ProGrad Brisbane

An Accountant, an Admin Clerk, and their Manager are walking to lunch when they find an antique oil lamp.

They rub it and a Genie comes out.

The Genie says, “I’ll give each of you just one wish.”
“Me first! Me first!” says the Admin Clerk.

“I want to be in Hawaii, driving a speedboat, without a care in the world” Poof! She’s gone.

“Me next! Me next!” says the Accountant. “I want to be in Bali, relaxing on the beach with my personal masseuse, an endless supply of cocktails and the love of my life.” Poof! He’s gone.

“OK, you’re up,” the Genie says to the Manager.

The Manager says, “I want those two back in the office in an hour.”

Moral of the story: Always let your boss have the first say!

According to ‘The Telegraph’- Article by Jeremy Warner (DEC 2011)

ProGrad is trying to put out the warning for all graduates that there may be some tough economic times ahead.  (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news)

Now is the time to brace yourself and get clued up about the types of industries and roles available.  Our recommendation is to research the industries which will come out on top during the uncertain times ahead. Try looking at publications such BRW (Business Review Weekly), The Australian, SMH, Marketing Mag, CRN, ARN, Adnews and B&T to name a few.

To give you a helping hand, ProGrad have done some of the work for you. We have researched the top performing Industries that will help you make an educated decision on the best suited career path after University.  

With January kicking off to a rapid start, 2012 is looking to be a very busy year!

This brings GOOD news and BAD news

The good news is that there are many organisations that have great Graduate positions available through ProGrad.

The bad news is however that it is an extremely competitive time of year for graduates as many students graduated at the end of the previous year and are actively looking for full time corporate positions.

As I said before, the news is good and bad!

At ProGrad we understand the frustrations of looking for a job. This competitive time of year can bring an abundance of rejections and many broken spirits. However it’s important to remember that thousands are in the same boat as you and every ‘NO’ received can only bring you closer to the perfect ‘YES’ position. If a job is worth fighting for, then of course it’s going to be competitive!

To help you ‘Get your head in the game’ ProGrad has the following game plan to help you win:

-          Create a perfect Resume that’s tailored to every position applied for

-          Get a professional Voicemail

-          Invest in a suit

-          Ensure your looking well groomed

-          Research the company

These are some of the strategies to ensure you score the perfect position!

ProGrad specialises in Corporate Business Development Graduate roles. With many years of experience and reputable corporate clients behind us, the opportunities we can offer are huge. If you would like to be a part of the ProGrad network to see how we can offer you a foot in the door, then contact ProGrad at: info@prograd.com.au or call: (02) 8235 8300.

We are feeling festive here at ProGrad! The office is nicely decorated and everyone is cheerful! We have had such a fantastic year and are very much looking forward to having a successful 2012!

With so many success stories from 2011, we can only keep striving to help and place more graduates year by year.  

If you would like to become a part of ProGrad’s network and want to hear about all the opportunities we can offer you, then please contact ProGrad on (02) 8235 8300 or email ProGrad at: info@prograd.com.au

LinkedIn has released the most overused Buzz words for 2011. The words that made the list are:

•       Creative’
•       Effective’
•       Communication skills’
•       Strategic planning’

These Buzzwords have come from professional profiles all over the world! The study mainly focused on Countries such as: France, Spain, Ireland, Singapore, USA and Australia.

At ProGrad we have come up with some alternative words you can use for your LinkedIn Profile. These include:

•       Tech Savvy!
•       Young and willing!
•       Open to anything!
•       Ready and rearing to go!

ProGrad would love to see these phrases make the next linked in Buzz Word list! For more suggestions and inspiration of buzz words please feel free to contact ProGrad directly on (02) 8235 8300. Or Email ProGrad at info@prograd.com.au

Have you ever felt defeated by the job hunting process?

Have you ever questioned if you will ever get the right job?

Do you spend an endless amount of time on seek?

ProGrad can help you! Let ProGrad be your librarian who guides you to the right book.

ProGrad can help take the stress out of trying to find the right job for you by:

• Showing you the full contents of what is expected by each role
• Can guide you to the right page number that has the most relevant information for your interview
• Can provide an index of understanding that explains all the questions you may have about a company or a role

If you would like to find out more on how ProGrad can assist you on providing employment opportunities, please give us a call on:

(02) 82358300

Alternatively, you can email Prograd on:

info@prograd.com.au

Prograd can help you write your next chapter in your career that is always guaranteed to have a happy ending!

ProGrad celebrated Halloween in style this year as we all got our best costumes on to celebrate!
Everyone in the office enjoyed some horror movie trivia, followed by some seriously competitive apple bobbing!

To see more photos of the Halloween dress up day at ProGrad, please go to our ProGrad Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/ProGrad/126475642525

If you would like to discuss any ProGrad opportunities, please do not hesitate to contact ProGrad on (02)8235 8300 or email us at: http://info@prograd.com

A big thumbs up to the Graduate Management Team here at ProGrad, who put in an enormous amount of effort to pull off a very successful week!

With such a hard working and dedicated team, it’s no wonder they did so well!

Another big thank you to the wonderful ProGrad boss who appreciates all the hard efforts and takes them out for breakfast to say thank you!

If you would like to find out more about the ProGrad team environment, please give ProGrad a call on (02) 8235 8300. Alternatively, you can email ProGrad at info@prograd.com.au

GO THE PROGRAD GRADUATE MANAGEMENT TEAM!

Here at ProGrad we see the importance of dressing well for interviews every day. The first impression is the most critical part of the interview, it only takes one instance to make a good first impression, however it takes 21 meetings to undo a bad impression.

With these stats in mind, it’s important to really pre-plan an outfit for an interview.

Here is a friendly ProGrad criteria that will help guide you:

For men:

• If you look in the mirror and think ‘should I get a haircut?’ YOU SHOULD.
• If you are thinking:’should I iron my shirt?’ YOU SHOULD.
• If you are thinking: ‘should I have a shave?’ YOU SHOULD.

For women:

• If you are thinking: ‘is my skirt too short?’ IT IS.
• If you are thinking: ‘should I take my ear brow piercing out?’ YOU SHOULD.
• If you think, am I wearing too much eye makeup? YOU ARE.

If you follow this fool proof ProGrad checklist, you are guaranteed to have an impressive first impression!

If any more questions on first impressions and ProGrad interview tips, please send all questions to: info@prograd.com.au. Alternatively, you can call ProGrad on (02)8235 8300.

We all know we love talking about ourselves. But, unlike when telling your mum about your day, when talking business, you can expect limitations put on your answers. Words like: short, precious, facts, in 5 words or less, often come into play.

Giving a prompt, to the point answer does NOT mean explaining that exact feeling you had after winning the most improved award in year 10, or how you smashed your record for how many cheese burgers you ate at McDonalds last week…

The short and sweet rule should be applied to the following:

• Resumes
• Cover Letters
• Most importantly, INTERVIEWS.

What is the short and sweet rule?

Good question!

The short and sweet rule is your ability to be able to sum up all the main achievements an employer would look for, and give key details in a short amount of time. An employer should get all the facts in the whole 5 seconds they spend reading your resume and still think your sweet for saving their time not discussing every minute detail of your life.

So remember, if you want to be sweet and avoid the bad aftertaste of vomit- then state the specifics and be short about it!

A ProGrad we know what makes a successful interview and we can help with any preparation needs to help you nail the interview. For ProGrad assistance to help with graduate applications, contact ProGrad’s Graduate Management Team on 02 8235 8300 or email us at info@prograd.com.au

So you have finished your degree, maybe travelled a little, are well and truly sick of your part time job and decided you are finally ready to bite the bullet and get into full time work. But what job is that?

If you are a recent graduate looking to get into the business sector, it can be daunting knowing where to start, especially if your studies haven’t necessarily directed you into a one stop job.

One angle you may want to consider is a role in sales. 

No not tele-marketing, and don’t worry I’m not talking about standing on the street corner trying to get people to sign up to the latest scam.

I mean genuine corporate sales, working within a well established company on a competitive salary, getting that all important foot in the door and gaining the valuable experience that can take you from new comer, to old pro.

Sales provides graduates a unique opportunity to learn about a business from the inside out. Working in correspondence with all other parts of a business, the sales department gives you the best exposure and often a great head start into avenues usually closed to entry level positions.

It might not be an option you had ever considered before but for graduates who are ambitious, eager to work and wanting to get some hands on experience in a role that will help them progress in their career, Sales may be the yellow brick road for you.

ProGrad specialize in placing recent university graduates into business to business sales roles. For more information or to apply for any of our roles, contact the ProGrad Graduate Management team on 02 8235 8300 or alternatively email us at info@prograd.com.au

Since June 2010, ProGrad have felt the demand of Graduate vacancies grow within QLD, which has prompted our focus in the market.  Historically, ProGrad have focused primarily in NSW and VIC and only worked in QLD occassionally depending on the roles made available.  In June, ProGrad made a company-wide committment to offer more dedicated and more proactive resource to the area, to ensure we have a heavier presence amongst the graduate community.

Since June 2010, we have already seen over 100 graduates attend our ProGrad Assessment Day in QLD, and have already successfully conducted interviews for them with over 30 organisations in the area.  “This marks a new chapter for ProGrad and one that we’re all excited about.  We’ve always wanted to work more closely

with Universities and Graduates in Brisbane, however we didn’t ever experience the same level of interest from our corporate clients here.  This has definitely changed in recent months, and we now forecast significant growth in QLD over the next 12 months.”  Davinia, General Manager for ProGrad explains.

Davinia continues, “Our initial focus is to work alongside our existing client base, who might have a presence in Brisbane.  We would like to ensure current clients are given primary focus for their recruitment needs at a junior level.  We’re currently sourcing roles for QLD companies in Sales, Lead Generation, Marketing, Research, Analysts, and Project Managers to name a few”. 

If you have an office in QLD which you think might benefit from a ProGrad discussion, please contact our Business Development Team in Sydney on 02 8235 8300.  Alternaitvely, you can email us sales@prograd.com.au

ProGrad will service QLD from the NSW office for the remainder of the year, however based on company demand, we may open an office in the not too distant future.

For any information about ProGrad, our proposition, and our process – please view our website www.prograd.com.au or contact us for a more in-depth discussion 02 8235 8300.

ProGrad Assessment Team:

The ProGrad Assessment Day Team will consist of 5-10 people depending on the day.  The team is a combination of our Graduate Managers, our Business Developers and our Facilitators. 

During the Assessment Day, each candidate will have a series of score sheets.  These score sheets are for assessment purposes which are scored against a competency based framework.  During the session, it is not about your academic qualifications.  We are looking to highlight key competencies which are listed below:

1)      Confidence

2)      Verbal Communication Skills

3)      Drive and Dynamism

4)      Ability to Influence and Persuade

5)      Structure and Logic

Following the ProGrad Assessment Day, each candidate is welcome to contact ProGrad for feedback about their performance.  We are happy to share all feedback with you as it may assist with further interviews being attended.

Our ProGrad Graduate Management Team can be contacted on 02 8235 8300.

ProGrad Clients:

ProGrad have been in Australia since 2005 and in that time we have developed strong relationships with over 600 companies. 

Our Client list is attractive and provides graduates with access to employers such as Dell, Microsoft, News, Fairfax, McCain, Mars, Nestle, Fujitsu, Cisco, Heinz, Hasbro, Dow Jones and SEEK.

We have placed thousands of graduates over the years and are proud to have some incredible success stories.  ProGrad are actively selling our graduate model each day to more and more businesses with the aim of creating more graduate positions. 

Prior the assessment day, we would recommend that you look at some of the Clients we work with and look at many of the roles available. 

Business to business sales is an umbrella term and really covers a wide variety of positions available.  Essentially, all businesses have the need to build and maintain relationships with other organizations in order to generate sales. 

When an advertising agency “pitches” for new business, they are selling their organization and their concept.  FMCG companies will often sell to large retail outlets at a business to business level.  Media companies will often have a variety of clients which are sold to in a business to business capacity, in order to generate revenue.   Technology companies produce software and hardware used by almost every business (large and small) in existence today.  Business to business sales exists in every organsiation.  The types of role may alter depending on the business.  Most of our graduate positions will be:

• Business Development
• Territory Management
• Account Executive
• Account Manager
• Sales Coordinator
• Inside Sales Representative
• Field Sales Representative
• Lead Generator
• Business Consultant
• Sales Representative
• Sales and Marketing Coordinator
• Marketing Assistance
• Campaign Coordinator

The nature of the roles will again vary depending on the company and their industry.  We will discuss all options with you during the assessment day, however if you would like to discuss anything sooner, please call us directly on 02 8235 8300.

More and more graduates are leaving University each year and it seems to be getting increasingly competitive for graduates to find suitable employment.  Online jobs portals like SEEK or MyCareer are very popular with graduates when looking for roles, and are viewed as a good advertising method for employers.  It is low cost to post an advertisement online, and employers are aware they will receive a huge amount of applications.  However this is the challenge for you.  Too many applications mean that your resume has less chance of being read.

An average recruiter will spend less than 30 seconds looking at your resume.  This is your window to make an immediate impact and so ensure your resume follows the basic guidelines below

1)      Only include relevant information

2)      The resume should be specific to the role you are applying for

3)      Less than 2 pages in length (most graduates shouldn’t require more than 1 page)

There is a basic structure for you to follow which we will outline here.

Personal Details:

Naturally, this piece is key but limit how much information is provided.  You really only need to include your name, your contact number and an email address (which should be “professional” looking)

Career Objective:

It is essential that you specify a career objective in your resume and it must be relevant to the role you are applying for.  With that in mind, you may need to alter this part of your resume for each application.  This way you can ensure it is well tailored to each role you are applying for.  It should be approximately 4-5 lines in length and must provide a decent snapshot of why you’re applying for the role.

Education:

There is no need to get carried away here.  Simply list your University and degree as your most recent Education.  Feel free to list your school, but only if you feel it carries relevance.  Many employers are not too concerned about which school you went to.

Work Experience:

Think carefully about your work experience.  Employers are looking for loyalty with an employer and they’re looking for the transferrable skills that you have developed in specific positions.  Don’t list the tasks you did in each role, but rather discuss the skills and competencies you developed.  Again, ensure that the language you use, is well aligned to the language used in the advertisement.  Don’t feel you need to list every job you ever had from the age of 15.  Simply choose the most relevant positions that demonstrate your fit for the role.

Achievements:

Employers like “achievers”, particularly at a graduate level.  Awards you may have received can be listed here.  Not necessarily “awards” such as the one you received in Year 10 for good attendance, but rather a Duke of Edinburgh Award, or an Award for Debating etc

Hobbies and Interests:

This is a section to demonstrate that you’re an active person and have interests outside of University/ work.  Sports are well received by employers, along with reading/ socializing/ music interests and technology.  Please avoid discussing travel as an interest as this can sometimes work against you.  Employers may develop a concern that you will leave a role to “travel” at a later date. 

References: 

Simply make these available upon request.  There is no value in adding personal contact details of friends/ family/ colleagues or co-workers on a resume.  If they are needed, an employer will simply request them.

ProGrad is a specialist graduate recruitment company working with over 600 companies across Australia.  For more information about our process, please contact our ProGrad Graduate Management Team on 02 8235 8300.

ProGrad will be running the “Young Achievers” awards ceremony later this year and are finalising the entries.  We have had approximately 100 applications for our awards ceremony so far and are awaiting more. 

Applications can be submitted online through our website www.prograd.com.au

Entry Criteria:

A ProGrad Graduate who has been placed in their organization by ProGrad.  Please ensure that each section has a response.  The deadline for this nomination form is Monday 11^th January 2010.

Please show in each section how you/ the nominee meet the criteria below

(This should ideally be submitted with evidence):

1)      Understands the business objectives, contributes to and agrees targets for own performance

2)      Identified appropriate sources of information relevant to company’s markets, customers and competitors so that the most profitable prospects are targeted

3)      Obtains access to decision maker(s), initiates dialogue and maintains effective customer relationships

4)      Accurately identifies customer needs and concerns gaining interest and commitment

5)      Responds appropriately to customer questions and objections, gains commitment throughout the sales process and closes profitable business for the organization

6)      Follows each order to completion, seeks customer satisfaction and obtains referrals

7)      Evaluates performance by analyzing win rate, order value, average length of sales cycle etc

      Reflects on own practice, develops skills/ knowledge using a variety of interventions, ensures own actions reflect industry “best practice” and always strives to act with integrity

If you would like any assistance in submitting your application, please contact ProGrad directly on the mainline number 02 8235 8300.  Please ask for one of the Graduate Management Team at ProGrad who will take you through the process of applying.

Assessment Day – Hints and Tips for success!

What is the Assessment Day?

ProGrad assessment days are by invitation only and competition is high between graduates wishing to secure their place on the day. At ProGrad, we assess your competencies to help you find a suitable graduate position that can offer you the support and development you will need to be a success. You will be at our assessment day for approximately 6 hours, during which time we will be evaluating your skills and attitude.

The assessment day also offers you the opportunity to gain access to our top graduate recruiters, careers advice and tips for successful interviews. We also provide you with feedback on your performance.

Becoming a ProGrad candidate will give you a head start over other graduates in the market place. We only represent candidates that have been selected at our assessment days, who have demonstrated a real focus to launch their graduate career with a leading company.

In attending the ProGrad assessment day, you will:

• Experience a graduate selection process

• Have access to top graduate employers

• Gain information regarding careers from our graduate recruitment team

• Feedback regarding your performance

If you’re successful through the process

• You will be represented by ProGrad for interviews with our Client partners

• Gain unlimited access to your graduate recruiter who will provide you with

assistance,training and feedback during the interview process

• You will be eligible to take part in certain personal development programs

• You will stand out from other less prepared graduates in the job hunting market

What to expect at the assessment day

• Psychometric testing

• Self introductions

• Group dynamic exercises

• Feedback sessions

• Business Case Study

• Feedback sessions

• Group Presentation

• One to one interviews

• Verbal and numerical reasoning tests

• Individual presentations

The exercises are designed to enable us to assess you against a competency based framework.

We are not concerned with whether you got the answers right, we’re more interested in how you deal with the challenges in front of you. We want to understand your drive, your motivation, how you respond to pressure and how you deal with people around you.

We also invite some of our Client partners to the assessment day who are looking for ProGrad candidates to start in their teams. This is often where many of our graduates are “scouted” by graduate employers.

What to wear at a ProGrad assessment day?

This is a formal interview process, and so you will be asked to attend our Assessment Day in “formal business dress”.

Remember: First impressions count.

General rules for “formal business dress”:

For men: wear a dark suit, with a plain shirt and tie

For women: try to keep your suit as conservative as possible. Dress for business, not for fashion.

Shoes must be polished and plain black or dark brown.

What are we looking for?

We will be measuring you against a competency based framework at the assessment day. We are looking for:

• Confidence

• Verbal Communication skills

• Drive/ Dynamism

• Ability to Influence and Persuade

• Structure and Logic

How to prepare for the assessment day:

“Fail to prepare and you prepare to fail!”

You must prepare a 3 minute presentation prior to the assessment day, titled “Why should we select you for a career in business to business sales?”

We are not only testing your presentation skills – we are testing your ability to prepare. Do not underestimate the importance of preparing for this!

General Guidelines for your presentation:

i. Keep to the 3 minute time-frame (you will be timed on the day).

ii. Answer the question posed in the title

iii. If you require notes, ensure they are tidy

iv. You are welcome to use visual aids or props to enhance your presentation

v. Practice makes perfect!

What is business-to-business sales?

Business to business sales, is the transaction from one business to another. Business to business sales involves building and maintaining high level business relationships with key decision makers. Your role may be a combination of dealing with existing Client relationships and forging new business contacts. High-level business to business sales can involve a number of activities to include:

• Managing key Client relationships

• Generating new business opportunities in new and existing accounts

• Booking business meetings

• Attending business meetings, generating requirements

• Assisting with pitches, marketing campaigns, exhibitions etc

• Assisting with proposals/ tender responses

• Forging strategic relationships with key decision makers

• Dealing with Clients both on the telephone and face to face

Why start my career in business to business sales?

There are 4 key things that all graduates want from their career:

• Training

• Autonomy

• Progression into Management

• A good salary

A business to business sales career is the only career where your hard work will be instantly rewarded with quick progress, increased earning ability and unrivalled training. ProGrad graduates are put into the most important part of any organisation, the business to business sales team. They are immediately part of the success and growth of the company and this forms a key part in their importance to the business.

Salary expectations are progressive with most candidates earning $40-60k in year one and moving that to the $50-90k mark in year two.

It has been reported that over 70% of Chief Executive Officers began their careers in business to business sales. The two most important facets of any organisation, are the strengths of its financial departments, and its ability to generate revenue through the business to business sales teams.

Graduates entering into either of these divisions, are exposed rapidly into the business world, and are able to add tangible value to a company’s growth and development. It is due to this, that Graduates statistically speaking, enter senior management quicker than their peers – because they understand the mechanics of the organisation.

What kind of company could I work in?

ProGrad has become the partner of choice for not only the best graduates in the country but also the best companies. We work across a variety of sectors to include:

• Information Technology

• Telecommunication

• Media

• Publishing

• Advertising

• Finance

• Industrial

• Events

All of our roles are in the business to business sales teams of our Client partners.  For more information about ProGrad and our positions, please contact one of the ProGrad Graduate Management Team on 02 8235 8300.  Alternatively, you can view our website for more informaton.

ProGrad is a graduate recruitment specialist focusing on assessing, placing and training graduates across a variety of industries.  Our roles are primarily in the business to business sales and marketing teams of some of Australia’s largest organisations. 

Due to the success of this model, we have designed and developed a number of options for other offerings to assist our Clients.  We have recognised that Managing Graduates is often an area which companies require assistance with, and we have therefore put together a course which is available to our Client partners.  The one day workshop is aimed at managers of our graduates, and offers practical, outcome focused sessions to ensure delegates attending are skilled at managing levels of expectation, providing structure, setting goals and KPIs and managing a motivated environment.

OBJECTIVES

By the end of the course participants will be able to:

• Manage graduate expectations around the content of the role, KPIs and role progression

• Align graduate expectations from both parties

• Set clearly defined goals and objectives with your graduate

• Promote high activity levels in a successful, rewarding way

• Provide structure to the graduate, both short term and long term

• Offer a work environment which promotes and supports high activity levels

CONTENT

• Graduate Expectation

Managing expectations around progression levels, incentives, rewards and offering clarity around

your expectation as the manager

• Structure and Time

Providing Structure to your junior employee

Setting the balance for access and time

• Managing Consequences

Dealing with issues internally such as timekeeping, attitude levels, activity

“What’s wrong here” syndrome

• Managing Expectations

Aligning expectations from both parties and ensuring consistent levels of communication

How is this done, and how best to communicate this from day 1 of employment?

• Moving from Altitude to Activity

Setting clear roles and expectations

SMART KPI’s (Structured, measurable, attainable, realistic targets)

Breaking it down into activity levels

Conversion ratios

Setting KPI’ s new business development quarterly, monthly, weekly, daily

• Environment

Managing the environment at work

The value and limitation of Rewards and Incentives

Managing levels of motivation

Weekly Planner

Daily call sheets

Daily goal setting

Tracking KPI’s

For more information about this training course, or any other courses offered by ProGrad, please contact our ProGrad Training Team on 02 8235 8300.

Training, development and coaching is essential for a graduate at the start of their career.  This is perhaps something that experienced people take for granted, forgetting that they too started their career somewhere and have at some point been trained and developed.

One of the key attributes that we have seen in successful managers, has been their ability to “coach”.  Recruiting junior people to be organically grown into a business can be a time-consuming activity and at times there is a sense of risk in allowing the graduate recruit to complete tasks that are out of their abilities.

In managing these junior recruits, it is important to think of the word “coach”.  Young people don’t necessarily want to be told what to do, and how to do it.  They have been hearing this from Mum and Dad for the last 20 odd years.  They are receptive however, to being coached. 

Young people are hungry and driven, and willing to take direction.  In coaching a new recruit you will have more success than simply “managing” them.  A successful coach is able to train a person to “do the basics.  Perfectly.”

Repetition is the easiest way to coach a person to become perfect at a given task.  When we induct new graduates into the business (which we do on a regularl basis), we limit the number of new tasks they can complete, and increase the frequency they need to complete them. This naturally encourages forced repetition which in turn provides them with the ability to do the basics, perfectly.

A strong coach will watch them, tweaking their performance every step of the way until they are truly perfectionists at certain tasks.

Their success then becomes the success of the coach.  Or manager. 

ProGrad is a graduate recruitment organisation and regularly provides recommendations to companies inducting graduates into their teams.  For more information about graduate recruitment, please contact the ProGrad graduate management team on 02 8235 8300.

Whilst the norm is to ask Behavioural Based interview questions, some organisations will interview in a different way.  When dealing with University Graduates where experience is limited, interviewers will often ask a series of personal questions in an interview to establish the core values of an individual. 

Here are some examples of what to expect in this area:

Tell me about yourself, from aged 11…

What are the decisions you have made from aged 11 to where you are now?

What was the hardest decision you ever had to make?

What are your defining moments?  Good/ Bad?

What are your core values?

What is your family like? 

What are the relationships within your family like?

What was the hardest thing you have ever had to do? 

What was your biggest failure?

What was your biggest regret?

What are you scared of?

What do you want from life?

This style of questionning is designed to really get to know the individual you are hiring, yet not everyone likes to be so public!  Most interviewers will establish the initial boundaries prior to asking such questions, just to ensure you are comfortable with them.

This style of questionning is becoming increasingly popular with our candidates who are being hired based on their potential, as opposed to their experience level. 

ProGrad organise hundreds of interviews each week for graduate job seekers, who are looking to start their career in the business to business sales teams of our client partners.  For more information about ProGrad, please contact our office on 02 8235 8300.