Boston University - Office of Career Services - Interviewing

At some point, you will meet with Human Resources. This can happen as a first step in the process in companies where HR does the initial screening, or it can happen last in the process, if the hiring managers are considering making you an offer.

If your meeting with HR is a first step, they will be evaluating you to see whether or not to send you along to a hiring manager. It might be the case that there are several openings in the company, and they are trying to determine which one or which ones you might be a good fit for. Treat this interview as you would any other initial interview; don’t ask questions about salary and benefits at this point.

If your HR interview is the last step before you receive an offer (you have already been through the rest of the interview process) this is the time and place to ask about salary, benefits, vacations, etc. In some cases, HR will be the people to formally extend the offer, and it might happen during this interview. If so, they will bring up salary.

There are actually two types of group interviews, and the term can be applied in either way:

Interviews in which one candidate is interviewed by multiple people at the same time (around a conference table, over lunch or dinner, or even over the phone.)
Interviews in which several candidates meet with one or more interviewers at the same time. In this type of interview there might be a discussion question presented, and candidates’ contributions as well as their style of working in groups will be observed.

If you are being interviewed by a group (more than one person) there are a few things to remember.

Always shake hands with, and make eye contact with, each person as you are introduced. Try to remember each person’s name, and the role they play in the organization. (You might even have been told ahead of time who your interviewers would be.) If appropriate, ask for business cards, or make notes immediately after you leave the interview to be sure you have this information.
When answering a question, address your answer primarily to the person who asked it. If your answer is more than a few sentences, you can look around and make eye contact with the group, but always return primarily to the questioner. This applies regardless of the person’s “rank” in the organization.
At the end of the interview, shake each person’s hand again as you take your leave.
What about thank you notes? There are a few different ways you can handle this. You can send a thank-you note to your primary contact only. If you do this, be sure to mention the other people in the group, and ask your primary contact to extend your thanks to each of them. If you can remember a particular point to comment on for each person, that would be a plus. (Example: I was excited by Sam’s description of the new product launch. Sarah was extremely informative regarding the process for awarding contracts.) You can send a thank-you note to each person individually. If you do this, make sure it isn’t the same note sent multiple times; make each note individual. You can send the same thank-you note to the whole group (if you are sending it by email) but include each person’s email address in the “To” line so that everyone can see that the whole group received it. Not a good option: sending a personal thank-you to some individuals and not to all. (Unless you are writing only to your primary contact.)

If you are being interviewed as part of a group of candidates:

Greet each of the other candidates, and shake hands if introduced. Be sure, of course, to greet and shake hands with each interviewer.
Follow the lead of the interviewer(s). They might want candidates to answer a question in turn, as they go around the room. They might want to stimulate discussion, where people speak up and contribute ideas and observations in a more open format. They might begin asking a question and having each person respond in sequence and then change the question part-way through the group. The best thing to do is listen to each person preceding you, and don’t be too pre-occupied with how you are going to answer. Remember that part of what the interviewer(s) will be looking for is how you function in a group environment.
Remember that in these situations, there is often more than one position to be filled. Each other person is not necessarily your rival for the job; some of them might eventually become co-workers.

You might occasionally be asked to take part in a phone interview. Take these interviews just as seriously as in-person interviews.

You and the employer will set up a mutually agreeable time. If the employer is calling you, you will need to select a location and give the interviewer the phone number. It is very important not to use a cell phone if that can be at all avoided. Broken signals or poor reception could be disruptive and annoying, and could easily cost you the job.

Find a quiet location where you will have privacy and will not be interrupted. Allow yourself a few minutes before the call begins to just sit there and collect your thoughts.

Make sure you have done all of your preparation, just as you would have for a face-to-face interview.

Some people say it is even a good idea to dress up a little bit. The way you project yourself and converse can be affected by what you are wearing.

Sit up straight and smile. This is not just idle advice on posture and good manners. Your voice and tone will be affected, and you want to come across as confident and alert. Be sure not to mumble; you want to be understood. The way you come across on the phone will be particularly important if the job you are interviewing for requires phone contact with customers or others the company does business with.

You might find your self on a conference call or on a speaker phone, if more than one interviewer is involved. Be sure to read the section on group interviews, but realize that everyone will know that it might be difficult for you to know who is who over the phone.

Follow up with thank-you notes as you would with any other interview.

Case interviews involve giving you a situational problem to solve. The question might be one that has no real answer. The interviewer isn’t really as concerned with your ultimate answer, however, as seeing how you solving the problem. Think out loud; let the interviewer hear your reasoning; that is what they are really interested in. For more information on case interviews, take a look at some of the on-line and print resources suggested below.

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