Interview and Types of Interviews
The interview is a formal meeting between two people (Interviewer and interviewee). The interview is
conducted to ask questions and obtain information from the interviewee. An Interviewer is the one
who asks questions and an interviewee is who answers the questions.
In organizations or companies, interviews are generally conducted to test the interviewee, check their
domain knowledge, examine their skills, scrutinize their behavior and attitude, and many other aspects
that are required to fulfill organizational needs.
After proper evaluation, then only the interviewee is selected for the job role. Failing job interviews is
not meant that you are incapable of working, you don’t have to be upset about it, despite this, you have
to work on your flaws, try to polish your skills-set, understand where you’re lacking, how you can fill
in the gap, what measures you have to take, and lastly, things that are required to succeed in
interviews. Self-evaluation plays a major role here.
To evaluate an interviewee, there is not only one type of interview is followed by the interviewer, but
they evaluate the interviewee by testing them with different types of interviews. As it becomes
important to prepare yourself for different types of interviews. But before, you should be aware what
are the types of interviews and how they are performed.
With respect to this, let us help you understand the types of interviews, which will aid you to practice
accordingly and perform best in your future interviews.
1] Formal and Informal interviews:
Formal interviews are well-planned interviews, the questions are prepared in advance, and the time,
date, venue, dress code, everything is decided prior to the interview.
Whereas, Informal interviews are not well-planned and the questions are random and generic. The
communication between both is also casual as compared to formal interviews.
2] Sequential and Panel Interview:
Sequential interviews consist of several interviews. Here in this kind of interview, the same set of
questions are asked repeatedly by several interviewers to check if the interviewee answers in the same
manner or not.
And in Panel Interview, several interviewers are sitting to ask questions to the interviewee. This type
of interview mainly consists in Public Sector.
3] Group Interview:
Group Interviews are where many interviewees participate in the interview. Usually, it is termed as
applicant pool and it happens during college or university placements. In group interviews, many
interviewees are evaluated and few are selected amongst all.
4] Situational Interview:
In this kind of interview, a situation or a problem is kept front of the interviewee and interviewers ask
them how they will deal with it and what will be the solution for it. Through this interview, they
evaluated how well they will manage problems in an organization and how proactive they are in taking
decisions in such situations.
5] Phone or Video Call interview:
This interview will be performed on the Phone call (Telephonic round) or Video Call. In the current
pandemic, we have witnessed how interviewers were taking place on video calls. And this type of
interview was majorly focused on during the covid-19 situation.
STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESSFUL JOB INTERVIEWS
Anticipate the interviewer's concerns and reservations. There are always more
candidates than there are openings, so interviewers seek ways to screen people out. Put
yourself in their shoes, and ask yourself why they might not want to hire you ("I don't
have this, I'm not that, etc."). Then, prepare your defense: "I know you may be thinking
that I might not be the best fit for this position because [their reservation]. But, you
should know that [reason the interviewer shouldn't be overly concerned]." Remember, a
good defense is always a strong offense.
1. Prepare for common interview questions. Every "how to interview" book has a
list of a hundred or more "common interview questions."
2. Line up your questions for the interviewer. Come to the interview with some
intelligent questions for the interviewer that demonstrate your knowledge
about the organization, as well as your serious intent.
3. Practice, practice, practice!!! You shouldn't do your practicing when you're
"on stage" with recruiters, so rehearse before you go to the interview.
4. Be assertive and take responsibility for the interview. Perhaps with the goal of
being polite, some perfectly assertive candidates become overly passive during
job interviews. But politeness doesn't equal passivity. An interview is like any
other conversation. It's a dance in which you and a partner move together, both
responding to each other. Don't make the mistake of sitting and waiting for the
interviewer .
5. Be ready to handle illegal and inappropriate questions. Interview questions
about your race, age, gender, religion, marital status, and sexual orientation are
inappropriate, and in many areas illegal. Nevertheless, you may get one
sometime.
6. Think positive! Nobody likes a complainer. So, don't dwell on negative
experiences during an interview. Even if the interviewer asks you point blank,
"What courses have you liked the least?" or "What did you like the least about
that previous job?" don't answer the question. Or, more specifically, don't
answer it as it's been asked.
7. Bring a copy of your resume to every interview. Have a copy of your resume
with you in every interview. If the interviewer has misplaced his or her copy,
you'll save a lot of time (and embarrassment on the interviewer's part) if you
can just pull your extra copy out and hand it over.
8. Don't worry about sounding "canned." Some people are concerned that if they
rehearse their answers, they'll sound "canned" (or overly polished or glib)
during the interview. Don't worry. If you're really well prepared, you'll sound
smooth and articulate, not canned. And, if you're not so well prepared, the
anxiety of the situation will eliminate any "canned" elements.
9. Speak the right body language. Dress appropriately, make eye contact, give a
firm handshake, have good posture, speak clearly, and don't wear perfume or
cologne! Sometimes, interview locations are small rooms that may lack good
air circulation. You want the interviewer paying attention to your job
qualifications -- not passing out because you're wearing cologne that gives
them a headache!
10. Be ready for "behavior-based" interviews. One of the most common interview
styles today is to ask interviewees to describe experiences that demonstrate
behaviors that the organization thinks are important for a particular position.
You might be asked to talk about a time when you made an unpopular
decision, displayed a high level of persistence, or made a decision under
pressure with limited information.
11. Don't give up! If you've had a bad interview for a job that you truly think
would be a great fit for you (not just something you really want badly), don't
give up! Write a note, send an email, or call the interviewer to let him or her
know that you think you did a poor job of communicating why you think this
job would be a good match. Reiterate what you have to offer the organization,
and say that you'd like an opportunity to contribute. Whether this strategy will
get you a job offer depends on the organization, and on you. But, one thing's
for sure: If you don't try, your chances are exactly zero.
