Popular Types of Interviews
Interview for a job is a process, which allows the hiring company to see whether a candidate meets the requirements for a particular position by asking him or her various questions. The interviewer is a person that represents the company, has a set of questions and aims to get clear answers to evaluate your skills and knowledge.
No wonder that interviews are considered the best tool to evaluate job seekers and to decide whether they are a good fit for the company. Every company, depending on its requirements and work environment,applies different interview types. All of them have the same goal but are based on various instruments to obtain the necessary information.
Some companies find one meeting enough, while others conduct a series of interviews. Others hold a Skype conversation, while others prefer personal meetings. Everything depends on the type of a vacancy, the field or even skills of candidates (education, analytical ability or experience).
Today we will discuss the most popular types of interviews and you will have a better idea of the things to expect during an interview. As they say, forewarned is forearmed.
Traditional interview
In 90% of cases, you will be invited to this type of meeting. It is also called a structure done because it follows a certain pattern and a list of questions are known in advance.
You will need to sit down in front of a single person and to answer a variety of questions, created to understand whether your professional and soft skills meet their requirements.
Case interview
Case interviews are becoming more and more popular, even though some time ago they were solely used for hiring consultants.
This interview suggests potential employees solve a business problem or to give a correct answer on a puzzle. For example, ‘How can Barn’s triple its profits?’ or ‘How many football balls are needed to build a tower to the Moon?’
If you are able to answer these tough and tricky questions, you can then ask for more salary benefits and a better offer.
Phone interview
Usually, a telephone conversation is the first round of a hiring process to decide whether you should be invited for an interview or not. The problem is that you won’t have as much time for a thought process and your appearance or body language won’t have any impact on the hiring manager.
That is why you need to prepare for an interview to the maximum. You can even read success stories to get inspired.
Skype interview
Nowadays it is not surprising when a hiring manager asks candidates to hold a Skype conversation. With the help of a video chat, it is possible to talk to people from all corners of the world as if they were sitting in the same room.
The only problem is that it is often an unstructured interview, where the questions may be quite untypical. So you need to be ready!
Group interview
Group interviews are uncommon and usually are initiated for sales positions, internships or roles, where many candidates are interviewed for the same job.
Unfortunately, such interviews cause lots of stress, so most of the companies (and candidates) avoid them.
Several interviewers
On one hand, several interviewers greatly simplify the hiring process and you only need to answer difficult questions once. But at the same time, you will need to find a connection with every hiring manager or member of the meeting, screening them and understanding what they are expecting from you.
Career fair
Behavioral interviews include career fairs, where success greatly depends on your behavior and tranquility. Unfortunately, you will only have a few minutes to impress the hiring manager and to present yourself in the best light.
That is why you need to make sure that you are ready to make quick decisions and to find answers on the most challenging questions.
Working interview
In a variety of industries, like engineering, sales or writing, HR managers will want to see what exactly you are able to do. That is why you will need to prepare for a panel task. The interviewers would want to see what you can do and not just to hear about it.
Luckily, it is a great chance to avoid difficult questions and to show all of your problem-solving skills(of course if you are prepared).
Lunch interview
Some human resources representatives offer candidates to have an interview over a meal. Usually, it is a good sign because it shows that the interviewer wants to know more about your personality and how you present yourself outside a common interview format.
Here you should remember not only about your qualifications but also about manners and etiquette. While meeting in-person for a meal is tough, it still offers a range of benefits.
Puzzle interview
While you can get familiar with behavioral interview questions in advance, you will hardly prepare for puzzle interviews that aim to see how well you can come up with an answer on tricky questions.
For example, it is a common practice at Facebook to ask a candidate ‘How many users are online in Los Angeles at 3:30 PM on Friday?’
Hopefully, our piece of career advice and overview of the main interview types were useful. Good luck!
