Interview

The group interview: some practical examples

To save time companies that are looking for new employees often, at least in the initial part of the selection process, conduct the famous group interview. This type of meeting with the candidates is useful for determining if the applicants possess certain characteristics or not.

One thing is certain: the group interview is more difficult to navigate as compared to the individual interview. The reason is simple: you need to know how to interact with the other applicants, leaving them the proper amount of space while at the same time not letting them overshadow you. Once you’ve understood what the group interview is, it’s time to look at how it’s conducted. Here are some practical examples.

How a group interview is conducted

In general, the group interview takes place with 8 candidates plus an interviewer or 15 candidates and three interviewers. This depends on how the company wishes to conduct the meeting.  

In the next stage the company representatives take the floor to explain what they do and what the duties of the selected candidate will be. A piece of advice: take notes and show that you’re interested immediately. Your notes may turn out to be useful when you have to ask some questions later.colloquio gruppo

After a rapid introduction of all those present it’s important that you try to stand out from the others. The following stage is that of the actual group work. Each team is given a case study from the company’s history to analyse and resolve.

Described like that it seems pretty simple. But remember, there’s no solidarity in these situations: you aren’t at school and these aren’t your classmates. The other candidates want the same job as you do. So you have to show that you’ve got character, know how to interact with people, and have good interpersonal empathy. It’s important that you come off as respectful and collaborative, ready to assuage the tension of a stressful situation, and above all that you aren’t someone who isolates yourself or is afraid to speak. One last tip? Be yourself and it’ll all be fine!