Great Interview Questions to ask – for the job seeker

I have been in recruiting now since 1998 and have learned through the years how important it can be to ask the right questions of the hiring team so I can pinpoint my search activity and deliver the candidate who will be a great fit.

Many times the hiring authority will quickly spout out what they are looking for and seems to expect me to fill in the blanks for the details that they didn’t provide.  Earlier in my recruiting days, I would accept this and was happy to simply have the search to work on.  What I realized through the years was how much time I could waste making assumptions about what those “gray area” details were.  I have adjusted my approach when getting the position requirements and have a prepared list of questions that I make sure to ask to avoid fishing in the wrong pond or missing an important detail that ends up derailing the search after weeks and weeks of phone calls and screening.

Job seekers need to be asking the same questions when they are approaching the job interview process.  If they understand the nuances and the critical hiring criteria for the position they are considering, they will be in a much better position to articulate their match of skills and accomplishments  further down the interview process in the face to face segment.

Based upon years and years of recruiting and digging out the true hiring criteria, I offer the following questions to job seekers to be asked of the first person they speak with in the interview process. This could be anyone from an executive search consultant to the in house Human Resources representative.  The job seeker should be sure to take good notes upon getting answers to these questions so they may prepare their interview strategy and comments during the face to face part of the process.

Here are some examples of questions that should will reveal some of the true hiring requirements.  Note that these questions are also included in the free WinTheView Workbook that is downloadable upon log-in at www.wintheview.com

What are the primary “must have” skills/attributes a person needs to be successful in this position?

What are the skills and attributes you value most for someone being hired for this position?

What is the single most important attribute for success in this role?

What do you consider the greatest overall challenge of this position?

What are the most immediate challenges of the position during the first three months?

What are the major challenges this position presents over the next 6 – 12 months?

What are the performance expectations of this position in 6 – 12 months?

What will I have done to be viewed as a over-achiever after 6 months?  After a year?

How will I be evaluated and how often?

Who are some of the people this position requires interaction with on a regular basis?

Can you describe a typical day for a person filling this position?

What are the most important personality characteristics for a person in this position?

These questions will help the job seeker to understand the specific needs and pain points for the career opportunity and enable the development of a sales oriented presentation of why the candidate is a strong fit for the position and why they should be hired.  The questions may be asked of each person on the “interview team” to get a sense of consistency and what requirements should receive the greatest priority.

WinTheView Workbook helps job seekers stand out, differentiate and “Nail the Interview”!!

This WTV Workbook mirrors the on-line version and is great for people who like to write their content down first, make notes and then input to the on-line version of WTV.  The on-line “pull down” content libraries and pdf generator that creates the presentation are not accessible via the workbook.

On line tool is www.wintheview.com

For a free pdf version of the Workbook, please email kjdiamond@wintheview.com or call 215-948-3722

Developing your WTV Interview Presentation  

WinTheView (WTV™) is a powerful interview preparation and presentation tool that is designed to help job seekers determine the critical hiring requirements and formulate the key points they wish to articulate during the interview.  A PDF file is generated in the form of a flip chart-like presentation that can be printed and taken to the interview. The WTV™ development center is secure and enables the job seeker to prepare multiple presentations, follow-up letters and accomplishment stories with online access 24/7. An example of a sample presentation is shown below:

WTV Can Be Used In The Following Ways:

  1. Focus process and thinking on your most compelling key points so as to enter interview situations prepared and confident.
  2. Introduce WTV™ as a professional looking printed qualifications summary during the interview to impress the hiring manager and help guide the discussion your way.
  3. Create a lasting impression with a printed or emailed “leave-behind” WinTheView™ summary for each hiring team member.
  4. Email a WTV™ PDF file immediately after each phone screen interview to increase your chances of earning that coveted face-to-face interview.
  5. Email a WTV™ PDF file in advance of each face-to-face interview to facilitate discussion and demonstrate a proactive mindset.
  6. Generate a “career summary” presentation, then link its PDF file on your linkedin.com profile via slideshare, so they can find you.

Benefits for the Job Seeker:

  • Bolsters confidence just by going through the WTV™ process
  • Demonstrates high level of preparation and professionalism
  • Helps to gain a better understanding of the key hiring criteria
  • Correlates candidate talking points directly to hiring criteria
  • Differentiates candidate from competitors not likely using this approach
  • Prepares job seeker for behavioral interviews via accomplishment story feature
  • Makes job seeker think through qualifications carefully
  • Accesses online portfolio of presentations, follow-up letters and accomplishment stories for easy future use 

Log In And You Will Be Taken To The Development Center Page.

 

Top of Form

 

This is where user will choose to create the WTV™ presentations, follow-up letters and accomplishment stories.  The site follows a linear process allowing the user to input information or select content from the various libraries, including branding terms, suggested interview questions, 30-60-day action plan and others.

 Notes:

  • WTV™ does not work with Mac Safari (does work with Firefox)
  • The pop-up blocker needs to be disabled for the WTV™ libraries to display on screen.
  • The user needs to hit Save and Next to assure work is saved.
  • An online help menu provides details on how to use the system.
  • The site does not enable jumping ahead to complete pages.  You must complete each one by inserting text, then hitting Save and Next.

 

 

What You Will Need To Get Started

 

  • Name of Company with whom you are interviewing
  • Name of Position for which you are interviewing, as advertised by the company
  • Company logo, which you may copy from the corporate website
  • Your picture (optional)
  • Personal Branding Terms describing yourself or your skills
  • Position Requirements listing exactly what the hiring manager needs/expects in a potential hire
  • Matching Requirements: correlating statements with each position requirement addressing, “What makes you a good match?”
  • Outstanding Accomplishments: list the particular instances in which you went above and beyond, won awards, etc.
  • Personal Success Factors indicating you have the right characteristics for the position
  • 30-60-day Action Plan detailing skills you will bring to the job and how you will carry out responsibilities
  • Why Hire Me? Case statement
  • Closing Questions you may have for the hiring manager.

 

The following “WinTheView™ Workbook” will help you compile the proper information to complete your online presentation. It delivers additional insight to help you understand and fill in the online data.

 

Prepare to Differentiate Yourself, Nail the Interview and Land the Job!

The WTV Workbook

 

Contact Information to be included in your presentation

 

Your Contact Information you registered with will already be listed in the “Contact  Information” form on the first page of the Development Center.

                              *Name entered cannot be altered after registration.

 

 

First Name*:   
Last Name*:  
E-mail Address:   
Phone No:  

 

 

 

  1. 1.    Presentation Page 1 – Customizable Cover Info 

 

Name of Company interviewing with:_____________________ 
Name of Position: ____________________________________

 

   

        

 

            Select from the following or enter text into “other”

             This is a tagline that prints on the top of the front page to best describe you.

           

                           Partnering with (Company) for Success

               

                           Accelerating (Company)’s Success in the Marketplace

 

                           Partnering with (Company) for Excellence

 

                           Providing (Company) with Important Services

 

 

                           Other

 
     
 
     
 

Select 1 from the n

Download Company Logo: Have hiring company’s logo on your computer ready to upload to the development center. Right click, browse for logo and add.

 

Download Your Own Photo: Have your own photo on your computer ready to upload to the development center. Right click, browse for photo and add.

 

 

 

List 4 “Personal Brand Terms”*

 

Compile your personal brand from terms that describe what people think and feel about you. You must have four; either type your own or refer to the online library.

The goal of these Personal Brand Terms in the WTV is to communicate your personal brand to a prospective employer. They identify the qualities or characteristics that make you distinctive and represent the values, ideas, skills and personality you want the interviewer(s) to associate with you. Your Personal Brand Terms are powerful ideas that support your candidacy for the position.

 

Fill in your personal branding terms here: Input your own,

or choose from the online branding terms library.

 

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Presentation Page 2 – Position Requirements

 

There are 7 fields in the program for Potential Position Requirements.

Candidates are selected (made offers) by hiring managers and HR managers based upon how well they communicate their skills and abilities in direct correlation to the critical position requirements.

Much like the sales process, one of the most important pieces of the interview process is to determine what the true needs are for the hiring team. You’ll need to uncover the “must haves” from the “nice to haves.” This can most effectively be done by simply asking questions of the first person you encounter, perhaps an in-house or third-party recruiter, a human resources manager, the hiring manager or another member of the hiring team. This opportunity will most likely present itself during the phone screen, but you are encouraged to ask the same questions throughout the interview process as you meet different members of the hiring team.  (You may find that the answers differ from one person to the next.)

Here is a list of questions that will help you determine the critical position requirements:

(Be sure to take notes while asking these questions.)

ü       What are the primary “must have” skills/attributes a person needs to be successful in this position?

ü       What are the skills and attributes you value most for someone being hired for this position?

ü       What is the single most important attribute for success in this role?

ü       What do you consider the greatest overall challenge of this position?

ü       What are the most immediate challenges of the position during the first three months?

ü       What are the major challenges this position presents over the next 6 – 12 months?

ü       What are the performance expectations of this position in 6 – 12 months?

ü       How will I be evaluated and how often?

ü       Who are some of the people this position requires interaction with on a regular basis?

ü       Can you describe a typical day for a person filling this position?

ü       What are the most important personality characteristics for a person in this position?

ü       Do you foresee any major changes in this position in the next 12 months?

ü       If this is a new position, why are you adding it at this time?

ü       What made the last person doing this job successful?

ü       What difficulties did the last person in this position have?

 

Once you’ve asked enough questions (and have gotten answers) to understand the key requirements (and have written them down), you should categorize them into unique segments.  Now you can formulate powerful content (assuming you’re a good fit) to communicate concisely how your experience and abilities will enable you to overachieve in this role!

 

Fill in the critical position requirements as stated by the hiring representative.

 

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Presentation Page 3 – Match with Position Requirements

 

There are seven (potential) fields for position requirements.  You  have three text windows for inputting information that  summarizes your most powerful points/experiences relative to that requirement. 

“Match with your position requirements” is an opportunity to communicate to the hiring manager your most powerful points relative to the critical job requirements. Preparing your key points ahead of time will bolster your confidence and help you to clearly your strengths.

Enter your “Match” with position requirements text in the text boxes. Within those matches, include  background, skills, education and experiences which demonstrate how you match with job requirements. Include numbers or specific situations where possible in addressing each  bullet point you include.

The position requirements you listed on the Position Requirements page should be listed here. The idea is to make your 3 most powerful points regarding your experience and tie in a quantifiable accomplishment story that illustrates your point.

 

 

Position Requirement 1

* Requirements will display in the boxes in the online program

 

Match with position – List 3 bullet points, each 140 characters or less.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Position Requirement 2   

Match with position – List 3 bullet points, each 140 characters or less.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Position Requirement 3   

 

Match with position – List 3 bullet points, each 140 characters or less.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Position Requirement 4   

 

Match with position – List 3 bullet points, each 140 characters or less.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Position Requirement 5   

 

Match with position – List 3 bullet points, each 140 characters or less.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Position Requirement 6               

 

Match with position – List 3 bullet points, each 140 characters or less.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This requirement will show up as “references”

Position Requirement 7               

 

* Make sure you have contacted references and they are aware of your intentions.

 

Reference # 1 Name                                    Your association with this reference                                    Contact info including cell # and email address        

 

Reference # 2             Name                                    Your association with this reference                                    Contact info including cell # and email address 

 

Reference # 3 Name                                    Your association with this reference                                    Contact info including cell # and email address 

 

 

 

Presentation Page 4 – Additional Areas of Expertise 

 

This purpose of this section is to list the “Additional Areas of Expertise” you will bring to the job that are beyond the basic job requirements. This is a great opportunity to illustrate your range of experience and many times you’ll discover you have an area of common interest with the interviewer.

 

Examples could include: certifications, sales training programs, fund raising, board memberships, knowledge of computer programs, international tax strategy, personnel labor law, manufacturing plant design, coaching, public speaking (toastmasters), completed running marathon.

 

Note: This section may be excluded from your interview preparation by checking the box at the bottom of the online page in the WinTheView™ program.

 

Fill in your “additional areas of expertise.”

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Presentation Page 5 – Outstanding Accomplishments

 

Your career and life are filled with accomplishments on occasions  when you performed “above and beyond” the scope of your job responsibilities or self-expectations (on or off the job). These stories  powerfully  communicate your skills, abilities and potential contributions to prospective employers.

Note: this section may be excluded from your interview preparation by checking the box at the bottom of the online page in the WinTheView™ program.

 

Fill in the title of your accomplishments and use the SBAR format to communicate the situation, barrier, action take and results.  (See next page for SBAR worksheet.)

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Developing Accomplishment Stories – Listed On Development Center

 

Note:  If you leave your presentation to work on Accomplishment stories, please be sure to hit Save and Next while in the presentation. You may develop your accomplishment stories independent of the presentation and print them separately.  In the presentation, you will list the name of the accomplishment and then elaborate on it verbally in the interview.  These stories should be practiced and rehearsed so they are “muscle reflex” to you.

 

Step 2: Develop Accomplishment Stories

Accomplishment Stories specify the positive things that you have done for your previous or current employer, and therefore clearly indicate what you will be able to achieve for your new employer!

During the interview, communicating your outstanding accomplishments using a quickly communicated format delivers a great deal of impact. The story should have a beginning, middle and end. The following SBAR format provides an excellent structure for your accomplishment stories.

1)       Situation: What was the problem, need or challenge? What were the circumstances?

2)       Barrier(s) to Success: What did you have to overcome or solve?

3)       Actions: How did you do it, specifically?

4)       Results: What positive, tangible results did you produce? (Quantify if possible.)

5)       Skills Used: What specific skills were used?

 

Use the SBAR format listed below to develop each of your Accomplishment Stories:

Accomplishment Story Title 1

 

Situation: 
Barriers: 
Actions: 
Results: 

 

 

 

Presentation Page 6 – Personal Success Factors

 

The current thinking is that employees can be trained for skills but should be hired for attitude. Organizations want honest, smart, friendly, motivated, and responsible employees. Personal Success Factors are personal characteristics that communicate that you have the right attitude and will contribute to your success on the job. Distinct from skills, knowledge and experience that you have acquired, Personal Success Factors relate more to personality traits.

You may type them in directly or choose from the pull-down libraries which are highlighted on the personal success factors page.

Fill in up to 7 Personal Success Factors.

 

 

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Presentation Page 7 – 30-day Strategic Action Plan

Your 30/60-day Strategic Action Plan communicates to the Hiring Manager that you are proactive, action oriented and a self-starter. In addition, it communicates that you have thought about being in the position for which you are interviewing and have begun to establish success oriented goals.

The content for the 30- and 60-day action plan may come from your questioning about what will be the challenges in the first 30-60 days.  If you ask this question up front and the hiring person can provide good answers, you should be able to formulate your action plan activities accordingly.  There will be a total of seven potential fields to fill in your action items.  You may type them in directly or choose from the pull-down libraries which are highlighted on the 30-day strategic action plan page.

Fill in up to 7 action items for the 30-day plan.

 

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Presentation Page 8 – 60-day Strategic Action Plan

The content for the 30- and  60-day action plan may come from your questioning about challenges during the first 30-60 days.  If you ask this question up front and the hiring person can provide good answers, you should be able to formulate your action plan activities accordingly.  There will be a total of seven potential fields to fill in your action items.  You may type them in directly or choose from the pull-down libraries which are highlighted on the 60-day strategic action plan page.

Fill in up to 7 action items for the 60-day plan.

 

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Presentation Page 9 – Why Hire Me?

This page is an opportunity for you to re-state the most important experiences, skills, and accomplishments that make you an excellent candidate for this position,  and “nail” the interview.

The WTV™ program assembles all the information you have either selected from the WTV™ libraries or entered into the text boxes in the “Why Hire Me?” selection library. This provides a convenient way for you to select the items with the most impact. After completing the text for the “Why Hire Me?” page, you will select a graphic to use which  automatically includes your Personal Brand Terms.

Fill in up to 7 fields that reinforce your strengths and fit for this career opportunity!

 

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Presentation Page 10 – Closing Questions

 

This closing questions page gives you an opportunity to ask questions that may not have been covered during your interview discussion and more important, ask qualifying questions that will indicate how strong a candidate you are. This question is already loaded in your presentation and is a very powerful, open-ended question that should provide feedback on your chances of moving on in the process: 

- Based on my background and experience what do you think would be the greatest challenges for me in this position?

 

Other pre-loaded questions include:

- What are the next steps in the selection process?

- What is the best way for me to follow-up with you?

Again, you may type your questions in directly or choose from the pull-down libraries which are highlighted on the closing questions page.

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Generating Your PDF File And Printing Your Presentation

 

After you have completed your presentation, you will then go to the print page which can be accessed in the following ways:

-          Hit Save and Next on the Closing Questions page which takes you to a preview of the page – hit Save and Next again to arrive  at the Print your Presentation page.

-          Hit the Go to Generate PDF text which will be at the top right, just under the navigation pull-down list.

 

Once saved to your computer as a PDF file, your WTV™ can be printed on your home printer. However, for the most impressive presentation of your WTV™, we suggest using one of the listed print centers, ordering your WTV™ with:

-          Standard paper stock

-          Color laser printing (usually standard at print centers)

-          A wire spiral binding

-          A heavy plastic cover, either clear or opaque

-          A black or blue cardboard sheet on the back.

 

For your convenience, we have included links to the online print web sites of six print centers. Here is some helpful information about the centers:

 

Ordering your WTV online: 

All listed print centers provide an online print ordering capability with easy navigation and ordering. Once you are at their online print site:

  1. Identify a convenient store location. (Mimeo, with no physical locations, provides quick overnight delivery.)
  2. Upload your file.
  3. Check your uploaded file for quality.
  4. Select your preferred print format.
  5. Choose number of copies (typically one per interviewer).
  6. Submit your order for printing.
  7. Make sure you get an order confirmation email. (If you do not receive one within 30-60 minutes, call the location you selected and speak with someone in the print center.)
  8. Pick up your WTV(s) at the store location. 

 

Onsite printing:

The following office supply/service centers have print centers within their store locations:

            Staples

            Sir Speedy

            Kinko’s

            Office Max

            Office Depot

 

Printing delivery:

The following print centers have convenient next day home delivery

Mimeo (has the easiest online print ordering and uses FedEx for delivery)

Kinko’s (uses FedEx for delivery)

 

 

Additional Worksheets

 

 

Accomplishment Story Title:

 

 

 
 

 

Situation: 
Barriers: 
Actions: 
Results: 
Skills Used:   

 

 

 

 

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www.wintheview.com hits the 500 user milestone

I am pleased to report that Wintheview is gaining tremendous momentum as a powerful differentiator helping job seekers to stand out in the interview process and rise above the competition to land the job offer. 

Wintheview is offered to job seekers directly and also through career consulting experts, recruiting firms and corporations to ultimately better prepare job candidates and enable “best fit” hiring decisions for all concerns.

View Wintheview introductory video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gMiIpIdr_I

The template based system is very easy to use and dramatically empowers job seekers boosting their confidence for a superior interview performance!

 WTV has been used in the following ways:

  1. Focus process and thinking on the most compelling key points, so job seekers enter interview situations both optimally prepared and optimally confident.
  2. Introduce WTV™ as a professional looking printed qualifications summary during the interview. It impresses the hiring manager and guides the discussion to each job seeker’s full advantage.
  3. Create a lasting impression with a printed or emailed “leave-behind” WinTheView™ summary for each hiring team member.
  4. Email a WTV™ summary immediately after each phone screen interview to increase your chances of earning the coveted face-to-face interview.
  5. Email a WTV™ summary in advance of each face-to-face interview to facilitate discussion and demonstrate a proactive mindset.
  6. Generate a “career summary” presentation, then link its PDF file on your linkedin.com profile via slideshare. Let them find you.

WTV has helped job seekers advance their careers in a wide variety of industries including:

  • Accounting
  • Biotech
  • Banking
  • Engineering
  • Education
  • Hospitality
  • Human Resources
  • Information Technology
  • Transportation
  • Manufacturing
  • Medical
  • Printing

Keep an eye out for a completely new look for www.wintheview within the next few weeks.  The site will have a much cleaner and current look along with improved functionality. 

Thanks to all of our users for making this on-line tool such a great success!!  We welcome your comments and suggestions to improve the effectiveness of this popular on line system.

Success Stories say it all for the Power of Wintheview

Wintheview is a powerful website for Personal Branding Tools and Interview Presentations.  These comments are from recent users that experienced success by using the on-line, easy to use tools to land jobs in record time.  To learn more, call Ken Diamond at 610-941-0700.
_______________
Ken,

I have to tell you that the website “Win the View.com” is one of the more innovative aids in job hunting that I’ve seen in a long time. We all learn in marketing that presentation is a significant part of selling anything. So why not “present” ourselves to prospective companies? I went through the process, produced the presentation and got the job. No, it wasn’t JUST the presentation that got me the job. More likely it was the thought process through which “Win the View.com” guided me. The entire site helped me distill my talents and skills into a marketable set of bullet points and talking points. That was really valuable to my prospective employer.

 You have to do the work to make the presentation successful, but I believe, if you are qualified for the position and if the “Win the View.com” presentation deck is produced with diligence and care, the process will increase your probability of receiving an offer.

 All the best,

 L. Harris – starting my new job June 1.

___________________________________

The tools are great and provide a solid basis for develolping a compelling, comprehensive, and highly professional delivery of your Personal Value Proposition to the intended hiring manager. Concise yet thorough outline of skill sets, experience and accomplishments, and a ramp up strategy for short term and long term success. This is a stand out tool that differentiates you from all the other applicants and routine resumes. Plus, you can keep it current, as a live career tool, always ready when a new opportunity presents itself.

I’ve enjoyed success every time I’ve used it and, I even introduced my daughter to it. She is new to the workforce, freshly minted Master’s in hand. She did her research, found the job she really liked, got the interview, and WON THE VIEW on her first and only try!! Her credentials were good, work/internship experience appropriate, but the hiring manager was totally impressed with her preparation and the presenatation tool was a huge differentiator.

J. Sammons

_____________________________________

‘Wintheview’ is a useful tool in the interview process. Walking through the steps of the presentation allowed me to link my skills and experience to each requirement of the position. Additionally, the presentation was an excellent leave behind – providing the prospective employer with a concise summary of my skills/experience and how it relates to the job .

_____________________________________

Hi Ken:

I want to inform you that the Win the View Presentation was a great success. It was easy to complete and the Library tools gave me different options to choose from. I had two interviews on Wednesday December 19, 2007 and they were both impressed and awed at how professional, well prepared and organized the presentation was. It was easy for them to view and they were extremely impressed with Match for position requirements, Additional areas of expertise, Outstanding Accomplishments , Personal Factor and my favorite Why Hire me and the Closing Questions and the follow-up letter which is the key factor.

I even received a call today Friday December 21, 2007 for a job offer from one of the companies I interviewed with on Wednesday which is a full service Practice Management and Billing Company. I have another interview today in the afternoon with a Spanish Organization from Spain as an Executive Assistant and I even did the presentation in both languages(English/Spanish). This will determine my future within the company. Thank you for letting me have the opportunity to use this great tool I would recommend Win the View Presentation to anyone who wants to land a succesfull position with a Professional company.

V. Ramos

____________________

 

“My wintheview presentation blew away the hiring manager and the other influencers. The presentation became the interview. They could see exactly what I could do for them and how I fit. It really set me apart from the competition.” landed director e-commerce marketing job at major communications company.
J. Zigon

_________________________

Wintheview’ is a useful tool in the interview process.  Walking through the steps of the presentation allowed me to link my skills and experience to each requirement of the position.  Additionally, the presentation was an excellent leave behind – providing the prospective employer with a concise summary of my skills/experience and how it relates to the job .

L. Travice

_______________________________

Thank you for your support during my transition.  Your support has allowed me to join a company that is positioned for profitable growth in 2008 and onward and continue my career in the printing industry.  Your “Win the View” system was an important tool in my job search process that assisted me in selling my skills, abilities and what my strategies were to move the business in the right direction. Win the View is a great product and I am sure it will be a successful endeavor.

M. Dinan

___________________________

I used Wintheview 4 or 5 times. Rather than presenting it in the interview, I would send it ahead with the comment, “this my help you understand how my background, experience, and accomplishments relate to the position”. In all cases, this set me apart and differentiated my approach from the other applicants. Most interviews started off with: ” thank you for taking the time to put this together, it is very impressive.”

T. Ford

 
 
 

 

Wintheview helps executive get competitive edge in the interview process

“WINTHEVIEW is an extraordinarily useful tool that helps an interviewer differentiate themselves from the competition. It allows the interviewee the ability to summarize his/her skills in a presentation type fashion that not only impresses the interviewer but facilitates the exchange of information. I have used WINTHEVIEW to formulate a very comprhensive and strategic presentation in order to demonstrate my past accomplishments, focus in on my strengths, and provide the interviewer with such infomation as a 30 – 90 day plan, and how my skills can help develop the organization. This type of presentation demonstrates that you are not only serious about yourself, but have taken the time to research the company, and provide insight that you have thought about how you can help the company in today’s market. Using WINTHEVIEW has propeled me to the top of the highly competitive list in a CEO/President opportunity within the Renewable Resources Industry where I am competing against seasoned Executives, but WINTHEVIEW has seperated me form the competition and helped me to differentiate myself in a very positive fashion. I recommend WINTHEVIEW to anyone that is seeking to differentiate themselves from the competition when interviewing for a job, or just sending the presentation as a supplement to your resume. Its another great product developed by Ken Diamond that really shows that he and his organizations want to develop successful strategies and products that do in fact work and are not gimmicks or scams. Please feel free to contact me at anytime for a more indepth discussion of how it has helped me in today’s tough job market.”

Best Regards,

Paul Claro
(201)245-0450

Tips (good web sites) for effective job search

I receive tons of resumes each day and would love to get back to each person individually to strategize on career advancement and the tools that are most useful on the web today.  In the search business, we get paid by companies to go out and find people with very specific skills sets.

 

To be good at finding the right people, our team needs to know to leverage all of the tools on the web and where to look.  In that process, we have generated some opinions on a few of the most effective sites for job seekers.  As time doesn’t allow us to get back to each invidividual who sends us their CV, we decided to put together a quick list of sites we think would be helpful.  Here they are:

 

www.visualcv.com     VisualCV.com gives you an easy new way to present your Curriculum Vitae (CV) online. VisualCV replaces the traditional resume with an online professional profile. VisualCV.com is the first website that allows you to create an Internet-based resume, build and manage an integrated online career portfolio, and securely share professional qualifications with your customers, partners, employers and colleagues.

 

www.wintheview.com  (WTV) is an easy to use, step by step web program that helps you to prepare better for the interview by gaining a better understanding of the job requirements and then creating specific talk points that directly correlate your strengths, skills and accomplishments to the “position success requirements”.

 

www.indeed.com  Indeed is a search engine for jobs – with a radically different approach to job search. In one simple search, Indeed gives job seekers free access to millions of employment opportunities from thousands of websites. Indeed.com includes all the job listings from major job boards, newspapers, associations and company career pages – and we continue to add new sites every day.

 

http://www.weddles.com/awards/index.htm  Who has the best insight on which employment sites are most helpful? We think the answer to that question is obvious … it’s you, the recruiters and job seekers who have used the sites. And, that’s what the annual WEDDLE’s User’s Choice Awards are all about. They recognize the elite of the online employment according to the most discerning judges around—that would be you!

 

Get yourself on linkedin.com

http://blog.guykawasaki.com/2007/01/ten_ways_to_use.html

Most people use LinkedIn to “get to someone” in order to make a sale, form a partnership, or get a job. It works well for this because it is an online network of more than 8.5 million experienced professionals from around the world representing 130 industries. However, it is a tool that is under-utilized, so I’ve compiled a top-ten list of ways to increase the value of LinkedIn.

Hope these help and best of luck in job search!

Ken Diamond

Nail the Interview with powerful career accomplishment stories!

One of the top recruitment experts states that one of the best all time interview questions is “Tell me about your greatest career accomplishment”.

I have used this question many times when interviewing my candidates and am amazed at how many people are not ready with a story.  Maybe it’s just because I am in the recruitment industry and know that behavioral interviewing is how many (trained) hiring managers conduct their interviews these days – that I expect that job seekers would be ready for this question!?

When I designed our interview preparation web site www.wintheview.com, I added in a section where candidates could follow a template and easily create their accomplishment stories based upon a common format known as STAR.  It stands for first stating the SITUATION, then the TASK, then the ACTION taken and finally the RESULT which is the benefit derived from the action taken. 

Every person in the job market should be ready with at least 3 accomplishment stories that illustrate how they overcame a major obstacle, in a creative way to help the company to: cut costs, be more efficient, get more business, gain a competitive edge, get product to market more quickly or some other specific result that was achieved as a result of their proactive action.

We are in the process of making the “accomplishment story” tool more flexible with better formatting on the www.wintheview.com site.  Currently, users can create accomplishment stories with the help of a template which is automatically saved and printable for use in interview preparation and as a ”leave behind”  for interviews.  The real power is putting your stories in writing so they are INTERNALIZED and come out naturally when you are in a networking discussion or interviewing for the job of your dreams.

Bottom line is to spend the time necessary to prepare and practice what you will say in that all important interview.  www.wintheview.com will provide the roadmap to get you where you need to be!

Will you be prepared with a 30 / 60 day plan during your interview?

I just spoke with our candidate that had a final interview this morning for Project Management role in the Pharmaceutical and Medical Device industry.  I had suggested that he take a look at our www.wintheview.com interview tool to formulate his thoughts and prepare for his final interview.  He did so and sent me a copy of the presentation / talk points prior to his interview and commented that he probably wouldn’t use it during the interview, but it seemed like a great tool to help organize his thoughts.  I suggested he be ready to use it when appropriate and he should get it bound and printed at a Kinkos or Staples in color so it looked professional – which he did.

Sure enough, the hiring manager asked the question that made it easy for my candidate to introduce WintheView:  “So, tell me what do you plan to do during the first 30 – 60 days”?  He provided the VP with the presentation and took him right to the 30-60 day action plan page and went through his planned action items.  WTV makes it easy to generate a 30-60 day plan with the assistance of templates and pull down menus.

The VP said wow, this is perfect, and he went through the other pages and was extremely impressed.  My candidate said he scored “lots of preparation points” and felt great about his interview performance. 

He should feel great ……. the VP told him an offer would be forthcoming just in time for the holidays!! 

One of the common concerns of using the WTV approach is how does the hiring manager feel about losing control.  They don’t lose control at all – they are actually more engaged.  It just takes an ounce of finesse for the candidate to introduce the “talking points” they have prepared by introducing the color printed spiral bound presentation.  And by the way, just happened to have a copy for everyone on the interview team.  The real value though is in the preparation process and the time invested by the person being interviewed.  Their talk points should be “muscle reflex” after going through the WTV process.

The are better prepared, more confident, professional, get a competitive edge over their competition and more likely to get an offer and move forward in their professional career.

The WTV approach can be introduced to the hiring team in many ways.  Most common is when the interviewer asks a pointed question about the job seekers qualifications (such as the 30-60 day question).

This great job offer will be a timely gift for the holidays!  

Best wishes to everyone for a happy and healthy holiday season!

GOT AN INTERVIEW? WHAT ARE YOU DOING DIFFERENTLY TO PREPARE??

30 Day Free Trial for the WinTheView Interview Preparation & Presentation tool

If you have the committment to spend at least one hour preparing for your next career opportunity interview, then this interview preparation / presentation tool is for YOU.  Try it out with no investment other than your time.  If you need 1:1 coaching, we can provide training and support (for an additional cost.)

This POWERFUL interview preparation tool now comes with a 30 DAY FREE TRIAL

Our search firm continues to chalk up the success stories as our candidates outperform the competition during the interview with their confidence, demonstrated preparedness and professionalism and on-point articulation of their ability to overachieve for a given career opportunity.  We provide this tool as a value add to candidates (for our recruiting firm) and would like to make it available to all job seekers for no charge (for 30 days).

Just log in as a new user and create as many presentations as you like.  They will be there .. on-line, until the next time you need to access them.  This process will make you better prepared without question and you WILL differentitate yourself with your interview performance.  Try it out and see for yourself!  But, you must be willing to invest about an hour to win your next interview!!!

Feel free to call with any questions.

Best regards,

Ken Diamond

610-941-0700

Got an interview? Take a different approach!

We have been using a different approach to prepare our candidates for interviews. We’ve developed an on-line tool that has the candidate generating a solutions based presentation on why they are a good fit for the role. The candidates’ walk into the interview (typically the second interview or first in person) with a printed and bound presentation (call them discussion points) and when the questions start … the candidate says, I’ve put together a brief summary of why I am excited about this opportunity and why I believe I’m a good fit. Would you mind if I review it with you? 95% of the time the hiring manager says yes, unless it is a highly structured interview. The candidate must know to be flexible and watch body language of the interviewer. Bottom line is this approach has worked great for us as recruiters and to help prepare our candidates. We’ve had a wide variety of individuals use it. We do recruiting in technology and health care.

Going through the process is where the real value is because the candidates must think through the key qualifiers and be able to come up with a few key points / accomplishments relative to the requirement. As a result, they are much more confident, on point and differentiate themselves among the competition.

We used a powerpoint platform previously and then decided to develop the process on the web. It’s called WintheView – winning the interview. It’s like a turbo tax for recruiting … a step by step wizard that makes it very easy for job seekers to create a presentation to powerfully communicate their fit for the role.

Candidates can develop as many presentations, follow up letters and accomplishment stories as they wish and can come back to them anytime in the future. It has custom industry templates for the cover page and many pull down libraries of information to help build the presentation. Hiring managers respond well to this approach and appreciate the level of preparation demonstrated by the candidate.

It’s nice for recruiters as candidates can work on it independently and then collaborate with them to make sure they are on track. One placement pays for hundreds of presentations. The cost is $59.95 for 3 months.
We are just now starting to market this tool so it is still very much a differentiator for recruiting firms and candidates. Any suggestions for getting the word out would be much appreciated. We have over 200 success stories and many placements directly due to WintheView