Interview

Meaning & Definition

The term interview has been derived from the French word entre voir that means to glimpse or to see each other. By definition it means a meeting for obtaining information by questioning a person or persons. In this way an interview is a classic example of communication that takes place through the process by which meanings are exchanged between people through the use of a common set of symbols.

An interview is a conversation between two or more people (the interviewer and the interviewee) where questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from the interviewee. Interviews can be divided into two rough types, interviews of assessment and interviews for information.

Interview suggests a meaning between two persons for the purpose of getting a view of each other or for knowing each other. In other words, interview is a formal oral communication in which an individual interacts with other to know each other. It is one of the most commonly used techniques of manpower selection. An interview is also largely used for the performance of employee and providing feedback. The knowledge of an interview may enable an individual to give a better interview and to conduct it or arrange it for others as well.

The Oxford Advanced Learner’s dictionary provides the following different description of an interview.

  o   A formal meeting at which somebody is asked questions to see if they are suitable for a particular job or course of study of a college university.

  o   Private meeting between people where question are asked and answered

  o   To ask somebody about their life, opinion especially on radio or television of for newspaper or magazine

  o   To give an interview is to agree to answer questions

Purpose of Interview

Interviews are held for various purposes as stated below:

1. Job or employment interviews for the selection of suitable persons on the basis of their qualification and experience
2. Interviews held by some companies for periodic revolution of workers
3. Exit interview is held to determine a person’s reason for leaving the organization
4. Interviews conducted by company personnel to gather information on matter like workers attitude, working conditions, managerial effectiveness
5. A meeting for conversation between a journalist or radio or television presenters and a person whose views/ideas are sought for broadcasting/telecasting
6. Admission interview of a candidate for admission to a course in higher education/professional training
7. Interrogation of a person by the police about some happenings
8. An interview given by a celebrity in question-answer-session to selected audience

Essential features of Interview

There are different purposes for which we conduct interviews. But all of them have the following features in common:

1. There is a definite purpose, and it is known both to the interviewer and the interviewee
2. Both the parties need to prepare for the communication event
3. All interviews are prearranged. The only possible exception is the dismissal interview
4. There are at least two participants in the event – an interviewee and an interviewer. But in common practice there is one interviewee facing more than one interviewer
5. There is clear exchange of information. The information exchanged may or may not be kept secrets

Methods of Interviews

     Primarily there are two broad methods of interview namely, structured and unstructured interview. These are as follow:

     Structured interview

     It is an interview following some sequence of questions (normally in printed form) and acceptable responses are specified in advance and these responses are rated for appropriateness of content in the answer by the candidate. But it doesn’t always leave the flexibility to pursue points of interest as they develop during interview.

A structured interview may assume a definite format involving:

     a)    Charting a job-holder’s sequence of activities in performance

     b)   An inventory or questionnaire may be used

Care is needed to set up such interaction. A specialist analyst is not involved and participants need to know what they are doing. Why and what is expected as a result. They may be trained as interviewers and not structure the interview as recommended.

     Unstructured interview

     In unstructured interviews, there is no sequence of questions or any formats to follow, so the interviewer pursue points of interest as they come up in response to questions or the answer given by the applicant. There is seldom a formalized guide for scoring the quality of each answer.

Here the interview is a conversation with no prepared questions or predetermined line of investigation. An unstructured interview involves question and response and may be free flowing, but it becomes structured in the sense that the interviewer has a purpose and needs skill to:

1.  Establish a relationship

2.  Ask well-structured questions to generate a conversational flow in which the interviewee offers information-factual, opinion, subjective and objective about aspects of the job

3.  Ensure information received is heard and understood-listening, clarifying and reflective summarizing

     The roles and the purposes give structure. The interviewer generally uses a questioning strategy to explore the work the job holder performs. Listening and taking notes are very important. The questions and responses-with summaries enable the interview to be controlled. The conversation takes on a structure with areas being considered, explored, related to each other and revisited to secure the depth of information required in job analysis.

Styles of Interviewing

The two styles of interviewing used by companies today are: the traditional job interview and the behavioral job interview.

   Ø  Traditional job interview

The traditional job interview uses board-based questions such as ‘why do you want to work for this company and tell me about our strengths and weakness’. Interviewing success or failure is more often based on the ability of the job-seeker to communicate than on the truthfulness or content of his, her answer. Employers are looking for the answers to two questions: does the job-seekers posses the enthusiasm and work ethics that the employer expects, and will the job-seeker be team player and fit into the organization.

   Ø  Behavioral job interview

The behavioral job interview is based on the theory that past performance is the best indicator of future behavior, and uses questions that probe specific past behavior such as, “tell me about a time where you confronted an unexpected problem”, “tell me about an experience when you failed to achieve a goal” and “give me a specific example of a time when you managed several projects at once”. Job seekers need to prepare for this interview by recalling scenarios that fit the various types of behavioral interviewing questions. Expect the interviewer to have several follow-up questions and probe for details that explore all aspects of a given situation or experience. Recent college graduates with little work experience should focus on class projects and group situations that might lend themselves to these types of questions. Job-seekers should frame their answers based on a four part outline-describe the situations; discuss the actions we took; relate the outcome; and specify what we learned from it.

Types of Interview

The most common type of interview for assessment is a job interview between an employer and an applicant. The job interview gives the potential employee and potential employer a chance to learn more about each other. The goal of such an interview is to assess a potential employee to see if he/she has the social skills and intelligence suitable for the workplace. Similar interviews are also used for admissions to schools, allotment of grants and other areas.

The different types of interviews are described as follows:

1)   The selection interview: The selection interview is the step in the process which makes people the most anxious. The employer knows you are qualified to do the job. While you may have the skills to perform the tasks that are required by the job in question, the employer needs to know if you have the personality necessary to fit in. someone who can’t interact well with management and co-workers may disrupt the functioning of an entire department. This can be ultimately can affect the company’s bottom line.

2)   The group interview: In the group interview, several job candidates are interviewed at once. The interviewer or interviewers are trying to separate the leaders from the followers. The interviewer may also be trying to find out if you are a team player. The type of personality the employer is looking for determines the outcome of this interview.

3)   The panel interview: It means the candidate is interviewed simultaneously by a group (panel) of interviewers. On the other hand, it allows each interviewer to pick up on the candidate’s answer and ask them questions from these answers. In a panel interview, the candidate is interviewed by several people at once. Make eye contact with each member of the panel as you answer his or her questions. To handle this interview well, you must appear to be confident, should not hesitate too long before you give an answer.

4)   Promotion interview: A person who is due for promotion is interviewed even if there is no other candidate for the post. The purpose is to measure the attitude of the person and his fitness to take up the responsibility of the higher post. The interview also provides an opportunity to the management to make the person aware of the responsibilities he will have to shoulder. If there is more than one candidate for promotion, the interview can be partly a basis for selection. If the decision, and about their chance of a promotion later.

5)   Annual interview: The reporting officer interacts with the employees’ subordination, before writing the annual confidential reports. The purpose here is to confirm the achievements of the employee and also o point out his strengths and weaknesses.

6)   Assessment or appraisal interview: Periodical assessment of employees may be done by several methods like completing self-assessment forms, assessment of performance by supervisors and colleagues’ opinion; but an interview is invaluable in assessing an employee’s attitude to the job. It is possible to find out the employee’s ambition, motivation, interest and the state of his morale only by a face-to-face, frank and confidential talk.

7)   Problem interview: An employee whose performance is unsatisfactory in spite of warnings by his supervisor represents a problem in the management of the staff. An interview is more likely o show a solution than just another warning. At the interview, it is possible to find out the reason for the employee’s poor performance; for example, domestic or personal problems, poor health and dissatisfaction with the job.

8)   Stress interview: Stress interview is a type in which the applicant is made uncomfortable by a series of rude and discourteous questions. The aim of this technique is supposedly o help identify the hypersensitive applicants and those with low or high stress tolerance and who might be expected to overreact to mild criticism with anger and abuse. This interview method is used only for selecting persons for posts in which the person must be also to face difficult situations without getting upset; for example, the posts of a college teacher, a labor welfare officer, a factory manager or any executive who has to face pressure from people.

9)   Exit interview: These are usually conducted by the HR department when an employee leaves an organization for any reason. An employee who resigns is given an interview before he leaves. Exit interview is important for several reasons. Firstly, the management can clear up any misunderstanding or ill-feeling that might have developed. Secondly, the management tries to get the employee’s assessment of the company; an employee who is leaving has no reason to fear the management’s displeasure, and is likely to express his opinion frankly about the company’s public relations, sales policies opinion and will be a useful clue to the employee’s opinion of their company.

10)IQ/thinking test: These have been prepared to work out your analytical and logical thinking patterns. To some extent general knowledge would be useful, however they are really geared towards finding out how you analyze data and find solutions to problems. Again it is impossible to cheat on these tests, but a little preparation would go a long way. Prepare for this test by doing some logical thinking puzzles. There are lots out here in the bookshops.

11)One-on-one job interviews: In this kind of interview there is single interviewer and he takes interview one by one. It may structure, unstructured or sequential. This type of interviews are easier to handle, and are generally more informal. The best way to handle this type of interviews is to relate them as a form of conversation. You should ask questions and exchange information as you would do during a normal conversation. Offer your own information as needed without waiting to be asked.

12)Situational interview: It is a type of interview in which the questions focuses on the individual’s ability to project what his/her decision would be or react to in a given situation. The interview can be structured and sequential with predetermined questions.

13)Sequential interview: These interviews are those in which the applicant is interviewed sequentially by several persons and each one of them rates the applicant on a standard form and these rating are compared before hiring decision is made. Each interviewer may look at the applicant from his or her own point of view, ask different questions and form an independent opinion of the candidate.

14)Appraisal interview: It is discussion following a performance appraisal in which supervisor and employer discuss the employees rating and possible remedial actions to be taken.

15)Computerized interview: This kind of interview is one which a candidate’s oral and/or computerized responses are obtained in response to computerized oral, visual or written questions and/or situations. Here the questions are presented in multiple choice formats; one at a time and the applicant is expected to respond to the questions on the computer screen by pressing a key corresponding to his/her desired response. Computer aided interviews are generally used to reject totally unacceptable candidate and to select those who will move to face-to-face interview.

16)Walk-in-interview: these interviews are generally a panel interview which may structure, unstructured or sequential. In this kind of interview no specific candidates are called for the interview, but those candidates who are eligible can come and attend the interview with their valid documents and the resume. In this kinds of interviews there is no written test and the candidates are selected only through the interview.

Preparation of the candidate for the interview

Given the significance of performing at one’s best at the interview, the preparation has to be done well in advance and should cover many areas.

    Ø  Do your homework: preparation for the interview starts with good homework. Try to learn as much as you can about the organization. What is its line of business, track record, strength and weaknesses, hierarchical structure, values and future plans? Then find out the detail about the job on offer – how many vacancies, place of posting, what is the remuneration package, what is the work culture, what is he job description and attributes sought and so on. 

    Ø  Before the interview

   1)   Research the company: learn about the company and its business field. Before you begin to think about how you will dress for the interview or answer questions, you should do your homework. Gathering employer information is not always an easy task, especially if the employer is a small private company. The interviewer will expect you to know something about the work you want to do, and about the place where you want to do it. It also shows you care – which counts for something.

   2)   Identify your key skills and accomplishments: Make a list and be ready to describe your strengths, skills and relevant accomplishments. Come up with a few personal examples that show you possess those qualities. Talk to former co-workers with whom you worked closely. Try to find some faults as well. One question that sometimes comes up in an interview is “what is something that has been a problem for you at work?” By studying your faults, you will be able to choose one that is somewhat innocuous or could be turned around into a positive.

a)    Find out all you can about the company and the job, e.g., what do they do? Who are their competitors? What does the job involve?

b)   What skills do you have that would be of interest to the company?

c)    Keep a copy of the CV and re-read it before the interview.

d)   Think about and prepare for the questions that you may be asked.

e)    Prepare some questions to ask the interviewer.

   3)   Practice the interview: Practice makes a man perfect, and it will give us confidence when we are facing an interview. Study your posture, the way you make eye contact, and your body language. If you don’t have a video camera, a mirror will do. He more you repeat a scenario, the more comfortable you will feel with it. Here are the questions to practice with:

1.     How has your background influenced what you are today?

2.    How do you define success?

3.    What’s the most difficult challenge you’ve overcome on a job?

4.    How do you deal with deadlines?

5.    Tell me something about yourself.

6.    Why are you leaving your old job?

7.    Why would you be good for our company?

8.    Where would you like to be five years from now?

    Ø  On the day of the interview

      1.     First impression count. Dress appropriately so that you feel confident and comfortable.

     2.    Make sure you know where you are going, and allow yourself plenty of time to get there.

     3.    Get a feel for the company while you are waiting to be interviewed. (Read any literature that is available, chat to any other candidates).

     4.    Remember that the interview starts from the moment you arrive on the company premises – the receptionist/secretary may be asked what she thought of you.

a)    Reach the interview premises on time. Arrive ten minutes early.

b)   Take a look at yourself in your car mirror or in a bathroom mirror at a location near the interview.

c)    Smile and show your confidence.

d)   Don’t forget to turn off your cell phone and beeper.

e)    Look confident and busy. More than likely you’ll end up in a waiting room for at least a few minutes. Don’t get careless – you are already on. Bring something to do – look busy, even if it’s just writing notes in a book.

    Ø  At the interview

     1.     Sit up straight and look at the interviewer, speak clearly and don’t fidget.

     2.    Be yourself – the interviewer wants to find out about you!

     3.    Take copy of your CV along and use it as a memory jogger.

     4.    Be friendly, polite and enthusiastic! You need to let the interviewer know that you really want the job!

     5.    Make sure you get all the points about your skills and what you can offer the company, across in the interview.

     6.    Show interest and be positive. Never offer negative information about yourself.

     7.    Establish a two-way communication process. Tag relevant questions on the end of answers to obtain a good conversational flow. Avoid yes/no answer. Don’t waffle.

     8.    Think before you speak! Momentarily pause before replying to give a well thought through answer.

     9.    Watch for signals that the interview is coming to an end.

     10.  Check the time schedule and what the next stage is and thank the interviewer for an enjoyable interview and find out when you are likely to hear from them.

    Ø  After the interview

      1.     Thank the interviewer(s) for asking the time to meet with you. This is a polite gesture – and a subtle reminder to them of you. End your note with “I look forward to hearing from you”.

     2.    If you haven’t heard from the company and you’re still interested in the job, make a quick call to the person who interviewed you or the human resource department. Go ahead and tell them how excited you are about the prospect of working there.

     3.    You might here about the job right away. More likely, the company will take some time to interview candidates and then review them. If you got good vibes from the interview or the follow-up call, just be patient.

     4.    Don’t quite your job search just because you found what you think will be your dream job. It might not work out, and waiting before applying somewhere else is going to drag out your job search.

     5.    If you don’t get the job, call and ask, “I’d like to know why you chose someone over me”. While this may seem embarrassing, it is more than likely they’ll answer you because it shows you want to learn.

Success Tips for the Candidate

Some of the essential tips to be considered by the candidate appearing for a Job interview are explained as follows:

• Dressing up for the interview – Appearance is very important and whether we like it or not, it is the first thing people notice about us.
• Good grooming is essential – Any interview is much more than a question and answer session. For the candidate, it is actually the challenge of marketing oneself. It may be a suit, a tie, a full sleeve shirt and other accessories that make the candidate look smart. Being well dressed for the interview gives the message that one is keen on creating the right impression.
• Good dressing increases the confidence – It is important to be self-confident. If you are not comfortable and at ease with a suit or a tie, get used to it by practicing it well in advance.
• Reach in time – This is an obvious, yet very essential requirement. It gives sufficient time to find the exact venue, get used to the ambience and be comfortable. Arriving late for the interview may lead to guilt feelings and put you in at a disadvantage, besides creating an unfavorable impression on the interviewer.
• Establishing rapport – You must establish rapport with the person or persons interviewing you. Try to build a rapport with the interviewer or the member of the interview panel. This is done by looking confident, smiling, greeting and a firm handshake. Not just with the chairman of the interview panel, but with the other member as well. Establish eye-contact with and reply to the person who has asked you a question.
• Body language – Right posture, alert look, firm handshake, not looking nervous, confident and clear voice and appropriate eye-contact help create the right impression. Slouching, dropping, sitting with a hunchback, fidgeting, blinking and shaking the legs create a negative impression.
• Understand the question – make sure that you have understood the question. This is possible when you are attentive. Active listening is very essential. Let the interviewer complete the question. Do not be in a hurry. Do not interrupt. If you do not interrupt, there is a possibility that the interviewer will give you some hints of what the interviewer is driving at.
• Answering questions – Speak slowly and clearly. Pause before you answer a question. Your answers will seem less rehearsed and it will give you a chance to collect your thoughts. Keep in mind that a very brief pause may seem like an eternity to you.
• Asking questions – Usually towards the end of the interview, the person conducting the interview will ask you questions. You could also ask what special projects you would be working on. Don’t ask about salary, benefits, or vacations, as those all imply “What will the employer do for me?”
• Reply earnestly – Organize your thoughts quickly and give earnest replies. State whatever you know with confidence. Give correct facts and figures. Avoid mixing up figures. State clearly whether it is lakhs, millions, crores, dollars etc. Bring out not only your knowledge or depth of understanding of the subject, but also your attitude and concerns.
• Be sincere and truthful – If you know part of the answer, state that in clear terms and if you are guessing the rest, state so. The interviewer can accept that you know some and do not know some, but no interviewer will accept deliberate lies. Credibility is important. Some interviewers will even encourage you to make false statements so that you get into trap. Be sincere and truthful.
• Do not offend the interviewer – Be assertive without being offensive. If you disagree with the interviewer, or if you hold a diametrically opposite point of view, bring it out as your experience or understanding. Never ever unnecessarily correct the interviewer’s observations or challenge statements.
• Avoid long pauses – Take your time to organize your thoughts and give your replies. All the same, avoid long pauses. Long pauses lead to communication breakdown and result in an awkward situation. Keeps the conversation going.
• Grab opportunities – The candidate should grab the opportunity and make it a point to score more on the easy questions. The candidate should be alert enough to take advantage of the opportunities as and when they show up. There may be breaks, in between on account of tea breaks, telephone calls and consultations among the panel members. The candidate can make gainful use of such breaks to review earlier replies and especially what was missed out.
• Use wit and humor – A candidate who, even while answering the questions well, uses wit and humor naturally scores high in the interview. In doing so, however, proper discretion is called for. A candidate should avoid telling irrelevant jokes and anecdotes, and all the time should maintain decorum and seriousness associated with an interview process.
• After the interview – After the interview, while waiting for the results, learn to keep the anxiety level low. The outcome can be either way. May be we have done well. But maybe there are others who have done better.

Guidelines for the interview

Be prepared for the interview

Candidate has to face an interviewer or a board of interviewers. He must, therefore, be very clear about the purpose of the event. If it is going to be a job interview he has to be well prepared for question on his area of interest, his present position, the position the position he has applied for, the nature of the organization, its history, its current activities etc. His knowledge on all such questions will impress the interviewers.

Have a presentable appearance

Appearance is a part of message. Since an interview is formal occasion, the interviewee must be formally dressed. Anyone having conventional standards of neatness is likely to have a define advantage over one casually dressed for the interview.

Show interest by making use of body language

Keeping eye-to-eye contact with the interviewer is genuinely interested in the event and keen to participate in it. He should also sit in a correct, confident posture, straight, balance and not stiff in the chair offered. The hands should be neatly locked on the lap or comfortably placed on the arms of the chair.

The entire question must be correctly and completely answered

Since the primary aim of an interview is to exchange information it should be done effectively.

If the interviewee is not clear about a suitable answer to a question, there is no harm in admitting it.

     1.     Be honest

     2.    Be polite. Politeness is indispensable in every situation.

     3.    Avoid talking too much or making boastful statements. The interviewer is intelligent enough to find out the interviewee’s intelligence and suitability for the job.

     4.    Avoid criticism of the previous employer or anybody else. Negative statements are looked down upon.

     5.    Do not forget to thank the interviewers for having spared time for you. Granting an interview is indeed a favor.

     6.    Do not hesitate to ask questions to seek clarification regarding the company profile, service condition etc. It will not only satisfy your curiosity but also give the interviewer an idea of your confidence and interest in the organization.

    A successful interview is one in which both the parties – the interviewer and the interviewee actively participate. Some of the additional guidelines for the candidate appearing for an interview are as follows:

     1.     Greet the interviewer(s) with a polite good morning.

     2.    Do not sit down until you have been asked to. Even the posture in which you sit is important. Don’t sit stiffly. Don’t be lax. Sir in a natural, composed manner.

     3.    Where he interviewer starts conversation, pay attention to what he says. Do not interrupt him. Respond to him only at the appropriate time.

     4.    Give very relevant answer to his questions. Do not ramble along or the interviewer will look bored. Do not be too abrupt or you will appear to be rude.

     5.    If there is something you do not know, admit it straightway. I is useless to pretend knowledge where you are actually ignorant. Many candidates spoil their interview by telling a lie and landing themselves in an embarrassing situation.

     6.    Be positive in your attitude. Express your enthusiasm for the job and he company. If you give the impression that you are not really interested, you will discover that your employer is also not really interested.

     7.    Do not keep shifting your sit. Do not bite or chew your fingernail. Do not smoothen your hair. Do not play with the paper weight or pin cushion on the table. All these are the signs of nervousness. And nervousness is your biggest enemy during an interview.

     8.    When you are asked questions about your previous job, be frank but avoid criticism of your former employer or colleagues.

     9.    If your interviewer has not talked about the job, do not be afraid to ask questions yourself. Full knowledge of the job will help you to decide whether you ought to accept it or not.

     10.   When the interview is over, don’t forget to thank the interviewer, you may even tactfully ask when the result will be declared to you.

     11.  If the job is offered to you, you may accept it immediately or ask for time to think over it, depending on your circumstances.