In the current economic scenario, many of the questions that were typically asked during job interviews have become redundant. One such question is, “where do you see yourself in five years time?” Nobody knows their fate one year from today!
In such a situation, the way job interviews are looked at has changed and the preparation that is needed needs a different line of thinking.
Here are some popular recession-related job interview questions given by HR people, and the replies that the interviewing companies may like to hear.
Go on, check them out and get an edge over the rest:
Why are you looking for a job change in the current market scenario?
This question is asked to find out the main reason for the job change and will provide an insight to the company as to how stable the interviewee is going to be if hired.
It is important to be completely honest and state the reason and also provide some reasoning.
If required in the future, would you be willing to accept lower compensation or designation?
The reason for asking this question is to see how flexible and open the candidate is to any future changes within the organization. This is an indication that there is such a possibility in the future.
It would help for the candidate to show willingness to comply under such circumstances or be totally upfront in letting them know their views.
Would you be willing to be flexible with your job in terms of role?
The interviewer asks this to understand the mindset of the candidate in terms of flexibility towards the concept of “job rotation” or even when it is required to absorb the person within a new department.
The expected reply would be to display willingness to accept roles that involve job rotation or honing a different skill, in compliance with the need of the hour.
Do you think your current job is secure during these times of recession? And why?
The interviewer asks this to understand the standing of the candidate in their previous job. It will also reveal how confident the candidate is about their status in their current organization.
It is important for the candidate to talk confidently about the importance of their present role in their job and reason why they could be considered indispensable or important.
How did you manage your team members in today’s economic scenario, when you had to let go of some?
The interviewer, by asking such a question, looks to understand the candidate’s role in the team, exposure to handling such situations and how efficiently such situations are tackled by the candidate.
The candidate can talk about how these situations are taken care of sensitively and give examples of how they handled the process. If the candidate was responsible for choosing the team members to be axed, they can talk about the reasons for choosing someone and how the news was told to them.
Is a slowdown and a recession the same?
This may not be one of the most popular questions, but it may very well crop up when the interviewer needs to assess the candidate’s awareness of the current situation to understand the knowledge of what’s happening and to see how focused they are.
Either the candidate knows what is going on in the world or not. It helps to always keep abreast of things, irrespective of whether the post requires it or not.
What three important steps would you have taken if you had the power to avoid the current economic situation?
Something like this may be asked by the interviewer as it would reveal the candidate’s current knowledge regarding the economy nationally as well as globally, as well as gives a perspective of the candidate’s thinking and behavior.
How has the current situation affected your current company?
The interviewer wants to get an idea of not only knowledge of the current economic situation but also the candidate’s involvement and enthusiasm with the organization he or she works for.
Candidates should have complete knowledge of the current company they are in.
What is the executive’s role during this economy?
The interviewer aims at getting an understanding of the candidate’s role and contribution to the overall organizational growth. This is considered to be an important question that will help the interviewer relate the candidate’s performance with reference to past achievements.
The candidate on his part should explain the challenges overcome and achievements in the previous company.
While a candidate can never really be completely prepared for an interview, it helps to understand that companies when hiring look for candidates who have an understanding and knowledge of what is happening in the world at the time and an in-depth knowledge of the organization they work for. This is a sign of the involvement and enthusiasm with which the candidate will take up the new responsibilities.
