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Good Job Interview Questions & Answers

How easy are you to work with?

This is the real question hidden under a number of aliases. In this part of the interview they're probing for how you work with your boss and whether you are likely to be an employee who causes problems rather than one who resolves them.

You've got to show loyalty, stability and that you will be an easy person to work with and manage.

Such a question may come towards the end of an interview when they've been watching your performance for half an hour or more. Their concern is that it is a 'performance' and they want to make sure that they understand the real you.

WHO IS THE REAL YOU?

They can ask this question in various guises. 'How do you get on with your current boss?' What they're looking for here is any sign that you will rock the boat in their department. One of the most disruptive things you can get in an organisation is a person who sows seeds of doubt about the competence or character of the manager or team leader. So it's a straightforward, 'Personally we get on well: he's easy to work for and I think we have achieved quite a lot together.' Try to say no more, although it's likely that they'll ask supplementary questions to get you to substantiate what you've just said. They could go close to the bone with, 'I've heard that he doesn't consult much when he's taking a decision.' Just stay with a positive attitude: 'I haven't found that.' There's little possibility that they're actually interested in the character or competence of your boss; they're just probing to see if they can get you to display disloyalty.

'How are you on accepting instructions?' An easy-to-manage person is one who likes to be given objectives and tasks that are well explained at the outset. Then they just get on with it and deliver. But they're also aware that circumstances do arise where a team leader may at short notice take them off their current task and ask them to do something else. With this question the interviewers are checking that you're a team player and that you recognise that, from time to time, your boss will give you brief directions and expect compliance. You can probably find a dual answer that covers both points. 'I like to work in an environment where the logic behind what I'm being asked to do is clear. But I understand that I won't know about all the pressures and deadlines that exist. This may very well mean that I have to get on with something without knowing all the details leading up to the directions I've been given. This is fine by me because it's just a part of working in a fast-moving competitive environment.'

WORKING UNDER STRESS

'What keeps you awake at night?' This is not a therapist's question aimed at finding out your innermost fears; it's an attempt to get to know your ability to handle stress. So answer it from a professional point of view: take it as entirely business related. 'I'm concerned by the normal things a sales manager worries about: meeting targets, eking out the budget, avoiding heavy discounting and so on. But I've handled these issues for a while and I certainly don't let them get me down.'


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