Behavioural interviews in three languages

The notes below cover how to structure an answer in a behavioural interview, which questions come up often, and how to prepare. They also cover the multilingual interviews that are common in Hong Kong workplaces. The method is general. It is not written for one employer.

What a behavioural interview is asking

A behavioural interview uses something you actually did in the past to judge how you are likely to act in a similar situation later. The question often starts with "Tell me about a time when...", or with the same request in Cantonese or Mandarin: give an example of a time when you did something. The interviewer wants to know what you did, why you did it, what the result was, and what you learned.

The STAR structure

1. Situation: the time, the place, and the setting, in 1 or 2 sentences.
2. Task: your responsibility or your goal, in 1 sentence.
3. Action: what you yourself did. This should be about half the answer. Say "I", not "we". State the steps and the reasons.
4. Result: a measurable result, or clear feedback, plus 1 sentence on what you took from it or how you used it later.

Common problems:

1. The background runs long, and the action is thin.
2. You report only what the team achieved, so your own part cannot be heard.
3. There is no result, or the result does not answer the question.
4. The experience is invented. When the interviewer asks for detail, the gap tends to show.

A bank of experiences

Prepare 6 to 8 experiences covering the areas below. One experience can answer more than one kind of question.

1. Teamwork, and dealing with conflict.
2. Leading, or taking the initiative to push something through.
3. Solving a complex problem, or analysing data.
4. Putting things right after a failure or a mistake.
5. Finishing a task under time pressure.
6. Persuading someone, or dealing with an objection.
7. Learning a new skill, or adapting to a new setting (for example, coming to Hong Kong to study, or working across cultures).
8. Serving a client or a user.

Write each experience as a card: a title, the points for the 4 parts of STAR, a result you can quantify, and 3 follow-up questions you may be asked, with your answers.

Common questions and what to cover

1. A self-introduction: 1 minute to 1.5 minutes. The order is who you are now, the 2 experiences most relevant to the role, and why you are applying for this role. Do not recite the whole CV.
2. Why this industry, and why this organisation: tie the answer to a specific part of the business, a team, or a project, and to the link with your own experience.
3. Your greatest strength and your greatest weakness: pair the strength with an example. For the weakness, choose something real that does not affect a core ability the role needs, and say what you are already doing to improve it.
4. A failure: state your responsibility, what you did to repair it, and which habit you changed.
5. A disagreement with someone: state the point you differed on, how you came to understand the other person, and how you reached a result. Do not disparage the other person.
6. Why Hong Kong: use your study or work, your languages, and your understanding of the market. What you say must be true.
7. Your plan for the next 3 to 5 years: keep it consistent with how this role can develop, and show that you mean to go deeper in this field.
8. Questions you have for them: prepare 3 to 5. Examples include how the team works, how a new joiner is assessed, and which projects the team is focused on now.

Language settings common in Hong Kong

1. An interview entirely in English. This is common at foreign firms and on international teams.
2. An interview in Cantonese, or a Cantonese section. This is common where the clients are local.
3. An interview in Mandarin, or a Mandarin section. This is common where the clients or the business are on the mainland.
4. A switch part-way through. The interviewer may ask you, on the spot, to answer one question again in another language, or to introduce yourself in another language. This is a test of your actual level.

Preparing for more than one language

1. Judge your level honestly. The level written on your CV is the level the interviewer may test directly.
2. In each language you may have to use, prepare a 1-minute self-introduction, why you are applying, and 2 core experiences.
3. Prepare the industry terms once in each of the 3 languages. Examples include the vocabulary for financial statements, valuation, compliance, and client relationships.
4. If your Cantonese is not fluent, prepare 1 polite explanation. Say how much you can understand, what level of conversation you can manage in Cantonese, and how you are improving. Then ask whether you may continue in Mandarin or in English. Do not pretend to be fluent.
5. For an interview in Mandarin, watch your pace and your choice of words, and avoid mixing in too much English. If the other person gives you written material in traditional characters, watch the differences from simplified characters as you read.
6. For an interview in English, short sentences and clear markers (First, Second, As a result) matter more than complicated vocabulary.

Group interviews and assessment centres

1. A common form is a group discussion of a business case. The group has a time limit, then gives a recommendation and presents it.
2. The label of your role matters less than your contribution. Offering a framework, keeping the group to time, drawing different views together, and reporting accurately can all show that you contributed.
3. Do not interrupt other people, and do not reject every view. Add to what has been said with "building on that".
4. The discussion may be in English or in Cantonese. Use the language the organiser asks for.

Online interviews

1. Test the connection, the camera, the microphone, and the meeting software beforehand.
2. Keep the background plain, and have the light in front of you.
3. Have paper and a pen, so you can note the point of the question.
4. If the connection drops, contact the interview coordinator at once by email or by phone.

After the interview

1. On the same day, write down the questions you were asked and the answers you gave, and revise your bank of experiences.
2. You can generally send a short thank-you email after the interview. Mention one specific point that was discussed.
3. Do not, in any interview, speak negatively about a former employer or about another organisation.

Where answers lose marks

1. The answer says only what the team did, not what you did. The interviewer is assessing your own actions and your own judgement. Use "I" so that the division of work is clear.
2. The result is never stated. Even if the outcome was poor, say how it was closed, and what you changed in the way you work.
3. One story is used for every question. Prepare at least 6 to 8 different experiences, matched separately to teamwork, conflict, failure, leadership, pressure, and initiative.
4. The content shrinks when you switch language. In a second language, the structure and the key details should match the version in your first language. Slow down rather than leave out the action and the result.
5. What you know about the role and the organisation stays at the level of a slogan. When you answer why you want this role, tie the answer to the duties and say what you can actually do.
6. Nothing is prepared for the question slot. Prepare 2 to 3 questions about the work of the role, how the team divides the work, or the training arrangements. Avoid asking only about pay and leave.

A one-week practice plan (an example)

1. Day 1: write 8 experience cards.
2. Day 2: match experiences to the common question types, and pick the best-fitting experience for each question.
3. Day 3: record yourself answering 8 questions in English, listen back, and revise.
4. Day 4: practise the self-introduction and 3 questions in Mandarin or in Cantonese.
5. Day 5: ask a classmate to run a mock interview, and include a language switch and follow-up questions.
6. Day 6: practise a group interview or a case discussion.
7. Day 7: review, and put together a list of questions, plus what you will wear, which documents you will take, and the route.

Sources

• A general method for interviews. It is not an official dataset.