The remainder of this chapter contains typical interview questions, both behavioral and traditional, and sample story-based responses to them. Note that many of these stories contain emotional content to draw the interviewer in and help him or her identify with the interviewee.
When I was working as a data-entry examiner in claims, I was asked to participate on a team to help create a manual to document the process for data entry of claims. At the time, documents and training material were scattered across several resource files, but nothing straightforward, simple, and comprehensive had been designed for the insurance company’s largest client, the state of Nevada. From the start, I knew this would be a complex project because when we began mapping the decision trees and process, the map grew exponentially, and we found ourselves overwhelmed by the amount of research needed. To handle the project, I broke it down into four main categories and assigned them to individuals to research. I also selected one person to be the master editor and to keep us motivated and on track. I set deadlines so we could pace ourselves over the next few weeks to produce a value-added deliverable. We also rotated the work assignments when completed so we could check each other’s work for consistency and hammer out any policy differences and interpretations as they came up. In the end, we finished the 200+ page manual in about three months. All of us were extremely proud of the document we created. If I could do one thing over again, I would have probably have made the manual a Web-based document so it could be searched and browsed.
I had to give a marketing presentation while attending community college. The project was about Anheuser-Busch. We were assigned to report on key management personnel (CEO, Chairman of the Board, President, key VPs), divisions and subsidiaries, major products/brands/services, key financials for the most recent year (sales revenue, expenses, total income, net income, sales growth or loss for the last year), market share, key competitors, mission statement, product positioning, and number of employees. The steps I took included visiting the company’s Miami branch to interview employees and gather visual aids for the project. I spent considerable time organizing and writing the presentation. Then I spent time reviewing my speech over a period of several days. As a result I was calm while giving the presentation and earned an A for the project. The one additional step I perhaps wish I’d taken would have been to talk to some consumers and storeowners about the product.
My senior research was my most complex assignment. It took two semesters to complete and was made up of many components including gathering significant amounts of primary and secondary research. I had to make many critical decisions along the way that would affect the outcome of my research. I made these decisions independently with minimal influence from my professor. I was very successful and happy with my final product, an 80-page comprehensive report.
Tell Me About Yourself: Storytelling that Propels Careers, Quintessential Careers Press, ISBN-10: 1-934689-00-9. Find out the ways you can own the entire book.
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