Big Lot

Top Rules to ACE an Interview with the Big 4 and Receive an Offer

If you have an interview with Deloitte, KPMG, E&Y, or PWC, there are a few rules that you should follow to greatly increase your odds at acing your interview and receiving that pretty offer letter for either an internship or full-time employment.  These firms have been rated by BusinessWeek year after year as the "Top Places to Launch a Career."  Because these are such great places to work, Big 4 interviews are extremely competitive and interview candidates must take all the necessary steps to prepare themselves to have success during the interview.  Here are interviewing tips, essential rules, that should be obeyed to help you ace your big 4 interview and receive an offer.

Rule 1: Use Non-Verbal Communication

Nonverbal communication is highly underrated by many interviewers and consequently costs may offers they otherwise might have gotten.  Consider the impact of one UCLA study which revealed that up to 93% of communication effectiveness is determined by nonverbal cues.  The break down is as follows:

7% Actual words chosen

38% Vocal communication technique

55% Non-Verbal Communication

Thats right, how you say it is worth more than what you say in many instances.  That doesn't mean your responses can be sub-par but it does mean that you can greatly increase the effectiveness of the messages your conveying to the interviewer by using non verbal cues.

Why is this important? By increasing the effectiveness of your communication you will make your responses more meaningful and more memorable to the interviewer.  In other words: You will stick out above other candidates.

The best way to do this is use facial expressions and nodding to show good listening etiquette.  You can also use subtle (emphasis on subtle) hand gestures.  You will want to use pauses to separate ideas just like you would use a comma if you were to write them down.  The tone of your voice is critical.  You want to sound excited and enthused about the experiences you are sharing which will in turn get the interviewer excited about what you tell them.  Plus they want to see your excited about the opportunity to work for them

Be careful because "Bad" nonverbal communication can hurt you, like poor posture and body language.  It can also make you seem untrustworthy if you are saying one thing, and your nonverbal communication says another.  When verbal and nonverbal messages conflict, you seem less genuine.

Here is a great, more detailed article of how to impress Big 4 interviewers with nonverbal communication:

http://www.big4interview.com/?p=233

Rule 2: Have Thoughtful Questions to Ask the Interviewer

Big 4 interviewers expect you to have questions to ask them during an interview.  You 100% must have questions thoughtfully prepared to ask your interviewer.  You do not want to have general questions that apply to any job that seem like you pulled them off the internet.  Have specific questions about opportunities that the firm has to offer that are of interest to you.  Do you like community service?  Well so do all Big 4 firms.  You tell your interviewer you're interested in getting involved more in the community and want to find out about the opportunities they have that you can become a part of.  Better yet, research specific community services opportunities at the firm and ask more detailed questions bout a particular one thats of interest to you.  The interviewer will be impressed that you have identified opportunities at their firm, and that you are already interested in taking advantage of them.

Be careful to avoid asking questions about other firms, or about information that could otherwise be found out with the adequate amount of firm research that all interviewers should be doing.  This will highlight that you are unprepared!

Interview questions to ask the interviewer are a great way to differentiate yourself and stand out.  But don't ask questions that you should already know the answers to!

Rule 3: Do Not Respond with Opinions & Theories

A lot of interviewers don't prepare enough before their interview and end up getting a question that they don't have a predetermined response for.  Far to often, they end up replying with their opinion on a particular situation or what they would do in that situation.  The interviewer could not care less what you would do.  They want to see what you did do.  They want to see how you behaved in similar situations to the ones you will be encountering at your future position.  The theory is that the best predicator of future success is how you behaved in past situations.  You will receive 0 interview points for a response based off opinion or theory, unless that is what the interviewer specifically asked for.  The best and only way to avoid a situation where you don't have a response, is to practice commonly asked interview questions.  Prepare, prepare, prepare.  That is the key to a successful interview.

You can find many more interviewing tips & techniques for interviews with the Big 4 at

www.Big4interview.com

This is the first in a serious of posts about interviewing rules for Big 4 firms.  If you have an interview with Deloitte, and interview with PWC, an interview with KPMG, or an interview with E&Y, then leave a comment below on what is your biggest fear or frustration with the interview process and we will address it in our next article.

Until then, happy interviewing & remember to check out more resources to help ace your Big 4 interview at www.big4interview.com

 

 

 

About the Author

Big4Interview.com is committed to providing you the resourced you need to ACE your interview with a Big 4 firm. Find tips on everything from interviewing techniques and questions to firm specific news on the firm your interviewing with.

Gary Johnson "The BIG Difference Between Marijuana & Alcohol Is Marijuana Is A LOT SAFER!"

This entry was posted on Monday, August 3rd, 2009 at 3:58 am and is filed under scrapbooking. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.