Interview Help!

mountainofdebt

And before anyone says it, yes I will be turning my mobile off this time!!!!

I've got an interview in 2 weeks time for a charity organisation in their finance department and apparently its in two parts:

1. Interview and Scenario (???)
2. Accounts exercise


The description of the job I'm going for states: Develops and manages financial accounting systems and procedures in order to support the management of the charity, produces management budget report information and reports....payroll and pension duties.

So any ideas of a) the scenario and b) the accounts exercise ???/

The other thing that is sort of bothering me is that I sort of air brushed my application....didn't tell any lies but put a very high gloss on things if you know what I mean! Anyway when I applied I honestly didn't know that one of hubby's mates is quite high up there...and we're seeing him on Saturday.

I really do need to change my job (all you DFW you'll know why!) so do I mention it to him or not????

Bun

Hi,

Sorry, no idea about the scenario stuff, but I would mention it to your hubby's friend. Everything is to do with who you know not what you know. YOu could just limit it to company information or something like that.

Edit - oh, I've just thought, if it's a charity it may deal with day to day work, and some urgent campaign work (natural disasters etc) so you could maybe do something on that?

hattie_pea

scenario based interviews usually involve posing a real-life situation to you to see how you would react. Sometimes employers are more concerned with your thought process and how you arrived at the conclusion rather than the answer iteslf. They will also be looking to get a feel of your behaviours and how you react under pressure etc. Try to keep calm and think in a logical way, clearly explaining what you would do, the considerations you would make, and the reasons for your actions.

In terms of the accounts exercise it is likely that they might give you a Profi and Loss Account to blanace or some other number-y excel-esk delight to work on! Can't help with the actual content - sorry!

Make sure you research the charity and its work carefully as they are deadset 99.9% likely to ask you what you know and where you found it out. Ask your firend - why not? People seem generally eager to help others out adn he may be able to give you useful current affairs tit bits you can drop inot conversation. Also might be worht looking at other similar charities and their work considering how they compare.

GOOD LUCK!

mountainofdebt

The charity itself is one where it supports other charities - if that makes sense - so the scenario question will be interesting in itself.

One other question - would it bother you if a friend was employed in the same organisation and was involved in managing the payroll?

hattie_pea

most companies have a "personal relationships at work" policy or something to that effect...usually they are more concerned with spouse/mother/father/brother/sister etc relationships so I don't think you'd find yourslef in a pickle!

hobo28

Knowing someone at a company usually isn't counted against you and indeed can sometimes help. I've often been asked to comment on people I've worked with in the past. I'm always honest as lying will come back to haunt you.

Most companies will prefer someone who has been "vouched" for rather than take a total gamble with a stranger. It all depends on what the other candidates are like. So for example, if there are two people roughly the same in ability, one is known to xyz person who says they are a nice person and can do the job. Its less risky to take them on.

As for "airbrushing" your CV, again everyone does it to a certain degree and employers expect it. As long as you can actually DO the jobs you claim to have done and not outright lied then no-one will care.

Savvy_Sue

Our payroll is outsourced, but all the payslips are sent to me for distribution, and I have to photocopy them before giving them out. Actually, I don't know WHY I have to photocopy them, but colleagues often seem to be grateful as they don't seem to look after their original copies very well.

It does mean that I could stick my nose into what everyone earns, and some people might not like that. But we all KNOW that X earns more than Y etc, so it doesn't seem to be an issue. Personally I'd rather NOT have access to this information - worst of all was when we ALL knew someone was having deductions made direct from salary for Council Tax, but I was responsible for sending the cheques off to the council each month.

I try to photocopy the slips without taking any notice of what's on them, IYSWIM, but I did at the start of this year just check that everyone was on the 'normal' tax code and advise the colleague who wasn't that she might want to look into it. I've never found our payroll people any help at all with that kind of thing: they just say "We use the code HMRC tells us to use", whereas since I've done payroll in the past I can ask people if there's any reason why they wouldn't be on the normal code.

So although I don't WANT to have access to the payslips, if things were the other way round I wouldn't mind at all if someone discreet and knowledgeable within our organisation had it, and used it sensibly. Obviously I'd never talk about someone's payslip with anyone but them, and it IS an issue because I do meet their partners socially from time to time.

Good luck with the interview. I'm with hobo on 'airbrushing' and preferring a known rather than an unknown candidate. It was a real shock to get the job before the one I'm doing now (which is small charity administrator!), because I'd got all the experience I needed for it through voluntary work. And yes, I'd talked up my CV - I'd helped a previous boss recruit for a job I was leaving, and she described one candidate's CV as 'scary', and I asked her what she thought mine would look like! :eek: But at interview - including scenarios, none of which would help you I fear - I used my common sense and got the job, and I could do it.

Hopefully this charity will have a good interview procedure, and you'll do well. If they don't know how to interview, best stay away, IMO!

mountainofdebt

for all your replies.

Met up with the friend on Saturday and he brought the subject up himself - as he was going to be on the interview panel!

He has told the powers that be that knows me and thus has declaed that he is going to take a step back from the process....however he has (I think!) put in a good word for me so I guess its down to me next week.

Crossed fingers as I really need a change of job!

hobo28

Personally I would see that as good news.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.

Savvy_Sue

hobo28 wrote:

Personally I would see that as good news.

So would I. Anyone on a recruitment panel with an ounce of sense would only interview someone they knew if they thought that candidate was a reasonable bet.

Just my luck to be on a recruitment panel with someone lacking that ounce of sense! "I did think they'd be a bit woolly." Woolly? That candidate displayed the brains of a sheep! :rotfl:

mountainofdebt

I've had an email from the HR dept (as they weren't there when I phoned to say I was coming!) and they've said ('cos I asked!) that the scenario was just a couple of questions to assess my suitability to convey financial information to non financial people.

As the job consists of providing to support and training to organisations allied to the charity so that they can devlop and manage systems and procedures for themselves do you reckon the questions are likely to be of the sort where I'm asked how I would go about explaining how to set up a financial system?