How to interview for a leadership position. Most common questions

Hello! In this article, we'll show you how to get through an interview.

Today you will learn:

1. How to behave in an interview;
2. What are the stages of the interview;
3. What mistakes are most often made by candidates for the position.

Few . We all understand that the opportunity to get a job in the desired company depends on how well the interview is passed. Therefore, the most correct solution- prepare for its passage. How to do it right, so as not to miss your dream job, let's talk today.

Interview: the essence of the concept

Interview call a personal meeting of an applicant with a potential employer or employer's representative when applying for a job.

The purpose of the interview is to find out the capabilities and skills of the applicant, as well as to discuss possible cooperation.

What is an interview

There are several types of interviews. We will talk about each of them in detail below.

• Biographical - represents an analogue of the questionnaire, discusses the professional experience of the applicant, his education, what he plans to do in the future;
• Free - represents communication in the style of the applicant's story about himself: by and large, this is self-presentation;
• Situational - the interviewer formulates a situation for the applicant. And the one who is being interviewed must explain how he will behave in it. Situations can be different: to test skills, to identify the level of resistance to stress, to test the motivation and values ​​of the applicant;
• Stressful - this type of interview is very different from others. Its essence lies in the fact that the applicant is deliberately provoked into a conflict in order to find out how he will behave. This is very effective if stress resistance is important for the future place of work. During the interview, the applicant is asked provocative questions, they are also asked to answer them quickly, practically without hesitation;
• Based on the study of the abilities of the applicant - the professionalism and personal qualities of the respondent are assessed. It considers not only the results that a person has achieved, but also how he achieved this. Leadership qualities, communication skills, focus on getting results and so on are also assessed. Typically, an interview of this type is conducted by a group of interviewers of 3 people, the decision on the applicant is made immediately after the interview.

The opinion is firmly rooted among the inhabitants that one can become a leader only through pull, and education, experience and skills are not taken into account. In many cases, this position is erroneous - competition for the post of a top manager is even higher than for a regular vacancy. Questions and answers often become a stumbling block when interviewing for leadership position... Overconfidence and lack of preparedness often harm those who apply for the position of the boss.

Preparing for the interview

The leader is the most responsible position in any organization, if he is not a nominee, and some gray eminence manages all the affairs for him. The boss has a huge responsibility, he has a wide range of powers, which many job seekers seem to be a tasty morsel.

Before you go to an interview for a managerial position, and even apply for a vacancy, send your resume, you should check your compliance with many criteria:

• well-developed intellectual abilities;
• creative approach to business;
• the presence of leadership qualities;
• business acumen;
• self confidence;
• the ability to concentrate on one subject and at the same time the ability to quickly switch attention;
• sociability;
• flexibility in business and loyalty to people;
• the ability to influence others;
• work for the result;
• the ability to arouse interest in others;
• the ability to take great responsibility and be responsible for mistakes.

A person who wants to become a leader must have all these characteristics. the highest level... It also matters what level the vacant leadership position is - the head of a unit, department, entire organization or branch.

Each level has additional requirements, including those related to the experience of the previous leadership. Even if you did not lead anything, you can successfully pass the interview if you demonstrate your skills and achievements.

Recommendations on how to get a senior executive interview start with careful preparation... An important part of it is the collection of information about the company, you should not neglect this, even if any information was received in a telephone conversation.

They can be recognized both from the Internet and from conversations with knowledgeable people. You also need to have an idea of ​​the state of the industry to which the organization belongs. This is important both for drawing up your own opinion and for formulating questions during communication with an employer or a personnel officer.

You need to prepare not only theoretically, but also practically:

• make a list of questions that will be asked for the interview from both sides and record the answers to them;
• the answers can be spoken on a dictaphone, so it is easier to follow your speech, it is better to do it in front of a mirror so that articulation and gestures are visible;
• collect all the documents in advance, if necessary, make copies - let it be better to have something superfluous than missing something;
• think carefully about the wardrobe - it is advisable to adhere to business style, women should not wear bright makeup;
• on the eve of an interview for a managerial position, you need to properly rest and sleep, but be sure to set an alarm - you cannot be late.

Stages of selection for the post of the head

The job seeker for the position of the boss is the same person as everyone else, he experiences the same emotions as other candidates. One of them may be fear of the person who will communicate with him. To defeat him, you need to tune in correctly, take a deep breath and calm down.

The interviewer can be:

• business owner;
• the head of the company (leaving his post or higher, if this is a vacancy for the head of a department);
• HR director;
• HR inspector;
• HR specialist.

All of them must be competent in relation to the job and the specific position. An interview is almost always a dialogue or interview in which both parties are actively involved. An applicant who is thinking about how to successfully pass an interview for a managerial position should know about all of its types, the most popular are:

• biographical - a story about the facts of the candidate's life, often precedes the main questions;
• free - not bound by any framework, each side asks questions without a preliminary plan;
• situational - it is considered the most informative, since it allows you to see the applicant in the case when he is offered to find a solution to any problem;
• behavioral - evaluates the behavior, motivation of a potential boss in certain circumstances;
• panel - helps to learn the communication skills of the future chief, heads of other departments can be invited to it;
• stressful - the candidate finds himself in unusual conditions that put pressure on the psyche (noise, obsession, insults), from which he needs to get out correctly.

Questions to the applicant

The most important part of a senior executive interview is asking questions. Prepare in advance by working through them in a relaxed home environment. The questions must not only be answered successfully, but also correctly asked, then it will be easy to pass the interview.

To behave correctly, you need to consider that the interviewer will want to get an idea of ​​the availability of skills for the following leadership functions:

• organizational skills;
• the ability to distribute responsibilities between employees and delegate authority;
• ways to motivate staff;
• time planning and workflow;
• exercising control over the performance of subordinates of their duties.

All questions will be based around this, they can be divided into 3 groups:

• personal;
• professional;
• concerning the position.

Among personal, the most popular are:

• those that are set out in the resume - the interviewer can only clarify them without invading the space of his personal life, otherwise the applicant may refuse to answer;
• about the strong and weaknesses- you should not sing praises to yourself, you need to dwell on your merits that help in work;
• successes and mistakes - it is not worth conducting conversations about your life, it is enough to mention one of your failures and the lessons learned from it.

Professional questions make up a large part of the interview, and the job prospects will depend on the answers to them.

The answers to them must be literate, complete, clear, truthful. Often asked about:

• leadership qualities - without them, no boss can manage the team;
• professional achievements - it is not worth listing everything, it is enough to describe one thing in detail, if there is an opportunity, then show it at the presentation, it may be an increase in the level of sales;
• self-learning - you need to show your willingness to acquire new knowledge;
• conflicts with former colleagues - it is not worth saying that there were none at all, the main thing is to show ways to get out of them;
• motivational methods - the boss is bad who does not know how to induce the staff to work actively, it is better to think about methods in advance so as not to get confused;
• the reasons for dismissal from a previous job - you should not focus on the human factor, it is better to say about the need for change;
• way out of difficult situations - the answer can be detailed, showing a potential leader as a multifaceted person who knows how to find a solution in any situation.

The answers of a person applying for the position of a boss must be confident, intelligible, so that after them there are no unnecessary questions. The voice should be calm, the intonation should be favorable to oneself, pauses, the use of inarticulate sounds should not be allowed. Sentences should be logical.

To pass an interview for the position of a manager, it is necessary to competently answer questions directly related to the position:

• about salary expectations - it is impossible to name specific numbers, it is preferable to express confidence in decent wages in this company;
• about plans for the future workplace - you need to be careful, it is better to limit yourself to general words;
• why they should accept you - you need to outline your strengths;
• competence in the company's field of activity - when preparing for an interview, this point must be worked out well;
• duration of work in this organization - you need to assure the interviewer of the longest possible cooperation.

Questions to the employer

At the end of the interview, the interviewer can ask if the applicant has any questions, or they can be asked during the interview. A candidate contemplating how to properly interview for a leadership position should not lose sight of the questions addressed to the interviewer. It is allowed to ask about:

• the possibilities of delegation of powers;
• upcoming projects of the company;
• corporate culture;
• the criteria by which the employee will be selected;
• job responsibilities, if they have not been announced.

Answers should be listened to carefully without interrupting. You should not ask about possible privileges in the workplace, about a salary increase, this will become clear later in the case of successful employment. At the end, be sure to ask when and how you can find out about the results of the meeting.

We all know the common phrase: "A bad soldier who does not dream of becoming a general." Let us disagree with her, because in the pharmaceutical market there are frequent examples when successful specialists are not at all interested in career growth due to a change in their responsibilities. Indeed, for example, for a medical representative, a higher position of a regional manager implies new level responsibility and a large number of business trips, and for a primary pharmacist, the position of head of a pharmacy can mean an increase in the length of the working day, managerial functions and financial responsibility. Nevertheless, this article is aimed at those specialists in the pharmaceutical market who are interested in promotion.

Possible career options

It is worth considering separately two possible options career growth: promotion within your company or moving to a higher position in a new company.

The “within-your-company promotion” option may seem easier: just be effective employee and grow within the framework of your competencies, indicate your career ambitions to your immediate supervisor and wait for the appearance the respective position... However, this is not always easy to implement in practice for a number of reasons.

First, the structure of the company may not presuppose the existence of a corresponding position, especially if it comes not about the central Moscow office, but about work in the regions.

Secondly, the manager may not always be interested in the fact that an effective specialist who consistently fulfills the plan leaves his team.

Therefore, it often turns out that it is easier to advance into a position in a new company. However, even in this case, we propose to be patient, since not every company that announces a competition for a leading position is ready to consider candidates without experience in the relevant position. Nevertheless, such positions appear on the market from time to time. Let's consider how to prepare for the competition for a leadership position.

Find a mentor

First, enlist the support of one of the current managers - this can be your current leader, if you have a trusting professional relationship with him. It often happens that an experienced and competent manager, seeing that an employee of his team has grown professionally, but the regional structure of the company does not provide opportunities for his career growth, is internally ready for a dialogue on this topic. After all, a professionally burnt-out employee who is no longer interested in its functionality often ceases to bring results to the team. In this case, you can act openly: indicate to the manager your career ambitions and agree that he will help you develop the relevant competencies. In turn, you will continue to work, without reducing efficiency, within the framework of your current position until you have the opportunity to leave the team with a promotion. However, this perfect option, which is not so common in practice. If for one reason or another you do not want to discuss the issue of career development with your immediate supervisor, then a manager of a third-party company, for example, your supervisor from a previous place of work, can become your mentor in this matter.

Contact a professional recruiter

You can get helpful advice in a recruiting agency. Make a professional acquaintance with a consultant who selects employees for the position of regional managers. Not a single competent recruiter will refuse to help you and will give you advice on how best to be interviewed in this or that company, what competencies are important for the position you are applying for, how best to “sell” your experience and skills. In addition, he will talk about what is known in the market about this company, whether there are any “pitfalls”. After all, every consultant recruiting agency understands that today you are a candidate, and tomorrow you can become his client.

Read specialized literature

Lacking practical experience in performing certain (in this case, managerial) tasks, you need to ideally prepare yourself theoretically in order to clearly imagine the entire scope of the functionality during the interview. Refer to professional literature. S.V. Spukov, widely known for his Pharmaceutical Company Medical Representative's Guide, is also the author of Regional Management. Of course, there are other books and publications on this topic, they can be found both on the Internet and in the corresponding sections of bookstores. We also recommend reading the relevant forums and thematic sections of pharmaceutical sites.

Do you want to know what skills you need to "pump" in order to become a good leader? Take part in the webinar What qualities should a real leader have? November 23 at 13:00 Moscow time!

Expand your functionality

When preparing for an interview for a higher position, do not forget about practice. If this is correct in your case, ask the manager to delegate some of his responsibilities to you. Many leaders will gladly hand over some of their tasks to you, as this allows them to unload themselves. For you, this is an invaluable opportunity: in an interview, you can confidently say that you have the necessary skills. In addition, an assessment center is often part of the competition for a managerial position in pharmaceutical companies (a method of comprehensive assessment of personnel, including tests and business games), where, as a rule, the skills of applicants are tested on specific cases. In this case, it will come in handy for you. personal experience performing a number of managerial tasks.

The person in charge of the executive hiring interview must meet the following requirements:

• know the structure of the company, its profile direction
• have information about the state of affairs in the company and why there was a need for a new leader
• have communication skills
• master the techniques of stress attacks
• understand verbal and non-verbal cues
• study the requirements of the company and determine the desired psychotype of the candidate
• have experience in interviewing for leadership positions in various structural units

A responsible recruiter must understand that a candidate for a leadership position is already a leader, who is different from the rest in this. He must understand that he is in demand and independent, therefore such an applicant always has a choice. Therefore, getting such a candidate interested in a company is one of the tasks of a recruiter.

What is the leader like?

Unfortunately, not every managerial candidate meets all the requirements. Rarely is there a person who fully corresponds not only to the profile of the enterprise, but also has proven skills in personnel management.

The most that most so-called executives are capable of is to outline the bearded functions of personnel management from management textbooks. Also, often in the pursuit of a better and more paid position, candidates tend to exaggerate their achievements or professional merit.

- to carry out a reliable assessment of the abilities, personal qualities and suitability for the position of a leader. What qualities, skills and knowledge should a person possess who can really be an effective leader:

• High level of intelligence, initiative, self-organization, non-standard thinking.
• Adoption independent decisions and the ability to take responsibility for them.
• Optimal use of new knowledge, innovation and business situations.
• Fast adaptation to abrupt changes in market conditions and work organization.
• Adequate behavioral responses to extreme situations and conflicts.
• Ability to plan, define goals, set goals and provide conditions for their implementation.
• Possess communication skills at all levels.
• Possession of communication skills to interact with partners, clients, subordinates and company management.

Step by step interview plan

Conducting an interview for a managerial position involves going through several stages from hiring an employee to the company's staff. All stages should be planned and agreed between those responsible for its implementation. Traditionally, when selecting candidates for responsible positions, the following algorithm is observed:

When conducting the interview itself, you must remember the rule: attract and retain the best leader.

Interview for an effective interview

At the stage of developing an interview strategy, you need to choose a certain tactic and follow it in order to get structured data about the applicant for the leadership position. For this, various methods are used, including several types of interviews.

A behavioral interview allows you to find out the necessary biographical information about a candidate and track his demeanor, sincerity, and reaction to unexpected questions.

A situational interview involves posing in front of a candidate work task or a situation that he has to solve. The level of effectiveness of the implementation of the problem posed will make it possible to find out professional and analytical skills, communication skills, interaction in a group, etc. Such interviews are conducted using pre-prepared or template cases.

The structured interview follows a prepared list of precise questions. Unfortunately, such an interview is often used by employers, but it is completely ineffective for recruiting for leadership positions.

Carousel interviews are conducted with the involvement of a group of people from future subordinates, management, and other departments. A task is posed that requires a collective solution. The process of solving the assigned task shows the level of interaction with the company's employees, compliance with professional qualities, goal setting and distribution of responsibilities.

Stress interviews are quite an aggressive method for identifying candidates who will not only possess certain qualities of a leader, but also fully correspond to a suitable psychotype. It consists in creating uncomfortable conditions for the candidate, for example, a conversation during a rush to a car park or when solving current issues. In a distracting atmosphere, provocative or uncomfortable questions are asked. This method will perfectly show how stress-resistant the future leader is.

Top 5 tricky questions

A person with all the qualities and courage, in order to declare himself as a leader, most likely knows exactly how to answer a series of standard questions with which the employer will try to confuse the candidate. It is much more interesting to know how to respond to tricky questions:

When posing questions for a candidate, the employer must take into account what he primarily wants to get from the future leader - leadership qualities, professional skills, or both.

Recommendations for a candidate for a managerial position

Most interviews are conducted by regular line managers and follow standard interview patterns. If an experienced recruiter or senior management team has taken up the challenge, it’s necessary to prepare for surprises. In any case, the most sincere behavior will tune in the most benevolent mood and interlocutors. When answering tricky questions, the future leader is expected not to find out the essence, but to see the reaction and trace analytical skills. Therefore, the candidate should not be shy and even somewhat embellish the reality, but approach the answer creatively.

During the interview, it is recommended to remain calm, confidently look into the eyes of the interlocutor, and ask questions. When preparing for an interview, one should as much as possible, her professional direction and principles of work. This will give you a better understanding of what the future employer can expect.

At the end of the interview, you can summarize your own conclusion by asking the interviewer if he received all the necessary information. This will create the impression of confidence in your own strengths and capabilities.

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Discussion: there is 1 comment

A lot in the process of recruiting for a managerial position depends on the recruiter. From his competence, understanding of the candidate's profile and behavior. She worked in a recruiting agency and most of the candidates for a managerial position did not take the young women recruiting seriously. Many asked to meet with the director, considering it beneath their dignity to have an interview with a simple recruiter. CEOs need to keep this point in mind.

To answer

An interview is called an extremely important event, and not only for a potential employee, but also for the head of the company. The first wants to get a job, the second wants to get a highly qualified employee. How to get an interview for a managerial position - further in our article (what to look for, and what questions the recruiter will ask you). We will also tell you what answers should be given to the questions posed to you and what should not be done in any case.

First, let's say a few words about the preparation stage on the eve of the interview - what can you do for yourself in advance (while still in your home)?

Preparatory stage before the interview

Of course, before going to an interview, any person strives to be as ready for it as possible. This is the right decision, because only in this way can you impress a potential boss, show him your best qualities that the firm needs so badly. Therefore, one should start preparing for this event in advance - and not “feverishly” and indistinctly thinking about what to say, already in the employer's office. In fact, this is the most common mistake among job seekers - not being very serious about passing a particular interview.

If the institution conducts interviews for the position of the head, the selection is made according to the strictest criteria. Only the most outstanding of all will be selected possible candidates... Work in any position requires the availability of relevant knowledge and skills. But one who wants to become a leader must have other virtues - just having knowledge is not enough. A potential leader must show his personal qualities, solid work experience and achievements in this area. It must be different (in better side) from an applicant applying for an ordinary position (for example, a consultant).

What the recruiter is interested in

What the recruiter is interested in

When conducting such an interview, the recruiter will try to carefully study the candidate from every available side. The applicant will have to answer a huge number of questions - of the most different spheres... Most of all, in such cases, such qualities of a candidate are studied as:

• intellectual level;
• qualities inherent in a leader (whether this candidate has them);
• innovative thinking (can he come up with some new ideas that will contribute to the development of the company);
• the ability to influence others;
• views and ideas;
• commercial savvy;
• strategic vision;
• attraction of resources from outside;
• effectiveness;
• ability to negotiate with a third party;
• the ability to attract attention and lead in relationships;
• solid work experience.

Questions from the candidate

Often the interview is carried out according to the following scheme: first, a potential boss talks about the position itself, lists responsibilities, likely prospects and career growth. This is followed by clarification of details and details. Only after that, the candidate himself has the right to ask the recruiter his questions at the interview.

Small but important clarification: the applicant not only has the right, he is obliged to ask such questions! If he has nothing to ask his potential boss, then he has no interest in future work and positions. There is no need to prepare a huge list of these questions - you can limit yourself to two or three.

Do not forget that the main objective interviewing - to reveal as many details as possible about each candidate. In other words, we are talking about "probing" them, testing their abilities and skills. You can take an interest in all other issues of concern to you only when you have already been offered to conclude an employment agreement.

Sometimes, at the very beginning of the interview, the employer asks the candidate to report on his life position, tasks and plans for the future. In other words, what would he like to achieve in his career. These questions need to be answered clearly and comprehensively, so it’s best to prepare for them well in advance — while still at home.

Of course, any job seeker cares about next question: How to successfully pass an interview for a leadership position?

Questions from the candidate

What the manager most often asks about

What questions should someone who wants to get a managerial position answer?

The interview includes not just standard questions for each case (a story about oneself, a company, about its advantages and disadvantages, and so on). It also asks questions that relate directly to future responsibilities. They sound like this:

1. What leadership qualities do you have?
2. What professional mistakes have you made in the past? What conclusions have been drawn?
3. Can you influence employees?

The recruiter also often invites the candidate to come up with a specific case and asks how the applicant will solve the current situation.

Since the main purpose of the interview is to find a leader, they may ask the following question: "What (in your opinion) qualities are inherent in an excellent leader?" You will have to list them.

Keep in mind the following important moment: competent management of working personnel presupposes that a manager has the following qualities:

1. He must give the impression of a confident person in himself and his strengths.
2. Must be bold.
3. Have a worldview.
4. Possess communication skills.
5. Must be able to self-analyze.
6. Should create a close-knit team without any problems (which will listen to him without unnecessary objections).
7. Must be able to provide support to any of his subordinates.

All of the above qualities of an excellent leader stand out when answering a question posed by a manager. Of course, answering the questions of a manager or an employer, there is no need to fall into demagoguery. That is, you should not start long explanations and explanations - this will definitely not lead to anything good for you - the interlocutor will simply get tired of you and consider you a chatterbox (and will try to "get rid" of you as soon as possible under any euphonious pretext).

At the same time, the "dry" circumstances of your experience will also not make the best impression, since competent and beautiful speech is extremely important for a leader - observing the "golden" mean.

If you are talking about your own experience, be sure to explain how you solved the problem, what tasks you did in your time and what you managed to achieve. Here it is necessary to remember this important point: make sure that your story is consistent (phased). In this case, you should not regularly insert the word "I". The manager may think that you are an upstart, selfish, which will not add to your chances of getting the desired position.

Questions and answers: how to give competent answers

So, you are about to have an interview, since you have a desire to find a job in a managerial position. You enter the office and see the manager (or direct employer) who invited you earlier for an interview. Now everything depends solely on you - how you show yourself and build your future career. How to build a competent dialogue? How to answer the manager's questions?

What do you need to pay attention to? For the following features.

The first feature: Listen to the questions of your interlocutor carefully and focused. There is no need to be distracted by anything and think about something extraneous. This is completely unnecessary. Have you listened to the question to the end? Great, now quickly conduct a mental analysis: what answer would the employer like to receive from you? If something is not entirely clear to you (the question asked to you is not completely clear), it is better to apologize and ask to ask it again. This is much better than an indistinct or incorrect answer to the question posed.

Try to provide the manager with evidence that the most important thing for you in your work is the achievement of the set goal and the result!

Candidate qualities

What qualities do you need to have in order to be hired?

What qualities should a potential candidate for a managerial position have? Naturally, any boss prescribes specific criteria for himself, according to which applicants will be selected for a vacant workplace... At the same time, there is a list of those qualities that must be possessed by a candidate passing any interview (regardless of the level of the desired position).

The candidate must:

1. Do not doubt yourself and your strengths.
2. Look neat and tidy in appearance.
3. Possess letters of recommendation - for example, from a previous job from a satisfied employer.
4. Behave culturally.
5. In addition, the applicant must be sociable - be moderately sociable and not squeezed, otherwise he will never become a leader. This quality is extremely important, since a person working in such a position must be able to find mutual language with by different people- including with their own subordinates.

It is worth noting that all of the above qualities are considered standard for any candidate for a managerial position. But there are those that should be inherent directly to the leader himself. He must:

1. To be able to manage, work with the team entrusted to him.
2. Be able to work with a team.
3. Offer your initiatives to achieve the desired result.
4. To be able to solve several cases at once, and not just one.
5. Be not only responsible and serious, but also have a good sense of humor.

In other words, he should be able to laugh where appropriate - and focus where serious work is involved.

Summarizing

To summarize, we want to point out the following: be sure to read and learn all of the above criteria before going on an interview for your dream job. What should you do if it seems to you that you do not have all the above qualities at all? Is it really worth giving up and not going to a leadership position? Not at all.

Sometimes we show our best qualities after we start our job responsibilities... Just don't forget all these characteristics and try to match them! You can definitely do it!

In our article, we told you about how to get a managerial position (how to get an interview) - what points to pay attention to so that the employer makes a choice in your favor! We talked about what questions are asked in interviews most often and gave recommendations on how best to answer them. We hope that the information provided has been useful to you!