Interview with 3 person panel... advice?

Dave!

Hey folks,

Another nervous day coming up for me

I've been invited to an interview for an entry level/graduate I.T. job on Tuesday

But it turns out it's a 3 person panel interviewing me

Never been interviewed by more than 1 person at a time.

Anybody any advice on how to deal with it? Experiences? Do they just ask the same questions as a normal interview, no?

Tom Dunne

Dave! wrote: »

Anybody any advice on how to deal with it? Experiences? Do they just ask the same questions as a normal interview, no?

I was interviewed by a six person panel for a lecturing position. Standing up in front of 20-30 students and fielding questions, not a bother, sitting in front of 5 senior academics and one HR - nightmare. I didn't get the job, and I feel it was partly because I was caught off guard by the size of the panel.

In my experience (I've also been interviewed by 3-person panels), they do ask the same questions, but usually it one person gets, say 10 minutes, then the next person gets 10 minutes. I have found that when one panel member is talking to you, the others remain completely silent until it is their turn to speak.

The questions asked are your typical interview questions, I didn't recall anything unusual in any of the interviews.

jd83

You will be grand. It seems daunting at first but after the interview you probalby will think it wasnt more different than having one interviewer. Most likely one person will be taking notes. Basically keep eye contact with who ever asks you a question but also to the other interviewers. Apart from that just treat it like any other interview.

trad

My experience of a three person panel is that the quiet one is the sniper. They sit back while the other two tease you out, looking for a weekness or a pet favourite / hate of theirs. I did an interview with DCC about 10 years ago for a parking control officer and was quizzed at length by the sniper on tachographs because she had experience of it.

sdanseo

I've been interviewed by two person panels before, can only guess three person ones work much the same way in that they just alternated the questions. Bit of a good cop bad cop thing going on, watch out for one or more being tougher than the other but don't become complacent while one is going easy on you

jd83

I had an interview in ebay before it was 3 people, apart from introducing themselves 2 of them didnt ask any questions just sat there while one guy asked questions for around 45 minutes.

Dave!

Cheers lads,

Anyone else?

nialo

Usually middle person will control the interview, not always true but mostly. They might not be the person in charge though. that is usually the one sitting back observing and giving the odd question but it makes you really think when you answer it.. direct your answers to whoever asked the question but do make eye contact with all off the panel. when the interview is over, thank all and shake hands with them all. if you can figure it out leave the person in charge till last and any closing comment is given to them..

also relax, they are only human even if there is three of them and one of you.. it doesnt change anything about your prep for material. just be aware of who asked the question and always come back to them when your finishing answering it.. ie eye contact. even if two other question pop up in between shows awareness and composure under pressure.

my 2 cents anyways. and good luck with the interview.

Eoin

It might be something like this:

1) HR Person
2) Immediate manager
3) Manager's manager

Or the 3rd person might be a techie to ask the tough questions that a manager might not know.

Either way, Nialo's advice above is good.

miec

I had a three person interview whereby each of them asked different questions because if I had of been successful I would have been working with all three of them in some form or other. If you believe you will be working for a few people, such as directors, etc., then that may be the case for you.
Like others said maintain eye contact with the person asking the questions but occasionally cast your eye around the others, you may be able to detect some body language (usually not though). When you have finished shake hands with all three of them. In my interview the first question I was asked was ''tell me about yourself" relate your answer to your work experience and the job description not your life story. I was asked questions such as how did I handle difficult situations (co-workers or customers) and was there a resolution, other questions included budgeting, why I took a career break to futher my education, examples of where I completed a project, how would I work alone or in a group, and so on. It very much depends on the situation. Another question (in another 3 panel interview) was tell me can you name our competitors, that one stumped me but be aware you could be asked that one. If I think of anything else I'll let you know, good luck.

Deadeyes

I agree with eoin, it's most likely HR, Manager and Techie.
HR: will probably drive the interview at the start and will be more au fait with how to structure interviews to get the most out of them.
Manager: will be looking to see will you be a good fit for their team and can they work with you.
Techie: is the person who in this case will probably mentor you. They'll want to see if they can get on with you and how good your skills are. This is the person who will catch you out if you've made out you know more than you actually do. Not that they are trying to catch you out.
Interviewers want to like you and they want you to be good, the whole process is as much of a pain for them as it is nervewracking for you.
Best of luck

Dave!

Cheers everyone Spending all day today familiarising myself with the company, their clients, projects, the job, etc.

I'm always a nervous wreck before these bloody things But from what everyone says it seems it'll be much the same as a normal interview really ! Good to know !

Thanks again

Eoin

Dave! wrote: »

Cheers everyone Spending all day today familiarising myself with the company, their clients, projects, the job, etc.

Great stuff, that will come across well.

Dave! wrote: »

But from what everyone says it seems it'll be much the same as a normal interview really ! Good to know !

It's pretty standard these days - it saves a candidate having to come in for 2 or 3 rounds of interviews, and speeds up the process. I was interviewed by 4 people in my current job, so it was a long afternoon - but it was just the quickest way for them to interview everyone.

Best of luck.

the_syco

Take note of who is taking notes. Often whoever asks you stuff writes the stuff down, but you'll often see the other(s) writing stuff down as well. The other(s) will then get you to tell them more on certain points that you have mentioned (usually certs, technologies that you've used, etc).

universe777

Good cop, bad cop & neutral person in the middle, that's my experience of 3 person panel interviews..

leeroybrown

I've never actually done a one-on-one job interview. Most of the ones I've sat have been two-on-one but I have also done panels of five and six. When I've been the interviewer it's been on panel's ranging from four to six people. The actual composition of the panel varies from interview to interview so it's really best if you expect the unexpected. Typically, I'd expect someone (normally the middle person) to lead the interview and bring in others for specific areas or lines of questioning with anyone being able to follow up a point at any point in the discussion.

The main downside of larger panels is that the interviewers tend to have more time to think about your responses and formulate their questions. It's quite likely that each person there will have either their own style or line of questioning. It's worth remembering that the person you gives you the easiest time may not be all that impressed and vice-versa. There are also a variety of ways that the three people could split across management, technical and hr which will also greatly affect the direction of the interview.

I think that the most important thing with a larger panel is to avoid getting stuck into a difficult lines of questioning that you know won't go your way. A couple of suspect answers and you might have three interviewers throwing out awkward questions one after another. Basically, if there are any skeletons in your CV you need to have your cover for them down even better than usual.

pog it

universe777 wrote: »

Good cop, bad cop & neutral person in the middle, that's my experience of 3 person panel interviews..

Yep. Same as- bad, neutral and good at the end. I have only endured one of these 3 person panels and it's fine, a little overwhelming when you walk in but just focus on the person at the time of their asking their first set of questions.

Do not mention politics