Interview & Negotiate

D-R-I-V-E

Develop your action plan to prepare for each interview
Research – Create a list of questions you believe you may be asked, then develop answers to those potential questions
Inquire and Interview – Conduct information interviews or chat with people from the organization or industry you are pursuing (2-Hour Job Search)
Value Proposition – Who are you and what will you bring to the organization? Practice sharing it using various scenarios, this is a branding opportunity!
Experience – Practice to get comfortable with the process. Practice with coaches, friends, family and use InterviewStream. Practice, Practice, Practice!

The 3 Parts of the Interview

1) Preparation (Before the Interview)

What key messages do we want to communicate?
What questions will most likely be asked?
Practice bridging on difficult questions.
Check the web to find the latest news stories & related issues.

2) During the Interview

Be friendly and courteous with positive energy.
Provide your opening positioning statement (i.e. your branding speech or pitch).
Bridge to key messages when appropriate. (include your overall message).
Remember to summarize or bring up additional information on the last question (i.e. “close the sale” – let them know you really want the position).

3) After the Interview

Follow through on commitments to provide additional information.
Follow up on areas where you were not the expert or did not provide a strong answer.
Send thank you notes.

Types of Interviews & Common Interview Situations

Evaluative Interviews
Questions are asked about education, work/related experiences and career interests. A typical question might be, "Tell me about yourself", or "describe your analytical skills".

Behavioral Interviews
Past performance predicts future performance. Candidates need to have specific examples to use – using Situation/Action/Result format – called SAR (there will be more on this later). A typical question might be, "Tell me about a time when you were working on a team and everyone wanted to go in a different direction.".

Informational Interviews
Students or others curious to learn about various roles and functions – reach out to those with experience in these areas to gather insights. A typical question might be, "What were some of the main decision points in your career that caused you to land in the role you currently have?", or "What education did you obtain in order to prepare yourself for this?".

Case Interviews
Widely used and growing. The interviewer will present you with an open-ended business problem or issue and ask you to discuss it or solve the problem. Recruiters use case interviews to measure your thought process and how you analyze complex business problems. The case interview is an interactive process. Your job is to ask the interviewer logical questions that will enable you to make a recommendation that solves the case. There is no right or wrong answer. The interviewer is trying to assess your thought process and determine if it is analytical and creative.

Remember D-R-I-V-E

Be sure to use all of the resources available. Check out various company list by Fast Company, Washington Post, Harvard Business Review, and Vault Guides. Gelman Library is another great resource. If you have any trouble coming up with a target company list take a look at the LAMP list process in The 2-Hour Job Search.

How to Prepare for the Case Interview

Read case prep books & do the examples provided – such as “Crack the Case”.
Go to company websites & look at cases provided there.
Visit the FDFCC website to find practice cases.
Practice cases – alone & with friends & coaches.
Attend case workshops sponsored by GW or the Consulting Club.
Attend case prep sessions sponsored by firms or companies, such as Deloitte.
Compete in competitions, or better yet, take the lead on forming a team and then compete.

Negotiate

Question

If your upcoming conversation could positively or negatively impact your career and your earnings for the rest of your working life, how extensively would you prepare and how much emphasis would you put on negotiating?

Consider that question carefully – it is the value of negotiation. The rest of the salary offers you receive, for as long as you are employed, will likely be calculated based upon the next salary you negotiate.

Plan Your Approach

Let’s delve a bit deeper into the steps in order to help plan your approach. Throughout the process, remember to consider the employer’s thought process as well as your own

Determine Your Goals: What matters to you (elaborate and get an alum or two to speak on this)
Determine Market Value: How much are you worth?
1. Review data on comparable salaries for position you are seeking (use Glass Door, Salary.com, etc. list others).
2. Create your own value proposition and estimate – based upon your research, background and previous salaries. Know what you need and have this in mind from “Jump Street.”
Weigh Tradeoffs: What’s flexible and what isn’t?
1. List some of the items that might be easily overlooked – such as tuition reimbursement, signing bonus, etc.
Communicate: Know the company and culture in order to determine how best to start the discussion. And be positive and friendly throughout the process - remember the end goal!