Tag Archive for: #CareerAdvice : #InterviewQuestions – Best Answer To The #InterviewQuestion ‘Why Should I Hire You?’ … Must REad!

In today’s fast-paced world, you need a quick, concise, well-thought-out answer to capture the employer’s interest and make them decide to hire you.

The formula: creating your strategy

Examine your previous experience. Write out the major responsibilities for each job you’ve held. Note any special accomplishments. Zero in on your important work strengths—those abilities where you excel and are most productive.

Then, check with your contacts and use your network to get as much background as possible about the employer, the company, and the position’s needs. Check the hiring manager’s LinkedIn profile. Go to Glassdoor.com and read reviews of the organization. Many times, your contacts and research will point out the very aspects that must make up your 5 top selling points which I call, the 5 Point Agenda. Other times, there will be little information available and you will need to guess based on your general knowledge about performing the job.

After reviewing the position’s needs, determine which of your abilities and which aspects of your experience will be most important to the employer. Then create your 5 Point Agenda, selecting each point to build a solid picture emphasizing how you can do the best job. This is an important step as the 5 Point Agenda is the basis for creating your 60 Second Sell.

Before every job interview, you will customize your 5 Point Agenda to reflect the responsibilities of the job as well as the company’s goals and objectives. These five points are your basic building blocks to answer the interviewer’s questions. You’ll want to emphasize each of these points whenever the opportunity presents itself. The message the employer will hear is that you have the ability to perform and do well in the job—and it will give your prospective boss confidence in hiring you. On top of that, they likely will remember these aspects about you.

Here is the sample that Susan, 58, created about her role as a Human Resources Director. The company wanted to find a progressive HR partner to lead its organization. They needed a strategic leader. The client had heard about the position from a friend at an HR conference and wanted to go after the job. Her 5 Point Agenda needed to stress her achievements.

Example:

Human Resources Director

• Point 1: Award-winning human resources leader.
• Point 2: Providing strategic direction for the organization that was recently named a national best places-to-work company.
• Point 3: Strong entrepreneurial drive was responsible for delivering new programs, HR systems, and major policy enhancements.
• Point 4: A strategic and operational business partner working closely with top executives.
• Point 5: Exceeds goals and expectations.

Your Verbal Business Card

The 60 Second Sell is a tool that helps you target your skills to meet the employer’s needs. It allows you to summarize your most marketable strengths in a brief and concise manner. Successful job hunters have found that the 60 Second Sell is the most influential tool they used during the interview process. They praised the tool for several reasons:

• It was effective in capturing the employer’s attention.
• It provided excellent, concise answers to tricky questions.
• It was very easy to use.
• It was a great way to end an interview.

The 60 Second Sell is a 60-second statement that you customize for each interview and that summarizes and links together your 5 Point Agenda. You will want to put the points of your 5 Point Agenda into an order that allows you to present them in the most logical and effective manner. When you link the ideas into sentences, they should be spoken in 60 seconds or less. Once memorized, this statement will be easy for you to recall and use during the interview.

Answering that tough question

Your 60 Second Sell is the perfect answer: Why should I hire you? This question is asking you to convince the employer to hire you. The 60 Second Sell is effective because it demonstrates your strengths and illustrates how you will fill the employer’s needs. That is the key to its success, and yours.

60 Second Sell Example

To clearly understand how your 5 Point Agenda is linked and becomes your 60 Second Sell, let’s continue with our earlier example; here is how we took Susan’s  5 Point Agenda and linked the points together to summarize them and create her 60 Second Sell.

Human Resources Director

“I’ve been an award-winning human resources leader with fif­teen years of experience providing strategic direction. I’m proud to share that my current employer was recently named a national best-places-to-work company. I am a global thinker who contributed to the company’s success as a strategic and operational business partner, and we have cut attrition by 60%. I display a strong entrepreneurial drive at work. I have been responsible for delivering new programs, HR systems, and ma­jor policy enhancements. My CEO has repeatedly recognized me for my innovative leadership that often exceeds goals and expectations.”

This encapsulates exactly why the employer should hire her. She has outlined her very best skills, experience and abilities. And it worked – Susan landed her dream job amongst steep competition. By following this formula, you’ll be able to sell yourself effectively too.