Are you preparing for an all-important job interview as a web developer or designer? This presentation will help you research the company, prepare you mentally for questions and guide you how to conduct yourself during interview to land yourself a job. Don't miss out on the last slide which lists more resources and links to other interview-related tips you can benefit from.

1. PREPARING FOR AN
INTERVIEW
Many web developers dread job interviews

2. COMPANY RESEARCH
Do work out what the company does

3. COMPANY RESEARCH
 You must research the company and the position before your first interview.
 You should spend at least 30 minutes learning about the company's industry,
what markets it services, what its customer base looks like, how the hiring
department fits into its overall strategy (if possible), and so on.
 After completing your research, you should come up with a few questions that
address any concerns you might have.
 No matter what, always frame your questions in a positive way; for example,
"What are you doing to keep from going under?" is not nearly as good as, "What is
your strategy to regain the competitive advantage?"

4. TECHNICAL QUESTIONS
Expect to be asked technical questions

5. TECHNICAL QUESTIONS
 Some interviewers might ask you to solve problems on a whiteboard
using pseudo-code, or perhaps ask you to look at code and spot the
problems with it.
 Communicate things like why you chose a particular solution over
another
 Fibonacci sequence calculator or a tree walking algorithm
 Be prepared to go into detail in terms of what you accomplished, the
technologies used, and how you used them.

6. WORK EXAMPLES
How to present your past experience and portfolio

7. WORK EXAMPLES
 Never bring code from your job unless it is open source or
permissible.
 It's a good idea to work on an open source project or write a few
learning applications at home
 Bring screenshots of your application, or URLs of publicly available
application
 Alternatively, make a Flash portfolio with screenshots of Web sites
that I had worked on and included traffic numbers from before and after
the redesign

8. WORK STYLE
QUESTIONS
Interviewers will ask you about how you work

9. WORK STYLE QUESTIONS
 What is your greatest strength/weakness?
 How do you delegate tasks in a team?
 How do you deal with disagreements?

10. QUESTIONS TO ASK
THE INTERVIEWER
What you should ask the interviewer

11. QUESTIONS TO ASK
 Other than (main language being used), what other technologies are involved in this
environment?
 What percentage of the role is new development compared to maintenance?
 Are there any unusual techniques or programming styles that you use?
 Are you using an Agile methodology or a Waterfall methodology?
 What version control system do you use?
 What makes working on this project different from some of the other projects that I have
worked on in the past?
 Anything else to learn more about the technologies and the project management approach
being used.
 Can I get a tour of the workspace?

12. QUESTIONS NOT TO ASK
 Some questions are strictly off limits. Topics you want to avoid include the following:
 Anything regarding compensation, unless they broach the topic.
 Questions regarding hours of operation (unless the job is specifically shift work, in
which case it is fine to ask what shift they're hiring for), vacation days, dress code policy,
break policies, personal phone usage policies, Web surfing policies, whether they record
IMs, etc. These questions scream, "I want to get paid for not doing my job!"
 Any questions that they would not be allowed to ask you for Equal Employment
Opportunity reasons (like ethnicity, religion, nation of origin, etc.). Not only are these
questions rude, but they are inappropriate.

13. PERSONALITY QUIRKS
Your gestures and body language give away your personality

14. PERSONALITY QUIRKS
Some common quirks that can affect your chances of being hired include
the following:
 Leg jiggling, finger tapping, etc. These habits make you seem like a
nervous person and can also be extremely grating on others' nerves.
 Overwhelming scents, ranging from too much (or too strong) perfume
and cologne, lack of deodorant, and cigarette smoke.
 Inappropriate jokes. If you wouldn't tell the joke to a five-year-old, do
not tell it at an interview.

15. MORE TIPS & RESOURCES
 Landing, and preparing for , an interview
 Preparing yourself for the all-important job interview
 The 10 best ways to handle a job interview
 How to research a company before your interview
 10 ways to be liked in your job interview
 Three interview behaviors managers don't like
 The parts of a job interview that you can control
 Three interview questions to ask the interviewer
 Red flags you may unintentionally be giving off in interviews
 More interviews include 'logic questions'

16. THANK YOU
Created By: Cygnis Media