What is your current salary and what is your salary expectation?

Before accepting or asking any offer, it is important to know what package is offered by similar companies for same post. Such question may have following possible intention.

Possible Intention:

• To know if you are aware of salary ranges offered for specific job.
• To know how you price yourself for job, exorbitantly high or low.

Insights:

• You need to know the salary offered for a job with your skills and experience.
• If you are asking a good hike considering you current pay package then justify what skills and experience you have added after starting your current job.
• Remember that this question does not indicate that you are hired and salary negotiate would start.

Example Answer:

My current salary is $ xxxx per month/per annum. I learnt a couple of technologies and tools like Weblogic application server and business process management suite. I have successfully executed two projects on Java technology using the said tools. Considering this, I think I am worth more and expect around 30 percent raise.

Anti Pattern:

• Do not give a figure; better give a range.
• Do not start negotiating, the job is not yet offered.
• Do not hesitate. State assertively what your worth is.

Interviewer's Interpretation:

• Knowledge of typical salary ranges shows your initiative and good homework.

If some other organization gives you offer right now, will you consider it?

You can be trapped easily with this question, So be aware of the appropriate reply. This is a really tricky question asked in interviews. Do not get confused between yes or no.

Possible Intention:

• To know if you have any offers in hand.
• To judge your skills in planning and decision making.

Insights:

• The question asked has nothing to do with the real offer. It is for judging how you approach a situation where decision making is crucial.
• Do not conclude on the decision. Keep it pending, in an intelligent way, so that you can use it to your advantage later.

 Example Answer:

I have offers from other two organizations which are in the similar domain. I have to carefully many aspects other than just financial consideration. I would like to choose the job based on the basis of how it will you prefer working here if given an opportunity.

Anti Pattern:

• Do not say you will not take offer from competitor. It is logically wrong because you have not yet got offer from the interviewer. Answer would appear fake.
• Do not say "I will take other offer". Then you are directly denying or giving a negative signal for the offer from interviewer.
• Do not think this is real question related to offers. It is just a mind game to trap you.

Interviewer's Interpretation:

• To see of you are desperate enough to accept whatever is given to you.
• To know if you are flexible.
• To check if you can give formal long term commitment for work.

Why did you quit your last job?

Most of the time responding for the reason to quit the job is not easy because of greedy intentions. Such question definitely can be handled if and only if you know the in and out of the question. Let's have a look.

Possible Intention:

• To know the reason for your job switch.
• To know if you are just a mercenary who works for whoever pays more.
• To know your expectation that made you leave the previous job.

Insights:

• Be ready with a convincing answer. The interviewer is trying to judge whether to hire you or not, if you left previous job after a very short stint.
• Have a list of reasons which do not say bad things about your previous employers.
• If you have disagreements with your previous employers, do not wash dirty laundry in public.
• Do not give a flippant reply. It shows that you are not a responsible person and do not take your job serious.

Example Answer:

1. I had to leave in a very short period due to some family problem and continuing my job was not possible. Since I had not completed my probations, getting leave was difficult, when my family needed me the most. But I assured you that nothing of this sort will happen now since the problem has been sorted out.
2. I had a few disagreements with my manager in earlier employment, and as i could not make compromises with my core beliefs, I thought it would be good idea to seek out like-minded people who can foster those beliefs.
3. There was a gap between what I want and to do with my life and what the organization needed, so rather than having disturbances in my personal life as well as work environment, I decided to approach with same vision as mine.

Anti Pattern:

• Do not say you left because you did not like the working environment or the project that you were assigned. It may indicate that you are not adaptable. 

•  Do not say that you did not like working with earlier organisation and hence you left the job. 

•  Do not elaborate and dwell on the problem you might have faced earlier. 

•  Do not portray yourself as a victim.

Interviewer's Interpretation:

• The interviewer may appreciate your honesty and forthrightness so long as you can justify what your core beliefs are.
• The interviewer will understand that you have the courage to take strong decisions, but not out of malice.
• That you are sincere, thoughtful and responsible person who is capable of taking the right decisions.