Letter to Contractor to Finish Job - PowerPoint

							Interviewing for a job
       E S Rowse
Overview of our topics
   My career choice and passion
   What is my life‟s purpose?
   My education
   Timing-when should I plan for interviewing?
   My resume and how to use it
   Making the initial contacts with companies
   Criteria for interviewing and hiring
   Interview questions
   Good interviews and bad interviews
   Working in the corporate environment
   Why do people lose their jobs?
Sources for this discussion

   Pharmaceutical
   Chemical producers
   Fibers producers
   Banks
   Electrical components
   Radio and TV broadcasting
   News reporting
   University
   Environmental engineering
   Personal friends who are looking for work now
Choosing your career

   Consider your interests, passions, talents
   Get input from those who know you best
   Enroll in a university which enables you to
    pursue your interests
   Talk with people who are already in such
    careers and take summer jobs related
   By late term sophomore, if possible, make a
    decision about the remainder of your
    education.
Forks in the road of life
My education

   Does it equip me with all of the skills I need in
    order to function well in a career?
   Do I enjoy it?
   Can I imagine myself doing this for the rest of
    my life?
   How can I be a mentor to others?
   Build good references while still in school
   Remember: you are learning how to learn
Your resume

   Your resume must be current
   You should custom design your resume
   Your resume is one or two pages of
    advertising space!
   Your resume is a billboard, not a book!
   Does your resume contain some key words?
   Your resume should sell YOU!
   No irrelevant information
   Accurate, succinct, powerful, action verbs
Your skills

   Work on teams
   Finish the task
   Can you listen?
   Can you make decisions?
   Computer knowledge
   Analyze problems and create solutions
   Practical
   Communication-written and oral
   Take initiative to see a need then act on it
   Ability to synthesize
Key words on your resume

   acted on……      organized…..
   began a……       prepared…..
   arranged…..     accomplished….
   justified…..    lead……
   analyzed…..     motivated…..
   created…..       planned ….
   solved…..        expanded….
   manufactured…    reduced losses of….
Your resume content

   Name, contact information
   A current photo of you?
   Universities, with dates, GPA, degrees
   Your career objectives
   List your specialties
   List your references
   Available for full time or contract employment
   Your other accomplishments
   Your cover letter
                                                                  Your
                 Resume example                                  Photo?
•   George F. Lewis
•   21 Old Orchard Pike, Lewiston, Maine 12304
•   Tel 407 235 0972, cell 407 992 7741 gflewis@hotmail.com
•   BS chemical engineering (05) Drexel University GPA=3.8
    MA business administration (07) Harvard University GPA=3.7
•   Chemical plant design, cost control, statistics, economics, foreign
    language
•   Career objective is to work in manufacturing
•   Experience includes academics, summer work at DuPont Company
    in chemical production, and in organizing and leading summer youth
    programs.
•   References include:
       Professor Walter Zimmerman, Drexel 215 652 4877
       Professor Eric Nobel, Harvard 857 887 1661
       Edmund Albrecht, DuPont 304 283 1212
•   I am immediately available for full time employment at any location.
•   I like to read history novels, flexible as to relocation, work well in
    teams. I am active in the American Society of Plastics Engineers.
The entrance

   Send your resume to many potential employers
     1. www.Monster.com ; www.Careerbuilder.com ; www.indeed.com
     2. company websites have “employment opportunities”
     3. trade journals and newspapers
     4. company recruiters on campus
     5. job fairs
     6. private headhunters
     7. word of mouth, references
     8. hire „family‟ if family owned business
     9. hire „temp staff‟ for 6 months, to evaluate you
    10. hire you as a contractor, which may lead to a permanent position.
    (you are employed by a contracting company)
  Preparation for the interview
• You should be aware of some criteria that
  companies have in mind when they
  interview you, though they may be unsaid.
  (gender, ethnicity, age, pay level)

• You should always read about the
  company to memorize key features of it.

• Be prepared to answer many questions
The first and second filters

   The hiring process is designed to screen
    candidates OUT! It‟s a filter!
   From 100 resumes received, 20 will be selected
   These 20 will be called for a telephone interview.
   Of these, 10 will be asked to appear in person
   Of those, 5 will be called back a second time
   Finally, 1 will be chosen
    Your resume is now accepted and
     you will now interview in person
•   You will interview several companies
•   Companies interview 10 for one job
•   Interview is a one day process typically
•   Which candidate to accept?
    The one who best meets the company
    needs and is in the “sweet spot”.
    Perceived teachability
    The one who makes the best impression
    What makes a great impression?
•   The first 5 minutes
•   Well dressed, neat, clean
•   No cell phones!
•   Good knowledge of the company
•   Good pronunciation and grammar
•   Good „body language‟ at the interview
•   Easy and comfortable to converse with
    be aware of cultural differences
•   Wise answers to questions
•   Good general knowledge
•   Good questions to the interviewer
•   Memorize names of those you meet

If the interview is well done, you should hear back in 1-2 weeks afterwards
Prepare to enter a new culture
   Companies have their own culture
   Core values (one example):
       safety
       high ethics and integrity
       professional behavior
       environmental concern
   Company behavior (one example)
       first name basis from the first day-so memorize
    theirs
       casual dress every day
         New Culture
• Unwritten understandings
   willingness to do what is assigned
   willingness to work well with others
   willingness to travel or be
  transferred
   you serve the company, not the
  reverse. Start at 0600 hours?
   you are expected to deliver results
   you will have performance reviews
      You can usually maneuver once
Exit here? inside the company
         SALES               MARKETING
   Sales professionals     Customer support
   Sales management            planning
    ENGINEERING             PRODUCTION
      Plant design
  TECHNICAL SUPPORT           RESEARCH &
    Plant cost reduction    DEVELOPMENT
       Quality control     Product and process


                                 Enter here?
Perhaps you prefer to experience
      several companies?
         Company E                retirement

    Company D


            Company C



                     Company B

                                    Company A



                                 Join after university
Interview questions
Now you understand some basic principles! Questions…
 Your passion for this business
 Your motivation and purpose
 What are your skills and experience?
 Show your professionalism
 Display your creativity and leadership
 Are you compatible with this job?
 How well do you get along with others? Teamwork?
 Demonstrate your problem solving ability
 Your accomplishments
 Your career goals
 Surprise questions!
Passion questions

   Why do you want to work in this industry?

   How do you stay current in this industry?

   What do you want to be doing in 5 years?

   What are your career goals and what steps
    have you taken to achieve them?
Motivation questions

   Tell me something about yourself that is not
    in the resume (caution!)
   Tell me what you know about this company
   Why do you want to work here?
   What do you find most interesting about our
    company?
   Where do you think we are the most
    vulnerable as a business?
Skills and experience questions
• What are your key skills?
• Why should we hire you and not others?
• What are your strengths?
• How good are your writing and speaking
  abilities?
• Give me an example of when you were
  given a difficult job, and succeeded.
• How many days did you miss last year?
Creativity and leadership questions
• What color is your brain?
• What is the most innovative project you
  have worked on?
• Why do you think some companies with
  good products fail?
• Tell me about a good process that you
  made even better
• How would you define leadership?
Compatibility with the job

   What are the limitations in your current job?

   What aspects of this job excite you most?

   Do you prefer continuity or variability in your job?

   Would you be able to travel in order to perform this
    job?
  Personality and cultural compatibility

• Describe your working relationship with your
  colleagues.

• Describe a work environment that is not good for
  you.

• Tell me about your work habits and ethics.

• Tell me about a work group that you really
  enjoyed.
 Management style and interpersonal skills

• Tell me about an effective supervisor that
  you have known.
• What kind of management style do you
  think is effective.
• What type of people do you work with best
• How do you manage your time?
• Tell me about a time when you had to
  defend an idea to your boss.
Problem-solving ability

   Describe a problem in which you have used
    your technical skills to solve it.
   How do you usually solve a problem?
   How do you know when the problem is
    solved?
   How practical a person are you?
   Have you ever solved a long-standing
    problem?
Accomplishments

   Tell me about a major accomplishment.
   Tell me about a time when you delivered
    more than was expected.
   Tell me about a time when you saved money
    for your employer.
   Tell me about a project which you completed
    ahead of schedule
Career goal questions

   Where do you hope that your career will progress to
    in the next 5 years?

   What are your long term career plans?

   What career paths in this company interest you?

   Tell me about your salary expectations.
       Teamwork questions
• With examples, convince me that you can
  adapt to a wide variety of people and
  situations.
• What can you do to help a team to work
  better together?
• Give me an example of an unsuccessful
  team in which you were a member and
  what would you have done differently?
Surprise questions
• What would you do if I told you that your
  interview today is poor?
• If this were your first annual performance
  review, what would I be telling you now?
• How do you deal with criticism?
• What do you think it takes to get fired in
  this company?
• You have 7 minutes to tell me why you
  are the best candidate for this job. Start!
Your questions
  Based on what we have said so far, what questions
   would you ask the interviewer?
     1.why is this position vacant now?
     2.where can I move once I am inside the company?
      3.what one thing really defines your company
   culture?
      4.how have you as a company weathered the
   downturn in the economy?
      5.what are the main problems you‟ve been dealing
   with?
 What question should you NOT ask?
         Exit the first interview
• You have had a busy day!
• You thank your hosts for their hospitality and for
  their serious consideration of you. Follow with a
  written „thank you‟.
• If the interview goes well, 50% of the time you‟ll
  be called back in 2 weeks.
• More questions, different people, closer look at
  you. Perhaps a different format.
• Of the 10 original candidates, 5 may get recalled
  second time.
          Comparing notes
• After you leave, the interviewers compare
  notes, observations
• What were the positives and the negatives
  of these candidates?
• You should ask yourself some questions
  too! Is this the company for me?
         The “sweet spot”
                  Experience
                                        Does this
                                        applicant fit
                                        here?




Company’s needs                Passion for this job
      Interview derailers
what can throw your interview off the track?
            Interview derailers
•   Poorly prepared
•   Poor mannerisms
•   Displayed a poor attitude
•   Personality conflict with the interviewers
•   You make bad comments about others, industry
    in general
•   Get caught in a lie (or an inconsistency)
•   Poor answers to questions
•   You have no questions of your own
•   Show little interest in the company
               More derailers
•   Wear sunglasses, chew gum, yawning
•   Interrupting your interviewer
•   complaining during your interview
•   Answering cell phone, wearing a Bluetooth
•   Speaking rudely to the receptionist
•   Asking to use the toilet during your interview
•   Can‟t remember what you wrote on your resume
•   Failing to ask for the job
            Second interview
• Why are you called back for a second interview
  and the others are not?
• Answer: they liked you 
• The second interview is to see if they still like
  you. Do you fit in? Can you meet their needs? If
  so, then……..
• Drug testing
• An offer is made. I don‟t recommend negotiation
  on salary.
• Agree on a starting date
     Final ranking of candidates
•   Technical competence 1 2 3 4 5
•   Oral Communication         1 2 3 4 5
•   Interpersonal skill        1 2 3 4 5
•   Creativity, mental ability 1 2 3 4 5
•   Achievement, motivation 1 2 3 4 5
•   Overall impression         1 2 3 4 5
•   Percentile rank vs other recent candidates
•   Do you recommend making an offer?
    Welcome to the company!
• Meet and greet many people
• Orientation in the company
• Learn to fit in as part of the organization
• You will probably need to do a lot of
  subject research on a product or process
  that you have no experience with
• Ask many questions! Take many notes!
• Become a student of your new culture
                  Career Derailers

•   Negligence of safety training and procedures
•   Sexual misconduct
•   Failure to get along with your boss
•   Drugs and alcohol on the job
•   Theft of company property
•   Plagiarism
•   Dishonesty
•   Sharing or selling proprietary information/illegal activities
•   Sleeping on the job
•   Cannot manage time well, inefficient
•   Poor results!
Develop your company personality
• Learn the “interviewing” process to gain
  information from others
• Give credit to others where credit is due
• Communicate clearly verbally and written
• Engage in professional development
• Always be a learner, then share what you
  learn
• Treat others as you would like to be
  treated
                 Closing
I wish you a long, happy career filled
with solid contributions to mankind and
the earth we share!




         The Baobab tree of Senegal, West Africa