Conference Mechanics

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Conference Mechanics
Analyze the the job qualifications  Identify
corresponding work experience, projects, or
classes that demonstrates the required
skill. Verbalize accomplishment statements to
express the experience in positive, concise and
results-oriented terms. If you cannot locate a
specific position description prior to the
meeting/interview, identify more general skills
and qualifications and present your background in
those terms. If you don't have a position
description, early in the meting/interview, ask
the recruiter, "What personal and technical
qualifications are you looking for in your
company?" After positions are established, What
skills do you most highly value for this
position? Present appropriate examples from your
background.
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Company Research

• Research the company beyond the annual report and
  recruiting literature. Use these resources for
  company research
• Company's Web site 
• Hoovers - http//www.hoovers.com - up company
  inomation. Go to the advanced search and search
  for company contacts.
• Wet Feet Press - http//www.wetfeet.com -
  Produces high quality research reports
  specifically for MBAs on high-tech, consulting
  and finance firms.
• Edgar (http//www.sec.gov/edgarhp.htm) - The
  Securities and Exchange Commission's database
  which includes SEC filings by any publicly traded
  company.WSJ Online, Briefing Books - Background
  information, financial and stock performance
  data, recent news and press releases.

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Conference Strategy

• Determine your companies to approach.
• Listen to the person before you to form questions
  or make comments
• Handshake/Introduction/Business Card
• Elevator Statement/Positioning Statement
  (determine when to use)
• Include something about the company based on
  prior research (milestone)
• Give resume
• Hospitality Suite?
• Employer Business Card
• Handshake
• Parting Statement

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Types of Interviews

• Situation
• Tasks
• Action
• Results

• Behavioral
• Case
• Stress

Interview Preparation

• Research the company
• Reflect on your skills and experiences
• Match skills/experience on your resume with the
  job description
• Get to know the common questions
• Practice your answers
• Know your key points you want to make
• Prepare some of your own questions to ask

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Behavioral Interviews
  Behavioral interviewing is based on the concept
that past  behavior is the best predictor of
future behavior. The interviewer wants specific
examples of when and how you  demonstrated
particular behaviors. The candidate must describe
in detail an experience and how you dealt with
this situation.   Make sure that your stories
follow the STAR (Situation/Task/Action/Results)
or PAR (Problem/Action/Results) format.  
  Sample Behavioral Interview Questions The
following are examples of three common MBA skills
with corresponding questions and strategies for
handling.  Communication Skills Q Tell me about
a time when you had to present complex
information to a customer or peer. How did you
ensure that the other person understood? OR Tell
me about a time when you successfully persuaded a
group to use your idea? A Prepare a list of
examples that stress your communication skills
and develop accomplishment statements for each
example. "In my position at Acme Software Co., I
developed a user manual to accompany the product.
I examined the best features from three top
sources and adopted a very user-friendly format.
After writing each chapter I conducted numerous
checks and conducted a final test to ensure that
the manual was highly readable and easy to
update. The customer feedback has been excellent
and sales are 10 above our projection."  Analyti
cal/Problem Solving Skills  Q How do you gather
information to analyze problems? Give me an
example OR What was the most challenging work or
technical problem you ever encountered? What
happened? What did you do? A Prepare examples
of problems you have solved. For each, outline
the main 5-7 steps involved in solving the
problem, the alternatives you considered and
results you obtained. Practice until you can
relate the information naturally and
conversationally.  Leadership Skills  Q Tell me
about a time when you influenced the outcome of a
project by taking a leadership role?  OR Describe
your leadership style and give me an example of a
situation where you successfully lead a
group. A Review your past for an experience
that involved working as part of a team and think
about your role in facilitating, leading or
contributing to the effort. Once again, use the
accomplishment approach to describe the
goal/situation, your contribution and the result.

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Case Interviews
 An employer utilizing this approach will
present a hypothetical business problem, either
from an actual in-house situation  or a possible
scenario drawn from the work experience reflected
on your résumé.  The objective of the case
interview is to test your analytical skills
your ability to take data and in a structured
manner, derive a conclusion.  You may be given
incomplete information and be expected to ask
several questions before responding. For the
most  part, the interviewer is primarily
interested in how you   approach the problem and
logically reasoning your way through it. The
specific answer is not as important as the method
you use to get there.  The key to succeeding
in case interviews is to stay calm and organize
your answers mentally before you verbalize
them.  
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Case Interview, contd
Parts of the Case Interview  Opening The
interviewer describes a business problem to you.
Do not jump to a response. Instead, gather as
much information as possible so you understand
the true problem. Your questions You are
expected to analyze the problem and ask questions
in the areas that you think are
important.  In-depth exploration of a branch
If you asked a question that is in an area the
interviewer wants to explore, the interviewer may
answer your question and then ask a follow-up
question that will explore this area in more
depth. Analysis and conclusion. Usually, a
specific area of the mock client's business is
critical to the solution of the problem The
interviewer will either drive you to this area or
let you know  you've reached it by asking
follow-up questions. Always state your
assumptions when presenting an opinion. Communi
cation You may be asked to summarize your
conclusion as if you were recommending it to a
client to test your communication
skills.    Collecting background information -
Forming the rough cut hypothesis  Collecting
further information to prove/disprove the
hypotheses - If necessary, collecting even more
information - Finalizing the insights, drawing
the conclusions and formulating
recommendations. 
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Interview Questions
Company/Industry Questions The interviewer is
testing your fit with the industry and company as
well as assessing your knowledge of relevant
facts.   Q Why do you want to work for us? A
Approach this from the perspective of what's in
it for them. You are interested because you could
make a contribution in____________ and because
your skills of ____________are a good fit with
the job.   Q What do you know about our
organization? Why are you specifically interested
in our organization over our competition? A You
need to do your homework. Go beyond the surface
reasons such as good reputation, industry leader
etc.) How do your skills and interests relate to
specifics of this company? Additional questions
for specific industries and functions 
  Investment Banking Questions   What do you
think it takes to be successful in investment
banking?  What do you think investment bankers
do every day?  Describe a situation in which
you used quantitative skills to solve a
problem.  Sales/trading Sell me this XYZ
object. Recommend a stock to me.  What sources
of information do you read on the investment
banking industry?  What do you think of the
way the government treats insider
traders?  Has the investment banking industry
been represented fairly in the press?  What do
you think of the Morgan Stanley/Dean Witter
merger?  What are your strengths in business
analysis?       
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Questions
Corporate Finance   Tell me about some projects
you initiated. What prompted you to begin
them?  How do you gather information to solve
problems? Give me an example.  What do you
think you do best?  Describe your greatest
accomplishment and your greatest
failure.    Organizational Development   What
was your most challenging personal encounter with
someone? How did you deal with the
individual?  Tell me how you would build a
team out of independent individuals?  How
would a friend, boss and a client describe
you?  Tell me about a creative solution that
you developed for a difficult problem?  What
was the most challenging group you successfully
worked with? What was one of your failures? 
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Questions
Management Consulting Questions   Give me an
example of a time you worked in a team. Did you
face any obstacles?  Give me an example of a
problem you have faced and how you overcame
it.  What do you think management consultants
do every day?  Give me an example of a
situation in which you analyzed and solved a
problem. How did you do it?  How would you
describe your way of solving problems?    Marketin
g (Product Management)   Give me an example of
how you demonstrated initiative. What were the
results?  Rank order the important
characteristics for brand management.  Scenario
and create a plan to market Brand X in
Philadelphia.  Tell me about a time when you
had to influence various departments/people to
help accomplish your goals without having direct
authority over them.  
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Dress and Presentation

• Professional clothing is a quality investment
• Personal presentation
• No political buttons
• Be modest with jewelry and make-up
• Clothing is appropriate, cleaned and pressed
• Attention to personal hygiene
• Body positioning and gestures
• Be prepared and punctual

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What to Bring to the Interview

• Extra resumes
• Portfolio to take notes
• Suitable reading material
• Company information
• Job information
• contact info

Follow-up

• Immediately after the meeting
• Thank You Note to each interviewer

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Most recruiters take the first ninety seconds or
so to set you at ease and give you a fast "once
over."The early dialogue, facial expressions,
small talk, and your responsiveness all help set
the mood and tone for the following 2 minutes or
more.The establishment of good rapport in the
first few seconds of the meeting is crucial to
achieving a positive outcome.Begin from the
onset to personalize the meeting. What makes you
better or different? Why you? Is your elevator
introduction succinct, summarized thoroughly and
grabs attention. If theres time, remember
your small talk you may want to build on that
when you conclude.Greet with eyes and
smile.Use a firm handshake. The recruiter may
or may not offer to shake hands.Present a
pleasant, relaxed, confident approach.Be
assertive, but not obnoxious.No first name
unless asked to ("call me LaVern").Personalize
and humanize the exchange.
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Thank you! Questions?