Page 1 of 1 [ 15 posts ] 

msinglynx
Toucan
Toucan

User avatar

Joined: 30 Jul 2008
Age: 39
Gender: Female
Posts: 274
Location: Albuquerque, NM

26 Dec 2008, 6:52 pm

OK, so this is the question....

What the HECK are you supposed to say/do/ask when they get to the part of the interview where they say "do you have any questions?"? If I had any questions I would have managed (barely) to control my desire to interupt long enough for them to finish whatever they are saying and ask it right then but for some stupid reason they ALWAYS ask at the end and I NEVER know what to say and I know thats where I mess up. They can be all smiling and friendly up til that point and when I reply "no, not really, at least not right now" they always get like, cold and serious and start hurrying me out the door, so I know thats where I keep messing up. The times they dont ask I usually do really well.

So anyway, thats my question and also, any advice on doing a good interview for a "serious" job would be appreciated (since this is the first time I've ever tried to get something beyond cashier/"customer service").



pakled
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 12 Nov 2007
Age: 66
Gender: Male
Posts: 7,015

26 Dec 2008, 8:15 pm

Well, as someone who actually gets paid to ask that question, it's mainly "Is there anything you didn't understand about what I've just said?"

It's ok to ask questions at that point, but there's no obligation to do so. If you need them to be more specific about areas of the interview you want clarification on, that's the time.

Hope this helps.



frequently
Blue Jay
Blue Jay

User avatar

Joined: 24 Aug 2008
Age: 38
Gender: Male
Posts: 77
Location: berlin

26 Dec 2008, 8:20 pm

so what would a good answer to that question be, so you don't sound dim?



t0
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 23 Mar 2008
Age: 50
Gender: Male
Posts: 726
Location: The 4 Corners of the 4th Dimension

26 Dec 2008, 8:38 pm

When I ask that question I'm actually hoping the candidate will ask something. It makes it feel like they're more interested in the job I'm offering rather than just "any job."

Best case - ask something about the project you're being hired for or the team you'll be on. How many team members? Do they anticipate that number growing? What do they think is the most difficult aspect of the project and why?

If that doesn't fit, I'd ask a question about the daily schedule/routine if it hasn't been spelled out. Is there parking, how much time for lunch, any flexibility in the lunch schedule, holidays, stuff like that.



Marcia
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 14 Apr 2008
Age: 55
Gender: Female
Posts: 2,148

26 Dec 2008, 9:38 pm

I used to interview people for jobs and I always asked that question at the end.

If you have any questions, perhaps about training opportunities or wanted more detail about the job itself - anything which wasn't covered in the interview, you can ask at the end.

Tbh, I wouldn't recommend asking about lunchbreaks, holidays or stuff like that as it makes it look as if you're more interested in the "perks" than the job itself.

If you don't have any questions, then just smile and say something like, "Thank you, but I feel you've already covered everything I needed to know."



Dantac
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 21 Jan 2008
Age: 46
Gender: Male
Posts: 3,672
Location: Florida

26 Dec 2008, 10:19 pm

The one thing you cant go wrong asking is if you would have the opportunity to cross train so you can be more valuable to the company.

Not only does this tell your interviewer you intend to grow with the company (even if its an outright lie but thats what they infer) but that you are willing to learn and go beyond your position.



msinglynx
Toucan
Toucan

User avatar

Joined: 30 Jul 2008
Age: 39
Gender: Female
Posts: 274
Location: Albuquerque, NM

27 Dec 2008, 6:41 pm

t0 wrote:
that doesn't fit, I'd ask a question about the daily schedule/routine if it hasn't been spelled out. Is there parking, how much time for lunch, any flexibility in the lunch schedule, holidays, stuff like that.


But isn't that like presuming that you'll get the job? Thats my biggest problem... if I'm not gonna get it then it's a waste of breath to ask about something then get all excited & if I do cant I just find out later?



msinglynx
Toucan
Toucan

User avatar

Joined: 30 Jul 2008
Age: 39
Gender: Female
Posts: 274
Location: Albuquerque, NM

27 Dec 2008, 6:44 pm

Dantac wrote:
The one thing you cant go wrong asking is if you would have the opportunity to cross train so you can be more valuable to the company.

Not only does this tell your interviewer you intend to grow with the company (even if its an outright lie but thats what they infer) but that you are willing to learn and go beyond your position.


This would not be a possibilty since the interview will be for a very small gallery, but I will keep it in mind for future reference.
But honestly every time I try to say something like that I'm scared I come off sounding pompous and self absorbed & at the same time I get all confused at what I'm trying to prove and if it's working that I just end up feeling like an idiot.



msinglynx
Toucan
Toucan

User avatar

Joined: 30 Jul 2008
Age: 39
Gender: Female
Posts: 274
Location: Albuquerque, NM

27 Dec 2008, 6:46 pm

Marcia wrote:
If you don't have any questions, then just smile and say something like, "Thank you, but I feel you've already covered everything I needed to know."


Ugh, I've said things like that and every time that it hasn't been for volunteer work it has gone bad bad bad, they go from being nice to being very "ok, time to go, talk to ya soon, by"



Dantac
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 21 Jan 2008
Age: 46
Gender: Male
Posts: 3,672
Location: Florida

28 Dec 2008, 4:45 pm

msinglynx wrote:
This would not be a possibilty since the interview will be for a very small gallery, but I will keep it in mind for future reference.
But honestly every time I try to say something like that I'm scared I come off sounding pompous and self absorbed & at the same time I get all confused at what I'm trying to prove and if it's working that I just end up feeling like an idiot.


All companies have more than one 'department' that handles various aspects of their business. A gallery would (or should) have more than one dept. Asking if cross-training is an option is not pompous or self absorbed.. in fact its as close to a 'true lie' I've come across (lol).

If they ask you the 'why' you want to know if cross training is an option thats when you tell them you merely are interested in increasing your skills and being as useful as you can be for the company. Which is true because if you do cross train that's exactly what you will become.

cross training has lots of benefits for you personally as well. It lets you put more skills on your resume which could help you at a later job. It gives you a certain job security because when and if the time comes that the company needs to downsize personnel, you being cross-trained into another dept. could give you a real good chance of moving OUT of the dept. that is being closed down.

Personally, cross-training has saved my job more than once and has given me a better job more times than I can count. I went from cleaning houses to phone cust. service to pc tech which led to pc sales (cross training saved my job here as the tech dept. was closing so I was moved to sales because I had cross trained in their system)... which led to data entry in a hotel which led to travel agency job, etc. I cross trained to be able to do other things and to learn the business in all of those companies and that went into my resume.

When I was hired for the travel agency job I was told I was picked because I had a lot of relevant skills and background even though I had never been in the travel industry.

In these past few months, the skills I've learned and cross-trained while in the travel agency gave me the option of moving to an airline or a cruise aspect of the job. I went for the cruise since I had no experience in it and I was familiar with the airline stuff. Because of the skills i'll learn with the cruise I'll have in my resume something most travel agents dont have: full land/sea/air skills, knowledge of their booking systems and their certifications. And with those in my resume I know I can apply to any travel company and be paid a lot more since i'd be considered a 'senior' agent or a manager position because of all of that.

For the interviewer hearing that you want to learn about the company as much as possible its like music to their ears too ;)



Kirska
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 11 Aug 2008
Age: 38
Gender: Female
Posts: 581
Location: Dallas, TX

28 Dec 2008, 11:56 pm

ALWAYS have a question.

ALWAYS.

Some suggestions:
So what do you do?
Are there other locations that might be taking applicants as well?

even things like:
How's the traffic getting here usually?
Do you know if public transportation stops nearby?

I think I've asked all of these questions in interviews. Come up with questions beforehand, and ask them, even if you already know the answer (but not if they gave you that answer of course).


_________________
"Shadow, my sweet shadow
to you I look no more"


Zornhau
Butterfly
Butterfly

User avatar

Joined: 30 Jul 2008
Age: 43
Gender: Male
Posts: 17
Location: Willimantic, CT

29 Dec 2008, 12:33 pm

msinglynx wrote:
But isn't that like presuming that you'll get the job? Thats my biggest problem... if I'm not gonna get it then it's a waste of breath to ask about something then get all excited & if I do cant I just find out later?


If I'm interested in the job I go into it assuming I'm going to get the job. I know I'm smart enough to do the job, & I'm sure you are too if you got and interview. I try and make little notes about any questions or topics we covered earlier in the interview for the 'any questions' section at the end, unless during the interview I find out the job isn't something I want to do after all.
Good luck on the interviews!



TheCaityCat
Raven
Raven

User avatar

Joined: 9 Dec 2008
Age: 39
Gender: Female
Posts: 100

29 Dec 2008, 3:49 pm

I ask for clarification on something the person interviewing me has mentioned, even if it's just about which days I'm most likely going to be working or where most of the non-English-speaking customers are from. It shows I've been paying attention and interviewers like that.



PhaethonH
Hummingbird
Hummingbird

User avatar

Joined: 7 Jan 2009
Age: 44
Gender: Male
Posts: 21

14 Jan 2009, 7:55 am

During my job-hunting era (tail end of university life), these were the questions I had when it came to the "do you have any questions?" part:

* What's the general weather/climate there like? -- I wanted a comparison/contrast with the weather I was accustomed to, of Los Angeles, CA; in particular, trying to get a feel for what kind of extra clothes I might need to buy.
* What are the traffic conditions like? How long does it take you to get to work and back home? -- comparison/contrast with Los Angeles traffic; the route I took to get from parents' house to uni and back is regularly rated top five worst in the nation, was not looking forward to thirty-odd more years of that. This question also tends to shed some light indirectly on housing condition as well.
** The interviewer's personal experience of public transportation -- I'm not too fond of driving, and Public Transit literature are in happy lala-land ("marketroid") speak full of good news and nothing bad. If they don't know, oh well, it was worth trying to find out (can lead to "who would I be able to ask about it?")
* What sorts of charity things (and I actually used that word, "things") is the company involved in? -- basically did not want to be a blind trailblazer on this activity (I have my own motivations here), but also has the added benefit of portraying a sense of "community duty".
* Some questions about management structure, can't remember anything specific. What I had in mind were twofolds: One, I find hierarchies to be a confusing labyrinth that I don't like to traverse, and two, I wanted to avoid the remote possibility that my immediate superior would demand me to do something borderline unethical and be unable to "reach out" for resolution. Neither has been a concern for me at my current job... probably because I specifically asked about it and so filtered out the "undesirable" ones in that regard.
* How large is the office building (or appropriate structure)? -- Just for a sense of how much footwork might be involved if it came to having to walk from one end of the building/campus to the other. This question also gives a good idea of how "cramped" the work area can be (number of employees tends to be a published number, or you just ask forthright; this one gives you the approximate total area, and you can work out a rough per-person working area), and in one interview, revealed there are multiple offices in different locations (which led to "what if I want to work in that location?").
* What are the prospects for continuing/advanced education, in particular a Masters degree? -- This one was admittedly for selfish reasons, but conveys that I won't be satisfied with a static "robotic" role. For better or for worse. Then again, I'm in a "high-tech" field, and more-educated employees are inherently more capable and more valuable to the company.
* What is the employee turnover rate like? -- I actually wanted to ask "how happy are other people working here", but that's a subjective and unquantifiable attribute. How often people quit the company, though, is a quantifiable number, but it doesn't correlate exactly; at best, it puts an upper limit on "number of unhappy people".
* Are there any kind of sports activities the employees are involved in? -- this led to finding about a local gym with membership fee discount as an employee perk, and finding out there isn't a local soccer group ("hey, I'd like to start a soccer group").
* What do you (the interviewer) like about this company? -- Ha! Turn the tables on them! I can imagine this back-firing, though. :(


The weirdest thing for me was that job prospects picked up when I started framing the entire situation as "the employer is desperate to find a potential employee in me" rather than "I am a potential employee desperate to find a job". Maybe there's more to it than that, but those were my uppermost conscious thoughts -- basically I got sick of trying to suck up to interviewers (very draining, very irrelevant-feeling). The questions I had were basically along the lines of "why should I work for you instead of somewhere else?" as opposed to "Why should you pick me instead of someone else?" I also tweaked my questions to rely more on personal experience; I wanted to avoid giving the impression I didn't read their vast public volumes of company brochures. I had a few interviews and a couple job offers by the time I finished university; but this was before the global economy decided to give itself a swirly, so I don't know if I just lucked out or if my quirky approach pulled me through.

In retrospect, I'm pretty sure the questions I asked also carried NT undertones. Trying to figure out the NT interpretation may be an entire thread in and of itself. :shrug:

And if you did want to ask something in the middle of the interview, I think it is OK to interrupt and ask it right there and then. From what I was told preparing for interviews, the interview process is supposed to be "a conversation", a give-and-take, a two-way flow of information... bi-directional questioning, if you will. That the interview is as much about you interviewing the employer as the employer is interviewing you; "a job interview isn't supposed to be a job interrogation". I couldn't think of a better way of doing that than interrupting anyway and asking relevant queries. I think the hard part is finding a decent way of interrupting... I don't remember any concrete examples of doing so, but my instinct is to half-raise my hand as if in a classroom and interject with "umm... wait... <question>".

Another quirk I didn't suppress after I changed my outlook was to arrive at interviews with a few sheets of blank/scratch paper and pencil to scribble notes, just like in a classroom (two-way conversation, eh? You take notes, so will I!). This was mostly to jot down my own impressions of the company, but also helped in formulating additional questions during the "do you have any questions?" phase of the interview (I stopped pretending I had perfect memory). In one interview, I even had questions to ask written in my notepad (with space for their answer) before the actual session (which I pulled out and asked during that last phase) which seemed to have left a good impression. YMMV.



0_equals_true
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 5 Apr 2007
Age: 41
Gender: Male
Posts: 11,038
Location: London

14 Jan 2009, 10:45 am

Dantac wrote:
All companies have more than one 'department' that handles various aspects of their business. A gallery would (or should) have more than one dept.

Wrong on both counts. Small businesses might be interesting in telling you how they would be sustaining or growing. However they might not share that information for you, especially if they don’t feel they would have any trouble filling that role. You shouldn't presume anything.