Getting the job you want

1. Making the Right
Impression
Getting the job you want
Rehman Siddiq
15th March 2012

2. Agenda
• A Few Words of Advice …
• What Employers are Looking for?
• CVs – Some General Principles
• The Key Questions?
• Dress and Deportment
• Typical Interview Sequence
• Basic Interview Tips
• Case Interviews
• Q&A

3. A Few Words of Advice …
• These are guidelines and a few general principles;
• These are not mean to be a pattern of the ‘right way’ but good
practices that can be drawn up for you own, individual situation
• Be yourself – but not too much
• Use a style that is appropriate to both yourself and your employer
• Practice, practice and then practice some more
• Take every job application seriously – in today’s job market you
cannot afford not to
• Go for as many interviews as possible
• Be polite, conservative and professional
• Internships matter – make sure you make the most of it and
make a good impression

4. Deciding What Job is Best for You
• Research the job and the organization; its current commitment to
Pakistan and future plans
• Attend all presentations made by organizations
• Talk to people currently working in the organization
• Look at the environment of the organization and your
expectations before applying

5. What Employers are Looking for …
•
Arriving at understanding by breaking down situations, logical
thinking – e.g. a term paper done for an IBA course
•
Identifying needs, being resourceful, seeing variant points of
view, lateral thinking – e.g. running a club, drama activities
Planning
•
Deciding on priorities, working on a timetable, meeting
deadlines – e.g. project reports, event management
Teamwork
•
Co-operating with others to achieve an agreed objective
Independence /
Confidence
•
Establishing rapport with strangers, making effective contacts,
coping with unfamiliar situation, taking decisions and initiative
Adaptability
•
Breadth of interests, ability to move rapidly between topics
Commercial
Awareness
•
Interested in how and why businesses operate and become
successful, understanding clients’ requirements
Analytic Skills
Problem Solving /
Creativity

6. What Employers are Looking for …
•
Innovating, motivate others to join you, directing (planning,
delegating, overseeing etc.)
•
Producing grammatical, correctly spelled, logical, structured,
persuasive, effectively laid out text
•
Setting high standards, aiming to improve, aiming for difficult
goal
Persuasiveness /
Negotiation
•
Convincing others, achieving your own objective, getting
others to agree with you
Other Hard Skills
•
E.g. Languages, computer skills, numeracy
Leadership
Communication –
Writing
Ambition

7. CVs – Some General Principles
•
Your CV should stand out – remember, this is a marketing document
•
This is your opportunity to make a lasting first impression
•
All employers have a job-specific ‘shopping list’ – a CV should present how
you fit this list
•
Aim for clarity, simplicity, consistency
• A CV should be two A4 slides MAXIMUM and should not have
information older than your GCSEs
•
Use good quality paper and a clear layout – print the CV to make sure it’s
legible
•
Avoid generic statements – e.g. the objective statement
•
Rule of thumb: - put what you have done into the CV
•
Be prepared to speak about what you have put in your CV in detail
•
Do not submit hand-written documents unless specifically asked for
•
Have different versions depending on the job applied for
•
Have 2 referees on your CV

8. The Key Questions?
• Tell me something about yourself (aka What can you do for me?)
• What do you know about us? (aka Why are you here?)
• Do you have the skills I'm looking for? (aka What can you do for
me?)
• Where have you worked before? Is your experience relevant to
my needs? (aka What can you do for me?)
• Do you have the right education and credentials?
• What kind of person are you? (aka Will you fit into the culture of
my organization?)
• Can I easily get in touch with you?
DOES YOUR CV ANSWER THESE – IF NOT, REWORK!

9. Dress and Deportment
•
Look neat and clean, it gives an air of efficiency
•
A good haircut can do wonders for one’s image
•
Dress conservatively; project a sober image:
•
Men
• Dark suit, white shirt, tie; try not to wear very busy colors; socks should be a dark color
as well
• Keep hair short, do not wear any earrings and keep beards neat and non-frivolous
•
Women
• Avoid loud colors and prints, soft pastel shades or black / brown is best; ideally wear
heals
• Avoid sleeveless or western outfits, they can be misconstrued
•
Be confident in your body language; speak clearly and smile while looking
the interviewer in the eye; correct posture is essential
•
Never underestimate the importance of a firm handshake
•
Do not slouch and do not fidget, e.g. play with jewelry or your hair; unnecessary
body movements tend to distract the interviewers
•
Keep your hands by your side; keep a relaxed stance
•
Avoid humor as you do not know how it will be interpreted
•
DO NOT “NAME DROP”

10. Typical Interview Sequence
• Tell us about yourself
• Strengths and weaknesses
• Technical information check – your technical abilities
• Company info and position info – what we have to offer
• Job expectations
• Interview end
• This is your chance to ask the interviewer a questions; have a couple
prepared
NOTE THAT THE INTERVIEWER IS LIKELY TO MAKE HIS
DECISION IN THE FIRST TEN MINUTES OF THE INTERVIEW.

11. Basic Interview Tips
•
BE ON TIME!!!
•
Be enthusiastic and sell yourself; an interview is a sales pitch but avoid arrogance
•
•
You must demonstrate solid skills, a strong work ethic and a personality that is compatible
with the corporate culture during the interview
Research your role
•
You are expected to know something about the company you are applying to (e.g. org
structure)
•
Read the newspaper – this is a favorite topic of discussion
•
Practice makes perfect
•
Expect the unexpected; be prepared
•
•
However, be prepared with answers for the key questions and rehearse these thoroughly (e.g.
tell me something about yourself)
•
•
Unusual questions to throw candidates are a favorite with interviewers; they want to see if you
handle pressure and think off the beaten track
Bring extra copies of your CV
Share something personal and delve deep
•
Learn to tell a story, give meaningful examples and be prepared for follow-up questions
•
Learn to lead the conversation, instead of being led
•
Finish with a bang – it’s not enough to look good on paper
•
E.g. ask intelligent questions of the interviewer, always thank the interviewers for their time

12. Case Interviews – The Technical
Interview
• Purpose: To demonstrate your ability to structure thinking,
respond to complex problems, and reach sound conclusions with
limited facts in a short time
• Case interviews are broad, two-way discussions, rather than oneway tests
• Do not panic - there is no perfect answer
• Practice at case study discussions is recommended, especially if
you are inexperienced at interactive problem-solving discussions
• Check the web for online practice questions; work with your friends
and mentors

13. Case Interview - Techniques and
tricks
•
Listen to the problem
•
Begin by setting a structure
•
Think of four to five sub-questions that you need to answer before you can
address the overall issue.
•
Stay organized
•
Communicate your train of thought clearly
•
Summarize what you have learned and what the implications appear to be
•
Ask for additional information when you need it
•
Watch for cues from the interviewer
•
Be comfortable with numbers
•
Bring a pad and a pen with you
•
Don’t fixate on "cracking the case."
•
Use business judgment and common sense.

14. Some examples of Case Interviews
•
Estimation questions:
•
•
How many divorces take place nationally in any given year?
•
What is the market for digital cameras likely to be in 15 years?
•
•
How many cars are there in the U.S.?
How many airplanes are in air right now?
Actual or theoretical client questions:
•
•
FedEx is going to offer a new service where customers can drop a package directly into a
driver's vehicle. What issues need to be thought about?
•
An airline finds that, while its revenues are at an all time high, the company is still operating
at a loss. What is going on?
•
You are contacted by ABC Pizza to help them develop a plan for entering the home delivery
market in a community where XYZ Pizza has the dominant position. As lead consultant to ABC,
what would you do?
•
A defense contractor needs to cut costs in order to win a contract to build jets for the British
Royal Air Force. What would you recommend?
•
•
An offline business wants to go online, what is your advice?
With the emergence of a discount store chain as its largest customer, a packaged foods
manufacturer wants to develop a plan to deal with the changing marketplace. How would you
do this?
Brain Teaser Questions:
•
What will be different if, in the future, consumers have to pay for every drop of drinkable
water piped to their residence or business?
•
Why are manhole covers round?
•
How to know if the light inside refrigerator is on or not?

15. HAVE FUN!!
Relax and take a deep breath
- You will survive.