The Essential Job Interview Handbook

A Quick and Handy Resource for Every Job Seeker

Jean Baur

• Publisher: Career Press
• Year: 2025
• Print ISBN: 9781601632821
• eBook ISBN: 9781601635112
• Topic: Personal Development
• Subtopic: Careers

Even with a fairly detailed job description or a briefing by a knowledgeable recruiter, job candidates rarely have all the tools they need to ace their interviews. This is one of the reasons why interviews are so harrowing—we have to pay close attention to what we're told, what we're not told, and the many non-verbal signals we receive. In addition, many people who conducts the interviews aren't well-prepared, haven't been trained in interviewing, and often don't even like the process.The Essential Job Interview Handbook will help job seekers prepare effectively for interviews and become familiar with different types of interview questions and styles of interviews. A unique feature of this book is the multiple answers it provides for each question, rated good, better, and best; with this feature, you'll learn what makes a winning answer and understand the strategy behind it.Whether you're just finishing school or have been working a long time, The Essential Job Interview Handbook will give you all the powerful tools you need to not just get a job, but to get the right one.

PART I

PREPARATION

1

WHERE TO START?

It’s the moment all job seekers are waiting for: you receive a call and schedule an interview. There is a surge of hope as you think about working again and how exciting it could be to join this company. In addition, you dream of the huge relief that your search is over.

However, the excitement is quickly mixed with panic. What should you do? How will you get ready? And most importantly, how can you know what they really want?

Let’s back up for a minute to see what you already know:

The name of the company.

How they found you.

The industry.

The title (and hopefully a job description).

The date, time, and place of the interview.

How many people you’re seeing (and eventually a schedule that includes their names and titles) or if it’s simply a screening interview.

Contact information for the person who set this up (often a recruiter, agency, or HR representative).

As a friend of mine likes to say, “Facts are friendly,” meaning I think that solid information is helpful and is the best place to start. So if you know the name of the company (and there are times when recruiters don’t give this to you up front), you can begin your research. You could start with the company’s website, but be careful not to stop there, as there may be more useful information on other websites or in industry journals and blogs.

You must know what the company does and be up-to-date with their current situation. If they’ve just acquired a small biotech company, you need to know about it as it could affect your potential job at the company. Having this up-to-date research at your fingertips is one of the most effective ways to prove you’re interested in the company. Never wing it and ask, “What does your company do?” That’s the quick path to a polite, “Thank you for coming in” and the interview is over.

If research isn’t your thing and you’re struggling to find good information on the company, go to your local public library and ask the reference librarian for help. They’re skilled at finding even obsolete information.

Now that you’ve done some research, think about how the company found you, or in some cases, how you found them. If it was through an Internet ad, study the job description, but keep in mind that those descriptions are almost always incomplete and in some cases inaccurate. If you were referred in by a networking contact, ask that person for a convenient time to find out what they know about the company. In some cases they may have inside information, such as why the position is open or how the department is structured, which could be very useful to you. Most recruiters have solid working relationships with the companies they submit candidates to, so make sure to ask, if you’re using a recruiter, what they know about the company, the people you’ll be meeting, and any other general information. It’s in their interest for you to do well. And lastly, if you targeted the company directly by emailing the hiring manager, review what you put in that email.

Next, make sure you’re up-to-date in the industry. Let’s say you’re going to interview with Campbell’s Soup. You need to know what their new products are, who their competition is, how their business is doing, and new trends or challenges that affect not only Campbell’s, but other companies in the food industry. There are industry journals, blogs, and associations that can help you find this critical information.

Now take a careful look at the title and job description. Titles can vary wildly from one company to another, so it’s best to study the scope of the job itself without getting concerned about the title. From what you know so far, ask yourself: “What is the most important thing the person in the position must do?” Start thinking about how your particular background fits or meets this need. In the sidebar there’s an interview MAP that is going to help you specifically structure how your qualifications meet their requirements. Your interview MAP will help you stay on track, reduce nervousness, and document the main points you’ve covered with each interviewer.

If you’re seeing three people, create a MAP for each meeting with the name of the company and the name and title of the person at the top. In the left column put the job description and what you’ve learned from your research. In the right, list key words to remind you of your qualifications and accomplishments that match the company’s qualifications. If, for example, they want someone with three to five years’ experience, that would be listed in the left column, and if you have six years of experience, you put that in the right column. I know you may be thinking, “How silly is that? There’s no way I’d ever forget how long I’ve worked!” However, in my experience of coaching thousands of job seekers, it’s amazing what can happen under stress. So even if you never refer to your MAP during an interview, I believe you’ll find it helpful. Just knowing that it’s there in your portfolio is a comfort, and if you hit a nervous moment or two, you can open your portfolio, glance down at your notes, and regain your confidence.

Also take note of the date, time, and location of the interview. Check the directions carefully; many career coaches recommend taking a dry run if it is reasonable. If you have to fly to a distant location, make sure you have all the travel information as well as someone to contact if there’s a problem. And if you have to purchase the tickets yourself, ask how you’ll be reimbursed. If a recruiter is involved, they should handle these logistics.

Try to give yourself unstructured time both the day before and the day after the interview. This is an exhausting process and you want to give yourself every possible advantage. Scheduling three interviews in one week is rarely a good idea. As soon as you can, get a sense of how the interview is expected to run. Will it be a panel with eight people asking you questions at once? If you’re a scientist, when will your presentation be given and how many people will be attending? Is it one of those all-day affairs where you might be put in a conference room and the interviewers come in one after the other? We’ll talk later about how to survive these “meat-grinder” interviews. Ask for the schedule and the names and titles of the people who will be seeing you. This allows you to learn something about them (through LinkedIn, Google, and so on) and it gives you time to practice pronouncing difficult names. Many times candidates are told “We’ll give you the schedule when you arrive.” Ask firmly but politely to have it now if possible.

The Interview Map

XYZ, Inc

Interview with Cathy Jones, MD and CEO for Director of
Operations/Medical Affairs position, 1/8/13

KEY COMPONENTS OF POSITION	MATCHING ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Design operational processes to allow efficient execution of high-quality clinical studies, as per regulations	Established and refined SOPs for IIT program, Training, Clinical Trial Disclosure, Contracting, Clinical system management
Ensure consistency of operational approach across studies and development programs	Do through training, work toward one system, team collaboration, communication top down, incorporate into IDPs
Supervise implementation of clinical studies in compliance with Regs and SOPs	Med Dev—add stats
Prepare medical affairs related reports, such as postmarketing clinical study reports, and annual reports, etc.	Clinical trial disclosure on CT.gov, annual IND, safety reporting requirements (should be coordinator with regulatory, safety, clinical research). Managed clinical trial coordination, worked with drug safety for quarterly or annual safety reports
Manage compliance issues and develop cost estimates/budgets for postmarketing trials	Have budget templates, work as a team on requirements. Used Grants Manager system to provide initial budget guidance
Leadership ability to motivate	I thrive in fast-paced, ambiguous, changing environments. I am a problem-solver, organizer, leader, and implementer
Project management; resource allocation & fiscal management	I have managed 3 to 4 diverse support groups while being responsible for 4 to 5 projects/initiatives
Contract negotiation and management of vendor relationships	Negotiated site contracts and part of negotiations for IVRS vendor, consultants, and system deployment vendor
Understand complex clinical compliance issues; FDA regulations, GCP, ICH, global regulations and require...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Acknowledgement
• Contents
• Introduction
• Part I • Preparation
• Part II • Types of Questions
• Part III • Types of Interviews
• Part IV • Managing Expectations
• Part V • Putting it all Together
• Index
• About the Author