Job Search Tip of the Week #18 (2019)
Caressa Moy | April 29, 2019 | 9:00 am
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How to Ace the Case Interview
If you’re a technology pro (and especially one in a consulting capacity), potential employers want to know more than the simple fact that you can solve their problems. They want to know how you’ll do it. Your attitude, style, problem-solving capabilities, and approach are all deciding factors in how well you’ll fit into a particular position and organization. To find this out, employers often conduct interviews that ask you to solve a business case question or problem.
Solve the case
In a traditional interview, candidates spend the majority of their time answering questions about their education and work experience. In a behavioral interview, employers try to get an idea of how applicants’ personalities and experiences will affect their approach in a particular position. But in a case interview, time is spent talking about a specific sample scenario. The candidate is expected to offer detailed responses that reveal how he or she would deal with the hypothetical situation. These responses help interviewers determine the applicant’s creativity, attitude, and ability.
No right answers
There are no “right answers” in a case interview. Rather, the goal for you as an applicant is to give potential employers a clear idea of how you think and work.
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Job Search Tip of the Week #22 (2018)
Caressa Moy | May 28, 2018 | 9:00 am
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How to Ace Your First-Round (or Really, Just About Any) Interview
Think Like an Interviewer – Q16
Nowadays, it’s not enough to just be able to do the job. When we ask hiring managers to describe their ideal candidates, they often say creative problem solvers who can adapt quickly and effectively to any situation (particularly unanticipated ones), like changes to customer requirements and technologies. That’s why you often get asked interview questions that assess your competence in these areas.
“Tell me about a project you worked on that required heavy analytical thinking” is one of these questions, and a behavioral one at that. Remember, during a behavioral interview, the interviewer asks about your experience overcoming (or succumbing to) obstacles in the workplace, under the premise that past behavior predicts your on-the-job performance. As such, your interviewer wants to hear a specific work-related example of when you successfully applied your analytical thinking skills.
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Job Search Tip of the Week #15 (2018)
Caressa Moy | April 9, 2018 | 9:00 am
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How to Ace Your First-Round (or Really, Just About Any) Interview
Think Like an Interviewer – Q9
Over the last few weeks, we’ve been discussing the reasons behind the most commonly asked interview questions and how to provide answers that address them effectively. This week, let’s take a look at a question intended to gauge your confidence level: “Why should I hire you?”
(If you’re a loyal CareerJuice reader, you may remember closely examining this question with us before. However, keep reading, as this post will serve as both a refresher course and an advanced addendum.)
Opportunities to sell yourself as the valuable asset the company needs can be found in questions such as:
- Why should I hire you?
- What can you do for the company?
- What would you contribute to the company?
- What do you have to offer the company?
- How would you add value to the company?
- Why should you be chosen over other candidates who have equal if not stronger qualifications or more experience?
Job Search Tip of the Week #12 (2018)
Caressa Moy | March 19, 2018 | 9:00 am
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How to Ace Your First-Round (or Really, Just About Any) Interview
Think Like an Interviewer – Q6
When you’re hit with a brainteaser like “If you were to get rid of one state in the US, which would it be and why?” at your next interview, don’t sweat it! Interview questions like this are supposed to challenge how you react and think under pressure. Can you think on your feet and stay cool when the heat gets turned on, both in the interview and on the job?
As is the case with most of these crazy oddball questions, your interviewer is far less concerned with your answer and more interested in your approach. The actual state you choose is irrelevant. This particular question is intended to assess your analytical, decision-making, and communication skills. The interviewer wants to see if you’re able to set priorities and make a case for them.
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Job Search Tip of the Week #11 (2018)
Caressa Moy | March 12, 2018 | 9:00 am
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How to Ace Your First-Round (or Really, Just About Any) Interview
Think Like an Interviewer – Q5
Contrary to what the above cartoon suggests, interviewers don’t ask “Why are manhole covers round?” to trip you up – there’s method in their madness, so to speak.
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Job Search Tip of the Week #9 (2018)
Caressa Moy | February 26, 2018 | 9:00 am
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How to Ace Your First-Round (or Really, Just About Any) Interview
Think Like an Interviewer – Q3
Remember those times when your teachers said, “‘I don’t know’ isn’t a valid answer,” and you rolled your eyes at them? Time to start apologizing, because they were really doing your professional career a favor when they forced you to “at least try.” Employers won’t hire candidates who refuse to strive for solutions (even to silly scenarios like “If you were shrunk to the size of a pencil and put in a blender, how would you get out?”) because they’re afraid of getting it wrong.
They want employees who can think quickly on their feet and use the resources available to them to turn a problem into an opportunity for improvement, because those are the ones who will positively contribute the most to the company’s environment and productivity.
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Job Search Tip of the Week #6 (2018)
Caressa Moy | February 5, 2018 | 9:00 am
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How to Ace Your First-Round (or Really, Just About Any) Interview
Think Like an Interviewer – Concept and Logic Behind Typical Interview Questions [INFOGRAPHIC]
At some point in your professional career, you’ve undoubtedly left an interview thinking, “Why did they ask me that?!” Well, wonder no longer.
Knowing why interviewers ask certain questions and how some responses elicit better impressions of you than others gives you a leg up on your job search. Start getting better equipped for your next interview by checking out the infographic below, which reveals the meaning behind 19 of the most common interview questions:
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Job Search Tip of the Week #41 (2017)
Caressa Moy | October 9, 2017 | 9:00 am
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5 Steps to Conquer Interview Presentation Anxiety
This is an exclusive guest post for CareerJuice by serial entrepreneur and author Toke Kruse. Since the age of 18, Kruse has launched nearly a dozen companies and currently serves as the owner and CEO of Slideshop.com.
An employer has the right to hire any candidate they deem fit for the job. What comes along with that is the prerogative to use a number of screening challenges: cultural fit assessments, coding tests, technical interviews, and in some cases, group or panel interview presentations.
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