How to pass an interview for a leadership position: general recommendations.

When hiring, many organizations and businesses conduct interviews with candidates to get to know them better and understand whether they are suitable for a particular position. This method is very difficult for those wishing to get a job, because candidates are assessed not only by their qualifications, skills and experience, but also by personal qualities. But an interview for a managerial position is even more difficult and serious: being a manager is not so easy. How to prepare for such an interview and behave at a meeting with the boss in order to get the job.

How to prepare for an interview

To successfully pass an interview leadership position, you need to cover all the factors. You need to not only study the specifics of the desired position, but also spend time learning about the company as a whole. An interview can radically change the course of events, so it is necessary to be prepared for it. Consider the following list of steps necessary to ensure a successful meeting with your boss.

Do your research about the company. Look online and determine what its mission is. Collect as much as possible more information so that you can answer questions that may arise. You can also make a list of questions you have about the company. This way, the employer will know that you were preparing for the meeting.
Get a complete understanding of the management position the company offers. Learn the ins and outs of the position and make sure you can focus on these points during the interview. If the company mentioned specific qualities and qualifications in the description, then they are important. So make sure you include these details on your resume.
Try to prepare in advance for the questions you may be asked. You should prepare a list of possible tasks and consider all possible answers. Remember to focus on important points. You can find a list of frequently asked interview questions on the Internet. Read them.
Decide what you will wear to your meeting with senior management. Choose conservative clothing, ideally a suit. You must be properly dressed and groomed. Make sure your clothes are clean and ironed and your shoes are polished. Your appearance will be an indicator of how high your standards are. So take the time to prepare right up to the smallest details. Avoid wearing heavy makeup and using strong scented perfumes.
The day before the interview, check that you have everything prepared. Make sure you have everything necessary documents in the right quantity. It’s better to additionally transfer all the data to a flash drive or disk.
Get plenty of rest the night before your interview. Go to bed not too late so that you don't look tired and sleepy in the morning. If you find it difficult to wake up early, set a few alarms so you don't oversleep, drink some coffee and perk yourself up a bit.
Try to arrive at the appointed place as early as possible. There is no excuse for being late for an interview. Nobody will wait for you. You should plan your morning time so that you leave home early and arrive at work on time.
Relax and take a deep breath before heading into your interview. During a conversation with an employer, you must be confident in yourself and your behavior. But be sure to learn to be confident without being arrogant.

These simple rules will help you understand how to prepare for an interview for a managerial position. The outcome of your business meeting largely depends on what personal qualities you have. So try to look professional.

How to pass an interview

If you are going to interview for a management position, you must show yourself with the best side and convince the boss that you yourself are capable of being someone’s boss. If you have worked as a manager in the past and have also conducted interviews, do not be too confident in yourself. It's helpful to review likely questions and review interview tips. Each boss has his own idea of work and his own requirements. The better prepared you are for a business meeting, the better your chances of getting the position. How you behave during an interview with a manager will form the first impression of you and show the employer whether you are a good fit.

The interview for a manager position will consist of questions about your experience, management style, your achievements and expectations. Your boss will ask a variety of questions to determine how well you will fit into the organization and how effectively you will perform in the position.

You should answer questions confidently, and you can joke or tell anecdotes if appropriate to show that you are not only a professional in your field, but also simply an interesting person.

You can provide specific examples from your previous work experience to show the interviewer how you skillfully handled situations and worked with a team.

When interviewing candidates, most managers focus on two aspects of management experience: results and working with people. Both are equally important. If you are unable to manage in a team environment and stressful situations, your other professional skills will not matter, especially when you apply for the position of HR manager. On the other hand, if you delve into the personal problems of employees, you are unlikely to help the company achieve its goals.

To successfully pass a manager interview, it is also important to prepare for general issues. Your employers will want to know what challenges you've faced in the past, what your career plans are, and whether you can fit into the company culture. As a leader, you must set the tone for your team. If you do not share the values, goals and culture of the organization, you will not be able to run the business effectively.

Interview with the boss: questions and answers

Hiring decisions are often made after a personal meeting with the candidate and communication with him. When you know how best to answer a particular question, you will be able to handle the interview correctly. Below are the most popular questions employers typically ask, and best options answers.

Question

Describe how you will handle the employee's problem.

Answer

You need to demonstrate that you can manage all types of people. Anyone can manage a self-motivated, successful employee, but managers who are marginalized individuals, are highly regarded for their ability to create greater productivity for the company.

Take the time to write your thoughts down on paper. List two or three instances in which you encountered a problem with an employee. Think about how your intervention led to positive changes. For example, your criticism or advice improved your attitude towards work or increased your productivity. It is also important to remember that employers will look for managers who have the tact, patience and persistence to deal with chronically underperforming employees who are resistant to change. While many employees are eager to receive constructive criticism and strive to improve their performance, others do not welcome advice or tolerate interference from their boss.

Question

Do you prefer to work independently or in a team?

Answer

Most bosses want to hear that you work well on your own, but are still open to teamwork and sharing responsibility with others. Any person will prefer one way of working over another, but highlighting the benefits of both approaches will make you a more dynamic, qualified applicant. There is no right answer to this question; some workplace situations may require independence, while others may require a full team effort.

Examples of best answers:

“I am equally comfortable working in a team or independently.”
“I really enjoy the variety of opportunities to work independently on some projects and as part of a team at other times.”
“I have experience working independently and in teams, and I see value in both approaches.”
"IN high school I liked playing football and performing with the orchestra. Each activity required a different kind of teamwork, but common goal The training was invaluable."
“Working in a team energizes me, although I am also confident in my ability to work alone when I need to.”
“I am very comfortable working in a team, but I can also work independently.”
“I am comfortable working both alone and in a group. It all depends on the situation. If the task is easy and does not require group brainstorming, I will be happy to work on my own. But if the task is high priority or too complex for one person, I encourage working as a team to achieve the goal together.”
“International work experience has enhanced my ability to work both individually and with others.”
“I'm comfortable communicating with clients face-to-face, but I also find that having a team behind me gives me the confidence that I have someone to consult and ask for help if I can't figure something out on my own.”

Question

How do you deal with stress and pressure?

Answer

The best way to answer this question is to give an example of how you dealt with stress in a previous job. This will give your boss a clear picture of how well you perform under pressure. Avoid mentioning the reasons that caused the tension if they were your fault (you put off work and reached deadlines). You also shouldn't pay too much attention to how you felt in these situations. Emphasize how you dealt with stress rather than how it bothered you.

Examples of best answers:

“Pressure is very important to me. Good pressure, such as the presence large quantity assignments for work or an approaching deadline. This helps me stay motivated and productive. Although there are times when too much pressure can lead to stress. However, I am very competent at balancing multiple projects and meeting deadlines, which prevents me from feeling stressed often.”
“I react to situations, not stress. This helps relieve tension. For example, when I'm dealing with an unsatisfied customer, I focus on the task at hand. I think my ability to communicate effectively with clients in these moments helps reduce my stress and also reduces any stress the client may be experiencing.”
“I actually work better under pressure, I like working in difficult conditions. In this environment I can do many different tasks.”

Question

Tell us about yourself.

Answer

Try starting with some personal interests that aren't directly related to your job. Tell us about your hobbies: astronomy, chess, choral singing, golf, skiing, tennis, etc. If you play sports, it's worth mentioning. Saying that you are an avid reader or enjoy solving crosswords or puzzles will help demonstrate your intellectual approach. Interests such as golf, tennis and gourmet food may have some value if you have to entertain clients on your new job. Volunteer work will demonstrate your serious character.

Before you think about how to interview for a leadership position, you should make a sound assessment of your capabilities and abilities. To become a leader, you must have leadership qualities both congenital and acquired. If you have strong leadership abilities, you can become a leader without any management experience. And the presence of education, a high intellectual level, a suitable specialty and experience is only the necessary minimum for further advancement.

What should a leader be like?

There are some qualities that will help you achieve a leadership position:

have a clear life position, real goal and the desire to achieve it;
be positive in achieving success, look into the future with confidence;
be able to work in a team, properly build relationships with partners and managers;
make decisions quickly and clearly in any situation;
discipline and organize oneself and the team;
be able to gain authority and respect from subordinates and managers;
be ready to use any innovations in work, be creative and modern;
have the desire and ability to engage in self-education and self-development;
make optimal use of all available resources: human, material and others;
be responsible, hardworking, efficient.

If you have all these listed qualities, you feel great potential and desire, you can safely write a resume and prepare for an interview. You have a chance to pass it successfully.

What to pay attention to when preparing for an interview

You have all the necessary leadership skills. Now the question arises of how to show these abilities to the employer or interviewer at an interview. He should not only hear from you that you are ready for a leadership position, but also see from your appearance. It should be clear from you that you are a mature personality with a clearly developed position. Your appearance is proof that you have developed your own image, and it is combined with the position for which you are applying (since, after all, people are greeted by their clothes). And most importantly, in the race to externally demonstrate your readiness to be a leader, do not forget to make sure that everything looks natural and unobtrusive.

"No!" excitement

Try to get rid of anxiety, as it creates tension, and this can prevent you from achieving success. On the contrary, you must look convincing and confident - do not forget that you are applying for a management position!

Choose the right pose

There is no need to cross your arms or legs - with these gestures you are closing yourself off from your interlocutor, he can feel it, and many of the interviewers know sign language very well. Best pose in this case, it is to put your hands on the table or simply keep them on your knees. Don't forget to keep your posture. Calmly and directly look your interlocutor in the eyes - this is an indicator of confidence and honesty.

Watch your speech

Of course, first of all, she must be literate, speak exclusively to the point, concisely, but, at the same time, not dryly and unambiguously. The ability to communicate is one of the necessary qualities leader.

Think carefully about your appearance

It must correspond to the position for which you want to apply. First of all, clothes, shoes and hair should be clean and tidy, accessories should be tastefully chosen, hair and makeup should be natural, hands should be well-groomed. In a word, you must be perfect, but not pretentious.

Be positive and open

Such people attract others, and this is important for a leader. The interlocutor should feel the energy and desire to work, your mood for success and enthusiasm as a future leader.

Collect information about the company in advance

Prepare answers to questions that may be asked. When the interviewer tells you about the company, you can demonstrate your knowledge and even ask a few questions about it, for example, about the prospects for developing work in a bank, in Sberbank. By doing so, you will demonstrate your competence, intelligence and readiness to lead.

Types of non-traditional interviews

You should know that there are several types of interviews for applicants for a leadership position and it is not a fact that you will have a traditional conversation that you roughly imagine. Therefore, you must be prepared for some challenges and surprises. So, what are the types of interviews?

Identification of competence. At such an interview, you will be offered any difficult situation that may arise at work. The goal is to test how you will behave. Or they will simply ask you to tell us what difficult work moments you had and how you found a way out of it.
Stressful interview - it can be conducted in different ways: they shout at you, speak dismissively or completely ignore you. The goal is to try to keep the candidate off balance. Keep in mind that this is a test of stress tolerance and patience. You should smile in response - it's better than being angry.
A panel interview is conducted by several people and each has their own criteria: one needs to learn about work experience in a leadership position, the second needs to observe how you can get out of this or that current situation, the third needs to check psychological stability. Then everyone draws conclusions and presents them to the director.

Whatever of these tests awaits you, first of all, do not lose calm and goodwill, be thoughtful. Listen to all questions to the end, do not interrupt and, if necessary, ask again. If you are mentally prepared for all these tests during the interview, then have no doubt that you will pass it successfully.

So, you are applying for a management position in a successful company and are discussing the possibility of an interview with a recruiter. Your future responsibilities and work seem to you to be fully consistent with your competencies.

It's easy to say, but easy to do... A job interview is one of those events where you have to show your best self. You need to present your track record to its best advantage, but it should not be too long or too detailed. You need to behave relaxed, but at the same time not allow yourself to become overly relaxed. You should prepare in advance for typical interview questions, but your answers should not seem rehearsed. Each of your remarks must hit the mark. And achieving this is very difficult.

Naturally, you should try to find out as much as you can about the company and the people you are likely to talk to during the interview. The more information you can gather about the hiring manager, the more comfortable you will feel during the conversation. And the more you learn about the company, the easier it will be to ensure that your answers meet the requirements for the candidate.

In this article we will try to describe the entire interview procedure, from preparation to its actual completion. We will give you tips that will help you make a favorable first impression and correctly answer the questions asked. You will gain an understanding of verbal and non-verbal methods of communication that make sense to adopt or, conversely, avoid. We hope that thanks to our recommendations you will be able to score as many points as possible during the interview.

Preparation

The interview is designed to answer the question to what extent the candidate meets the requirements set by the company, whether he will cope with the responsibilities assigned to him, whether he will be able to adapt to corporate culture and methods of work of the management team. When preparing for an interview, you need to think in advance what questions might be asked and formulate competent answers. You should be prepared to answer the following questions:

What do you see as your strengths? It is necessary to emphasize those of your advantages that will help the company solve the problems it faces.

How would you characterize your management style? You might say something like, “I tend to favor top-down management, but I've noticed that if I involve people in the decision-making process, it's easier to get their buy-in, and the end result is almost always better.”

Why should we hire you? Re-explain how your strengths meet the company's needs.

What salary are you expecting? Be careful when answering this question. If you ask for too much, you will be removed from the list of candidates. And if you ask for too little, you will obviously sell yourself short. A good option in this case is to quote the results of an independent study and indicate a specific range. Even better, ask the person you are talking to talk about the nature of the compensation provided by the company.

You'll likely be asked about failed projects, too, so don't try to dodge when the hiring manager starts asking for details. Answer honestly, without trying to make excuses or become defensive. Avoid answers like, “It wasn’t really my fault,” or “I warned them it wouldn’t work.”

When talking about projects in an interview that did not go according to plan for one reason or another, be sure to mention the actions you took, the final results, and the lessons learned. You can recall, for example, your appeals to other participants: “Having realized that we were not meeting the deadlines specified by the client, I immediately organized a series of meetings, talking with all the project executors. We were able to discuss the situation with the client and minimize losses. Ultimately, the client appreciated our frank position, and we were able to jointly develop a solution acceptable to all parties involved.”

Your interlocutor will probably ask what you see as your most serious shortcomings. Touch on just one flaw and tell us what measures you are taking to get rid of it. For example: “I’m not very good at speaking in public, but I try to take part in executive presentations, which has improved my speaking skills.”

You should not mention shortcomings in the fight against which you have not achieved any success. For example, if you say that you avoid conflict in any form, your interlocutor may think that you do not know how to manage conflict or that your management style is expressed in “burying your head in the sand.” Likewise, when you are asked if you have implemented at least one application program, but you do not have such experience, do not say that you do not have such experience, but that you can always learn if necessary. This is an unfortunate answer.

Remember that merely stating facts when answering questions is not enough. You need to describe everything so that the facts are presented in the most favorable light for you. When assessing applicants for a leadership position, the recruiting manager looks for good communication skills, the ability to offer design options decisions at meetings of the board of directors, willingness to take responsibility and lead a subordinate unit. Instead of describing the areas for which you were responsible, tell us better about the incidents that took place. Illustrate your ability to solve emerging problems, find a successful way out of a difficult situation and achieve the desired result. Describe the current situation, the people involved and your actions, but to eliminate unnecessary digressions and details, adhere to the ODR model:

ABOUT- what circumstances or challenges did you have to face?
D- what actions did you take?
R- what results were achieved?

Try to supplement your answers with testimonials from trusted people who would emphasize the confidence and professionalism of your actions. It is advisable that it look like improvisation, and not like a rehearsed home preparation. Answers like: “I belong to the category of managers who are able to effectively solve any issues in the company” or “I am a workaholic, and until the project is completed, I am ready to work day and night without rest” sound too pompous. Don't cross the line that separates a great answer from an embellished one. In other words, don't try to make yourself look like a superhero, starting every sentence with "I," "me," and "my," and emphasizing your personal role.

Remember key events and dates concerning both the company you came to apply for a job and your own track record, so that you do not have to reach into your briefcase for information every time.

And finally, don’t think of yourself as a job applicant. vacant position. you are unique remedy solving business problems facing the company. Presenting yourself as a solution will give you the confidence that you can help the company achieve its strategic goals. And your confidence will be an additional factor for the hiring manager conducting the interview. Presenting yourself as a solution will help you define your role in the new company, successfully negotiate the compensation package you deserve, and participate as an equal member of the management team.

The most important day

On the day of your interview, you must arrive at least 15 minutes before your scheduled appointment. While you wait, think of yourself as the solution the company needs and expect the interview to go well. You can also observe employees entering and leaving the premises to understand how comfortable they feel there.

When entering the office where the interview will take place, smile, raise your head and straighten your shoulders. Firmly shake the hand of the person you will be talking to. When introducing each other, repeat his name with a smile. At every opportunity, address your interlocutor by name. Any person is always pleased to hear him. This will put your interlocutor in a friendly mood.

Don't sit down until you're asked to. If given a choice, avoid the sofa. You will fall into it like quicksand. Give preference to a hard chair. Sit up straight with your hands on your knees. Do not cross your arms or legs, as this indicates that you are becoming defensive.

While your interlocutor is speaking, show your attention by nodding your head from time to time and repeating the phrases he said. Make sure you understand the question correctly. Do not show that the answer has been prepared in advance. Try to guess what lies behind each question. The interlocutor, for example, may ask if you have ever taken part in the process of implementing an SAP system, but in fact he is interested in how smoothly the implementation went, whether it was completed on time and within the allotted budget.

If you don't know how best to answer a question, pause or make a clarifying comment that allows you to gain time and better formulate your answer.

Behave naturally during the conversation. Gesture. Smile at the slightest provocation. Smiling will help you feel confident. Look directly into the eyes of your interlocutor. If you are talking to a whole group of people, linger for a long time on each of them, without allowing your eyes to constantly move from one face to another.

The interview should start off well and you should be able to relax a bit. But don't take unnecessary liberties by making ill-considered comments or being overly familiar. During the interview process, it is necessary to maintain distance and show respect for the interlocutor. Don't say anything bad about your current employer, even if you are encouraged to do so. Only bring up the topic of salary if you are asked about it directly.

At the end of the conversation, the interlocutor usually asks if you have any questions. Regardless of whether you are asked to ask them or not, ask about the following:

What does the company expect from candidates for this position?

How will your performance be assessed?

What tasks will you have to solve first?

Don't ask anything about the company that can be found in open sources Internet.

When the procedure comes to an end, ask whether your interlocutor received all the information he was interested in. Suggest additional information, especially if you haven't been asked questions that you think are important for the position. Don't offer any reference information until you are asked to do so.

At the end of the interview, you have one last chance to show that you really want the position. Suppressing any hint of despair in your voice, demonstrate your sincere, positive interest. You might say, for example: “The opportunities here are extremely important to me. Do you still have any questions regarding my candidacy?” Ask what will happen next. And remember: the first impression made is the most important during an interview. The idea that your counterpart will have by the end of the conversation plays a secondary role.

Summarize the meeting immediately after it ends. Make note of the areas where your answers were not convincing enough so that you can correct this impression in subsequent correspondence. In addition, if you are planning any kind of continuation, you will probably want to remember who said what.

Send the employee who conducted the interview a letter of gratitude for the attention paid to you, additionally argue why you are a good fit for the specified position and express your readiness to provide any other information that interests the HR manager at the first request.

Continue to remind yourself regularly, but not intrusively. And remember: the person who wants it most often gets the job.

Kevin Daly and Dale Clamforth are among senior management Communispond company, specializing in teaching its clients the art of management and sales, preparing presentations and improving communication skills.

Kevin Daley and Dale Klamfoth. How to Ace an Executive-Level Job Interview. CIO Magazine. March 11, 2008

As you sit in front of your future boss looking over your resume, you start thinking about what will happen next, saying to yourself, “I wish this would all be over.”

It probably doesn't occur to you that your interviewer feels the same way. On the other side of the table is not your opponent, but a person who would really like to hire you and quickly. You may not know it, but bosses don't like interviews. They think to themselves: “I have so much work and this interview is so inopportune, there are still so many things to do and I need to solve hundreds of problems, and then there’s this one...”

I’ll open the curtain for you, since I myself have conducted such interviews more than once when I was in the position of a manager.

It is a very common misconception that anyone in a leadership position is endowed with relevant professional skills, including the ability to interview and hire people. Perhaps, at best, only half of them know how to interview candidates, and most of them have no idea. Therefore, at an interview you will encounter one of two types of interviewers:

who doesn't know what he's doing, and even worse, doesn't know that he doesn't know what he's doing. This is the most common type.
A competent interviewer who knows exactly what he is doing and has a detailed plan for the interview. This is a rather rare specimen, which will soon be listed in the Red Book.

They both present challenges, but only if you don't know how to deal with them.

Incompetent interviewers

Have you ever walked away from an interview feeling like you could get the job, but the interviewer didn't ask you questions that would allow you to fully demonstrate your skills and qualifications? Most likely, you are faced with an inexperienced interviewer who does not realize that he does not understand how to conduct an interview and makes a hiring decision based on his subjective experience and knowledge, or even worse, on his sixth sense.

When dealing with such an unprepared interviewer, you need to understand what he is thinking if you want to get a job offer. Such interviewers can be easily identified by the following characteristics:

1. The interviewer’s desk is littered with various documents, and he can’t find your resume, which was handed to him a few minutes ago.

Your reaction: Sit quietly while searching and organizing your desk. Look at your surroundings. Breathe deeply and slowly. Stay calm. If this situation drags on for a long time, you can offer your help and say: “I have a printed resume” or “I can send my resume to your email from my phone.” This way you will show your level of preparation, just please take care of three things in advance:

Your phone must have Internet access
Your resume should be in your mail
Use modern technologies to increase your chances and submit a link to your online resume.

2.The interviewer is constantly distracted by phone calls and employees passing by.

Your reaction: Small breaks like these that occur during an interview work to your advantage for several reasons:

First, you have the opportunity to analyze the interview and make some adjustments to your answers
Secondly, you can what you want to ask the interviewer
Third, you have extra time to think about the interviewer’s question or add new information to your answer given to you before the break.

If there is a pause during the interview, write down where you left off so you can pick up where you left off. Your interviewer will be impressed by your calmness and good memory.

3.The interviewer begins the interview with an explanation., why you both are here, and then gives a long lecture about the job and the company.

Your reaction: Show your interest in the company and conversation. Sit up straight, look carefully at the interlocutor and nod at the appropriate moments until there is a pause. When it finally happens, say that you are impressed by the company's history, because now you see everything much more clearly, how this work ideally suits you and how much you have the necessary skills. And so on...

And now is the time to ask: “Please tell us about the basic requirements and job responsibilities.” Now you are directing the interviewer, and he should not feel that you have taken control of the interview. All you have to do is something that will demonstrate a real understanding of what the job is about.

4. During the interview, the interviewer often focuses on the shortcomings of this job. This means that the manager had bad experience in the reception of employees.

Your reaction: Listen carefully and then ask, “Why do some people fail in this job and who does it best?”

The interviewer's answers will give you an idea of exactly how to market yourself for the position. All you have to do is demonstrate your qualifications and skills that are suitable for this position with examples from your experience in different companies.

5.The interviewer continues to ask closed questions- questions that require monosyllabic answers (either yes or no) and do not give you the opportunity to talk about your knowledge and skills. Not every candidate faces this problem, but if you can skillfully work around this situation, your candidacy will truly stand out from the rest of the applicants for the position.

Your reaction: The secret is to continue answering closed questions as if they were open questions. Just imagine the interviewer silently adding at the end of his question, “Please give me a short but compelling answer.”

Now let’s consider the situation if an experienced leader appears in front of you.

2.Competent interviewers

A manager's job is to delegate tasks to those under him. And the first step is to hire such people. That's why more and more managers are learning how to conduct interviews effectively.

Experienced interviewers have a plan: they know what, when and why to ask a candidate and hope to find the one they were looking for in the first place. They follow a set interview plan to ensure an objective selection of applicants for the position and ask questions in order to obtain as much information as possible for thorough further analysis.

1.Expect questions at general topics : “How did you get there? How are you doing? “and so on. This conversation lasts no more than five minutes. The interviewer will then remind you what position the company is looking for by saying the following: “We are looking for …………. I would like to know more about your experience and your strengths" And then he will smoothly move on to your resume, asking you to tell us more about yourself.

2.View your resume. Interviewers use resumes as a starting point. They ask you about your work experience and the skills described in your resume. In most cases, a professional interviewer will give himself 20% of the time to ask questions and leave you 80% of the time to answer. An experienced interviewer tends to listen and analyze more than talk. Your task is to tell general outline about your responsibilities and professional achievements in each job, and demonstrate your skills with examples. You need to convince the interviewer that you are sufficiently qualified for this position, citing as evidence your knowledge and skills acquired at the university, in trainings, courses, in the companies in which you worked, confirming them with relevant documents in the form of diplomas, certificates, prizes

After these questions, the interview usually ends, unless you have questions for the interviewer.

Your questions.

As you know, the interview comes to an end when the interviewer asks you: You should prepare your interest in this position and company in advance.

What awaits you at the end of the interview?

The interviewer will thank you and give you some insight into the next steps. In the event that the interviewer did not do this, that is, did not provide you with information about next steps, then you should ask about it yourself, thereby showing your interest in this work.

What else do you need to know before you go for an interview?

There are three main strategies that interviewers, regardless of skill level, use to get as much information about a candidate as possible:

Behavioral
Situational
Stressful

Let's look at each of them in order.

1. Behavioral strategy

It has become almost an integral part of any interview. It is based on the assumption that the candidate's previous experience will help him cope with the responsibilities of the new job. In such a situation, your interviewer thinks: “If I know how you behaved in certain situations in the past, I will be confident that you can complete the most difficult tasks.” To make sure of this, the interviewer asks you questions regarding work situations: “How do you handle accounts receivable?" or “Tell me what problems you encountered in your previous job and how you solved them?”

The behavioral strategy always strives for balance, therefore, if you were able to make a good first impression, then in order to make sure that you really know what you are talking about, situational questions are definitely waiting for you, accordingly the second strategy:

2. Situational strategy

The situational strategy gives the interviewer the opportunity to bring the interview closer to the real thing. work situation and look at you to get a broader idea of how you can perform your job responsibilities. It's kind of role play, whose task is to recreate real conditions your future job. So try to relax and don't hesitate to ask questions and ask for clarification from the interviewer. Remember that the interviewer's goal is to find out how much you understand about what you do, in other words, how competent you are. You may receive a question like this: “Great, now tell me about a time when things weren’t going so smoothly at work or when something didn’t work out for you.”

3. Stress strategy

Every interview, especially for a fresher, is stressful. If operating under pressure is part of your job - such as sales - then it is reasonable to expect the interviewer to try to create a situation in which you must demonstrate how you cope under pressure. Most likely, the interviewer will do this with the help of questions. For example, “Sell me this pen.”; “I'm not sure you're the right person for this job. Can you convince me otherwise?

Whenever you feel tension rising during an interview, as the Americans say: “Stay cool, calm and collected.”

- Breathe evenly. Irregular breathing will hinder your thought process. Take a deep breath and exhale.
- If you are offered a drink at the beginning of an interview, always agree and ask only for water. Then, any time you need to collect your thoughts, you can drink some water. In addition to the fact that thanks to a sip of water, you buy yourself time to think about the answer, take a sip clean water also helps relieve the stress you feel during an interview.
- Keep your back straight and straight and shoulders straightened. Many people tend to slouch when under stress, which adds to the stress and shows your insecurity.
- Change your position. Did you know that just 2 minutes of Power Pose can instantly boost your confidence and improve your interview performance? For a more complete introduction to this pose, I suggest watching a video in which social psychologist Amy Cuddy explains this two-minute technique.

Good afternoon, dear friend!

There are things that most job seekers don't even know about. Today your humble servant will sit on the other side of the “barricades”. To your usual place, opposite the applicant. This will make it easier to answer the question “ How to properly pass an interview for a leadership position?

It would be more accurate to talk about one tool that is used by experienced, competent recruiters. Sometimes you'll come across some like this :)

This method is reading the candidate's metaprograms.

These are mental models, filters through which a person passes information and draws conclusions. They determine his thinking and behavior.

Everyone knows the example of a glass that is half full of water. One person thinks it is half full, another thinks it is half empty. They have different poles of metaprograms.

The idea is that managers have certain preferences in the meta-program profile. My task as a recruiter is to determine this profile and compare it with the optimal one for the position for which the candidate is applying.

I do this: I invite the interlocutor to talk about himself and record the meta-programs for constructing his phrases.

Then I ask and also watch his speech. After the conversation I draw conclusions.

Now let's talk more about meta-programs. There are many of them, but we will look at 4 of the most important.

You don't need to delve too deeply into this topic. Just understand the meaning and relationships of the poles of the meta-program in order to try to monitor your speech.

1. Type of motivation: desire/avoidance

For a person, the main incentives are either achievements or avoidance of problems.

“Achievers” pay more attention to their goals. They face problems with an open visor, considering them an inevitable companion and even an assistant in their work.

Those who are prone to avoidance focus their main efforts on avoiding problems and punishment.

The question might be: “Describe your ideal place to work.” Or similar.

The first type will say: work with interesting, complex tasks, prospects for professional growth.

Second: working with clear indicators, criteria for reward and punishment, in a non-conflict team.

The first one uses “leadership verbs” in his speech. I organize, I delegate, I motivate.

The second prefers careful formulations, such phrases as “I had to do...”, “I had to...”.

For most leadership positions, an achievement-oriented profile is preferred.

The ratio of the poles of this meta-program is 8 to 2. That is, in 8 cases out of 10 I would like to record behavior characteristic of a person of “achievement”.

This does not mean that it is time for a leader with a prevailing avoidance motivation to shed his career. Such people can perform well in positions related to control and auditing. They are usually attentive to details.

2. Type of reference: internal/external

It shows whether a person is more focused on his own or someone else’s opinion when making a decision. What is more important to him?

People with internal reference usually decide for themselves what to do, based on their experience and intuition. “I decided to do this:...”

Managers with predominant internal reference good at positions of TOP managers, project managers, creative areas of work.

At predominant external reference, head of to a greater extent relies on the opinions of colleagues, management, and some statistical data. “Based on the analysis, I proposed... the executive director supported me.”

People with a predominance of external reference are more suitable for working with clients, as well as for positions that require high executive discipline.

Answers: “Experience suggested”, “I just see it this way...” are recorded in the internal reference.

For most positions in my “talmud” preferred pole ratio internal/external reference 6 to 4.

Your task is to determine what type of reference is preferable for the position for which you are applying and build your examples and phrases from this.

3. Focus in work: process/result

A question like this is asked: “What do you enjoy most about your job...?”

A process-oriented person primarily describes the process itself. In his speech the lion's share is occupied by verbs perfect form— organized, analyzed. Or nouns: provision, attraction, etc.

The person of “results” uses verbs of the perfect form: built, organized, accomplished. They are also called “leadership” verbs.

An attraction to the process is not a drawback, but for a manager, what is primarily important is effective work. We talked about this in the article

That's why The preferred ratio of process/result poles, for most positions, is 3 to 7.

4. Level of activity: activity/reflexivity (passivity)

Here, I think, it is clear without detailed comments.

The question could be: Describe your first day at work?

Active in his speech uses the first person in the active voice. “I do, I propose, I begin.”

Reflexive people prefer plural: “We do, we offer.” Uses phrases such as “We must do”, “They will tell us”, impersonal forms such as “It will be done”.

For a manager, the preferred ratio of activity/reflexivity poles is 8 to 2.

Much depends on the position you are applying for. Based on this, select examples and how you will answer the questions.

And yet. The manager must have leadership qualities. You will never go wrong if you build your image as a leader on a leadership basis.

In the meta-programs we are talking about today, the leadership poles are aspiration, internal reference, result, activity. Start from this.

When talking about your professional experience, place more emphasis on the topic than on solving current problems. Choose relevant examples.
In your speech, try to use less cautious phrases: “It seems to me,” “As if,” “Probably.” They conflict with the image of the leader.
Try to use the particle “not” less. It is not perceived by our subconscious. For example, many people hear “not difficult” as “difficult”.
Eliminate words with a strong negative meaning from your speech: Horror, trouble, nightmare, etc. They create unnecessary tension.
Use more “leadership verbs.”

For example

It may not work out right away, because it is very difficult to consciously control your speech. But with training and practice, you will eventually learn to structure your speech in the right way. And broadcast the image of a manager-leader not only to pass an interview, but also in everyday work.

Paying attention to the construction of your speech is important not only for an interview. Your internal attitudes towards leadership behavior will gradually change.