No matter how senior you are, it pays to do some preparation before the interview. To help you consolidate what you can offer your prospective employer, compile a list of your strengths and weaknesses, skills and achievements. Another smart move is to draw up a list of answers to typical interview questions and rehearse them.

 

If you don’t understand a question, ask them to rephrase it - most interviewers understand this. If you are asked a question you do not know the answer to, or if you don’t have experience in that area you could explain that it is an area where you are developing your skills. Usually the interviewer will respect your honesty.

Those of you applying for decision-making role may be asked your opinion on relevant issues. For instance, a hotel may have a policy about being environmentally sound, while a restaurant may have policies on sourcing local produce or using Freetrade suppliers. This is where your company research and interview preparation will save the day.

Read on for examples of questions they might ask and how you could best answer...

 

• What can you offer this company?

Use this as a chance to tell the employer about your relevant skills - but remember to keep your answer short and succinct. If you are applying for a sales director role for a hotel group expanding in Asia, for instance, you might tell them: "I have a proven record in sales and considerable experience of developing new business for luxury hotels, so I am looking forward to bringing my expertise to Asia.”

 

• What do you know about this hotel/restaurant?

Make sure you have done your research using the internet and by reading industry publications such as Caterer & Hotelkeeper. Find out about the hotel or restaurant’s size, type of customer, style of cuisine and so on.

 

• Tell me a bit about yourself

Don’t wax lyrical about your views on US foreign policy, stay professional. They are assessing your communication skills and ability to think fast as much as your personality, so impress them by preparing a list of your responsibilities in your most recent job, your skills, and a summary of your career and how your experience will benefit the job you’ve applied for. Don't be limited by the information you provided in your CV. There may be things that you didn't include but could be relevant to the role.

 

Why have you applied for this job? They really want to hear what value you can add to the role and why you want to work for the company, so do some research on the internet and re-emphasise your suitability for the position.

·         What do you enjoy about your current job? The knack is to link what you enjoy with the key skills needed for the role you are applying for. Go one better and mention that you want to expand your experience in these areas.

 

·         Where do you see yourself in five years’ time? This time-honoured question requires a well-thought-out answer. Demonstrate that your long term goals are a natural progression from the position they are offering – and underline your commitment to them.

 Other questions you may be asked include:

• Why do you want to pursue an international career?
• Have you experience of living and working away from home?
• How do you respond to working under pressure?
• Do you like to work in a team or by yourself?
• What are you looking for in a company? 
• What do you do in your spare time?
• How did you get on with your other colleagues
• What do you think you will do if you do not get this job
• What other jobs are you applying for and why those jobs
• What makes you tick
• What motivates you  

Watch out for tricky questions

The key with difficult questions is to put a positive spin on your answers – and to be honest but discreet. Remember that many countries don’t have the same laws on equal opportunities so you may also be asked about your age, family life or other personal details. Here are some commonly asked questions:

• Why did you leave your last job? Always respond positively along the lines of: “I wanted to advance my career,” or I am looking for better opportunities for promotion,” or “I want more responsibility and variety in my job." Make sure that you can give positive explanations for any gaps in employment or where you have only stayed in a job for a short time

·         What would you say were your weaknesses? Everyone knows that this is an opportunity to turn the question into a positive. Think of something that relates to your experience of work that is plausible as a weakness but is not really a negative point. For instance, "Some people think  I am too obsessed about giving perfect service", or "I get too absorbed in sourcing seasonal produce for new menus".

·         A request for confidential information about your previous employer Never get drawn into this as your discretion and professionalism will then be under question. You can always lightly point out that they would expect you to be equally discreet about them.

·         Describe how you have dealt with conflict in the workplace This type of question aims to find out how you behave under pressure. Describe a difficult experience from a past job, but keep it professional and positive – try to illustrate how you learned from the experience

·         Were you forced to leave your last job? If you’ve had a bad experience such as redundancy, sexual harassment, or clashes with colleagues, you will be asked about them either at the telephone interview stage or later in the formal interview. Always be honest, positive, and avoid criticising former employers or expressing grudges.

Prepare your own questions

Remember, the interview is a two-way process. This is your chance to find out if the company and job is the right fit for you, so you are entitled to ask a few questions at the end. It also underlines that you are taking the interview seriously and confirms your interest in the job.

Now is a good time to mention any relevant strengths that you feel have not been revealed through the interviewer’s questions. You could, for instance, ask if it would it be helpful to expand on, say, your knowledge of wine if you are applying for an F&B role. Use the time to show that you have researched the company.

It is a good idea, therefore, to have a few questions prepared. If the interviewer has already covered areas that you were going to ask questions about, you can ask for confirmation on certain points – which at least shows you are interested and paying attention.

To help you, here’s a list of possible questions:

• Could you confirm my understanding of the main focus of this role?
• Will the position also involve liaising with the kitchen brigade/front of house team/sales team?
• What level of budget is allocated to the department and how is it controlled?
• How does the department fit into the company as a whole?
• How long was the last post-holder in the position?
• Can you tell me more about the company culture?
• What sort of training or career development is on offer?
• When will I become eligible for further training
• What opportunities are there for promotion?
• How long has the interviewer been with the company?
• Why is this such a good company to work for?

 Questions to avoid

·         Don’t ask about the salary, benefits or holidays at the first interview but be ready to discuss these if your interviewer brings them up.

In short

• Be prepared. Research the company and prepare some questions
• Give clear and concise answers
• Think about the question before answering

Red alerts

It is important that you don’t:

• Arrive late
• Lead the interview  
• Show a lack of knowledge about the company and the role
• Start to waffle if there are periods of silence
• Lie or exaggerate about your experience and qualifications
• Be vague in any of your answers incase it makes you look shifty
• Give over-long answers - if you feel the interviewer is not satisfied with your answer ask them if they want you to expand
• Discuss the salary at your first interview unless it is specifically discussed with you
• Criticise previous employers or jobs
• Get into an argument with the interviewer
• Give answers to questions that are not asked
• Lose concentration or fidget
• Leave your mobile phone switched on

Telephone Interviews

Telephone interviews are frequently used when applying for jobs abroad as they can help to eliminate people in the early stages before arranging potentially costly face-to-face interviews. For detailed advice, click through to XXX

Panel Interviews

This might sound daunting if you haven’t experienced one before, but if you remember a few key points you will be fine.

On the whole, it isn’t much different to a one-to-one interview. When you are introduced to everyone, make a mental note of their roles and identify who you would be working for. Then just remember to try to address everyone when answering each question. Stay calm, answer clearly and honestly and don’t forget to include illustrations of your skills in your answers.

After the interview

 

It’s clearly up to the interviewer to wrap up the interview but don’t forget to ask what the next stage is and when you can expect a decision.

Hospitality is a small world so if you decide you do not want the job it is important either to let the interviewer know during the interview or to write immediately afterwards.

 

Similarly, if you are still interested in the job you should send a note explaining that you enjoyed the interview and confirm your interest. Incidentally, this is a good opportunity to draw attention to any skills that perhaps you forgot to mention in the interview. So, you could say: “I have given some thought to what you said about handling budgets and …”

 

If you haven’t heard within a few weeks, by all means make a follow-up phone call to check progress - but don’t seem to be pestering.

       In short:

• Allow the interviewer to wrap up the interview
• Thank the interviewer and confirm your interest in the company and the role
• Alternatively, thank the interviewer and politely explain that you don’t feel the position is right for you

 If you don’t get the job

It’s hard to believe that you won’t get the job if you’ve got the right skills and you follow this advice. If the unthinkable happens, however, use the experience to assess where you could improve your interview technique.

 

Try to identify any factors that may have contributed to the outcome, such as lack of preparation or nerves. You can ask the interviewer for feedback and use any tips they give in future interviews.

If you would still like to work for the hotel, restaurant or contract caterer there is no harm in sending them a letter explaining that although you have not been successful on this occasion you would like to be considered for other related roles.

What you mustn’t do is become depressed or take it personally – let’s face it, there’s a lot of competition for international hospitality jobs so you have done very well to get to interview stage.

 

If you don't want the job

You might be in the happy position of getting several job offers, you might be given a job offer that you decide you don’t want, or you might change your mind about the company before you hear back from them. In each case, it is important that you get in touch immediately, ideally by telephone or email, explaining politely and professionally that you won’t be able to accept the position.

 

Top tip
If you get called to second interview or accept a job offer, it might be useful to ask some questions about your colleagues during the process. This will help to prepare you for the first few days in the job when you will need to be sensitive to who does what in the department and be aware of other issues.

You could, for instance, find out how long each team member has been at the company, what positions they’ve held, where they’ve worked in the past and what the hierarchy is. If you are at managerial level, you may also want to know if there is any romance or bad feeling between members of the team. Try to be subtle by slipping questions into the conversation rather than sounding that you are launching an inquest.

Good luck …