Interview Homework? Preparation Pays Off for These Common Food & Beverage Interview Questions

March 4, 2019 in Interview Tips

 

 

You know they’re coming: questions about your accomplishments, career plan and suitability as a candidate.

So, stack the deck in your favor – and do your interview homework!

While you never know exactly what questions you’ll be asked in an executive food & beverage interview, it’s likely you’ll field questions related to what you’ve achieved – and where you’re headed. Prepare answers to these types of common questions to knock your interviewer’s socks off – and improve your chances of getting the job offer you want:

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Cover All Your Bases: Make Sure You’re Prepared for These Typical Food & Beverage Interview Questions

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Interview Questions About Your Accomplishments, Career Plans and Suitability for the Role

1. To date, what has been your greatest professional accomplishment?

One of the best ways to make a case for your candidacy is by describing the amazing results you’ve achieved in your food & beverage career. Before your interview, prepare two to three success stories you can recount, should you be asked. The STAR method provides a great framework for answering questions related to your accomplishments:

  • Describe the Situation you were in to provide sufficient context.
  • Detail the Task or the objective you needed to accomplish.
  • Walk the interviewer through the Actions you took, focusing on your specific contributions.
  • Wrap up the example by describing the Results you achieved.

Regardless of the type of achievement you choose to highlight, spend the bulk of your time describing your actions and quantify your results whenever possible.

2. How would you describe your dream job in the food & beverage industry?

Logically, your interviewer wants to hire someone whose ideal job aligns with the open position. Go into your interview knowing how and why the available role will bring you one step closer to your dream job.

3. What is your three-to-five-year career plan?

Similarly, an interviewer wants to know if you’ve set ambitious (albeit realistic) career goals for yourself, as well as how well those growth plans match up with the career trajectory for the job in question. Before you head into the interview, make sure you can clearly articulate your career plan, and give some thought as to how well your goals align with the available job – so you’re not caught off guard.

4. Why did you change career paths?

If you’ve made a career transition – or are looking to make one now – take some time to prepare a logical response to this question. People change career paths for all sorts of great reasons: to broaden their experience base; to work in a role that better suits their innate aptitudes; to pursue a career they’re passionate about. To land the job you want, however, you must be able to “connect the dots” for your interviewer and make a strong case for why the transition makes sense. If the job to which you’ve applied is significantly different from what you’ve done in the past, highlight your transferable job skills to make your experience seem more relevant.

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