If you are searching for a job post-pandemic, the landscape looks pretty different! Interviews are still being held remotely, as is much of the onboarding and induction process.
Once upon a time, your working week would involve a 5 day commute, 9-5 hours, and a sit-down desk in a traditional bricks and mortar office space.
The working landscape post-pandemic is almost unrecognisable. There have been significant adaptations to working models, working styles, and of course…the hiring process.
To help you prepare for your post-pandemic job interview, here are some interview questions you should prepare for alongside all the interview questions we expect to encounter.
Post-pandemic Interview Questions.
How was your lockdown experience?
This question aims to establish how you adapted to a challenging situation. Every new role will require changes from you and how you work.
Your answer will allow your interviewer an insight into how you’ll approach the difficulties you’ll face in the role you’re interviewing for.
For you, it’s a great opportunity to showcase your resilience and adaptability.
Hints and Tips.
- You may like to talk about how the pandemic changed your workload or changed your working practices.
- If it’s a remote role you are interviewing for, highlight how you successfully adapted to remote work.
- When talking about the challenges you faced, emphasise the steps you took to navigate these difficult times and highlight your excitement about things returning to “normal”.
What lessons did you learn during the pandemic?
This question is asked to determine how you made the most of a challenging situation and how you’ll apply what you’ve learned to this role.
Hints and Tips.
- Try to attach your learnings and their outcomes to the job’s requirements.
- If you don’t have a professional based answer, don’t worry. Instead, focus on your personal lessons. Perhaps you were more resilient than you thought you were, for example. These traits are just as highly prized by employers.
What impact did the pandemic have on your career plans?
This question helps your interviewer discern what your career plans are and what you are looking for in your next job.
Hints and Tips.
- When you answer, consider the role you’re interviewing for. Align your ambitions to the new role.
- It is also worth talking about how you want to advance professionally and the skills you’d like to develop.
If you are interested in if remote working has impacted tech career progression, read our blog on this here.
How have you adjusted to remote working?
As the pandemic taught us, some changes can be planned for, and some changes are necessary and sudden.
Remote work is just one example of change within the workplace we’ve encountered.
Your response here is not only important in the literal sense, but it also is indicative of how you may adapt to any forthcoming changes your prospective employer may require you to make. Your response needs to showcase your adaptability and flexibility.
Hints and Tips.
- Create an answer that details the steps you have taken to facilitate successful remote working. Think about communication and collaboration.
- You may also like to mention how your efforts made an impact on your role or the company.
How do you prefer to work? – Remote? Hybrid? On-Site?
Remote and hybrid working models have become the norm in the post-pandemic age.
This question is asked to determine if your preferred working style aligns with the models in place at your prospective employer.
Hints and Tips.
- Research how your prospective employer currently operates and determine if your preferences are in line with this.
- Be transparent and as clear as possible regarding your preferences.
- If you have any specific requests, make sure you know what these are and discuss these at the point of offer.
If you need advice on how to request flexible working, read our guide here.
The post-pandemic hiring process.
The post-pandemic hiring process has changed. Many employers have continued the remote hiring process, allowing them to attract, recruit, and onboard new hires outside their immediate location.
Interviewers are, quite rightly, having to adjust the questions they ask to determine if new hires are suited to new remote and hybrid working models.
Questions regarding lockdown and our working experiences within it are pivotal to understanding how new hires will adapt to current working practices.
They also enable interviewers to understand how candidates might adapt to change once they are offered a new role. Candidates need to include post-pandemic interview questions in their interview preparation to give them the edge over their competitors.
Are you having a remote interview soon? Why not check out our Remote Interview Checklist for candidates to make sure you are 100% prepared!?
Are you looking for a new tech, digital or data job? We can help.