Ujval Nanavati

Agenda
WHY INTERVIEWS

INTERVIEW BASICS

ELEMENTS OF COMMUNICATION

THE PREP PROCESS

DEALING WITH SPECIFIC SITUATIONS AND QUESTIONS

PRACTICAL TIPS
What purpose do they serve?
Why Interviews?
Punctuation Adds Meaning!
Why Interviews?
Interviews help differentiate and segregate from a common pool

Resume
Skills

SELECTION

Job
Interview
application
Intangibles
Skills
Why Interviews?
Interviewers are looking to minimize errors

Right person Wrong person

Selected Type II

Not selected Type I

 Why Interviews?
How do interviewers minimize these errors?

Purpose of the interview

What Do you indeed have Are you an

is Do you have the
the skills your agreeable person
sought desire to do this job?
? resume suggests? who can fit in?

What
Know your resume Show passion, Personality,
you inside-out and be knowledge, appearance,
need ready to validate understanding and presentation skills,
EVERYTHING willingness references
Formats, Mediums, and Types
Interview Basics: Formats
Formats / Mediums
Telephonic / Skype: Lazy way to shave a long list of suitable applicants. You
want to sound like someone they want to meet.
In person: With each round, they are looking almost exclusively for
negative surprises, i.e. a reason to eliminate
Who is you Interviewer:
One-to-one vs. Panel: Former is warmer; latter mostly designed to
overwhelm, test and/or save time
HR: Screening interview that mostly precedes the Business round and
looks at personality fit with organization culture and JD/JS compliance
Business: To familiarize you with the role and team, and test your
technical + personality fit with them
Leadership: Usually happens only with startups
Interview Basics: Types of interviews
Behavioural
Candidates need to recall specific instances where they were faced with
a set of circumstances, and how they reacted.
Premise: your past performance and behaviours are important and are
best indicators of future performance.
Some examples:
“An example of your leadership skills”
“That time when you failed”
“When you had to do something that wasn’t honest or ethical” / “Dealt
with someone who did”
Interview Basics: Types of interviews
Behavioural
What you need to show: What did you face > What did you do > What
was the outcome
Don’t skirt the question (“I’ve never failed” is a bad answer and a lie)
Walk the walk; don’t talk the talk – interviewers do not need lie
detectors to ferret out lies
Construct beforehand 1-2 stories under each typical area (failure,
leadership, teamwork, initiative, unpopular move, etc.) and rehearse
them in “S|T|A|R” format.
Interview Basics: Types of interviews
Behavioural
Interview Basics: Types of interviews
Technical:
Designed to assess technical competency for the role
Evaluate the JD thoroughly and sharpen your competency around the
most important skills sets
Fit:
Designed to specifically assess fit with role and organization culture
You need to be aware of the demands of the role and assert your
capabilities
Some traits like aggression are a deal breaker in the interview, even if
they are a role requirement (eg. for Investment Banking)
Interview Basics: Types of interviews
Stress (Why haven’t you / Why did you)
Aim is to confuse, disorient, and provoke to see you a) break down; or b)
become hostile
How you react says more about you than you imagine
Typical for roles like CRM, Sales & Trading, I-Banking, etc.
Experienced stress interviewers use subtle techniques: rudeness, ridicule,
long silences, show disinterest, disagree and interrupt, look at phone all
the time
Best responses (this is all they want to see). Realize the objective and:
don’t let them see you squirm or sweat
don’t be despondent
watch your tone, body language
How you say what you say says more about what you say than what you say
 What you say, how you say it and how
you appear while saying it
How
Tone of voice accounts for 38% of the
overall message

38% Appearance
Body language accounts for 55% of the
55% overall message

What
7% Words (the literal meaning) account for
only 7% of the overall message

Source: Albert Mehrabian, UCLA

Aristotle on Persuasion How,
38%

What,
7%

“For it is not enough to know

what we ought to say; we must
also say it as we ought.”
- Aristotle
Aristotle’s Modes of Persuasion How,
38%
PATHOS
Emotions / values
What,
• Tone / vividness in speech
7%
• Stories / examples
• Inspiring quotes

ETHOS LOGOS
Credibility / trust Logic / reason
• ISB’s signaling value • Real examples, fact, figures
• Prior academics • Structured response / flow
• Work ex • Referencing answers
Some grammar best practice How,
38%

What,
7%
 Appearance

Body Language , 55%

Marcel Marceau’s Art

of Silence
• Performed professionally
worldwide for over 60 years
• The inspiration behind
Jackson’s Moonwalk step
• Spoke 5 languages fluently
• Yet, never needed to say a
word on screen to convey
dozens of emotions
The Handshake; Waterloo for some
The Handshake Appearance
, 55%

Not much to getting it right

Folded arms Appearance
, 55%
 Appearance

Eye Contact , 55%

Steady eye contact with interviewer signals confidence and concentration

Allow some eye movement
Avoid staring
Blink
Don’t look away, down, at the ceiling and DO NOT roll your eyes at any
question
More than one interviewer? Focus on the person who posed the question
but keep sweeping the others
Body Language
Summary Do’s / Don’ts
DO’s DON’Ts

Sit up and lean forward a bit Slouch or fold arms

Positive eye contact Stare, shifty eyes or frown
Breathe evenly and deeply Hold your breath
Use nods and attentive expressions Be expressionless
Use your arms while talking (subtly) Overuse arm gestures
Stay calm Nervously tap dance
Smile politely (way in and way out) Smile gregariously all the time
Touch your face
Before the Interview
Review the JD & JS. Map yourself to them. Thoroughly.
JDs are descriptions of duties & responsibilities, and reporting relationships
JSs are descriptions of required human characteristics (tangible and
intangible) like skills, knowledge, personality attributes.
‘Fit’ should be clear
Research the company
Annual Report isn’t for finance interviews only
Latest press reports
Who is your interviewer?
Find out names (get pronunciations right) if possible
Look up LinkedIn profiles
Useful for anticipating questions
Before the Interview
Prepare and rehearse your responses (next section)
Develop your stories
Do an honest SWOT analysis on yourself
Pipeline of references
Develop list of professional references in case you are asked
 Types of Questions CLARITY CONCISENESS

COMPOSURE
Questions can fall into one of the following:
Type Bear in mind

Open-ended question Don’t meander in your response.

Close-ended question A short, to-the-point response is expected

Prompting question Discussion is being steered. Be mindful of what is expected

Follow up question Keep response contextual to the earlier question and your response

Hypothetical question Seek clarifications and question assumptions if needed. No one minds

Behavioural question Judge what is being tested about you and respond carefully

Dumb question May be deliberate. Don’t show that you think the question/interviewer is dumb

Stress question You are being provoked. Don’t be.

The Most Expected Questions
Know your responses and PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE
Tell me about yourself
Why are interested in this position / organization?
What attracted you to this field?
Tell me about your work experience
What qualifies you for this position? / Why should we hire you?
What are your greatest strengths?
What are some of your weaknesses?
Where do you see yourself in five, ten years?
The Most Expected Questions
Know your responses and PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE
Why did you come to ISB / opt for MBA?
Does your GPA reflect your intelligence / capabilities?
What would you like to know about our company / the role?
What have you learned from your mistakes?
What’s the most interesting thing you’ve read in the papers this week?
What is your greatest achievement till date?
The Most Expected Questions
Tips on some of THE most expected ones
Tell me about yourself
Brief intro
Key accomplishments
Strengths that tie in with these accomplishments Steer all your responses
towards the job on hand and
Why these strengths are important why you could be a great fit
Where you see yourself / your ambition

All this in no more than 2 minutes!

The Most Expected Questions
Tips on THE most expected ones
What are some of your weaknesses?
Trick question – they don’t really want to hear your weaknesses
Don’t be completely and unabashedly honest
Weaknesses that could be latent strengths
Pitch them as ‘room to grow’ rather than ‘weakness’
End your response on a positive note
The Most Expected Questions
Tips on THE most expected ones
What are some of your strengths?
My strongest skills
My greatest knowledge areas
My best personality traits This needs to tie in to the
role else the strength is futile
The things I do best
My best accomplishments

All this in no more than 2 minutes!

The Most Expected Questions
Tips on THE most expected ones
How has this 1 year at ISB helped you?
What objectives you come to ISB with
How these have been met This needs to tie in to the role as
What kind of a network have you developed well. Everything has to!

What other activities have helped you grow

All this in no more than 2 minutes!

Situational Questions
Making the most of them
Situational / Case Questions
Must haves:
A full understanding of the question;
No hesitancy in seeking clarifications;
Common sense;
Energy;
Presentation skills; and
Knowledge of the micro and macro aspects of the solution
Remember: rarely is the interviewer is looking for a right answer.
It is more about the process, presentation and logic.
Situational / Case Questions
What is the interviewer looking for?
Certainly not a precise and correct answer in most cases
Your responses should lead to more questions, which is the whole
idea of knowledge - expect follow up questions to justify your
assumptions
Situational / Case Questions
Types of situational / case questions
Purely numerical / analytical
What is the size of the disposable diapers market in China?
Mix of analytical and thought process
How much could Google charge if it made search an ad-free subscription
service?
Esoteric / pure thought process
Why are manhole covers round?

Remember: ask clarification questions that seem necessary

Explain a topic
Present and explain a topic of your choice from your curriculum
What is being tested here?
Technical understanding and ability to explain it lucidly
Presentation skills SIMPLE
Ability to handle being put on a spot
What to do about it? Genius
Keep at least 1-2 topics handy, related to the job
Brilliant
Einstein’s five ascending levels of intelligence
Simplicity is tough; and it works Intelligent
The Feynman Technique
Smart
No

No

No
Bad Responses
Bad Responses
Bad mouthing previous employers or bosses
Deflection: “It wasn’t my fault”
Too much vagueness: “I guess / I think / I hope / I’m not sure / Probably”
Saying "we" instead of referring to your own achievements
Being defensive about skill gaps in your profile
Being defensive about gaps in work ex
Not knowing much / anything about the recruiter or role when asked
Overdose of ambition, aggression even if the role demands it
Speaking enthusiastically on politics or religion (even if you are asked)
Talking About Bad Bosses / Employers
Trash talk backfires
Don’t indulge even if interviewer baits you
Spin a bad boss trait into a positive one
He/she was an obsessive maniac? “My boss was hands-on on even the most
minutest details
Force optimism / tell anecdotes
Talk about lack of fit than attack
“Management style was not ideal for me” vs. “My boss was a creep and the
place was a hellhole”
Staying prepared
Staying prepared
Nutrition
Practice Hara Hachi Bu (eat until you’re 80% full)
Avoid coffee
Food interactions MATTER
Eat Cinnamon (for glucose regulation)
Rest
Naps (15-20 mins max) for alertness, enhanced performance, fewer mistakes
Beyond 20 mins leads to sleep inertia
Mind what food you are combining with your nap
Hydration
Physical comfort
Bad interview recipe: a big, carb-laden meal followed by a 2 hour “nap”
Staying prepared
(physically, mentally and emotionally)
Building confidence
Staying Prepared: Work Out
The underestimated influence of exercise on
cognitive power
‘99 Finnish study showed people who worked
out intensely 2-3 times a week experienced less
depression, stress, anger, and cynical distrust
Study of 19,288 Dutch twins showed exercisers
are less anxious, depressed, and neurotic
At Virginia Tech, cutting gym class for more
time in math and science did not lead to any
improvement in test scores
Staying Prepared
Some Other Books Worth Reading
Questions worth asking
Ask questions that show interest in the company + role

Reporting relationships of and to the position

What are some of the challenges a person in this position can expect?

What are the important employee characteristics your company values?

What is the career trajectory for this position?

Express thanks and find out when a decision will be made

Questions you shouldn’t ask
Avoid questions about salary, benefits, vacation, promotions…

Don’t word any question to suggest you assume you have the job
(unless you have been told)

Anything you could’ve easily just ‘googled’

About any gossip you heard

“Do you do background checks?”!!

What to carry
One small and classy bag/satchel/portfolio (avoid backpacks) with:
Copy of job posting
A nice pen and pad to jot down names, information, and questions
ID, reference list, and work history information for filling out an application
if needed
At least 2-3 clean copies of your personalized cover letter and resume
Dossier with evidence of accomplishments, if relevant
YOUR list of questions (remember, it is a 2 way street)
Mints (not gum)
What not to carry
Small List of Imperatives
Make a good first impression
Make a good last impression
Assert your interest in the position
However, do not appear desperate
Positivity and enthusiasm. Throughout
Listen | Pause | Tailor response | Deliver concisely
Be natural. Practice being natural if it doesn’t come naturally
Brevity is a sign of vigor. And knowledge. (90-120 seconds / response).
Finally…
GOOD LUCK!

B+
Not a data structure
Not a blood group;
Not your course grade;

But an attitude.