Interview technique for first management role

We were approached with a really interesting challenge by one client looking to move into their first management role.

This client had been working as de facto supervisor for their team for several years and felt that they were ready to make an internal move upwards when the opportunity arose.

The problem?

They had no official experience, no job title that implied management, and the biggest obstacle was that they knew the other candidate and they had a much more impressive CV.

This client truly felt like an underdog and lacked confidence that they would be successful, despite being perfect for the role.

The way we decided to approach this interview was to focus on their strengths and try to rationalise their perceived weaknesses. The big question was about leadership, they had all the tools to do the role but needed to emphasise that they had leadership experience. So our approach was to get the client used to talking about themselves positively, we broke down their informal experience as a leader, writing down all the responsibilities they had taken on and how they had improved their team.

By doing this, the client was able to talk confidently and at length about how they were indeed management material. A huge part of this was about building confidence and not to focus on the negatives. We tailored some mock questions to really bring out some great detail and discussed how to really identify what was being asked of them and how to answer appropriately. 

Despite being the ‘underdog’ and the only candidate without formal management experience our client was successful in their application and is now enjoying their new role.

No tricks or memorisation of answers, all that was needed was the ability to focus on the positives, speak honestly and build confidence!

Summary

Role: Promotion into an internal management role

Service: Interview Coaching

Focuses: Leadership, Confidence, Positivity