Preparing For the Interview
A dear friend shared with me her interview experience for a school Principal position in the field of education. She went on to mention that the interview lasted over the course of a day and included 5 different stages: A group exercise with the other interviewees while the interview panel looked on, a PowerPoint presentation where the audience was comprised of her competition and the panel, a writing sample, a technology exercise and finally the one on one interview which lasted approximately 20 minutes.
Did I mention many of the stages were timed? Talk about pressure. Thankfully not all interviews are as high pressure as my friends was. Sodexo’s hiring managers are required to go through a thorough training on our hiring process before interviewing. They are trained to follow a process that ensures all candidates are treated fairly in addition to identifying the best fit for the candidate, the account and Sodexo. When preparing for an interview with Sodexo or any position, for that matter, the key is to understand the hiring manager’s needs and how your experience meets those needs.
Did I mention many of the stages were timed? Talk about pressure. Thankfully not all interviews are as high pressure as my friends was. Sodexo’s hiring managers are required to go through a thorough training on our hiring process before interviewing. They are trained to follow a process that ensures all candidates are treated fairly in addition to identifying the best fit for the candidate, the account and Sodexo. When preparing for an interview with Sodexo or any position, for that matter, the key is to understand the hiring manager’s needs and how your experience meets those needs.
What are hiring managers looking for?
The first step is to find out in advance what the hiring manager is looking for. A hiring manager knows what he or she needs in a candidate for each position in order for the department, company or client, in Sodexo’s case, to be successful. Questions, as well as exercises, are formulated around that need. In addition to a structured interview process, some of our executive chef candidates conduct a “mystery basket” or “food basket” test. The candidate is provided a basket of goodies, given a scenario and asked to prepare a meal. The hiring manager may be able to gauge the candidate’s creativity, technical skills as well as how the candidate utilizes and interacts with the staff.
Ask Questions
Do so up front if you are given the opportunity. Ask questions about the environment, culture and the boss’s management style. Ask why the position is vacant. If due to a promotion, ask what made the person successful? If the position is not vacant due to a promotion, ask what would make the selected candidate successful in the position. What are the challenges of the position? Maybe you have just the experience or skillset to address these challenges.
Understanding this information will help you understand why the interviewer is asking the questions they are asking, essentially, giving you an idea of how to share your experience when answering. Even if you aren’t given the opportunity up front to ask a few questions, these are still good questions to ask at some point during the interview process.
Read the job posting – carefully
Trained interviewers will focus on probing your experience for the skills and responsibilities needed for the position and account. Read the job description carefully before you go in. This can help shape your answers so that you can show how your strengths fit well with the employer's requirements.
More often than not we prepare for the interview phase of our job search with the expectation of a one on one with one or more hiring managers asking a series of behavioral based interview questions or the dreaded, weakness and strengths type questions. However in today’s competitive job market applicants have to take it step further and must be prepared to shine their light brighter than the competition.
How will you prepare?
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