Page 143 - You're Hired! Interview Answers

PeoPLe-BaSed QueStionS examPLe inteRview anSweRS interviewer: earlier you mentioned the merger with aBC
Ltd. how did you go about building relationships across the
new divisions?

7 Poor answer:

“My feeling is that the personal touch is essential here. We had a launch party

for the new firm and as head of the legal function I made sure that I touched
base with all my peers from across the business. I knew I probably wouldn’t
get a chance to meet them again for months, so I wanted to be sure that we
had at least said ‘hello’. I also made sure that I got 5 minutes with the MD, so
that it would be easier to catch up again later – it’s much easier to take a call
from someone whose voice you recognise – and I got his agreement that the
legal department would be at the top of the list when it came to the round of
departmental meetings he was setting up. In the current situation he could
see this made sense because of all the contract negotiations coming up. My
aim was to get my credibility built early on so that he would feel he was in safe

hands.”

While there are some good things in this answer, for example the ‘personal
touch’ in building credibility, it’s just not systematic enough to ‘sell’ high-level
people skills to the interviewer. As well as getting a fix on your ability to network
at an ‘event’, the interviewer would have been hoping for a lot more evidence
of a well thought-through approach to relationship building.

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