2nd Interview - Aldi Area Manager

flares642

Hi. Just wondering if anyone could give me an insight into type of questions asked at this stage? Thanks.

flares642

Or does anyone know somebody working for Aldi as an Area Manager?

tvr

Flares I would advise reading the Aldi article in regard to this job done by Checkout Magazine a few months back. A really eye opener and may change your mind in regard to applying for such a job. Their staff turnover for this job is huge. The Aldi management actually prefer this as they can use the stupidy of young graduates who see a shiny A4 and big wages. Do you really think a company like this would make live easy for you. They will make you work your socks of for 1-2 year before you burnout and leave. This is an Aldi strategy as it means their pension cost are very low.

Plus they will schedule work meetings on your days off and discipline you if you dont attend. They will set unrealistic targets for your shops. Which means the only why you can actually achieve these is by sending 1 or 2 of your workers home and you carrying out their jobs.

Think I am joking even the cashier ladies must scan a certain number of items per minute or they are "re trained".

I'll see can I dig out the article , I think they were sued by Aldi for it aswell.

keefg

Flares, TVR is right. If Aldi is anything like Lidl (and I am sure it is) you will be lucky to last 12 months before you burn out.

I employed a guy earlier this year who worked as an Area Store Manager for Lidl and I still cringe at the horror stories he has to tell.

Having worked on the continent during the mid 90's, I can tell you that the German work culture is VERY different to Ireland and workers put the good of their employers before themselves in a lot of cases. You will be worked to the bone!!! Be warned.

run_Forrest_run

tvr wrote:

Think I am joking even the cashier ladies must scan a certain number of items per minute or they are "re trained".

I love how you phrased that...they seem like a right bunch alright.

fits

tvr wrote:

Flares I would advise reading the Aldi article in regard to this job done by Checkout Magazine a few months back. A really eye opener and may change your mind in regard to applying for such a job. Their staff turnover for this job is huge. The Aldi management actually prefer this as they can use the stupidy of young graduates who see a shiny A4 and big wages. Do you really think a company like this would make live easy for you. They will make you work your socks of for 1-2 year before you burnout and leave. This is an Aldi strategy as it means their pension cost are very low.

Plus they will schedule work meetings on your days off and discipline you if you dont attend. They will set unrealistic targets for your shops. Which means the only why you can actually achieve these is by sending 1 or 2 of your workers home and you carrying out their jobs.

Think I am joking even the cashier ladies must scan a certain number of items per minute or they are "re trained".

I'll see can I dig out the article , I think they were sued by Aldi for it aswell.

Are you sure the article wasnt about lidl? Afaik, aldi are supposed to be a much better employer.
I know someone who worked in the property section of lidl for a few years and is now earning buckets working on commercal property for one of the country's largest property agencies.

flares642

Huge difference between Lidl and Aldi! Had second interview and been put forward for final interview. From what I have experienced so far, Aldi is one of the most professional companies I have dealt with. I have HR degree and my backround is in recruitment so have visited and dealt with a lot of companies. Don't knock it until you have your facts right! As regards the long hours, I've been self-employed for last 11 years so 60 to 70 hour weeks don't bother me!

keefg

flares642 wrote:

I have HR degree and my backround is in recruitment so have visited and dealt with a lot of companies. Don't knock it until you have your facts right!

No need to get snotty Flares!! You asked for our info/opinion and you got it.

Anyway, your opening question regarding the 2nd interview was " Just wondering if anyone could give me an insight into type of questions asked at this stage? Thanks"

Why the hell would someone with a HR degree and a background in recruitment need to ask this type of question on a public forum???

Something not quite right here me thinks!

flares642

Every company has there own method of questioning candidates. This is down to the HR dept of each company. I was asking if anyone had experience of the type of questions asked by Aldi! Do you realise how many questions one can ask at interview stage! Plus I haven't worked in HR in 6 years so am a bit rusty in recruitment techniques! Listen mate, I worked my ass off for 4 years for my degree and I don't need anyone questioning me. It was a simple question and maybe if you have nothing educational to add to a topic you shouldn't post!!!!

Matt406

Flares, I've a second round interview with Aldi for Area Manager coming up soon. Any tips on what they ask/are looking for?? Thanks.

cronos

Matt406 wrote: »

Flares, I've a second round interview with Aldi for Area Manager coming up soon. Any tips on what they ask/are looking for?? Thanks.

Major bump there haha. You should PM him as his post was last year. It would be interesting to hear from him how he is finding the company.

Let us know.

Haroon

Has anyone here actually been offered a job at Aldi for Area Manager or gone through the interview process and can talk about it in more detail?

Matt406

Has anyone here actually been offered a job at Aldi for Area Manager or gone through the interview process and can talk about it in more detail?

---

I went thru the first and second round interview process with Aldi. Let me know what exactly you need to know and I'll do my best!

Haroon

Ok,

What can I expect on the first interview?

Should I get past the first interview and get invited for a second interview, what happens in the second interview.

How come you didn't progress further?

Did you choose not to go further as you were put off with the idea of working for Aldi.

What have you ended up doing work wise?

If you had gotten to the third interview and passed, would you have happily worked for Aldi?

Haroon

Hi Matt,

also, how long did you wait after applying before you heard back about your first group interview?

Matt406

Hi Haroon,

Waited about 3/4 weeks before hearing back about a group interview. They run group interviews every 5/6 weeks.

First interview - 10/15 candidates in a 3 hours group interview with Aldi Ireland's MD. Introduction, Apptitude tests, team work survival task, debate for about 30 minutes and a questions and answers session.

Second interview - one on one with MD. Goes thru your life to date, why you did what you did to date and why you want to work for Aldi.

How come you didn't progress further - Didn't get to the 3rd interview stage. They are looking for a very specific type of person that only they know.

If you had gotten to the third interview and passed, would you have happily worked for Aldi? - i would have taken the job , yes. From what I've been told they will work you really hard 60/70 hour weeks plus but you will get great experience.

Hope this helps.
Matt.

Haroon

cool! sounds good.

What work did you end up landing?

What was your degree and work background before you applied to Aldi?

Haroon

does anyone know if Flares got the job in the end with Aldi?

Matt, how long did your second interview last?

paddylast

what does an Aldi assistant store manager or store manger do on a daily basis?

I have heard stories that they are in early to mop the floors and be there for unloading the delivery trucks before the shop opens...anyone confirm this?

Also from reading all the post on boards.ie the general point is that its long hours. im just wondering does anyone know if this continues when someone gets promoted from an area manager to a senior managment position?

Ginger83

paddylast wrote: »

what does an Aldi assistant store manager or store manger do on a daily basis?

I have heard stories that they are in early to mop the floors and be there for unloading the delivery trucks before the shop opens...anyone confirm this?

Also from reading all the post on boards.ie the general point is that its long hours. im just wondering does anyone know if this continues when someone gets promoted from an area manager to a senior managment position?

The stories you have heard are true so! Glad you seem to be talking to people who know what they are talking about.
The only thing i can add to this is that you will end up BURNT OUT!

orenkay

hi everyone...i have recently had the group interview and the 2nd stage 1 vs 1 interview and got a call yesterday telling me i got through to the third round with an interview with 3 donald mckay and 2 regional directors!!! can anybody tell me anything about what i can expect in the third interview...eg will they be asking me what actions would i take in certain situations etc or will it be similar to the 2nd round except its the regional managers im trying to convince im good enough and get them to agree with donald??? dont know when the interview will be yet...they said they have to try arrange a time to suit all 4 involved which can be difficult!!!

BlackWizard

Just be yourself on this one. Donald is a nice chap, really is a normal guy and has a sense of humour. But don't start cracking jokes.

I'm sure you know about the hierachy in the company and how the hiring process is. Donald will hire you and essentially will be your boss. No one else in the company can disiplin you or fire you. So he is the chap you want to impress.

At this stage, it's more of just repeating what you done in the second interview and giving the impression that you know what you are getting into and are 100% prepared to work for Aldi. Working for Aldi as you know already means getting up at 5-6am and driving home at 7pm. Remind yourself and them that you know it's not a 9.5 JOB. Its a career and progressive life decision and you want to go places in Aldi and help to make Aldi and your stores the most competitive there is.

You should be fine To get this far you must have impressed.

The RDs will be your bosses depending on your region. They mostly want someone they can trust. They have a REALLY hard job. So when they look at you and think what would it be like to work with you, ideally they would like to think nothing at all other than feeling confident in your ability. Boring is good.

Good luck!

janullrich

Stay away from Lidl. I don't know about Aldi so I can't comment but I went to Newbridge for a 2nd interview, this time in German. To say that the guy interviewing was a complete a****ole was an underestimate. I am very sorry not to tell him where to shove the job at the time. Lidl were caught in Germany spying on what workers where doing and saying during their worktime. Unbelievable.

orenkay

didnt really wana no about lidl there janullrich...thats why i didnt mention it!!! heard stories about them alright though so even if i got this far with them i wouldn't bother i dont think!!! heard in poland and austria (i think) they make the female staff wear hairbands during their pms...bit weird!!!

yeah i have to agree with you blackwizard...he seems a real sound lad and actually had a bit of craic with him in there...and there was a few jokes had also to go against what you said!!! would want to gauge how the 2 regional directors are with this first before i come out with more jokes!!! interview lasted 1hr 45mins and didnt even notice the time go by...was a very relaxed interview!!! met a girl coming out b4 me who just did the interview and she said hers was only 45 mins...dont know what the normal is though!!! do you work for them now as an area manager or have you been through the process??? are the other 2 regional directors above or below donald so??? my impression is below and that my progress will probably be supervised by one of them...is this correct??? also i presume they decide there and then between them on my suitability so do i find out then (sort of apprentice style) or the same as before??? thanks for your help

BlackWizard

Worked for Lidl and I knew some Aldi staff Note to people reading that: Aldi and Lidl are not related other than their business model. Even that really differs as I prefere the Aldi model.

I think the second RD is new or newly appointed. The RDC out in Cork means there are now two separate regions in place. Similar to Lidl infact.

You should ask at the interview to clarify the company structure. It's quite interesting. I think I heard it being referred to as the Grandparent scheme. Where the person above you, is not really your boss per say. But the person above him/her is. It basically means everyone does their job and doesn't have to worry about kissing a single persons ass for promotions and that disiplin/pressure/bullying is not abused as easily in a normal ranking system.

Defo good question for interview.

You mentioned monitored progress and that does happen. But really they wont like you mentioning that. You dont need to be monitored at all. You can do your job without someone telling you what to do all the time. Progression in Aldi or Lidl is very simple. Just do your job. Most find that hard at Management level.

I'm not sure when you find out how successful you were.

It's best not replying to posts like orenkay's. If anyone gets to talk to an ex Aldi or Lidl employee they usually have nothing but praise for the compainies.. and then they will add in something to do with having too much work to do followed by "great pay though"

Good luck in your interview anyway. Don't joke too much

I'll keep an eye on the thread to see how ya get on or any questions.

sNarah

I'm still curieus about Flares ending up in that job not....

Raiser

sNarah wrote: »

I'm still curieus about Flares ending up in that job not....

Poor Flares is probably passed out on a pallet of spuds right now with some fat German man sitting on his back shouting "vot ist ze meeening of deese?"

orenkay

well i did the interview and came out afterwards thinking i didn't get on too well...one of the directors was really tough and basically anything i said or did he would put it down and look for something better from me...basically tried to tell me my leaving cert was s**t and said my 1.1 hons engineering degree was only "part time" but think he was looking for my reaction to being put down and it obviously was good enough as about 20mins later i got a call saying i got the job...which was good news!!! contract and all that being sent out 2moro and starting on 16th!!! (getting the car that day 2) day b4 paddys day but some things will have to be sacrificed from now on!!! thanks for your help black wizard...oh and yes they do practise the grandparent system and it works exactly like you said...the store managers dont actually hire the store staff...he just manages them!!! il let ye all nkow in a while how good/bad i think they are 2 work for also

HaydensMom

Thank heavens for this thread. I have first round interview for Aldi Area Manager in two weeks and suffice it to say I'm bricking it. Good to have an idea what to expect. My academic background is solid enough but straight after college I had a baby and I've been looking after him full-time for nearly two years. This was a conscious decision on my part but I'm not sure it makes me the most attractive candidate! Kinda feel like I have to compensate by being SUPER knowledgeable at interview. Extra pressure I don't need! I used to work for Lidl so I have an idea what they're about but I don't know too much about Aldi, have to get swotting.

Orenkay, well done! How were the first couple of days in the job?... What am I on about, you don't have time for these things anymore!

qmac

HaydensMom, it looks like we will both be at the first round of interviews, are you on next Tuesday?
My wife - who has extensive retail experience behind her - went through the first round group interview a couple of months ago but didn't get to the next stage.
She felt as though the psychometric tests and intelligence tests tripped her up a bit.
I'm trying to research as much as I can this week as I haven't been through any kind of testing in years.
Best of luck.

HaydensMom

Hi qmac, yes I've the group interview on Tuesday as well. I've been practising all the aptitude tests I can find online but not too confident, I'm sure the standard will be pretty high. When your wife did the group interview, do you know if the candidates were asked to make a presentation, or did they have a debate, or both?Good luck to you too.

qmac

HaydensMom - there was no presentation when she did it, I don't think that is part of the process any more, but they did debate over the disaster scenario.
I'm still hoping to talk to a working area manager at some stage

aierlan1000

Lads, I had the second interview on Wednesday. It lasted over two hours and I didn't get the job. I was disappointed to say the least. That's over 5 hours altogether. Donald said they were looking for a specific type of person, I'm just not sure what that person is. I thought I was in with a chance and did a fairly good interview at least. At the end he asked why he should give me the job wherein I tried to convince him as best I could. He said he asks this to everyone so you could be prepared for that. He asked why he thought he could give me the responsibility and not have to worry about what I would do with it. He asked me to give examples of a time when I was part of an elite and exceptional group and what I did to keep up with those people. His point being that Aldi Area Managers have to run very fast just to keep up so exceptional is the standard.

The interview itself was much more informal than I thought it would be. Donald was all smiles and jokes. I was surprised at that but rolled with it. The interview was very general in the sense that it was more like a conversation and we just talked about the different things on my CV more than really examining them in a more formal way.

Donald is a good guy and Aldi are obviously a decent company. I was very disappointed not to get it but what can you do!

ajamal

Hey guys
I applied for the aldi graduate scheme two weeks ago and still have not heard from them
i currently am at uni and work part time at NEXT as a store manager, so was really hoping my experience of managing a store would allow me to at least get through the first round.
How long did you have to wait after applying for the job did they get back to you?It says after two weeks if you have not heard anything you are unsuccessful but i wasn't sure how rigid this really was
The suspense is literally killing me!
Thanks in advance for your help!

Denerick

*bump*

Any more help and stories greatly appreciated.

tombrady1977

As a former Area Manager with ALDI, I would strongly discourage anyone with a university degree from going for the Area Manager role with ALDI. The typical people you will be working with in these roles are obnoxious, aggressive and over confident. This is the ALDI type they are after. They only want people with uni degrees because it shows you can achieve something. You won’t be using anything you’ve learnt at uni, so it seems such a waste of all that study. The role is basically running their supermarkets, a job which people without a uni degree could also manage easily.

They will work you to the bone for 2-3 years and then replace you with new grads. There are very limited opportunities to progress above Area Manager, as the number of Director roles is limited and everyone is competing for them, and the existing Directors won’t leave their current roles so they don’t come up often.

The progression from Area Manager is to Store Operations Director, Buying Director, Property Director or Warehouse Director. Given the existing directors have nowhere else to go, besides Managing Director, there are limited opportunities for progression. Each region can only have 1 or 2 Store Operations Directors etc., there is only 1 Managing Director. So the number of people in the Director roles is small.

Most people working for ALDI develop very specific skills in overseeing supermarkets, and there are limited opportunities to move into other retail companies with the ALDI experience. Other retailers would rather promote their existing staff into management, and so if you leave the company you will find it difficult to gain employment elsewhere with the ALDI background as your experience.

I would strongly discourage anyone from pursuing an opportunity with them, as they are a ruthless company and will use you until they can replace you. ALDI only operates for the profit of the German owners. ALDI don’t hesitate to replace people they don’t like, and their staff turnover is very high.

Uni graduates would be better advised to work in roles where they can utilize the degree they’ve studied, which in the long term will give them a lot more opportunities than ALDI can offer. Whilst other companies offer a lower starting salary for graduates, you will quickly catch up, and in the long term be in a much better position with a career that actually makes you attractive to many firms.

Whilst the ALDI starting salary is high, it doesn’t go up much further once you are in the company. It is a bait to attract lots of applicants to apply, and then you get stuck. I really regret working for ALDI and would have been better off starting off in a career oriented firm where I was using my uni degree.

jellybeans

Hey I know this thread is quite old but just wondering what Aldi are looking for with the application. I was sure I would get an interview at least as I thought my application was really good. I haven't heard a thing and the 28 days is now up :-( They said if you don't hear anything in 28 days you haven't been successful. Is it worth applying again? where did I go wrong???