I
am in my first HR role, which I moved across into from an admin post, and have
been made redundant. Can you give some advice on what HR-related questions I
could expect to receive at interviews so I can prepare accordingly?
Clive
Sussams, recruitment consultant, Malpas Flexible Learning
As
you are at a very early stage of your career and have been performing
administration duties, typical interview questions will focus on system and
analysis skills, together with the depth of your HR knowledge, including the
extent of advice you give on a daily basis. You should emphasis your HR career
aspirations and, if you are not already studying, give details of your plan to
attain CIPD membership.
Peter
Lewis, consultant, Chiumento
Questions
that you may well be asked and should be well prepared for may include:
What
have been your main achievements in your career to date?
What
are your strengths and weaknesses?
How
easy did you find it to make the transition from administration to HR?
What
were the biggest challenges that you have faced in your last role?
What
have been your greatest achievements in your last HR position?
What
relevant HR experience and achievements can you bring to us?
What
areas of HR are you particularly interested in?
What
do you think are the main employment issues facing the HR function?
How
proactive do you think the role of HR should be within a company? Why?
If
we offered you a position, what would be the main goals that you would set
yourself in the first three months?
Would
you be interested in undertaking an HR-related qualification?
Louise
White, consultant, EJ Human Resources
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You
don’t say how long you were in your HR role for, so it is difficult to gauge
the level of questioning you might come up against. Assuming that you are
looking for a junior officer role, I wouldn’t expect too many heavily technical
questions at this level. Attitude at this stage is more important and future
employers will want to know that you have a strong customer service ethic, a
flexible attitude and a willingness to learn.
I
would suggest that you break your previous role down into categories and think
of examples of work you have done in each area. This way you will be able to
get across the depth of your experience if asked specific questions.
