周一下午被抓去麵試 intern, 一麵就麵了四個。麵到最後一個時口幹舌燥 暈頭轉向 。
話說我們公司隔三差五就會到美國各地大學批發一批 candidate 來麵試。為了“效率”起見，總是采取集中火力各個擊破的策略。周一下午就弄了八個來。
Candidates 到了公司就先給他們個下馬威 - 在陪飯人員探照燈一樣的目光下吃飯。餓死事小失節事大。因為考察的不是吃相, 是舌璨蓮花的侃功。我雖然從來沒參加過這種大規模的陪飯，但估計candidate 要眼關六路耳聽八方玲瓏剔透麵麵俱到，食不知味那是一定的。當然這種做法還是有好處的：餓著肚子精神好，candidate 到下午麵試時不會打瞌睡。 ：)
走完吃飯的過場，candidate 就給一人一間辦公室的隔離審查。與此同時每個麵試的人都給發了個folder，內有如下“寶物”:
麵試日程安排： when to interview whom and probe on what
candidate 地理位置分布圖：八個 candidates 零散分布於兩層樓的空閑辦公室，每兩個麵試之間隻有短短10分鍾的間隔，沒有圖就隻好麵壁咯
candidate 個人簡曆
麵試的 cheatsheet - 其實差不多是個skit。比如說要問什麽問題，probe 哪些方麵
評估表 - 打分用的
好象是兩點鍾開始的。沿續我一貫 punctually late 的作風, 我在人事部門姑娘的“oh, there she is”的熱烈歡迎下開始麵第一個 candidate 。
握手寒喧，雙方互相 size up (like“yo, whatcha looking at”- xixi, not really), 然後入座。我頒發名片。 開場白： Hi, I’m …. I work in …. I’ve been here …. I primarily work on …. (Mainly really boring stuff)
我不清楚別人是怎樣操作的，我基本上會開門見山說我的麵試主題是什麽 (比如 communication 等等)。然後大略說下時間安排，我問TA多長時間問題，TA會有多長時間問我問題。總之我盡量一直保持笑容可掬，希望讓對方少 miserable 一點兒。[當然如果對方 get on my nerves, or rub me the wrong way 那又另當別論 ；) ]
反正是這樣麵來麵去，麵到第四個時我有兩個想法：
1。 我可以聽見我的回聲 - 一個小時之前說過的話到了現在還在“回響”
2。 要是我把開場白一早錄下來就好了：開場時可以拿著個錄音機說， okay, hit it ;)
好不容易全麵光了，剛回到座位想查下 email/voice mail, 電話就響了。看 caller ID 是人事 部門叫去 debrief 的。我抄起電話先發製人說 “I’m coming up”， 心裏嘟囔：黃世仁。半路上被辦公室的另一位麵友截住叫我幫他轉達他的 verdict: I like her, I don’t her, the other two I don’t care。
Debrief 就是大家對 candidates 評頭品足的時間。反正 one man’s sweet is another man’s poison - 各花入各眼。一幫人恨不得暢所欲言到雄雞一唱天下白。我喜歡的 debrief 是 thumby 類型的- 大拇指定鉗坤。
下麵這個是以前瞎寫得麵試別人的體會。看著玩兒吧 。
儀表很重要。同樣技能背景，漂亮的勝。沒什麽好氣不過的 - 這是個淺薄的社會。誰也願意辦公室裏花團錦簇。如果樣不如人，請千萬技藝超人。
可以誇大你的戰績，但切記自圓其說。
最重要的，麵試的是人，不是你做過的事。要讓人喜歡你這個人。
(p.s. I do NOT like IKEA - pricey for the quality.)
Glad I can be of help. Good luck. Be confident be yourself and go get them! Yes please pls keep me posted on how things go. Am going to bed. I'm brain-dead now. ;)
Hi, chic. thank you so much ! your detailed and constructive explainations and suggestions are very valuable and helpful. I have been talking to many people, including some professors, none of them gave specific suggestions like yours. Really, words cannot express my appreciation for your help!
I understand your last point on personality and totally agree with it. I'll let you know how it goes if you're interested.
BTW, I watched "Movin'Out" too. Great show ! I kind of like that Asian, (guessing she's Japanese because of her name), dancer - wild!
Interview in my mind is a game, there are certain rules that you have to follow. You need to learn the ropes. I will suggest that you get a book on interview skills (any book will do - they are more or less the same). Monster.com will be another great resource.
There are only so many questions that they can ask you and I think you SHOULD anticipate questions and more importantly prepare your answers ahead of time.
Answer your questions always positively.
"are you the one who other people always turn to for hlep when they face problems"
this is to probe on your team work, professional expertise, intellectual capacity.
answer yes, and be prepared to share examples to demonstrate your skills on such aspects
"what role you play in a team"
again, team work - you should share examples on your being a team leader and being a good team player
"do you always tell other people what to do"
this can be tricky question. approach it in a way to let the interviewer know that you are a great collaborator, however when circumstances demand it, you are not afraid to take the lead. again share examples
To sum up, find out about the rules and then preapre practice persevere and good luck!
Btw, my last pointer about making people like you vs. your achievements - what I wanted to say is that a lot of times personality makes the tie. You want to come across as someone who's intelligent, resourceful and fun to work with. ;)
Hi, chic. this is a great blog, I like it.
like ur fianl tips for interview although it's a bit different with what I expected.
I'm in the job hunting process right now. have had 4 interviews, but none of them brought me even into the second round. so I'm wondering maybe I got interview skill problems.
they asked me questions such as "are you the one who other people always turn to for hlep when they face problems", "what role you play in a team", "do you always tell other people what to do".
I always try to guess what they looking for from my answers before I say anything. But one of my professors said I shouldn't try to predict. anyway, could you give an advice on how I should answer them or any tips. thanks a lot!
