So I thundered up the M40 with some questionable driving 'maneuvers' and got there an hour early!
So I went over my notes and answers in my head for about half an hour, took 10 minutes to relax and went in about 15 minutes early. I had about a half hour wait before I was seen which I watched their display videos and had a look at their awards and also company days out etc.
I was taken through a small office and in to a board room at the back where she began to interview me. She only asked me about 4 questions in total, what could I tell them about the company (quite a lot!) which she then expanded on, why I was leaving my current position, asked me to describe my current position, if I was easy to get on with and where I wanted to be in 2 to 3 years.
After this I had to sit a series of short tests which were if I'm honest not difficult however I found them a little challenging due to not being familiar with the layout of new office versions I thought to myself '****!' as even the simplest of tasks such as changing the colour of a header can take a while whilst you find the right toolbar. There was a short test on punctuation/grammar, a maths test (percentages, problem solving, number sequences etc) another on excel skills which was mostly based on sums and increasing by percentages and also a short test relevant to the legislation. She said I had 40 minutes and came back in after 20 asking if I was done?! There was actually quite a bit of volume for 40 minutes. I said I did my best but didn't quite get it all done and explained that I wasn't familiar with the newer versions of office but did as much as possible rather than struggling on one particular task.
After that she asked if I had any questions which she seemed impressed with the ones I did ask and seemed to enjoy answering them (why do you like working here, where do you see the company in 5-10 years, is there anything you'd like me to clarify or that was unclear that might lead you to believe I'm not the best candidate for the job). On my final question she told me I was 'in the lead' and she'd like to bring me back for a second interview and to meet the team
though she has one more person to interview tomorrow. Looking good but I don't want to jump the gun until something is signed.
Some of the answers to the tests were actually at the bottom of the documents! and there were other candidates folders easily accesible but I resisted temptation for fear of 'recently opened documents' incriminating me! She said one candidate walked out as they had never used excel :S
tl:dr, went well, expecting to hear from them today for a second interview \o/
I'm actually located in between Aylesbury and Buckingham, Aylesbury is about 15 mins away by car I guess.
And when you finally speak to your adviser tell them it's ridiculous how much you have had to go through just to apply for a job!
)
