IT Interview: Do's and Don'ts
KoolTrix
Banned Posts: 130
I was wondering what everyone's experience is with interviews.
some helpful tips, suggestions, advice
some Do's and Don'ts for Interviews in the IT field
for starters.. What do you wear?
Button up, Khaki's, Blazer?
2 Piece Suit with Tie?
How many of you guys out there have beards? Clean shaved?
Questions to ask? Questions to avoid asking?
Don't say this, Say this?
Anything and everything.
Thanks!
some helpful tips, suggestions, advice
some Do's and Don'ts for Interviews in the IT field
for starters.. What do you wear?
Button up, Khaki's, Blazer?
2 Piece Suit with Tie?
How many of you guys out there have beards? Clean shaved?
Questions to ask? Questions to avoid asking?
Don't say this, Say this?
Anything and everything.
Thanks!
Comments
What do you wear?
If you don't know what to wear always be safe and wear a suit. Better safe than sorry IMO.
How many of you guys out there have beards? Clean shaved?
I usually just go with a few days of stubble since I have the facial hair of a 15 year old. One day my goal is to be able to grow a full beard
Questions to ask? Questions to avoid asking?
I always ask about things that are important to me like benefits, room for advancement, what will I be doing on a daily basis etc. As far as what not to ask, just keep it on subject and use your best judgment. Don't ask him/her out for a date or their view on politics. Keep it to work related questions.
My biggest advice would be to not lie about your skills. You don't want to get yourself into a situation you can't handle and get fired.
Do your research on the company. Know who their competitors are, the more info you have the better.
If you are truely interested in the position, ask for it. Numerous employers told us over the years that they liked someone, and had hoped they would have asked for the position.
As for what to wear, never can do wrong with a suit. Just make sure your shoes are shined and socks match. I cant count the times we had employers in the office to interview for a position and folks showed up in a suit with running shoes on, or mismatched/white socks, etc.
Follow up with a thank you note in email, mail, or even better in person if possible. Ask what the next step is in the hiring process.
Things on my questions to ask list, depending on the position/situation:
- is this a new position? what does/will the average day or week for this position entail?
- what's the size of the team? plans for expansion or new roles in the near future? whether there are growth/advancement opportunities within the team, especially if you like a challenge & are interested in moving forward with this company.
- if it's not a M-F, 9-5 position...is there a specific availability schedule they are/aren't looking for?
- ask for clarification of any questions you don't understand. If you're at a technical interview, and you get asked a question but aren't sure of the context/details, ask for some more info. Or just ask them "in what context do you ask, context_A or context_B?" You won't look silly if you ask for clarification, and it might even make you look like you have a deeper understanding of the complexity involved with what they're asking about. Also, it's better to ask & make sure you answer the right question than to go off on a tangent about something they weren't even asking. Swallow that pride & ask them what they meant. Usually, it's not totally cool to answer a question with another question, but I'd say this is the exception.
- ask when you should be hearing from them or what the next step of the interview process is. I've never really done, but it's highly advisable and indicates that you're definitely interested in the position and in hearing from them about it. But it's a fine line between showing interest and being seen as overly pushy or desperate for the job, so proceed with caution!
Things NOT to ask or touch on:
- pay rates, benefits & days off, etc. Until you have an offer, in my opinion, it's somewhat unseemly to be asking, "So how many days off do I get?" or "What are the specific benefits and how much does this job pay?" Bonuses are in that in between area...if you're going for a position that might heavily depend on performance based bonuses, it might be worthwhile to ask about the bonus structure at an interview (I'd say not the first interview, maybe 2nd or 3rd and put it in a context about understanding the company's overall structure and philosophy if possible). In general, I'd say these are conversations to be had at the negotiation stage after an initial offer is made.
- politics, religion, etc. Don't go in there with your Obama "YES WE CAN" pin prominently displayed on your chest. Don't get me wrong, I like Obama just fine, but I wouldn't like it if liking Obama cost me a job because the interviewer was a staunch republican. I prefer to be around other progressives, but I have worked with and can work with conservatives, and I'd like to be judged on my talents rather than my political leanings.
One definite DO is to be honest. Don't overshare (they don't need to know all your deepest, darkest secrets!) but don't try to cover your lack of knowledge on a certain subject with BS or flat out lies. If you don't know something, say you don't know it. You can sugar coat it a bit & present it in a nice manner though - "I don't have previous training or hands on experience with that particular technology, but I would be very interested in learning more about it." If you can, make educated guesses, but do let the interviewer know that you ARE making a guess based on your experience with other technologies or based on your basic troubleshooting steps. For example, I was recently asked how to troubleshoot a non-working RGB projector. I flat out told them that I have no experience with it, but I'd start with the simple stuff like making sure that it's plugged in, there's power to the outlet, that all the connecting wires on the projector are inserted properly, power button is set to on, etc. Sounds silly & oversimplistic maybe, but it shows that I'd at least give it a shot instead of throwing my hands up in defeat when presented with a challenge.
Also, be prepared for common interview questions. Research what the common questions are - where do you see yourself in x years, what's your biggest weakness/strength, what's a time when you were challenged, how do you troubleshoot, what do you do when you don't know how to do/fix something, etc. - and come up with some unique and honest responses. Again, don't be oversharing, but do practice so that you can succinctly give intellectual responses at interviews instead of sitting there going "ummm, errr, ummm" while you think of something.
Your physical demeanor also plays into how you're perceived in an interview. Sit up straight. If you're going to lean in any direction, lean forward & not back - you want to look interested, not like you're chilling on your couch at home with the dog. Make eye contact. Give a firm handshake hello and goodbye. Jot down the names of the person/people you're interviewing with, and DO send a thank you email or letter afterwards.
And last but certainly not least - be polite, respectful, and treat them how you'd like to be treated if you were on the other side of the table. Not only is it nice to do so and surely it makes a good impression, but also you never never know where or in what capacity you'll run into these folks again. Even if this job goes kaput, you might run into these HR folks or interviewers again at another interview/job (it's a smalllll world), and you don't want to be memorable for the wrong reasons...
Next Up: Security+, 291?
Enrolled in Masters program: CS 2011 expected completion
I have to agree...don't talk $ or bennies on the 1st interview unless they bring it up. As a former manager, when I interviewed candidates I always had them come in for a 2nd interview if they:
asked me sincere questions about the company
expressed their career goals - even long term
dressed to impress - showed they were serious
provided any awards, letters of recommendations
showed ENTHUSIASM about the job
Guy - definitely shave unless you have a medical condition
do NOT wear a lot of cologne
do NOT flirt
Good luck and hope it helped
WIP: 6426A, 6421, 6425 all Server 2008 AD :study:
I agree with most of your post, except this part. Why would you waste your time on two or three interviews with a company if you don't even know if they can offer you what you want? I wouldn't even consider a job without full benefits for my family so I get that question out of the way quickly so as not to waste everyone's time. The same with pay. They at least should offer you a range to ensure they are in your ballpark.
If you are desperate for a job and will take anything then I guess you can skip these questions but if you are seeking a serious career these will be things you will want to know imediatley.
Well.. I assume if the recruiter is a female and throws a few flirty lines it doesn't hurt to flirt back =0)....
I usually keep it simple on the attire, slacks and a button up shirt and tie. I always go clean cut. I haven't gone to alot of interviews but I know you can't show that you're nervous. You have to go determine and motivated, that's what they like to see in an individual.
I'm with the not flirting thing too. Just because someone compliments your tie (or whatever) it doesn't mean they have the hots for ya. Keep your dating prospects and your job prospects separate.
@networker050184, I can see your point. I guess the important questions to ask will vary a bit by your own personal situation. I'm not in a position in my career where I'm looking for or qualifying for the big bucks, and thankfully my husband is bringing home a fairly decent salary/benefits & we live reasonably so we're not in a financial pickle...so getting a fair wage and getting some more experience (both technical interview & job experience) are my goals right now. For your situation, you can totally "get away with" asking about salary and benefits without appearing like a greedy person - you are looking out for your family, and the interviewer will likely see that if it's presented in that context. My opinion is that you might still want to wait until after a first interview though - show them the goods, make them want to buy it, and THEN let them ask how much it costs...once they know they want you, you have better bargaining power. Just my two cents.
Next Up: Security+, 291?
Enrolled in Masters program: CS 2011 expected completion
Never go wrong with dark blue suite, black shoe/sock, and nice clean gel haircut.
Good Luck
(......did I just write that?......nope...hey skrpune....get out of my head
j/k
Nice comments!
_____
"Grammar and spelling aren't everything, but this is a forum, not a chat room. You have plenty of time to spell out the word "you", and look just a little bit smarter." by Phaideaux
***I'll add you can Capitalize the word 'I' to show a little respect for yourself too.
'i' before 'e' except after 'c'.... weird?
Damn...
Next Up: Security+, 291?
Enrolled in Masters program: CS 2011 expected completion
I generally agree with this.
If anything, give a salary range to make sure everyone is in the same ballpark. For example if you are looking for at least 100K, then tell them that your requirement will fall in the 100-120K range. This method has worked for me in the past.
It can be awkward when you get too far into discussions and then realize that you are on Boardwalk and they are on Baltic Avenue.
Candidate #1: We really liked this guy. He was friendly, outgoing, had run his own business for several years and was currently employed as a manager where he had been for about a year. He seemed pretty smart.
However, he asked at least 3 times how much sick leave we have. Then he let it slip once that he was sick a lot. In the industry, we call this a "red flag".
Candidate #2: This guy also seemed very qualified. Additionally he had several years of military service in his background, which always tends to give you a leg up as a DoD Contractor. Our only concern was that he didn't seem very outgoing. He was very reserved. Too quiet. No expressions, no sign of emotion, didn't talk unless you asked him a direct question. Very dead-pan. This concerned us because the position was going to be directly interacting with customers. Social/people skills are very important. We thought maybe he is just nervous and will loosen up over time, so we had him back for a second interview, and then even a third time just for a social "get to know who you might be working with" tour. We nicknamed him "dead-pan Dan". He didn't get the job.
Candidate #3: This was a sharp, young guy with a decent resume and appeared to have the skills we needed. Personality was good. On his resume, he indicated he had A+, Net+ and Sec+ certifications. So my boss requested proof by using the CompTIA method to make your certifications available to others. Well this guy couldn't figure out how to do that. So my boss emailed him a link to CompTIA's site explaining the procedure. The guy still couldn't figure it out, so instead he sent my boss his CompTIA username and password telling my boss to log in as him and check that way.
To make matters worse, it turns out he only had A+, and not the Net+ or Sec+ like he listed on his resume. When my boss informed him of this, the guy looked surprised and said "But I took the classes and got the certificates". Turns out, he thought a certificate of completion for a 1-week Net+/Sec+ class meant he was certified.
I put these examples here since they are real examples of what has been stated above as do's/don'ts.
i've had this habit since high school where i twirl the pen around my hand when and sometimes put my finger underneath the pen clip and it eventually snaps off. anyways, i broke the pen clip at the interview and got the job anyways (so maybe you should do this).