Page 82 - Boost Your Hiring

68 Boost Your Hiring IQ

ANSWERS
The Strongest Answer
(B) This answer demonstrates a number of skills while answering
the question asked. Some of the skills that can be extracted from
this example are leadership, research, problem solving, commu-
nication, interpersonal skills, team work and collaboration, orga-
nizational skills, and a dedication to meeting deadlines.
Sometimes it’s not the answer that is strong or weak, it is the
skills that you can identify from the story told. This is a good
example of answering the question asked in a format that tells
the whole story. For example:
• The problem/situation: a computer system had a problem.
• The action: many steps and consultations performed in order
to come to a solution.
• The result: determination of the source of the problem and a
fix for it.

The Mediocre Answer
(C) Any interviewer would be interested in the statement, “suc-
cessfully generated $3 million over the last quarter.” But the
details of generating that money are somewhat vague. As a
manager, you are left wondering what was it about the project
that was so state-of-the-art? What kind of a team is a “diverse
team”?

The Weakest Answer
(A) This is the weakest as well as the shortest answer. More facts are
needed. Although your attention may have been drawn to the
reduction in costs, you don’t really know much about the plan
used and whether that sort of money reduction is feasible at
your company. More probing will reveal the type of methods
used to reduce costs and some of the points of the strategic plan
that made it a success.

RATE YOURSELF
If you chose answer (B), give yourself 5 points.
If you chose answer (C), give yourself 3 points.
If you chose answer (A), give yourself 0 points. _____