6-2 Interview Basics 2

Interview Basics

Thinking questions

Behavioral interviews became popular as a result of the problems we discussed with traditional questions. However, now most interviews are a mix of traditional and behavioral. These questions require thought. You can’t just ‘make up’ an answer like you can for a traditional question. They force you to talk about past experiences. Again, make sure you end with a future tense statement to show how this experience will benefit this organization in the future.

Puzzle questions

These questions are all about your ability to reason and problem solve. This is why they are popular with big technology companies like Microsoft and Apple. They are usually saved for engineers and software developers, but you never know when you might have one thrown at you. Some are math and physics oriented, so the problems are pure logic. Others are reasoning questions with no real correct answers. These are used to see how your mind works. Can you think “out of the box!”

Let's (not) get personal

This is a very difficult subject in the international context. Employers in some countries sometimes ask questions that are considered unethical in others. As a matter of fact, putting your picture on a resume in North America might even have it thrown out! The reality is - in Canada and the US - it is illegal to ask about a person’s:

• age
• marital status
• financial information
• family background (including questions that relate to a family member’s schooling, finances, jobs)
• social life / lifestyle
• children
• race / religion
• ID number (unless the person is hired)

You are supposed to be hired because of what you can do, not how you look or who your parents know. However, in some countries HR people may ask questions like: