Interview Questions

Below you will find a list of possible interview questions, have a read-through and keep some of them in mind, don’t forget to have specific examples of your achievements and responsibilities throughout your career: It cannot be emphasized more strongly - be prepared. Good luck!

Top Interview Questions

1. Why do you want this job?
2. What is your major achievement?
3. What are your strengths?
4. What attracted you to this position?
5. Why are you leaving your present job?
6. Why were you in your previous job for such a short/long time?
7. How do you motivate people?
8. What was your biggest mistake?
9. Where do you see yourself in 5 years time?
10. What are your weaknesses?
11. What do you know about our organization?
12. How would you approach this job?
13. How do you manage your staff?
14. What do you look for when recruiting staffing?
15. How do you decide on your objectives?
16. How do you manage your day?
17. What interests you most in your work?
18. What have you read recently that has taken your interest?
19. What sort of things do you like to delegate?
20. In what environment do you work best?
21. What motivates you?
22. How have you changed over the last five years?
23. Describe a time when you felt you were doing well.
24. Describe a time when you felt that things were not going too well?
25. How do you work in a team?
26. What would your colleagues say about you?
27. Tell me about a time when you successfully managed a difficult situation at work.
28. What do you think you can bring to this position and company?
29. Why have you stayed so long/for such a short while your present company?
30. If we asked for a reference, what would it say about you?
31. Why were you transferred/promoted?
32. What do you like best about your present job?
33. What did you learn in that job and how did it influence your career?
34. If you did not have to work, what would you do? Why?
35. What other job have you applied for recently?
36. What decisions do you find easy to make?
37. What decisions do you find difficult to make?
38. How do you get the best out of people?
39. Which of your jobs has given you the greatest satisfaction?
40. How do you respond under stress? Can you provide a recent example?
41. What support/training will you need to do this job?
42. What will you look forward to most in this job?
43. What sort of person are you socially?
44. How did you get into this line of work?
45. What other irons do you have in the fire for your next job?
46. What aspects of this job would you delegate?
47. What are the major influences that encourage you to take a job?
48. How does the job sound to you?
49. What questions have you for us?
50. What is unique about working in a Service Industry like Hospitality?

At the interview

Try to be as relaxed and confident as possible, be natural and be yourself
Be friendly, positive and honest
Think about the questions before answering
Give clear, concise answers- don’t waffle
Make sure you have thought about your answers before the interview.

At the interview

Some brief advice on CVs, how to set a professional CV out, what to include and how to sell you on paper.  A CV is a tool to be used by you as an introduction to an employer or recruitment company. It is your way of getting noticed.  A CV should be one to two pages. No longer than two pages – an interviewer does not have the time to read all of the information.

• It should be simple and easy to read
• Focus on the key points- leave the detail for the interview
• Keep it short
• Make sure the information in the CV is relevant to the interview
• List your latest job first
• Use positive language in preparing your CV and stress your achievements
• Be honest
• Give useful contact details, such as address, phone numbers (work, home, mobile) and e-mail address.

CV Layout

Name and contact details

List your home address, home telephone and mobile number.
Only give your work telephone number if it is appropriate to be contacted at work.
Give your email address if you have one. If using your work email, make sure that you are comfortable with who can access it.
If you are moving or changing countries, give both your temporary and permanent contact details.

Career history

You should start with your most recent position first.
Your responsibilities and achievements should be in bullet point format – this makes the CV easier to read. Paragraph format makes it difficult to find information.
List achievements that are measurable ( ie: increased profit from X to Y, reduced staff turnover from X% to Y%)
Give figures where ever possible.

List two or three of your main responsibilities
Do not list duties that would generally be expected at your level
Major achievements:

List two or three achievements
Be proud of your achievements and ensure that you list those that are fundamental.
Previous Position (Date -including month & year)
Previous Employer, Location (Country if internationally)
Give a brief overview of the company.

You do not want to write more than five bullet points per job and only for the most recent three jobs. All others should be described briefly.
If you have had more than one position within a single company, list each position but do not be repetitive in the description of your responsibilities or achievements.

Education, Qualifications and Training

Start with the most recent, industry-related qualifications.
Training courses should be listed separately and include all company and statutory training courses.

Interests

List your personal details, such as Marital Status.
Nationality and language skills are important when applying internationally.
You can’t always be at work and should show that you have a balance between work related and non-work related activities. List your interests and hobbies, including any sports, clubs or associations that you participate in.

What else I need to know?

Don’t exaggerate from the facts. Be prepared for an interviewer to question you on ALL of the contents of your CV.

Use a clear font/type-set. A fancy font may look pretty, but is often inappropriate, also leave out borders and colored formats, it’s just distracting

Always proof read a CV for mistakes or errors. It is often helpful to ask a family member or friend to check your CV too. Use good quality and plain paper.