IT and Tech Job Interviews can be challenging, and being prepared increases your chances of success in landing an IT Job. While interview questions may vary from IT Manager to IT Manager, there are some IT interview questions that tend to come up consistently across the board. Here are 3 Questions you can prepare for to help you light up your next Tech Job Interview.
What/How Can You Contribute To This IT Requirement?
This is a straight-shot, “Do you know your stuff?” question. In order to answer this question, you’ll need to be able to answer these questions:
Have you read the IT requirement in detail?
Are you clear on the duties of the position?
Do you have the necessary experience to draw on and answer this question?
If you can answer yes to all of the above, then here’s a story formula you should consider using in order to detail how you can contribute to this IT Job Requirement:
IT Job Experience = [Former Company/Organization] + [Challenge Relatable to Interviewer’s Need] + [Solution and Solution Finding Process] + [Learned Result]
Using this formula, your answer may look something like this…
In my experience at [XYZ Company], we had a [Challenge Relatable to Interviewer’s Need]. I/We were able to [Solution and Solution Finding Process]. What I learned from that experience is [Learned Result] and that is something I can draw upon, if I’m chosen to be a member of the team.
Try to list two different experience examples if possible. Your goal here is to built trust citing specific IT Job experiences in which you went through a situation that is relatable (if not the same) to this IT Requirement, and that you were a part of a successful solution.
IT Job Experience builds confidence, and confidence gets you hired.
But what if you don’t have a lot of specific, relatable IT Job Experience in the area of the IT Requirement?
If that is the case, then you may want to lean on personal character traits that may be of great benefit to the IT Requirement. For example, the Requirement may call for the ability to work under pressure, or collaboration in a team environment. These are opportunities for you to articulate your personal character traits through your other personal or work experiences.
In this instance we’re adding a new ingredient (Personal Passion) to our formula, but following the same process in telling our story as before:
Character Experience = [Personal Passion] + [Former Company/Organization] + [Challenge Relatable to Interviewer’s Need] + [Solution and Solution Finding Process] + [Learned Result]
Your answer may look something like this…
I have a [Personal Passion for X]. In my experience at [XYZ Company], we had a [Challenge Relatable to Interviewer’s Need]. I/We were able to [Solution and Solution Finding Process]. What I learned from that experience is [Learned Result] and I look forward to bringing that character trait to your team, if indeed you felt that would be of value.
If you’re going to be relying on more character traits than actual IT Job experience to answer this question, then it will benefit you to have reference letters from trusted professionals confirming your exampled character traits. Work ethic, leadership ability, performance under pressure, are all common needed character traits desired by most hiring managers. Build trust in your IT interview by telling a story about your valuable character traits.
Why Should I Hire You Over Other Candidates?
This is where you can lean on your answers to the “What/How can you contribute to this IT Requirement?” question.
If you haven’t been asked “What/How can you contribute to this IT Requirement?”, then you can utilize the same formula and process from that question to answer this question – detailing your experience and character contributions.
If you’ve answered the “What/How can you contribute to this IT Requirement?” question already, then you can use a script like the following to answer why you should be hired over others:
If the experience and character contributions I’ve detailed aren’t more valuable than those I’m competing against for the position, and if my references aren’t more enlightening, then the next area where I might be able to make an impact is coach-ability.
Discuss your willingness to be coached and groomed by IT management, in order to be molded into the best fit for the team. Potential can be a powerful difference maker in an IT Job Interview. Depending on the Job Requirement, IT Management may be willing to lower their expectations in the area of specific IT Job Experience for a candidate with high coach-ability and potential, whom they can sculpt into a strong contributor.
What Are Your Long-Term Aspirations & Goals Within Our Organization?
All organizations are looking for great people. In an IT organization, Hiring IT Managers are looking for great people they can hire on long-term. In project-based hires, they’re looking for IT professionals who may be willing to take on a new project within the organization once the current project has been completed.
As an interviewee, its important to be open to both of those options. Even the IT Pro who may be quite certain that the upcoming project will be his or her last one, doesn’t know what the future holds, and may end up jumping for a chance to re-up once the project ends.
Make sure you lay out your goals and aspirations while expressing an openness to working long-term within an organization if you’ve found the right fit.
At the same time, understanding what type of organization, team, and environment you best thrive in, helps you better grip your long-term view of working within that organization. Most people would love to work long-term in an environment that pushed them to grow, allowed them to thrive, and made them happy.
This question is an opportunity for you to ask more about the work environment and people within the organization you’re interviewing with. Here’s a good one to lead with…
“How long have you been with the organization, and why has the organization been a fit for you?”
Being prepared to answer these 3 questions allows you to be that much more confident in your approach to your next IT Job Interview.
