Group Interview - Need TRP

Reddthrown · 2016-03-02T16:10:21+00:00

I've just conducted a very similar group interview minutes ago. Here's my advice on each item:

(i) Present to everyone about yourself: Practice, practice, practice in front of a mirror (to check body language). By the time you get there you should know by heart what you will say. First, start by making a list of the key things that must come accross to the interviewers. To establish the list, put yourself in the shoes of the interviewers and make a list of 1-5 bullet points of the things they will like (and must remember) from your application. Second, prepare a very short speech where you introduce yourself and those key points all come across very clearly. You'll probably have less than five minutes, so keep it extremely short and sweet. If you have 5 minutes, budget for a 3 minute speech (you'll go overtime).

(ii) Coffee break: your goal is to come across as professional. Your interviewers will be thinking "if I were a client, would I want to work with that guy". First, stay professional and pleasant to talk to. Always be polite and positive about everyone and everything. Second, if the opportunity arises, talk about one of the key things in your application. Make it come across as natural, and don't worry if you don't get to talk about them. You don't want to come across as pushy. Third, be poised and confident but DO NOT be obnoxious and overbearing in conversation. Do not undermine the other candidates. The interviewers are also assessing whether they want to work with you. If you come across as someone who undermines "colleagues", it will hurt you. Just be confident - confident people do not undermine others or monopolise conversation. Fourth, practice, practice, practice. Make list of questions you want to ask. Practice answers to typical questions, and how to weave in your key selling points.

(iii) Group presentation: First, the purpose of this exercise is to see how you will work with your future team. Your interviewers will be thinking: "do I want someone who behaves like this in my team". Second, be poised and confident, but do not talk over colleagues or be otherwise obnoxious. Again, no one wants to work with someone that will undermine colleagues or take over the presentation. So, focus on making good, clear points, talking slowly, and being confident. Eliminate all "hums" and "errrs..." from your speech. Seat tall, with your hands on the table (but not your elbows). Do not scratch yourself when talking. Share eye contact with the people you are talking to (normally, the interviewers, unless you are presenting to other interviewees). Third, when listening to another person (whether interviewer or interviewee) give them your full attention. Again, looking or saying dismissive things will work against you. Look like you care 100% about the interview. Fourth, presentations should normally have an introduction, in which you set out an outline of what you will say. Keep the outline simple (3-4 points) and stick to it. Have a conclusion.

(iv) Short sales pitch: same as the above: practice, practice, practice in front of a mirror. Your interviewers will be thinking: at the gut level, do I want to buy that product. Convince them.

Below are the principal mistakes I have seen in interviews:

Inappropriate dress. Wear a charcoal or a navy blue suit (nothing else is ok). Don't be the guy with the electric blue suit (true story). Wear a crisp white shirt (no pen pocket, no collar buttons). Wear a dark, simple, normal sized tie (no slim tie).
Arrogance. Do not be the guy that is too laid back, or dismissive of the interview process or of the other interviewees (all seen today). That will reflect very poorly on you.
Bad mouthing. Don't bad mouth anyone or anything. This morning, a candidate was putting down our competitors. We did not like that at all.
Lack of confidence. Speak clearly, slowly, and confidently. This is key and comes with practicing questions and answers many many times in front of a mirror.
Rambling. If you have a strong selling point, bring it up clearly, confidently, and slowly, but do not ramble about it. This morning we had a guy who spent three minutes repeating that he had worked with a famous guy, and it was just too much (as well as not entirely relevant to the application).

Good luck!

abdada · 2016-03-02T15:13:30+00:00

This initially made me shit my pants.

You want to go from shitting your pants to being the interviewee alpha in a few days.

How would I handle it? By being that person every day. For weeks and months and years.

Go to the interview and fake it until you make it. You're the prize. Outcome Independence.

LifeMedic · 2016-03-02T16:31:54+00:00

First impression. This will be your hire point, your first impression is vital. The rest (the coffee, presentation and sales pitch) are crater points, so they have to be solid in order to keep their first impression solid.

So hone your first impression (appearance, approach, attitude). If you sit down and talk to people with hire capability, they can tell you that most hires are decided upon within the first 5 minutes of meeting them. After those 5 minutes, it's about "why shouldn't I hire?"

[deleted] · 2016-03-03T03:32:58+00:00

I've been a part of sales group interviews, on the interviewer side. At the end, when the interviewer asks if there are any other questions or comments, raise your hand and ask for the job I front of everyone. Tell them you'd love to work for the company and know you can get the job done and that you'd like the job. Go for the close, trust me.

illest219 · 2016-03-02T15:25:59+00:00

My initial inclination is that the decision on who to hire will come during the coffee break and the short sales pitch. I would use the coffee break to 'win the room' over- perhaps a good joke or interesting conversation topic would be your best bet. In terms of the sales pitch, I would try and think outside the box in terms of what you want to sell. Instead of a product or company, try and sell an something unique people might already identify with. A sports team would be my go-to. "Here's why you should jump on the bandwagon of _________ next year."

awkwardtouching · Wed Mar 2 15:36:01 2016 UTC

the number one advice I give for a successful interview (I've been offered every single job I've ever gotten to the interview stage for - 4 jobs and counting) is not to give a shit about whether you get it.

Also speak more slowly and with more purpose than you think you need to. Adrenaline is like drinking too much coffee - you won't be aware of how fast you're talking or how intense you seem so make a conscious effort to overdo the deliberate, confident qualities you naturally possess (you do possess those naturally right? wink wink)

For you specifically I'd say spend the next few days talking in the mirror and selling things to a made up person. Sell someone a paperweight off your desk, the shirt off your back, etc. Just try it. get used to spinning bullshit and sounding confident. Answer the imaginary questions they ask in your head. Just get used to improv and being comfortable bullshitting. A good salesman doesn't always need to be "on" they just need to be on during the sale.

Many great salesman I met through my fathers business growing up were unassuming guys, but when they went for the sale they became a different person like a great actor.

Title	Group Interview - Need TRP
Author	burgorsauce
Upvotes	4
Comments	10
Date	March 2, 2016 3:02 PM UTC (10 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/askTRP
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/asktrp/comments/48mhb2/group_interview_need_trp/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/askTRP/group-interview-need-trp.161513 https://theredarchive.com/post/161513

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