This document provides a comprehensive guide to professional interview preparation, emphasizing the importance of being well-equipped for competitive job interviews. It outlines various preparation methods, including checklists, mock interviews, and professional coaching, highlighting the skills recruiters look for in candidates. Additionally, it covers the intricate details of interview dynamics, such as body language, common interview questions, and the impact of psychometric tests on the hiring process.

1. Professional Interview Preparation
Get the job you want
with ‘How to’
training in proven
techniques.
From the people that
train the recruiters

2. You know how
• You finally get an interview for a job
• The interview is pretty tough
• You don’t get any real feedback
• There’s a lot of competition for the job
• You don’t get the offer and
• You’re back in the job search
This guide will fix that

3. Successful Interviewing
A job interview is your opportunity to:
– Work for a better company
– Develop your skills and relationships
– And not to forget, make more money
But there are no prizes for second place
– Interviewing is difficult, competitive & stressful
– Interviewing is a skill that we don’t practice often
which means we’re not as good as we could be
The solution is Interview Preparation

4. You’re in the right place
Manager Foundation trains managers how to
interview and we partner with recruitment
companies.
This is why we know better than anyone else
what recruiters are looking for in job candidates
A little interview preparation can go a long way.
Because the average job candidate is
unprepared and untrained in interviewing skills

5. 7 Ways to Prepare for Interviews
There are many ways to prepare for an interview,
including:
1. Use a checklist
2. Revise interview questions & prepare answers
3. Research the company and the interviewer
4. Review your own resume
5. Take a psychometric assessment
6. Mock interviews with friends and family
7. Professional Interview Coaching

6. The Best Interview Preparation Method
Professional Interview Coaching is the best way to
prepare for interviews. Because a coach can:
• Adapt training to your needs
• Identify what mistakes you’re making
• Give you open, actionable feedback
The problem is professional coaches cost money. If
would like to invest in your career then go here:
http://goo.gl/CQoHdW
Otherwise continue with this on-line interview
training course.

7. Overview
Interviewing for a job is a multidisciplinary activity. This guide
will cover the following topics:
• What recruiters want
• Using Interview Checklists
• Body language & building rapport
• Company & interviewer research
• Resumes and interviewing
• Finding and communicating your USP
• Difficult interview questions
• Expected interview questions
• Behavioural interview questions
• Psychometric tests
• Anxiety & self confidence

8. Are you right for this guide?
Interview preparation isn’t for everyone.
• Would you like a new (better) job?
• Is it a competitive job market?
• Do you want to control interview anxiety or improve
your confidence?
• Have you failed at interviews in the past?
• Do you want to take control of the interview process?
• Do you want to know what recruiters do with your
psychometric assessment?
If any of the above apply to you then interview
preparation will improve your interview success. But you
must also be prepared to follow the process.

9. What recruiters want
Recruiters want to know that you:
• Have the skills & abilities to do the job,
• Are motivated to apply yourself and stay and
• Will fit in with the organisation (team, values and
culture)
In short recruiters want to know that you will add value.
The problem is that interviewing is a flawed method:
• Candidates misrepresent themselves
• Interviewers are not objective
• Having job skills is not the same as interview skills
The result is you could be great for a job but fail at an
interview

10. Using Checklists
Checklists are an excellent method to not miss
important steps. The con is that checklists are a
bit light on content - they tell you what to do,
not how to do it.
Good for:
• Planning
• Dress code
• On the day drill

11. Body Language & Building Rapport
Body language and “connecting” with the
interviewer are at least as important as saying
the right things. A couple of easy to follow
recommendations:
• Making eye contact and smiling – surprisingly
effective
• Mirroring the other person

12. Research
A little knowledge can go a long way. It’s vital that
you research these 3 subjects:
1. The Company:
– Sources: Google, website, social media
– To know: products, vision, environment
2. The Job:
– Sources: Job description, recruitment consultant
– To know: Required skills, deliverables, challenges
3. The Interviewer:
– Sources: LinkedIn, recruitment consultant
– To know: Common ground, personality type

13. Resume Review
You need to be prepared for interviewer’s who:
• Have scrutinized your resume & will drill you on
details &
• Haven’t read your resume & ask you to explain it
Your resume is meant to sell you. Even if you
already have an interview it’s not too late to update
it. Typo’s, grammatical mistakes and unclear
resumes create a bad impression. Have a 3rd party
review it because people are blind to their own
errors.
(Or use a professional service http://goo.gl/jCEh2k )

14. Finding and communicating your USP
It’s never been tougher to get a job
• Market is saturated with qualified candidates
• Companies are getting picky
• Interviews are getting tougher
USP = Unique Selling Proposition
• Work out how your unique skills are best for
the role and how they will add value
Note: A psychometric assessment is a good way
to do this – more later.

15. Difficult Interview Questions
The job of recruiters is to ask tough questions to
identify the best candidates. Be prepared for
any difficult interview question:
• Warm up by practicing on a set of questions
• Stall by clarifying & repeating the question
• After answering, ask if you got it right
• If all else fails, ask to move on
How to guidance for this here
http://goo.gl/doQXzW

16. Developing interview skills
• Interviewing is a complex skill
• Unfortunately being good at a job doesn’t make
you good at interviewing
• Ironically better workers stay in jobs longer and
practice their interview skills less
But interviewing skills are an important life skill
that gives you the ability to get the job you want.
That’s why we recommend that you invest in your
interviewing skills whether by study, practice or
coaching. Developing your interview skills can do
more for your career than other skills.

17. Expected Interview Questions
Certain interview questions are so common
interviewers expect you to be prepared for
them. For example you need to prepare for:
• Tell me about yourself
• What is your biggest weakness
• Where do you see yourself in 5 years
The real key is to understand exactly what the
interviewer is looking for.

18. Behavioral Interview Questions
More sophisticated interviewers use behavioral interview
questions. Behavioral questions ask what you did in a
past scenario.
• Spot them: They sound like “Tell me about a time
when you XYZ”
• Complete them. Use the STAR technique (Situation,
Target/Task, Action, Result)
• Expect them: Behavioral interview questions relate to
job competencies. Knowing the required job
competencies warns you which questions to expect
• Smash them: Recruiters are looking for certain
indicators
See example overleaf

19. Behavioral Interview Questions Example
• Spot them:
– Non behavioral question: “Can you manage a budget?”
– Behavioral question: “Tell me about a time when you had to achieve a
challenging budget”
• Expect them:
– This question is asked when budget management is a key job
competency
• Evaluation criteria:
– Positive: Achieved target, planned in advance, monitored,
consultative, made contingency plans, didn’t reduce service levels
– Negative: Missed target, complained, reduced service
• Example answer
– “I managed a cost budget of $3.7m in the operations department and
I had to make a 10% saving. I brain stormed with my team to identify
and evaluate our options. We agreed what to cut to achieve the target
plus a contingency fund. I implemented monthly reporting and a
standing agenda item. We achieved a total saving of $0.4m with
minimal impact on operations.”

20. The need for feedback
Have you ever done an interview, not got the job
and then wondered what you did wrong? In job
interviews:
• Interviewer doesn’t give you open, useful
feedback,
• This makes it difficult to improve
• A little objective feedback will increase your
interview success.
When preparing for interviews, get feedback from
objective, skilled persons. Whether friends or a
professional coach.

21. Psychometric tests in interviewing
The truth is that a personality test can eliminate you from a job
• Different types of people suit different types of jobs
• Recruiters use psychometric assessments (commonly called
personality tests) to match applicants to jobs
• If the recruiter knows your behavior profile but you don't, you will
be at a disadvantage
• Worst case: many job applicants are eliminated because of
concerns raised from their psychometric assessment
• But it is possible to address these concerns if you know what they
are and how
This is an advanced interview technique and may not be for everyone.
You can find out your strengths and weaknesses by taking a
Psychometric Test http://goo.gl/D7djfL But as an advanced technique
this is better dealt with by using the assistance of an Interview Coach.
The advanced interviewing course explains how to use a personality
test to interview better

22. Anxiety & Self Confidence
Interviews are stressful, important and we don’t
practice them often. Understandably this leads
to high anxiety which decreases interview
performance.
• Anxiety can be controlled through breathing
exercises
• Questioning techniques can build self
confidence

23. Next steps
Congratulations on completing this interview
preparation. Already you are on the path to
being a much better interviewer. The next steps
are:
• Identify problem areas
• Learn how to apply the techniques in practice
The following pages identify options

24. Options: Developing Interview Skills
1. Professional Coaching
2. How to Guide
3. Resume Review
Special mention:
• Salary Negotiation
• New Job Transitions
• Managing your Boss

25. Professional Interview Coaching
The best way to succeed at interviewing is to do
professional interview coaching. It’s not for
everyone because it costs money. But interview
coaches do the following better than anyone else:
• Identify interview mistakes you’re making
• Give tailored coaching and objective feedback
• Identify your relevant strengths
• Work out strategies to compensate for
weaknesses
• Know what questions you will most likely face in
your interviews (these vary for different jobs)

26. An example of what interview coaching can do
“Before my Interview Skills Training, I was struggling to get away from a job I hated because
I wasn’t getting job offers from my interviews. I was frustrated because I knew I must be
doing something wrong in my interviews but I didn’t know how to fix it. Being rejected from
jobs I thought I was qualified for was starting to affect my confidence and I felt trapped.
I struggled to connect with interviewers and clearly my interview answers weren’t what the
interviewers were looking for but I was at a loss as to how to improve. I know I have to “sell”
myself in interviews but I don’t like bragging or stretching the truth.
I got an interview for a job that I didn’t want to miss out on. So I decided to try interview
training. I thought - what can I lose!
Getting constructive expert feedback was an eye opening experience. Finding out what
interviewers thought of me and why and was what I needed. Even if there were a few
“uncomfortable truths”! All those interviews I went to and practice interview questions
didn’t improve my interview skills as much as one session of coaching.
My interview was a totally different experience, I was confident, I knew what I was doing
and I felt like a total pro. Needless to say I got the job! I’m looking forward to changing jobs.
But better than that I know that I now have the freedom and the skills to easily change jobs
in the future.” – Alison

27. Developing interview skills
The guide that you have just completed is introduction and overview
to interview training. The next step is to develop your skills by using
using a more advanced guide. A more advanced guide covers a lot of
what a professional interview coach would cover but is more of a “self
service” model. It’s suitable for people who:
• Are disciplined at on-line learning,
• Aren’t ready to invest in an Interview Coach
• Are able to progress without an Interview Coach
The guide contains:
• How to answer Interview Questions
• What interview mistakes to avoid
• How to control anxiety and increase confidence
And more

28. Special Mentions
Fact: More than half of all workers do not enjoy
their jobs. But it doesn’t have to be this way.
The mission of Manager Foundation is to “Make
Work Work” by sharing practical tactics in order to
• Increase employee job satisfaction
• Show managers time proven, saving people
management techniques and
• That results in companies achieving their goals
If you are a worker you will at some point need one
of the following solutions.

29. Resume Review
To get an interview, you need an exceptional
resume. Interviews revolve around your resume.
We offer a number of resume review services to
suit your needs
• Identifying typo’s, mistakes, unclear language
• Expert recommendations
• Expert rewrites
• Designer resumes to really stand out
Find out more: http://goo.gl/IQWFfg & get y0ur
free template here: http://goo.gl/sU2fB3

30. Special mention: Salary Negotiation
The best time to increase your salary is in a job
transition. Negotiation can create the job you
want: whether it’s pay, healthcare benefits,
extra vacation, development or flexible working
conditions. Find out:
• How a salary negotiation works
• Tactics to get you what you want
• What your salary package should look like
http://goo.gl/3N5Xu8

31. New Job Transitions
You’re optimistic about your new job. The
opportunity to progress, meet new people, learn
new things and have a better working
environment.
But then things start to go wrong.
Why? Because a job transition is one of the most
complicated and challenges changes we can make.
You can’t take for granted that you will integrate
well with your colleagues or fulfill your bosses
expectations. And a good job can turn bad.
This is why we made the New Job Success Guide
http://goo.gl/BLJtBI