Topics/Questions asked in GD’s/Interview 1. Tell me about yourself and your past experience? 2. What are your strengths and weaknesses? 3. Why are you leaving your current job? 4. Why do you change jobs so often?5. Did you get along with your previous boss? 6. What did you like/dislike about your previous manager? 7. If we phoned your previous employer/manager, what would they

tell us about you? 8. What do you know about our company? 9. If you lack experience, what do you have to offer? 10. How would your boss describe you and your work style? 11. Why didn't you go further in school? 12. What do you do in your spare time? 13. What interests you most about this position? 14. What interests you least about this position? 15. Why should we hire you? 16. What experience have you had that qualifies you for this

position? 17. What attracted you to this job? 18. What are your salary expectations? 19. What qualities do you think are important to this position? 20. When have you been most motivated? 21. How long do you see yourself with us? 22. Your Strengths and weaknesses – justify23. What is meant by Theory of Constrains?24. How do you apply TOC to Vizag Steel Plant?25. Knowledge about stock market and financial market?26. What is Knowledge Management?27. What was your learning from Summer Internship Program?28. Tell me something about your family etc29. What are your future objectives?30. What do you understand by derivatives, commodities,

futures, options etc?31. Tell me something about the various stock prices and

sensex 32. What have you done in till today in the area of Market

Research33. What were the various tools and techniques used in Market

Research

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34. Do you possess any software knowledge?35. What are the techniques that are used in Market Research

in SPSS? 36. Tell me something about Z-Test, T-Test etc and various

statistics related questions on these aspects37. Which profile of the company would suit you better and

why?38. One good reason why we should hire you and not your

friend?39. Why MBA?40. Difference between an MBA and a mother who does

manage without an MBA41. Number of questions testing knowledge of numerical ability42. Given various job offers which one would you choose (like

Production Vs Consulting, Logistics Vs Consulting, HR Vs Marketing etc) and why?

43. Your favourite character in Mahabharata and why44. Your favourite Business personality and why?45. Are you well versed with the current business affairs?46. Your favourite film actor and recent movie that you have

seen47. How can you prove that you can work hard?48. Are you ready to travel extensively?49. Tell me some details about your Summer Internship Project50. Do you participate in co-curricular activities?51. What are your weaknesses?52. What are the books that you have read recently?53. What have you learnt from these books?54. Give me some examples of your hardworking capabilities55. What according to you are the basic responsibilities of an

HR Manager?56. How did you approach companies for your Summer

Internship Project?57. How will you approach the global marketing of our

product?58. Market the Pen against a competitor’s pen59. How do you introduce or sell your product to an Executive?60. How much CTC do you expect?61. Many questions/situations based on marketing62. What is Advance Management?63. What are your achievements?64. What were your weaknesses at the graduation level?65. What will be your strategy to deal with competitors

entering the market?66. How did you land in IPE from North?

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67. Give us some idea for launching a new product into the market

68. Can you launch our product to A P Police (Specific question asked in Zen Technologies)

69. What qualities in you will make you an asset for our company?

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Sample open ended questions for interviews

:: Tell me about yourself

:: Tell me about your background and accomplishments

:: What are your strengths and weaknesses?

:: How would you describe your most recent job performance?

:: What interests you about our company?

:: What outside activities are most significant to your personal development?

:: Why should we hire you?

:: What are your career goals?

:: Do you consider yourself a leader or a follower? Why?

:: Describe your greatest accomplishment in life.

:: Describe your greatest failure in life.

:: What is your favourite subject?

:: What are your hobbies / interests?

:: Where do you see yourself five years/ ten years down the line?

:: How would your closest friend describe you?

:: How would your greatest enemy describe you?

:: Why did you join this B-school?

:: Why did you pick up this stream?

:: Describe a challenging situation that you had to face and how you dealt with it.

:: What motivates you?70.

Interview tips

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:: ResearchBefore attending the interview, ensure that you have read about the company including its product range, businesses in which it operates and recent news features. A person who already knows about the company comes across as a person who is keen and enthusiastic to join the company.

:: Body languageAlways maintain eye contact with the interviewer. It shows your confidence. Never droop in the chair. Sit upright and keep track of your hand movements while answering questions.

:: Prepare for basic open-ended questionsThe interview is a process by which the interviewer gets to know you and judge whether you match the requirements both academically and as a person. Generally, the interviewer will throw up some open-ended question like "Tell me about yourself". This is meant to relax the applicant. This can be used as an opportunity to divert the interview into your areas of strength. Open-ended questions like those on hobbies, achievements, etc reveal a great deal about you as a person. Treat these questions very seriously.

:: ListenListen to the question before answering it. Understand what the interviewer is looking for. If you need time to think about the answer, request for the same. Most interviewers would comply with such a request. But after you have taken time to think, better come up with a good answer.

:: Ask questionsGenerally, the last question of the interview is "Do you have any questions about the company?" Use this opportunity to ask something relevant about the company. If you do not ask any questions at this point, chances are that you may come across as a person who is not keen to join the company.

:: Be yourselfDo not try to be someone you are not during an interview. Be natural. An interview is a process by which the candidate and the interviewer get to know each other and the candidate's role in the organisation is established. Any mask that you may don for the interview will wear down in no time.

:: Mock interviewsIt is always a good idea to attend mock interviews and use the feedback to improve your interview skills.

Group discussion tips

:: Stay calmIt is seen that many group discussions degenerate into a fish market. This is because the participants lose their sense of calm. They panic either due to the topic under discussion or due to other participants. Regardless of what the situation may be, it is important for you to maintain your composure. Staying calm in the face of adversity is a quality that is absolutely required of a leader.

:: Meaningful contribution

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Some participants enter a group discussion with the impression that the more they talk, the greater is the chance of being selected. This cannot be further from the truth. How long you talk is irrelevant, what you talk is important. Repeating the same points over and over again shows the lack of content in the candidate.

:: Reaching consensusDecisions in real life business situations are normally taken by a team. It is a case of give and take. Flexibility in your thought process is crucial. Being adamant on a point just because you do not want to be seen as backing down reflects very poorly on the person. Understanding the other person's point of view is very important. If you feel strongly about what you believe in, push forth your point but in the form of clear reasons. Repeating the same point serves no purpose. It is well known that in a group discussion, reaching a consensus is extremely difficult. The fact that the group reached or did not reach a consensus is not relevant to your being selected. What is of relevance is what you did in order to try and reach a consensus.

:: Be seenRegardless of how many points you may have, unless you ensure that the group and the evaluators hear them out, they remain just what they are - ideas. To make them count you have to ensure that you are heard. Rarely will anyone gift you with an opportunity to speak. You will have to create that opportunity. And once you get that opportunity, make it count.

:: ListenSome candidates have so many points to put across that they find the time limit too short. So they end up occupying a lot of airtime. This shows favourably in terms of knowledge but is a poor commentary on team skills. In most business situations, decisions are seldom taken independently. You have to let others express their point of view.

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