Significance of some Job Interview Questions

One of the most popular question asked during a job interview is where do you see your self five years from now? However, it may soon get redundant for the current economic scenario has made it difficult for employers and employees alike to foresee their fate one year from now, let alone five years. HR experts list some of the most popular recession related job interview questions and even guide you on the kind of replies you should be giving in order to gain an edge over the rest.

Significance of the questions being asked by your interviewer: It will help him understand the individual’s primary reason for changing jobs as well get an insight into how well he/she has thought through the decision. It gives an indication of the motive for change in job as well hints at how stable he/she is likely to be, if he/she joins the new organization.

Your expected reply: Be honest about the reason for the same and give substantial reasoning.

It reflects flexibility and openness of the candidate to possible future changed and orientation to the reality in the market. This makes the candidate aware of the possibility that if not in the past, such a scenario can definitely show up in the future

Exhibit willingness to the above situation or be upfront about your views.

The interviewer need is to understand the candidate’s mindset in terms of his/her flexibility towards the concept of job rotation or even where getting him/her absorbed within some other department is concerned.

Display openness while accepting roles that involve job rotation or honing cross functional expertise as it is the need of the hour.

This question is asked to understand the standing of the candidate in the previous job. It will also display the confidence of the candidate about his / her indispensability status in his / her current role / organization

Talk confidently about your importance in your current role, and why you think you are irreplaceable.

It will explain a lot about the candidate’s team, his exposure to these scenarios and how the candidate handles tough dilemmas.

You can talk about ways you handled the team dynamics sensitively and share experienced of how you went decided through the dilemma of the process. Also, explain how you chose team members that had to be axed and how you conveyed those to your team members.

This helps give an idea of the candidate’s awareness of the situation and how connected he/she is to the reality and scope vision. Though many think that India is in recession, the fact is, we are having a slowdown and one of the few growing countries even at a time like this. When we ask such a question, the intent is to ensure that the recruit we have is accessed at a different level and if the articulation skills of such a situation are good, then it enables to get a candidate who can later be moved into a different role.

Asking such questions are very opt given the context as it not only reflects the current knowledge regarding the national / global economy, but also gives a perspective on the behavioral side of the candidate which determines the cultural fit.

Gauging the candidate’s understanding of the global economic situation is vital. This will help in understanding the candidate’s knowledge about his / her organization and the broader view of economy.

You should have an adequate knowledge of the company you are working for.

It will allow to assess the candidate’s knowledge about the company he/she is applying for and also it will also help to understand how enthusiastic the candidate is towards the organization he/she is going to work for in the future.

You should have a broader view of the company you are applying for, the company’s strength and market positioning.

It helps to assess the candidate’s understanding of his / her role and how he / she can contribute, relating individual’s aspiration with organizational growth. This question is significant because this will help us relate his / her performance with reference to his / her past achievements.

You should appraise the interviewer of the achievement or the challenges you have overcome in the previous organization.