed before. It is the
responsibility of the project groups to ask the person to be interviewed if he/she
has been interviewed before. Interviews with the same person who has been
interviewed before with any other groups will not be evaluated.
6. A pre-meeting is arranged with the person to be interviewed to define the purpose
and characteristics of the interview and to agree on when and how the interview will
take place (face-to-face).
7. The group organizing the interview will ask the following questions in order and will
end the interview by asking at least three questions (could be more) prepared by
themselves.
8. The questions prepared by the group can be prepared in advance or determined
during the interview. Groups should choose their questions carefully and in
accordance with the purpose of the interview.
9. All group members will participate in the interview. In the face-to-face interview, the
dress code should be appropriate for business and a sample of business life.
10. At the end of the meeting, at least one photo needs to be taken together, including
all group members and the interviewee (for to include it to Word document and
presentation).
11. The group organizing the interview must have the interviewee read and sign the
information document prepared before the meeting. At the project deadline, the
group members must also sign the document with the contact information
(business card) of the interviewee and their own contact information.
12. The project presentations will be given in English on the set course dates of the
groups and must not exceed 15-20 minutes. The presentation will be in English; the
text of the interview can be in Turkish or English. Be careful to use the time during
presentation. If the time is not used properly, the group will not be able to complete
their presentation.
13. A presentation plan should be prepared at the beginning of the presentation. All
members of the group will participate in the presentation. In order to use the time in
the presentation well, it should be rehearsed beforehand.
14. Projects will be submitted in WORD FORMAT and in accordance with the features
(font size, spacing, writing style, etc.) used in this document (spelling, form, font,
etc.). The picture taken during the interview will be attached to the end of the
word document in JPEG format as a single file (no more than one picture will be
added).
15. The projects will be send by e mail to the murat.koseoglu@gedik.edu.tr mail
address by only one of the two group members till 17:00 on Friday, Week 13.
16. Power point presentations will not send by mail, but will be presented during the
lecture.
17. The interviewee's answers and thoughts should be written down in full part. For this
reason, it can be voice recorded and later transcribed in writing. The interviewee
must be informed about it.
18. Late submissions will not be accepted, and no points will be awarded for the project
in the overall evaluation.
19. All members of the group will participate in the interview and presentation.
20. All questions should be in a detailed Word document with their answers in the
correct order.
21. It should be prepared as a project WORD DOCUMENT according to the PROJECT
REPORT FORMAT given below. Projects that are not submitted will not be
evaluated in the assessment.
22. Group members should divide tasks between them, and each member should
participate with equal workload.
23. The interview should be prepared as presentation. The preparation of the PPT
presentation in the course is as follows.
a. The total number of slides should not exceed 30,
b. The photo taken during the presentation should be added at the beginning of
the presentation.,
c. All questions must be included into the presentation.,
d. "What has this interview taught you about professional, personal and
business life? Also, the section "Other thoughts you will add" should be
added as a slide at the end of the presentation,
e. The interview should not be presented in full text, important passages
should be presented summarised in the presentation,
f. Except for the main title and subtitles on each slide, an average of seven to
eight lines, an average of seven to eight words per line should be given,
g. Slides should be supported with graphics (graphs or images) that relate to the
slide theme,
h. Incomprehensible and difficult to read graphics should not be used,
i. The background should be dark, the texts should be light or vice versa,
j. Headings should be in font size 32 (Calibri) and text (if no subtitles or captions
are used) should be in size 18 (Calibri),
k. Use italics, underlining, other colours etc. so that the desired points are
highlighted, and other notable features should be included,
l. The font style should be uniform on all slides,
m. Sentences should be meaningful but kept as short as possible,
n. Words should not be broken at the end of the line to avoid distortion of
meaning,
o. The summarized paragraphs should be filled in on the same slide without
being divided,
p. The use of too many remarkable functions should be avoided at the same
time,
q. Each slide should be assigned a title that is compatible with the content of
the slide,
 r. Graphics should be simple and understandable and should not be used in
more than three colours as possible,
s. Visuals should not be filled with too much text, images or different colors,
t. Unless the order is important, there should not be a numbered list,
u. There should not be spelling or grammatical errors,
v. Slides should be numbered (current slide / total slide) (e.g. 7/50),
w. It is important to ensure that transitions in slides are not distracting and
inconsistent,
x. Presentation: too much special effects, sounds, different fonts, flashy colors
or images are counterproductive,
y. Visuals should not be structured randomly on the page,
z. Simplicity and consistency should be the basis and statements on slides
should be readable from all distances,
AA. General design in summary:
bb. 1st Slide Cover course name, instructor name and presenting group
members (with their pictures and names)
cc. Slide 2: Brief introduction of the interviewee (with the group interview
picture)
dd. Slide 3 Briefly, the relevant company introduction (with company visual,
warehouse vehicle operation, etc.)
eh. Slide 4: How did you contact this person?
ff. 11+3 question slides
gg. The last slide shows the achievements of the group members separately
on the same slide.
huh. The answer should not be in paragraph form, (Example)
1. Could you tell us about your education and professional life?
• 2010 Bogazici Univ. Business
• 2013 Marmara Univ. MBA
• 2014 DHL,
• 2019 Ekol
24. This is a guide for the project preparation.
25. The questions concerning the interview and the ideal format of the project (Word
document format) are listed below.
 PROJECT REPORT (FORMAT: WORD DOCUMENT)

Course Name:
Group Members:
Company name and contact address:
Company History:
Company areas of operation:
Company representative and contact information: (first / last name, position, phone /
email):
Date of meeting:
Meeting place:
Group members' evaluation of the interview individually: (What did this interview teach
you about professional, personal, and business life? Please include any other thoughts.)

Interview questions

(Answers are written under each question)

1. First, we would like to get to know you. Why did you choose this sector? Can you tell
us about your education and your career path?

2. Can you introduce us to your company? (Field of activity, departments, personnel,

etc.)

3. In which areas you have the most problems while doing your work and what kind of
difficulties has the profession?

4. In which areas did you need training in relation with your career and how did you
meet your training needs in those areas?

5. In which topics and time periods do your employees need training and how do you
meet their training needs about these topics?

6. What actions are you taking in relation to your business and what changes have you
made in your business during times of crisis in the market. How can the times of
crisis be transformed into opportunities in this sector?

7. How do you operate in terms of customer satisfaction and customer loyalty and
which strategies should be developed to be durable in this sector?

8. How do you evaluate the impact of evolving technology, changing environmental

conditions and competition in this sector? What are your goals and possible projects
in this sector in the coming periods?
 9. What kind of preparations have you made and what actions have you taken to
continue the services you provide to your customers in contingency situations?

10. Which individual skills do you think are needed to be successful in this profession
and to advance in this profession?

11. What are your expectations and recommendations for our newly graduated
students, who will be working in your company?
Interview questions prepared by group members.
(There should be at least three questions and answers should be written under each
question)

1.
2.
3.

,
 T.C.
GEDİK University
Faculty of Economics, Management and Social Sciences

Topic: Course Project

To Whom It May Concern,

1. Gedik University, ITF 313 Customs Legislation and Practices Course students are given a
project assignment, which considers an interview with an experienced manager of the
sector.

2. The goal of this assignment is to ensure that the students have a thorough knowledge of
the relevant sector and business life and learn about the problems of the sector and their
expectations of new employees.

3. At the end of the interview, the information given by experienced sector professionals
could be used in lecture notes, articles, magazines, or books to support the education of
future students in some way.

4. This document has been prepared to inform you about the interview. Your approval by
signing this document is important so that we know you have been informed and to ensure
that the interviews conducted by our students are valid.

5. We would appreciate any comments and suggestions regarding this topic. We would like
to sincerely thank you for your valuable time and contributions to our esteemed students
who will be entering the business world in the future.

Regards,

Prof. Dr. Murat KÖSEOĞLU

Head of International Trade and Logistics Department
Faculty of Economics, Management and Social Sciences
GEDIK University, 05547935200
murat.koseoglu@gedik.edu.tr

Interviewed company official: Group members:

(Name, Phone, Email, Signature) (Name, Phone, Email,
Signature)
1.

2.