BUSINESS ENGLISH

Communicative course
1 Before the interview, ask a friend/colleague to ask you typical
questions. In particular, practise talking about your strong
points using concrete examples from your current job.

2 Before the interview, write to the people who will give

you references. Tell them to expect a call and give them a
recent copy of your CV/Resume.
3 Arrive 30 minutes early on site and 10 minutes early for the
interview. Use the time to walk in the fresh air. When greeting JOB INTERVIEW
the interviewer, smile, make eye contact and shake hands TIPS FOR A SUCCESSFUL
firmly.
INTERVIEW
4 Your clothes, shoes and hair need to be tidy and above
your normal standard.

5 Keep your answers short, simple and relevant.

Interviews are a dialogue so don’t talk more than 60–70%
of the time.

6 Occasionally take the initiative and ask questions to

show you are interested.
7 Be enthusiastic and positive. Never
contradict, argue or interrupt. Never criticize
previous employers during the interview.

8 Don’t be submissive. Treat the

interviewer with respect, but as an JOB INTERVIEW
equal. TIPS FOR A SUCCESSFUL
INTERVIEW
9 Don’t ask questions about the salary. If
possible, wait for the interviewer to mention it.
Ask for higher than you expect. If in doubt, ask
for your current salary plus 15%.

10 Immediately after the interview make notes: write

down names, details about the organization, and
especially company ‘buzzwords’. If called for a
second interview, make sure you use these.
JOB INTERVIEW
TIPS FOR A SUCCESSFUL INTERVIEW
11 Consider writing a short follow-up letter, particularly after informal
interviews where there was no clear job being advertised. Express your
pleasure in meeting everyone (list them by name), comment on one part of
the meeting (something that emphasizes your qualifications), mention again
the benefits you can bring to the company and why you would like to work
there (include company buzzwords).
 12 Add your own tip
 Current
Background
responsibilities

Personal Proudest
characteristics achievement JOB INTERVIEW
COMMONLY ASKED
QUESTIONS ARE ABOUT:
Greatest Reasons for
strength and leaving your
weakness current job

Questions you may have

for the interviewer
JOB INTERVIEW
BACKGROUND

Can you tell me something about yourself ?

• Give a brief summary of your professional

background
your current responsibilities
your work experience
your education and professional qualifications
JOB INTERVIEW
BACKGROUND
 Have a clear structure in mind and follow it
“I graduated from XXXX University in 2005 and joined ABS Systems. After two
years, I moved to JBC as an investment analyst where I was responsible for the
pharmaceutical sector. Four years later I was promoted to senior investment analyst
in charge of a team of 5 analysts. For the last five years, I have been with XYZ
investments where I am responsible for the engineering sector”
 Quantify your achievements. Use specific numbers. This is especially
useful where you want to show your added value
 “In two years I was in charge of logistics, our delivery times halved from 4
days to two days from receipt of the order”
Some phrases for starting:

I’m mainly responsible for…

JOB INTERVIEW
CURRENT
My main duties include … RESPONSIBILITIES
I’m mainly in charge of
coordinating…

In addition to my financial responsibilities, I

take care of organising…
● handle calls/ meetings

● manage a portfolio/ a team

● organise schedules/ events

● coordinate events
JOB INTERVIEW
● provide cover for VERB-NOUN COLLOCATIONS
TO DESCRIBE YOUR JOB
● deal with problems/clients RESPONSIBILITIES
● oversee day-to-day management

● support key managers

● prepare agendas
● resolve conflict
JOB INTERVIEW
PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS

"How would you describe yourself?“

Using dynamic phrases (usually adjective-noun combinations) will
catch your interviewer’s attention:
detail-oriented thrive on challenge
adapt well to new flexible thinker
situations effective team member
broad-minded work well under pressure
proactive
resourceful
JOB INTERVIEW
DYNAMIC PHRASES
● ability to deal with … member/player ● committed
● adapt well to new ● decisive leader individual/team player
situations
● creative thinker ● confident in my
● ambitious abilities
● detail oriented
● assertive ● determined
communicator ● eager learner problem-solver
● cooperative
● broad-minded ● dynamic . . . speaker
● capable ● conscientious /manager

● effective team ● competitive nature ● energetic

 JOB INTERVIEW
DYNAMIC PHRASES
● enterprising ● long range vision ● self-disciplined
● enthusiastic leader/team ● methodical ● self-motivated
member
● motivational leader ● self-starter
● flexible approach/thinker
● people oriented ● sensitive to the needs of …
● customer/client focused
individual ● poised under pressure [of ● sincere interest in
deadlines]
● goal orientated ● success oriented
● problem solver
● innovative approach ● team player
to/thinker ● quick thinker/learner
● thrive on challenge
● [strong] interpersonal skills ● resourceful ● work independently
● leadership skills ● risk taker
● work well under pressure
JOB INTERVIEW
DYNAMIC PHRASES
 "I'd describe myself as a dynamic team player, with the ability to
thrive on new challenges and work well under pressure“
 "In my management philosophy, I am a risk-taker. What I mean
by that is I am willing to try new things and think in new ways".
 "I definitely think it's good to create a team of people who are self-
starters. What I'm saying is that as a manager you should
welcome people who are motivated, have ideas and who work
well independently".
JOB INTERVIEW
THINKING TIME
 If your interviewer were to ask you to provide them with an example of a
situation that could demonstrate a particular characteristic, you may need
to give yourself some time to think.
 Giving yourself time to think is important and the following phrases will
help you gain precious thinking time:
 Mmm, let's see.....
 That's a good question .......
 Just bear with me for a second......
 That's an interesting question. Let me see........
JOB INTERVIEW
SUMMARISING A RESPONSE

Once you've given an example, summarising that response would

give a strong impression of your orderliness and structure of
thought.
For example, you could say:
 "In a nutshell, I think this story clearly demonstrates my ability to
prioritise tasks".
 "In summary, taking the initiative has led me to success again
and again in my career as I think this story illustrates".
JOB INTERVIEW
PROUDEST ACHIEVEMENT

"Tell me about your proudest achievement."

With this question, the interviewer wants to know how you solved a
problem. It's not enough to simply answer with the outcome/result, for
example:
 "I think my proudest achievement was when I increased our delivery times by
100% in six months".
The interviewer's question above could be followed by these questions:
 "How did you go about fixing/solving the problem?"
 "What were the results?“
 JOB INTERVIEW
PROUDEST ACHIEVEMENT
Therefore, it is important that you give some background to put your achievement in context. So,

● state what the problem was;

● describe what was the cause of the problem;

● explain how you went about solving the problem

Some expressions that could be used for giving the cause of the problem could be:

It was down to/because of.......

The delays revolved around the issue of.......

We finally identified the root cause as being ......

The problem went/stemmed back from the time when......

JOB INTERVIEW
GREATEST STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES
Question: "What would you say are your greatest strengths and weaknesses?“
Answer: Ability to step back from time to time and think strategically and my
willing to challenge
Answer: Role requires good interpersonal skills, intellectual curiosity, strong
work ethic and the practical ability to manage multiple work-streams and
deliverables to deliver high-quality results.
 With that in mind, make a point of emphasising the characteristics they're
looking for. Don't lie, though! Remember you will be asked to provide
examples to back up your claims.
JOB INTERVIEW
GREATEST STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES
 How about your greatest weaknesses?
In answering this question, it's always important to sound sincere and
demonstrate self-knowledge.
 First, use the positive side of the weakness. You could say:
One advantage of this is ......... The good side to this is ........
 Then, briefly identify the negative side:
The downside to this is..... One drawback to this is........
 Finally, describe how you've started to overcome your weakness.
"By being aware of my tendency to overwork, I've learned to pace myself
more and to work less over time".
JOB INTERVIEW
REASONS FOR LEAVING YOUR CURRENT JOB

"Why do you want to leave your present/current job?"

 With this potentially sensitive question, one of the best ways of
responding to it is to emphasise that you're looking for bigger
and different challenges.
 Stay positive - don't say anything negative about your current
company, job or boss. Focus on the future - here's a great
phrase:
"My goal is to grow to be a stronger performer and contender in the
workplace".
 JOB INTERVIEW
QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE FOR THE INTERVIEWER
Towards the end of the interview, candidates are often asked if they have questions they want to ask
the interviewer. It's very important to ask questions. By asking questions you:
● learn important information about the company and the position;
● demonstrate your knowledge about their company;
● show that you take the position seriously.
Here are some questions you could ask:
 What's the five-year plan for this company?
 How important does senior management consider the function of this position?
 Could you give me an overview of your organisational structure?
 What are the company's strengths and weaknesses compared to its competitors?
 How will my performance be measured? By whom?
 Task - describe the
Situation - give the action you needed to
context of your story take or the solution
you needed to find JOB INTERVIEW
STAR TECHNIQUE
Result - what
Action - describe the happened in the end
action you took as a result of your
action
 Situation:
Task:
“Well, last year our
department took on a new “As project manager,
project. Within a few weeks, it was my
it became clear we didn’t responsibility to find
have enough resources to
complete the project on
a solution quickly to
time. It looked like it was save the project and
going to be a complete
failure.”
our reputation”. JOB INTERVIEW
STAR TECHNIQUE
Action: Result:
“I suggested we reduce the “This saved us 4 hours a
number of meetings and week in meetings which
work on a collaborative led to increased
platform instead. I also productivity and meant
that we completed the
recommended we divide
project within the deadline
the tasks between mini- and with the limited
teams”. resources we had.”