What is an open interview? Open interviews are techniques companies may use when looking to fill multiple positions quickly. This technology can be used when a fast-food chain or retail store opens a new outlet. Often these are entry-level positions that the company might reasonably expect to fill with high school graduates or associate degree graduates looking for their first job.
An open interview, also known as a personal interview, is a scheduled event where all job applicants appear at the same time and place and are interviewed on the spot. Companies sometimes advertise open interview opportunities and ask any interested job seeker to attend.
Firms that hire frequently or need a large influx of seasonal workers can schedule open interviews to facilitate networking with candidates. After the open interview, successful candidates may be offered a job immediately, or asked to return for a second, more formal interview.
What are the characteristics of an open interview?
· There is no preselection
The first thing to know about an open interview is that there is no pre-selection process and no appointment required. You don’t need to send your resume ahead of time and wait for a call. You only need to come to the site on the day of the open interview, and it is almost guaranteed to see you, provided that you are on time and there are not many applicants. These events are usually held on a first-come-first-served basis.
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· Several rounds
Expect several rounds of interviews during an open interview, provided you are a successful candidate. Initially, you may be seen as part of a small group of applicants, interviewed by one director. If you pass this round, you may be asked to fill out a survey or meet individually by a slightly higher executive. Some open interviews may have a third round process where you are interviewed by a panel. Some companies run second and subsequent rounds on the same day; Others may ask you to attend a different location on a different day if you move forward.
· More difficult questions
The questions you ask will become more difficult as you advance through the rounds. On your first tour, you will likely be asked to describe yourself and your career so far, and talk a little bit about what interests you. This round is about excluding applicants who have poor social skills or who are clearly not suitable for the job. Since many types of open interview job openings are for customer service, the fun approach is key. Subsequent rounds of the open interview mean more investigative questions where you are asked to speak about specific professional experiences, or are given hypothetical situations.
How to prepare for an open interview
1. Search the hiring company
Before you prepare for an open interview, read everything you can about the company you want to work for. The best way to do this is to visit their website and see what they do. If you can, get to know their clients, what they specialize in, and what their mission is.
If you did a Google News search using the company name, you might be able to learn more about what it’s been up to recently. You can also visit the company’s social media pages (if they have any) to get a glimpse of what their daily operations are like.
2. Update your CV.
It’s always a good idea to improve your resume before applying for a job, but it’s especially important when you are attending an open interview. Besides your physical appearance, your CV is an important part of making a good first impression. When you attend a face-to-face interview, the recruiter will likely start checking your CV right away when he sits with you.
Make sure to include recent work experience and highlight any skills or experience directly related to the job you are applying for.
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3. Practice the interview questions.
Open interviews do not usually last as long as scheduled interviews just because recruiters usually have to meet a large number of people in a tight time frame. Since you do not have long to distinguish yourself, you need well-thought-out answers to the questions of the interlocutor.
It’s impossible to know exactly what the interviewer will ask you, but you should be able to answer common interview questions, such as:
- Why do you want to work here?
- What are your strengths?
- Where do you see yourself in five years?
- What’s your weak points?
- What can you offer us that someone else cannot?
If you wish, you can even ask a friend or family member to ask you these questions and then practice answering them.
4. Arrive early.
Open interviews usually operate on a first-come, first-served basis. If you arrive early, you may be one of the first people to be interviewed and you can avoid missing out on the interview if the event is busy. First impressions matter. Wearing business casual attire shows that you are serious about the business opportunity.
5. Find out about the job you are interviewing for.
Before you attend for an open interview, you must know more about the job you are interviewing for. The best way to do this is to carefully read the job description published by the company. If a job description is not available prior to the event, read about jobs in similar companies to get an idea of the key responsibilities. If you have this information, you will be able to do a better job of explaining why you are a good fit for the job.
Bottom Line: An open interview is a way to gather information from people. The interviewer poses questions to one of the participants, and then answers these questions. The interview is open-ended because although questions can be written, the interviewer usually does not know what the contents of the response will be. These interviews may contain some questions to gather basic factual data about the participants such as age and gender, but they usually focus more on the participants’ thoughts, feelings, experiences, knowledge, skills, ideas, and preferences.
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