Great Careers Network Career Transition AI Resources & Tips for Interview Preparation – The Ultimate How to Guide

AI Resources & Tips for Interview Preparation – The Ultimate How to Guide

September 26, 2024September 26, 2024 Lynne WilliamsLynne Williams 0 Comments 8:00 am
AI Resources & Tips for Interview Preparation
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Need AI resources and interview tips for an upcoming opportunity to keep your skills sharp? The world of job search is ever-changing, especially with AI.

In today’s competitive job market, acing your interview is crucial to landing your dream position. This AI resources and interview tips comprehensive guide becomes an invaluable tool. It will walk you through essential steps to prepare for and excel in your next job interview.

Your journey to landing a job starts with a tailored resume and an optimized LinkedIn profile. These are your first steps towards securing an interview, and then it’s all about practice to land the job.

Quantifying your results is a powerful way to demonstrate your competence and value to an employer. Show how your actions helped a company make money, save money, save time, or improve processes using a $, %, or #.

Results demonstrate your competence and value to an employer; if you did it for the last company or companies, you could do it for the position you are interviewing for as a potential candidate.

Pre-Interview Preparation

The key to a successful interview lies in thorough preparation. Before you step into the interview room, make sure to:

  • Research the company: Familiarize yourself with the organization’s history, values, recent news, and industry position. This knowledge will demonstrate your genuine interest and help you tailor your responses to align with the company’s goals.
  • Prepare a list of references: Have a list of professional references ready to provide upon request. Choose individuals who can speak to your skills, work ethic, and character.

What to Bring to the Interview

On the day of your interview, arrive prepared with the following items:

  • Notepad and pen: Use these to jot down important information and the names of your interviewers (unless they provide business cards).
  • Copies of your resume: Bring several printed copies of your most up-to-date resume.
  • A positive attitude: Your enthusiasm and optimism can make a lasting impression.
  • Professional attire: Dress to impress, ensuring your outfit is appropriate for the company culture and position you’re applying for.
  • Confident body language: Pay attention to your posture, tone of voice, eye contact, and other non-verbal cues that convey confidence and engagement.
  • Polished communication skills: Practice articulating your thoughts clearly and concisely.
  • A genuine smile: A warm, sincere smile can help create a positive atmosphere and build rapport with your interviewers.

Tackling “Tell Me About Yourself”

This common opening question can set the tone for the entire interview. Here’s one method on how to easily craft a compelling response:

  • Review the job description and identify three key strengths you have that align with the role.
  • Utilize a “thesis statement” approach that encapsulates these strengths.
  • Provide detailed examples for each strength, then summarize by restating your thesis.

Understanding Behavioral Interviews

Behavioral interviews have become a cornerstone of the modern hiring process, offering employers valuable insights into a candidate’s potential fit and performance. Understanding why these interviews are crucial and how you can excel in them is key to your interview success.

The Importance of Behavioral Interviews

  • Predicting Future Performance: By asking candidates to describe past experiences, behavioral interviews help employers anticipate how an individual might handle similar situations in the future. This predictive aspect is invaluable for making informed hiring decisions.
  • Assessing Soft Skills: While resumes highlight qualifications and hard skills, behavioral interviews reveal crucial soft skills such as communication, problem-solving, teamwork, and adaptability. These skills are often critical determinants of success in the workplace.
  • Reducing Bias: The structured nature of behavioral interviews, which focus on specific examples rather than general conversation, can help minimize unconscious biases that influence hiring decisions. This is a significant advantage of behavioral interviews, promoting fairness in the hiring process. 
  • Evaluating Cultural Fit: By understanding how candidates have navigated various workplace scenarios, employers can better gauge whether an individual will thrive within their company culture.
  • Revealing Authenticity: The requirement for detailed, specific examples makes it challenging for candidates to rely on rehearsed or embellished answers, providing a more genuine representation of their capabilities.
  • Standardizing the Process: Using consistent behavioral questions for all candidates allows for more objective comparisons between applicants, leading to fairer hiring practices.
  • Uncovering Potential Red Flags: Behavioral questions can reveal how candidates handle stress, conflict, or failure, potentially highlighting issues that might not be apparent from a resume alone.

Mastering the STAR Technique

By preparing for behavioral interviews and practicing the STAR technique, you can significantly enhance your ability to provide compelling, relevant responses during the interview process, making you feel more prepared and ready.

To excel in behavioral interviews, structure your responses using the STAR method:

  • Situation: Describe the context or background of the specific example you’re discussing.
  • Task: Explain your role or responsibility in that situation.
  • Action: Detail the steps you took to address the challenge or complete the task.
  • Result: Share the outcomes of your actions using specific metrics or achievements when possible.

Example STAR Response

Question: “Tell me about a time when you had to deal with a difficult team member.”

Answer:

“In my previous role as a project manager (Situation), I was tasked with leading a cross-functional team to complete a high-priority product launch (Task). One team member consistently missed deadlines and was often confrontational in meetings, jeopardizing our timeline and team morale. To address this, I scheduled a private meeting with the individual to understand their perspective and challenges. We collaboratively developed a plan to improve communication and set realistic deadlines (Action). As a result, the team member’s performance improved significantly, and we successfully launched the product on time. This experience also led to implementing new team communication protocols that improved overall collaboration (Result).”

Using the STAR method, you provide a comprehensive, structured answer that clearly demonstrates your skills and experiences. This approach helps interviewers understand what you did, how you approached challenges, and the impact of your actions.

Preparing for behavioral interviews by reflecting on your past experiences and practicing the STAR technique will significantly enhance your ability to provide compelling, relevant responses during the interview process.

Key Steps to Prepare for Behavioral Interviews Using STAR

Review the Job Description

  • Identify key skills and qualities the employer is seeking
  • Think of relevant experiences that demonstrate these skills

Prepare Your Stories

  • Brainstorm 5-10 scenarios from your past experiences that showcase your abilities
  • Ensure these stories cover a range of situations (e.g., leadership, teamwork, problem-solving)

Structure Each Story Using STAR

  • Situation: Briefly describe the context (where, when, who)
  • Task: Explain the challenge or goal you faced
  • Action: Detail the specific steps you took
  • Result: Share the positive outcome, ideally with measurable results

Practice Your Delivery

  • Rehearse your stories out loud
  • Time yourself – aim for 1-2 minutes per answer
  • Get feedback from friends or family if possible

Utilize Interview Preparation Resources and Platforms

Anticipate Common Questions

  • Research typical behavioral questions in your industry
  • Prepare STAR responses for these likely scenarios

Be Ready to Adapt

  • While you can’t predict every question, your prepared stories can often be tweaked to fit various questions
  • Focus on Recent and Relevant Experiences
  • Prioritize examples from the last 1-2 years when possible
  • Choose stories most relevant to the job you’re applying for

Be Specific and Quantify Results

  • Use concrete numbers and data when describing outcomes
  • Avoid generalizations – focus on your individual contributions

Prepare Follow-up Details

  • Be ready to provide additional information if the interviewer asks for more depth

Reflect on Lessons Learned

  • For each story, consider what you learned from the experience
  • Be prepared to discuss how you’ve grown or what you’d do differently

By following these steps and thoroughly preparing your STAR responses, you’ll be well-equipped to handle behavioral interview questions with confidence and clarity. Remember, the key is not just to memorize answers but to internalize your experiences to discuss them naturally and adapt your responses to various questions.

Categories of STAR Behavioral Interview Questions

Wondering what categories to prepare for behavioral interview questions? Here’s a detailed list to help you start preparing 5-10 STAR stories!

  • Active listening
  • Adaptability
  • Analytical skills
  • Attention to detail
  • Attitude
  • Collaboration
  • Communication skills
  • Conflict resolution
  • Competitive
  • Conflict Resolution 
  • Consistency
  • Creativity and innovation
  • Critical thinking
  • Cultural fit and awareness
  • Customer service
  • Dealing with failure or setbacks
  • Decision-making
  • Dependability
  • Detail-oriented
  • Driven
  • Emotional Intelligence
  • Empathy
  • Energetic
  • Enthusiastic
  • Entrepreneurial
  • Ethical behavior
  • Goal-setting and achievement
  • Good Listener
  • Inclusive
  • Information seeking
  • Initiative and proactivity
  • Innovative
  • Integrity
  • Interpersonal skills
  • Leadership
  • Learning agility
  • Logical reasoning
  • Multi-tasking
  • Organized
  • Persuasion
  • Problem-solving
  • Resilience and perseverance
  • Responsible
  • Self-motivated
  • Strategic planning
  • Stress management
  • Teamwork
  • Time management
  • Work ethic

Each of these categories allows interviewers to assess different aspects of a candidate’s professional capabilities and personal attributes. For example:

  • Conflict resolution questions might be asked about navigating disagreements with coworkers or clients.
  • Decision-making questions often focus on how candidates gather information, weigh options, and commit to a course of action.
  • Leadership questions might explore how a candidate has motivated a team or handled a problematic employee.
  • Time management questions could delve into how they prioritize tasks or handle multiple deadlines.

Examples of Behavioral Questions

  • Adaptability: “Describe a time when your company underwent a major change.”
  • Communication skills: ”Give me an example of a time you persuaded someone to see things your way at work.”
  • Motivation: “Describe a time when you saw a problem and took the initiative.”
  • Motivation: “Give an example of a goal you reached and tell me how you achieved it.”
  • Problem-solving: “ Tell me about a problem you solved and were rewarded for it by your manager or company.”
  • Problem-solving: “Describe a situation where you had to solve a difficult problem.”
  • Teamwork: “Tell me about a time when you faced conflict with a team member.” 
  • Teamwork: “Tell me about a time when you had to work closely with a difficult coworker.”
  • Time Management: “Tell me about a time when you had to meet a tight deadline.”

Rubric Rating

Companies may use a rubric to evaluate how a candidate responds to the STAR questions. Be prepared to answer questions from a panel. Some possible rubric categories might include the following criteria with a score for poor, fair, good, and excellent:

  • Relevance of the example
  • Completeness of the STAR response
  • Demonstration of skills and competencies
  • Problem-solving ability
  • Communication skills
  • Outcome and learnings
  • Authenticity and specificity

When asked at the end of an interview if you have questions, here are some possibilities.

  • When are you looking for someone to start? 
  • Why is this position open, and how long has it been open?
  • How long were they in this role, and did they get promoted or leave?
  • Do you have initiatives for DEI here, and can you describe them?
  • What is your biggest challenge right now?
  • What qualities do you most admire in a person?
  • What kind of training should I expect or not expect during onboarding and beyond?
  • How do you manage change?
  • What risks might one come across, and how would they be minimized?
  • How would you describe your management style?
  • You mentioned there is room to grow down the road. Can you describe that?
  • What’s the one thing you wish you’d known before you joined the company?
  • What are some of the unwritten rules in the department or company?
  • Could you tell me about work/life balance? Are there opportunities to work hybrid or remote?
  • What gets rewarded here? How do people get recognized?
  • Why do you and other people like working here? Tell me about the culture.
  • What are the next steps and timeline in filing this role?
  • Have you interviewed others, including internal and external candidates?
  • Does the company perform annual reviews with merit increases?
  • Does the company plan company-wide events or for teams?
  • What is the targeted salary band for this role?
  • What would you have liked me to ask you that I have not yet asked?
  • What are the next steps?

Follow Up

Remember, a personal thank-you note sent within 24 hours of your interview, whether by email or snail mail, is a respectful and considerate gesture that can leave a lasting impression.

Interview Resources

AI Resources and Other Interview Tools

Here is another listicle of resources that you can use for interview preparation. 

Practice. Practice. Practice.

Practice is crucial in mastering the STAR technique. Consider conducting mock interviews with friends, family, or career counselors to refine your delivery and receive constructive feedback. The more comfortable you become with structuring your responses using STAR, the more effectively you’ll be able to showcase your skills and experiences during the actual interview.

Write down your STAR stories, memorize them, and rehearse them verbally. The more you practice, the more prepared and confident you’ll feel. Best of luck in landing your next role!

Authenticity is key. While the STAR method provides a helpful structure, your responses should feel natural and conversational. Use this technique as a guide to organize your thoughts, but let your genuine experiences and personality shine through in your answers.

NEXT STEPS

  • If you need a resume or LinkedIn™ profile to get you to your next step, book a call to chat! Can’t beat a free discovery call!
  • Follow #GreatCareersPHL

BIO

Lynne Williams, Ed.D. Candidate, is the Executive Director of the Great Careers Network, which provides online career development and networking for career transition (job seekers) and career management (employed and self-employed). Lynne writes resumes, LinkedIn profiles, and LinkedIn company pages, and focuses on keywords. She is currently working on her doctoral dissertation on the topic of LinkedIn.

Lynne was included with other LinkedIn peers on the 2024 list of the Top 50 LinkedIn Experts worldwide and on the same 2022/2023 list. In addition, she was on the Philadelphia list of the Top 15 LinkedIn Experts in 2023. She is a contributing author on “Applying to Positions” in  Find Your Fit: A Practical Guide to Landing the Job You Love, along with the late Dick Bolles, the author of What Color is Your Parachute?, and is also a speaker on career topics. Connect on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/lynnewilliams and visit https://linktr.ee/lynnewilliams to learn more.

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