随着市场竞争日趋激烈,越来越多的企业极力寻找敢于接受挑战、勇于承担责任、能够抵抗高压的高素质人才。而压力面试(stress interview)作为考核高素质人才的一种方式,逐渐在企业招聘中受到愈来愈多的青睐。
所谓压力面试,是指主考官通过在面试中提一些极具挑战性、非常规性的问题,或通过设计一些特别的场景,来有意制造一种紧张而有压力的气氛,借以观察应聘者的反应与回答,考察应聘者的抗压能力、解决难题能力、控制情感能力和沟通能力等。本期笔者将具体介绍压力面试的表现形式、问题类型以及应聘者在压力面试中的注意事项。
表现形式
通常情况下,压力面试是穿插在常规面试之中进行的。招聘单位往往会从以下三方面入手来营造紧张的面试氛围,以达到压力面试的目的。
1. 面试环境
为营造紧张的氛围,招聘单位可能会在面试考场以及室内设备的选择上作文章。比如,招聘单位可能会选择狭小的房间作为面试考场,因为狭小空间容易使应聘者产生压迫感。招聘单位也可能会选择较窄的桌子,让主考官和应聘者在桌子的两端面对面而坐。由于主考官和应聘者距离很近,四目相对,目光直视,应聘者很容易因此产生紧张情绪。此外,主考官还可能选择一个位置较高一些的座位,以突出主考官“居高临下”的气势,从而给应聘者造成压迫感。
2. 主考官的身体语言
在压力面试中,主考官可能通过一些特殊的身体语言,来有意表现一种高傲、冷漠、讽刺甚至咄咄逼人的态度,让应聘者无所适从,这些身体语言包括避免与应聘者保持视线接触,故意不认真倾听应聘者的回答,只埋头做笔记、对应聘者的回答不置可否等。例如,当面试进行了一段时间后,主考官可能会向应聘者提一个较难的问题,待应聘者回答完毕后,主考官却不做任何答复,将应聘者置于“无声”的状态中,以此营造一种紧张而严肃的气氛,给应聘者造成一定的心理压力。
3. 主考官的提问形式
为了给应聘者制造压力,主考官在提问时,可能会采取“打破沙锅问到底”的方式来提问甚至质问应聘者,或者反复地向应聘者询问同一个问题,也有可能向应聘者提一些刁钻的问题,有时甚至会直接否定应聘者的回答,并与其争辩。
问题类型
在压力面试中,主考官向应聘者提出的问题通常包括四类:质疑性问题、负面性问题、刁钻性问题和情景性问题。
1. 质疑性问题
在压力面试中,质疑性问题最为常见。这类问题的形式与一般面试问题没有太大区别,其不同之处主要在于:在压力面试中,主考官可能会以不友好、讽刺、冷漠甚至命令的语气提问或追问应聘者,以此增加应聘者的回答难度。应聘者在回答这类问题时,应注意以下两个方面:
(1) 态度要得体。应聘者应保持冷静、自信,切勿因主考官的态度而变得不知所措,乱了方寸。
(2) 思路要清晰。应聘者在回答问题时逻辑要清晰,语言要简练;若是主考官对某个问题一直追问,应聘者也要耐心回答,直至主考官满意为止。
以压力面试中一个常见的质疑性问题“Aren’t you overqualified for this position?”为例,应聘者在回答这一问题时,可以参考如下的回答方式:“No, I don’t think so. My experience can only make me do my job better. In my opinion, my good design skills can help me design better books. My business experience will enable me to run the Art Department in a cost-efficient manner, thus saving the company’s money. Besides, I think I’ll be able to attract better freelance (自由职业者的) talents because of all my industry contacts. Finally, I’m interested in establishing a long-term relationship with my employer, and if I did well, I would expect expanded responsibilities that could make use of my other skills.”
其他常见的质疑性问题如下所示:
☆ Don’t you feel you are a little too old (young) for this job?
☆ You haven’t had sufficient experience in this field, don’t you agree?
☆ You have been working for this company for several years. Why do you want to quit?
☆ Why were you out of work for so long?
☆ How would you evaluate me as an interviewer?
☆ Would you like to have your boss’s job?
☆ What causes you to lose your temper?
☆ How do you handle rejection?
☆ How do you feel this interview is going?
☆ Why did you do so poorly on this test?
2. 负面性问题
负面性问题通常涉及应聘者在以往的学习、生活或工作中的失败之处。这类问题因涉及到负面信息,所以加大了应聘者回答的难度,容易给应聘者造成心理压力。此外,主考官也可以借助这类问题来换一个角度了解应聘者。针对这类问题,应聘者可以按照以下三个步骤来回答:
(1) 简要说明自己的失败之处。
(2) 简述自己失败的原因并说明自己是如何改正或提高的。
(3) 强调自己在失败中汲取的教训或学到的东西。
以问题“Describe a time when you were not satisfied or pleased with your performance.”为例,应聘者可参考如下的回答方式:“I failed my first math test, which made me very unhappy. I wasn’t going to let this incident set the trend for the rest of the semester. I went to my counselor and arranged to meet with a tutor once a week. My tutor helped me out incredibly. My grades soon improved, and I went on to redeem myself from slip-up on the first test.”
其他常见的负面性问题如下所示:
☆ Describe a situation where others you were working with on a project disagreed with your ideas.
☆ Describe a situation where you found yourself dealing with someone who didn’t like you.
☆ Describe a time when you failed to resolve a conflict.
☆ Whom do you dislike working with?
☆ What interests you least about this job?
☆ What did you like least about your previous job?
☆ What’s your biggest weakness?
☆ What is the biggest mistake you’ve made?
☆ What was your biggest failure in your previous job?
☆ Why weren’t your grades better?
3. 刁钻性问题
在压力面试中,主考官有时还会问一些极为刁钻、令人匪夷所思的问题,如:“Why are manhole covers round?”“How many piano tuners are there in China?”等。其实,主考官提问这些问题的目的并非是想获得精确的答案,而是主要想了解应聘者是如何思考、分析和解决这类问题的,从而考察应聘者是否具有良好的逻辑思维能力和创造性思维能力。因此,面对这类问题,应聘者无法也无须提供精确的答案,而是应该着重解释自己思考问题和获得答案的具体过程。
以问题“Why are manhole covers round?”为例,应聘者可参考如下回答方式:“First, a round manhole cover cannot fall through its circular opening, whereas a square manhole cover may fall in if inserted into the hole diagonally (对角地). Second, a round manhole cover can be easily moved by being rolled. Third, it’s easier to dig a circular hole and thus the cover is also circular. Finally, most manhole covers are made by a few large companies that only produce round manhole covers. A different shape would have to be customized (定做).”
其他常见的刁钻性问题还有:
☆ How many minutes would it take to reach the top of the Empire State Building?
☆ How many times do a clock’s hands overlap in a day?
☆ How would you weigh a plane without scales?
☆ How would you move Mount Fuji (富士山)?
☆ How many telephone booths are there in New York City?
☆ How many golf balls were lost in England this year?
☆ How many new houses were built in Montreal (蒙特利尔,加拿大城市) last year?
☆ How many copies of Windows NT did Microsoft sell last year?
☆ What color is your brain?
4. 情景性问题
情景性问题是指主考官根据具体的应聘岗位提出的相关问题,例如:“You’re working late one evening and are the last person in the office. You answer an urgent telephone call to your manager from a sales representative who’s currently meeting with a potential client. The sales rep needs an answer to a question to close the sale. Tomorrow will be too late. You have the expertise to answer the question, but it’s beyond your normal level of authority. How would you respond?”
针对这个问题,应聘者可以参考如下的应答方式:“I’d take notes in detail and get all the related information. I’d then answer the question based on my knowledge and the information provided. I’d leave my manager a note and fill him or her in on the details. Next morning, I’d be sure to explain my decision as well as the thought process behind it.”
注意事项
上文介绍了压力面试的表现形式以及问题类型,在具体的压力面试中,应聘者还应该注意以下三方面。
1. 自我放松、保持镇定
应聘者首先要了解压力面试只是主考官用来测试应聘者抗压能力的特定模式。虽然面试的问题古怪,主考官也可能会咄咄逼人、冷漠高傲,但这只是压力面试的表现形式而已,也许主考官本人是一位非常和蔼可亲的人,他之所以这样只是面试需要。因此,应聘者大可不必紧张,应保持大方得体、镇定自若的态度。在面对突如其来的质问时,应聘者应尽力表现自己具备专业商务人士应具备的沉着、冷静与涵养。此外,应聘者还应具备良好的情绪控制能力,在回答问题时不宜过于激动,更不能失态地与主考官据理力争。
2. 耐心回答
应聘者应心平气和地耐心回答主考官提的每一个问题。在回答时要尽量做到思路清晰、符合逻辑。应聘者可以把主考官看做是一位难缠的客户,在坚持自己见解的同时,对客户的无理挑剔也要给以耐心的解释。当然,应聘者还应对自己的判断和回答充满信心,并时刻保持微笑。
3. 适时反问
当应聘者实在不知该如何回答主考官的问题时,也可以适时地向主考官反问。但是应聘者在反问时,一定要做到自然、礼貌、得体,不要让主考官认为你是在刻意反问。例如,在一家知名咨询公司招聘咨询顾问的面试中,在面试快要结束时,主考官突然提出了一个问题:“I’m not satisfied with your performance today. Do you know what answers are especially dissatisfying?” 听到这样完全出人意料的问题,应聘者如果一时想不出合适的回答方式,可以尝试着进行反问:“Would you mind telling me what answers are dissatisfying to you?”这样就巧妙地回避了这一负面性问题。
透析外企面试:如何应对压力面试?
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