You have done all your homework and now the big day is almost here you have an interview next week with the person who is responsible for hiring for the job you want. What must you do to excel in the interview? Here are some suggestions
First, remember that preparation is essential. Before the interview, learn all you can about the employer, the job, and the people doing the recruiting. Search the Internet (or your library) to find out what is happening in the employer’s field. Who is competition? How are they doing?
Uncover the Interview’s needs
Spend as little as possible answering your interviewer’s first questions and as much time as possible to describe his or her needs -- what the person is looking to get accomplished and the type of person needed. Use open ended questions, such as could you tell me more about that?
Relate yourself to the person’s needs
Once you understand the type of person you interviewer is looking for and the sorts of problems he or she wants solved, you are in a good position to describe your own accomplishments in terms of the interviewer’s needs. Start by saying something like, one of the problem areas you’ve indicated is important to you. Then state the problem that describes your solution and reveal the results.
Think before answering
Answering a question should be a three step process: pause, think, and speak. Pause to make sure you understand what the interviewer is driving at, think about how to structure your answer and then speak. In your answer, try to emphasize how hiring you will help the interviewer solve his or her problem.
Make of good appearance and show enthusiasm
Appropriate clothing, good grooming, a firm handshake and the appearance of controlled energy are important. Remember that studies of interviews show that in almost 80% of the cases interviewers make up their minds about the applicant during the first few moments of the interview. A good first impression may turn bad during the interview but it is unlikely. Bad first impression is almost impossible to overcome.
From India, Mumbai
First, remember that preparation is essential. Before the interview, learn all you can about the employer, the job, and the people doing the recruiting. Search the Internet (or your library) to find out what is happening in the employer’s field. Who is competition? How are they doing?
Uncover the Interview’s needs
Spend as little as possible answering your interviewer’s first questions and as much time as possible to describe his or her needs -- what the person is looking to get accomplished and the type of person needed. Use open ended questions, such as could you tell me more about that?
Relate yourself to the person’s needs
Once you understand the type of person you interviewer is looking for and the sorts of problems he or she wants solved, you are in a good position to describe your own accomplishments in terms of the interviewer’s needs. Start by saying something like, one of the problem areas you’ve indicated is important to you. Then state the problem that describes your solution and reveal the results.
Think before answering
Answering a question should be a three step process: pause, think, and speak. Pause to make sure you understand what the interviewer is driving at, think about how to structure your answer and then speak. In your answer, try to emphasize how hiring you will help the interviewer solve his or her problem.
Make of good appearance and show enthusiasm
Appropriate clothing, good grooming, a firm handshake and the appearance of controlled energy are important. Remember that studies of interviews show that in almost 80% of the cases interviewers make up their minds about the applicant during the first few moments of the interview. A good first impression may turn bad during the interview but it is unlikely. Bad first impression is almost impossible to overcome.
From India, Mumbai
Hi
Thank you so much sir for sharing your views..
Could you please tell me how Important is it for an HR student to be good at aptitude??
Do HR recruiters are looking for persons good with numbers??
Regards
shikhambri
From India, Muktsar
Thank you so much sir for sharing your views..
Could you please tell me how Important is it for an HR student to be good at aptitude??
Do HR recruiters are looking for persons good with numbers??
Regards
shikhambri
From India, Muktsar
Stock options: A program that allows employees to purchase company stock at a fixed price.
A variation of pay for, performance programs in organizations today is the offering of stock options. Stock options have been a common incentive offered to executives. They generally allow certain individuals to purchase, at sometime in the future, a specific amount of the company’s stock at a fixed price. Under the assumption that good management will increase the company’s profitability and therefore the price of the stock, stock options are viewed as performance based incentives. The clear intent of these programs is to reward those individuals who are fulfilling the strategic and political contingencies of the organization as well as stakeholder interests. It should be pointed out, however, that the use of stock options is heavily influenced by the current status of the tax laws.
Although stock option programs are designed to reward performance a more fundamental question today is: Do stock options encourage managers to engage in unethical accounting practices and / or manipulation of performance data? Newspapers and the popular press recently have been flooded with reports of indiscretions in the accounting practices of some US firms such as Enron and Adelphia. Stories cite top management decisions to engage in questionable accounting practices to inflate stock prices and bolster their stock options. What is even more sinister, some of the corporate leaders have been accused of withholding accurate financial data long enough to sell off their stocks at significant profits. When the truth becomes known, many shareholders (many of whom are company employees) watch stock values plummet. Ironically we discussed the point that one way for companies to be socially responsible was for them to properly police themselves. When that fails to happen, actions of managers at some companies have led to new legislation to reform the corporate governance and accounting practices of public companies.
From India, Mumbai
A variation of pay for, performance programs in organizations today is the offering of stock options. Stock options have been a common incentive offered to executives. They generally allow certain individuals to purchase, at sometime in the future, a specific amount of the company’s stock at a fixed price. Under the assumption that good management will increase the company’s profitability and therefore the price of the stock, stock options are viewed as performance based incentives. The clear intent of these programs is to reward those individuals who are fulfilling the strategic and political contingencies of the organization as well as stakeholder interests. It should be pointed out, however, that the use of stock options is heavily influenced by the current status of the tax laws.
Although stock option programs are designed to reward performance a more fundamental question today is: Do stock options encourage managers to engage in unethical accounting practices and / or manipulation of performance data? Newspapers and the popular press recently have been flooded with reports of indiscretions in the accounting practices of some US firms such as Enron and Adelphia. Stories cite top management decisions to engage in questionable accounting practices to inflate stock prices and bolster their stock options. What is even more sinister, some of the corporate leaders have been accused of withholding accurate financial data long enough to sell off their stocks at significant profits. When the truth becomes known, many shareholders (many of whom are company employees) watch stock values plummet. Ironically we discussed the point that one way for companies to be socially responsible was for them to properly police themselves. When that fails to happen, actions of managers at some companies have led to new legislation to reform the corporate governance and accounting practices of public companies.
From India, Mumbai
Mere talent and creativity may not be enough to bring you in the spotlight at work, unless expressed at the right moments. Even for an organization, it is a huge loss when potential remains untapped due to personality traits like shyness and difficulty in expressing in groups. However, such individuals need to be identified at the earliest and taught to open up and participate in meetings and discussions.
While it can be challenge to pay attention to each and every employee in an organization, the HR department must strive to do exactly that. Superiors and HR can encourage shy employees to participate and speak up by involving employees in most of group activities by giving them anchor responsibility whenever possible and identifying their strength areas an encouraging them to contribute in those fronts
For instance we at Dream 11.com run an internal fantasy cricket competition to encourage employee interaction and boost team building. In this game, each user is allocated Rs 100 crore of virtual money to choose their favorite cricketers from across various teams and create their fantasy cricket team. Depending on the on-field performances of these cricketers, the contestants earn points and win prizes. Fantasy Cricket is a creative, engaging and analytical game that tests a person’s managerial abilities and is used as a great HR tool to foster team bonding amongst employees.
One of primary reasons why a few employees get habituated to remaining silent at meetings is unfortunately the dominance of very enthusiastic and more aggressive employees. Taking a serious view of this problem over aggressive or extrovert employees will always try to put their hands in everything irrespective of their scope area.
In today’s competitive world, it is observed that extroversion is often encouraged over reticence. So, do companies believe that outgoing candidates have an edge over their more reserved counterparts?
We have a mix of different personality types. It is the quality of work that a person does, which makes him/her preferred employees for an organization. Most of the time, it has been observed that outgoing employees are preferred by companies if their performance and contribution are up to the mark.
From India, Mumbai
While it can be challenge to pay attention to each and every employee in an organization, the HR department must strive to do exactly that. Superiors and HR can encourage shy employees to participate and speak up by involving employees in most of group activities by giving them anchor responsibility whenever possible and identifying their strength areas an encouraging them to contribute in those fronts
For instance we at Dream 11.com run an internal fantasy cricket competition to encourage employee interaction and boost team building. In this game, each user is allocated Rs 100 crore of virtual money to choose their favorite cricketers from across various teams and create their fantasy cricket team. Depending on the on-field performances of these cricketers, the contestants earn points and win prizes. Fantasy Cricket is a creative, engaging and analytical game that tests a person’s managerial abilities and is used as a great HR tool to foster team bonding amongst employees.
One of primary reasons why a few employees get habituated to remaining silent at meetings is unfortunately the dominance of very enthusiastic and more aggressive employees. Taking a serious view of this problem over aggressive or extrovert employees will always try to put their hands in everything irrespective of their scope area.
In today’s competitive world, it is observed that extroversion is often encouraged over reticence. So, do companies believe that outgoing candidates have an edge over their more reserved counterparts?
We have a mix of different personality types. It is the quality of work that a person does, which makes him/her preferred employees for an organization. Most of the time, it has been observed that outgoing employees are preferred by companies if their performance and contribution are up to the mark.
From India, Mumbai
It’s not unusual for someone to fail miserable in a job interview. But a bad interview can be a great learning experience for many. So, rather than loosing your sleep over a bad interview it is important to handle it with fortitude. Here are some tips to recover from a bad job interview and get job search right back on track:
If you want to recover from a bad interview, try and evaluate the situation objectively. Take a piece of a paper, and write down everything that you think went wrong during the interview. This includes questions that you failed to comprehend points you target to mention, etiquette mistakes etc. Once this is done, this measures to rectify your mistakes. This way you’ll even get to know whether or not you’re responsible for your poor performance. If you have contacts within the company ask them to find out more details including the extent of the damage. You never know, they may even be someone to put in a good word for you.
Do a follow up
Depending on the urgency of the situation you may want to call the interviewer to clarify some of your blunders. But we suggest you wait for at least two days before doing so to avoid coming across as a neurotic. Always make sure that you thank the employer for having given you a chance for an interview. If you’re embarrassed about doing it in person, send an email or a letter.
If the pervious steps don’t work out for you, and you feel that the situation demands drastic measures your only chance to recover from a bad interview now is call you potential employer and ask for second chance. But please avoid making this request via mail. Keep in mind that be asking for second interview you run the risk of flagging up problems the interviewer may not have even noticed. Also, while some employers can be surprisingly accommodating about meeting you again, many view such requests as a sign of weakness.
Sometimes the damage is just beyond repair. If the employer rejects all your attempts to recover from a bad interview, you have no option but to focus on your next job prospect. Don’t dwell on this last opportunity or let the negative experience shake your confidence. Remember that you already surpassed a number of candidates by actually making it to the interview room at least. Now you need to ensure that your interview with the next company is more successful, and the best way to do this is to learn from your mistakes.
From India, Mumbai
If you want to recover from a bad interview, try and evaluate the situation objectively. Take a piece of a paper, and write down everything that you think went wrong during the interview. This includes questions that you failed to comprehend points you target to mention, etiquette mistakes etc. Once this is done, this measures to rectify your mistakes. This way you’ll even get to know whether or not you’re responsible for your poor performance. If you have contacts within the company ask them to find out more details including the extent of the damage. You never know, they may even be someone to put in a good word for you.
Do a follow up
Depending on the urgency of the situation you may want to call the interviewer to clarify some of your blunders. But we suggest you wait for at least two days before doing so to avoid coming across as a neurotic. Always make sure that you thank the employer for having given you a chance for an interview. If you’re embarrassed about doing it in person, send an email or a letter.
If the pervious steps don’t work out for you, and you feel that the situation demands drastic measures your only chance to recover from a bad interview now is call you potential employer and ask for second chance. But please avoid making this request via mail. Keep in mind that be asking for second interview you run the risk of flagging up problems the interviewer may not have even noticed. Also, while some employers can be surprisingly accommodating about meeting you again, many view such requests as a sign of weakness.
Sometimes the damage is just beyond repair. If the employer rejects all your attempts to recover from a bad interview, you have no option but to focus on your next job prospect. Don’t dwell on this last opportunity or let the negative experience shake your confidence. Remember that you already surpassed a number of candidates by actually making it to the interview room at least. Now you need to ensure that your interview with the next company is more successful, and the best way to do this is to learn from your mistakes.
From India, Mumbai
Being technically good at your job isn’t enough today, you must also be able to communicate, influence and motivate colleagues and clients. Making an immediate positive impression is essential for success and you cannot ignore the fact that people are more likely want to do business with those who are self aware comfortable to their own skin and confident with whom they are. Ask yourself what’s your brand identity?
Personal branding is not all about self promotion and marketing tactics; it is more fundamental than that. It is a clear deep and profound understanding or who you are and what you stand for. Employees who can brand and market themselves well carry an image that gets associated with not only their brand name but also the organization. However, employees should not resort to bragging of pretence. It’s careful study of oneself in a quest to understand what on excels in and then leveraging on those attributes to create a brand called me.
Here are a few tips to brand your self:
1) First of all identify and build things that help people make that impact. Start by writing down qualities that distinguish you from the rest. What distinct feature do you have and how does it benefit the people around you? What do you do that adds measurable, distinctive value? What do you do that you are most proud of?
2) You must make yourself visible. Without visibility, you can’t be distinct. Sign up for extra projects
3) Eliminate “Good enough” thinking means doing the bare minimum to get the job done. Challenge yourself to go the extra mile.
4) Be available and communicate effectively in social and professional circles
5) Improve yourself. Try to keep raising the bar on your own performance and competing with yourself.
6) It is important to be visible in the system, participative and collaborative which will help build a brand for oneself.
Hence, if you want to ride high in your career, ensure you create a positive brand and make that impact everywhere you go.
From India, Mumbai
Personal branding is not all about self promotion and marketing tactics; it is more fundamental than that. It is a clear deep and profound understanding or who you are and what you stand for. Employees who can brand and market themselves well carry an image that gets associated with not only their brand name but also the organization. However, employees should not resort to bragging of pretence. It’s careful study of oneself in a quest to understand what on excels in and then leveraging on those attributes to create a brand called me.
Here are a few tips to brand your self:
1) First of all identify and build things that help people make that impact. Start by writing down qualities that distinguish you from the rest. What distinct feature do you have and how does it benefit the people around you? What do you do that adds measurable, distinctive value? What do you do that you are most proud of?
2) You must make yourself visible. Without visibility, you can’t be distinct. Sign up for extra projects
3) Eliminate “Good enough” thinking means doing the bare minimum to get the job done. Challenge yourself to go the extra mile.
4) Be available and communicate effectively in social and professional circles
5) Improve yourself. Try to keep raising the bar on your own performance and competing with yourself.
6) It is important to be visible in the system, participative and collaborative which will help build a brand for oneself.
Hence, if you want to ride high in your career, ensure you create a positive brand and make that impact everywhere you go.
From India, Mumbai
Also see Personal Branding University & TPS Intl. Inc. where DR. Huber Rampersad, an expert on Personal Branding, has given his views.
Have a nice day.
Simhan
A retired academic in the UK
From United Kingdom
1624Have a nice day.
Simhan
A retired academic in the UK
From United Kingdom
Imagine for a moment that your first managerial job after graduating from college involves overseeing a group of minimum wage employees. Offering more pay to these employees for high levels of performance is out of the question. Your company just can’t afford it. What are your motivational options at this point? One of the toughest motivational challenges facing many managers today is how to achieve high performance levels among minimum wage workers.
On trap many managers fall into is thinking that employees are motivated only by money. Although money is important as a motivator, it’s not the only reward that people seek and that managers can use. What are some other types of rewards? Many companies use employee recognition programs such as employee of the month, quarterly employee performance award ceremonies, or other celebrations of employee accomplishment. For instance while flying by JetLite or Jet Airways, a feedback form is distributed among passengers chosen randomly; questions asked include naming the crew member whose service you were very impressed with and details about the service. These types of program highlight employees whose performance has been of the type and level the organization want to encourage. Many managers also recognize the power of praise, but you need to be sure that these pats on the back are sincere and done for the right reasons; otherwise employees can interpret such actions as manipulative.
We know from the motivation theories presented earlier that rewards are only part of the motivation equation. We need to look at other elements such as empowerment and career development assistance. We can look to job design and expectancy theories for these insights. In service industries such as travel and hospitality retail stores , child acre and maintenance where pay for front line employees generally doesn’t get much above the minimum wage level, successful companies are empowering these front line employees with more authority to address customers’ problems. If we use the JCM to examine this change, we can see that this type of job redesign provides enhanced motivating potential because employees now experience increased skill variety task identity, task significance autonomy and feedback. Also, employees facing this situation often want to better themselves professionally. They need guidance assistance in self assessment and training. By providing these to minimum wage employees, you’re preparing them for the future – one that hopefully promises better pay. For many, better compensation is a strong motivator.
From India, Mumbai
On trap many managers fall into is thinking that employees are motivated only by money. Although money is important as a motivator, it’s not the only reward that people seek and that managers can use. What are some other types of rewards? Many companies use employee recognition programs such as employee of the month, quarterly employee performance award ceremonies, or other celebrations of employee accomplishment. For instance while flying by JetLite or Jet Airways, a feedback form is distributed among passengers chosen randomly; questions asked include naming the crew member whose service you were very impressed with and details about the service. These types of program highlight employees whose performance has been of the type and level the organization want to encourage. Many managers also recognize the power of praise, but you need to be sure that these pats on the back are sincere and done for the right reasons; otherwise employees can interpret such actions as manipulative.
We know from the motivation theories presented earlier that rewards are only part of the motivation equation. We need to look at other elements such as empowerment and career development assistance. We can look to job design and expectancy theories for these insights. In service industries such as travel and hospitality retail stores , child acre and maintenance where pay for front line employees generally doesn’t get much above the minimum wage level, successful companies are empowering these front line employees with more authority to address customers’ problems. If we use the JCM to examine this change, we can see that this type of job redesign provides enhanced motivating potential because employees now experience increased skill variety task identity, task significance autonomy and feedback. Also, employees facing this situation often want to better themselves professionally. They need guidance assistance in self assessment and training. By providing these to minimum wage employees, you’re preparing them for the future – one that hopefully promises better pay. For many, better compensation is a strong motivator.
From India, Mumbai
What does a chief sub-editor working or Business India, an associate consultant working for Infosys technologies, and an investment banker working for Kotak Mahindra bank have in common? They are professional and technical employees, and they have a strong and long term commitment to their field of expertise. Their loyalty however, is more often to their profession than to their employer. To keep current in their fields they need to regularly update their knowledge and tier commitment to their profession or technical field means they rarely find their work week in terms of nine to five days a week.
So what motivates these types of employees? Money and promotions into management typically are low on their priority list. Why? They tend to be well paid, and they and they enjoy what they do. In contrast, job challenge tends to be ranked high. They like to tackle problems and find solutions. Their chief reward is the work itself. Professional and technical employees generally also value support. They want others to think that what they are working on is important. The preceding points imply that managers should provide professional and technical employees with new assignments and challenging projects. Give then autonomy to follow their interests ad allow them to structure their work in ways they find productive, reward them with educational opportunities – training workshops, conferences – that allow them to keep current in their field and to network with her peers. Also reward them with recognition. Managers should ask questions and engage in other actions that demonstrate to their professional and technical employees that they’re sincerely interested in what they’re doing.
From India, Mumbai
So what motivates these types of employees? Money and promotions into management typically are low on their priority list. Why? They tend to be well paid, and they and they enjoy what they do. In contrast, job challenge tends to be ranked high. They like to tackle problems and find solutions. Their chief reward is the work itself. Professional and technical employees generally also value support. They want others to think that what they are working on is important. The preceding points imply that managers should provide professional and technical employees with new assignments and challenging projects. Give then autonomy to follow their interests ad allow them to structure their work in ways they find productive, reward them with educational opportunities – training workshops, conferences – that allow them to keep current in their field and to network with her peers. Also reward them with recognition. Managers should ask questions and engage in other actions that demonstrate to their professional and technical employees that they’re sincerely interested in what they’re doing.
From India, Mumbai
hi...
I think you can try out this strategies to motivate the minimum wage employees..
i)Let employees participate in decision-making
The worker in your business who actually do the work are often best person qualified to judge how it should be done. Let them have a voice or share their opinion in making decisions. This is not to suggest that you should let them have the final say--after all, you are the manager. But their input is most important . Not only will they provide you with good suggestions, but they will feel a part of the process (which is critical if you want to maintain high morale among your the workers).
ii) Try to speak ur each employees.. try to engage ech one of them with the brief discussion each day with you..
They may feel that they are the part of a big corporate family
iii)Generaly u vil notice emplyees coming in this section are generally not highly skilled labour. they always have a hesitance to spek out ther word , so a friendly "hello" every morning, a smiling face, and a pat on the back would remove the language barriers... they'll do wonders to show the minimum wage worker you care.
iv) Small small celebration always hav a greater impact on these worker.. ( Birtdy celebration, coffee wtth the teams, games , small outing etc)
just see how these points would work for u...
rgds
shabana jamal
From India, Calcutta
I think you can try out this strategies to motivate the minimum wage employees..
i)Let employees participate in decision-making
The worker in your business who actually do the work are often best person qualified to judge how it should be done. Let them have a voice or share their opinion in making decisions. This is not to suggest that you should let them have the final say--after all, you are the manager. But their input is most important . Not only will they provide you with good suggestions, but they will feel a part of the process (which is critical if you want to maintain high morale among your the workers).
ii) Try to speak ur each employees.. try to engage ech one of them with the brief discussion each day with you..
They may feel that they are the part of a big corporate family
iii)Generaly u vil notice emplyees coming in this section are generally not highly skilled labour. they always have a hesitance to spek out ther word , so a friendly "hello" every morning, a smiling face, and a pat on the back would remove the language barriers... they'll do wonders to show the minimum wage worker you care.
iv) Small small celebration always hav a greater impact on these worker.. ( Birtdy celebration, coffee wtth the teams, games , small outing etc)
just see how these points would work for u...
rgds
shabana jamal
From India, Calcutta
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