Behavioral Interview - What to Expect

OVERVIEW OF THE INTERVIEW

The aesthetics

As with any interview, be well groomed and wear a suit. Your interviewer has an eye for detail and is accustomed to the finer things in life; pick an outfit that is conservative and of good quality. Don't neglect your shoes and fingernails. Have an extra outfit handy—you could be called back for a second round the next day, and the night can be better spent preparing versus ironing.

The supplies

Bring business cards to exchange. Carry a portfolio (a leather folder available at office supply stores) to hold resume copies, a notepad and a pen. Some candidates keep a calculator handy, but rarely would it be appropriate to use one during an interview.

The time

Be there at least five minutes early. Factor in traffic. If you have a current job, overestimate the amount of time you will be gone from the office, since interviews will often start late or run over the allotted time.

Tip: Create discreet study materials that you can peruse while waiting. For instance, this author was an investment banker so she had a pitch book (spiral-bound client presentation) of her study materials made. Kinko's and other photocopy stores can assist you. She was able to refresh her memory immediately before an interview while implying she was dedicated to her current job.

The rounds

Few firms will hire you after one round. Your first round will be a filtering session, either with HR or the individual most junior in the decision process. One approach uses short verbal technical questions in the beginning to bring back the smartest candidates and then interview for personality and culture fit. Vice versa, a first round may only consist of behavioral questions and then the second round uses a modeling test or case study to evaluate technical skills. Most firms use a mix of behavioral and technical questions in the first round to filter for intelligent yet personable candidates.

To give you a data point, the typical interview for a junior position is as follows: The first round is an hour of a basic question-and-answer session with one or two interviewers at the associate or VP level. Questions will consist of a mix of the behavioral and technical variety,

with a heavy emphasis on deal experience. The second round is either a modeling test or case study. The third and final round will have the candidate meet with senior-level people and will be more conversational, with you asking the majority of questions. This example is only a median point; interviews can be as short as two rounds or take longer than five. Some have zero technical assessments while others give both in-office modeling tests and take- home case studies. The larger firms tend to have the quickest turnarounds, with some even calling back for a second round the same day. Some of the smaller firms will drag their feet to ensure you are the perfect fit for the firm.

Senior positions will have as many rounds as necessary to meet the relevant superiors or peers to work with.

Your final round will always focus on meeting with the head honchos, the most relevant senior people. Sometimes, only the people in your final round will make the decision but since most groups are small and take recruiting seriously, usually everyone will convene formally to discuss their opinions. The senior people, the group head in particular, have veto power. Those who will be responsible for your work are likely to be the most vocally opinionated.

The questions

Expect to start with either "Tell me about yourself" or "Walk me through your resume." Prepare an answer but make sure not to sound rehearsed. If you are not already in the industry, you can be certain you will be asked why you want to join.

The behavioral questions usually consist of some variation of "Why did you choose your path," like how did you pick your college, your current firm, your previous job, etc. Your answers illustrate the strength of your desire to be in the finance industry.

This guide's ratio of work/deal experience (Chapter 3) to technical questions (Chapter 4 through 10) is almost inversely proportional to the actual interview experience. Technical questions only serve to eliminate people who don't academically understand finance and should, therefore, reconsider their career aspirations. Your work experience discussions are more closely scrutinized. For both types of questions, the guide will only be able to give you the basic answers and explanations. Anyone can memorize them and answer questions correctly. However, those who display a deeper knowledge that supports genuine interest will stand out.

If you're interviewing for a senior position, you are likely to experience zero technical questions; the focus is on work experience, strength of industry relationships and investment opinions.

Aim for pointed and concise answers; think less than a minute, with 30 seconds being the sweet spot for in-depth questions. A minute is much longer than you think; observe your interviewer's body language for signs of boredom or interest.

The attitude

Punctuality and preparation convey requisite employee qualities but your attitude and personality will make the strongest impression. Start with a firm handshake and smile. Radiate confidence, intelligence, reliability, dependability and a personality that your interviewer would enjoy spending most of his waking life with.

Even when you are given an easy question, your body language might imply uncertainty that will discredit your answer. Many people have a tendency to roll their eyes up and speak haltingly when they are thinking. Look at your interviewer (but do not bore into his eyes) and speak loudly, clearly and slowly with your shoulders up and hands neatly clasped.

Interviewing implies you do not want to be at your current job, but leave it as the silent elephant in the room. Even if your interviewer knows you just pulled a miserable all-nighter, focus on the positives rather than accept his sympathy. Enthusiastic underlings who express a desire for more responsibility means someone one can guiltlessly push work down onto. Of course, too much enthusiasm is a line closer than you think; don't be the overly chipper weirdo. A good guideline is to match your interviewer's energy level. Pre-offer, do not ask about pay and especially do not ask about hours. People appreciate confidence but most people dislike arrogance, so refrain from going on tangents about yourself; the interviewer is asking enough questions about you. Rather, aim to sound interested by asking your own questions. Flowing conversations are inherently more enjoyable than punctuated questions and answers.

This guide can help you formulate the syntax of a good answer, but mock interviewing will refine your interview attitude. You can do it alone with just the mirror or ask a friend to sit in. When watching yourself in the mirror, think about who you would hire. With others, have mock interviewers give real criticism.

WHY YOU AT XYZ FIRM

The quality of your competitors is quite high, so the recruiting slogan is "the best of the best." Show that you are more knowledgeable, dependable, harder working, charismatic and desirable than the other candidates. Confidence and maturity justifies a potential employee to lead a team and be presented in front of management/clients.

Disinterest is a turnoff to anyone, so do the research on the firm. Truly understand its investment strategy, and tailor your answers to reflect that. For example, one firm asked five