Essential Business Executive Development Interview Preparation Guide

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The person should be able to comfortably present the possible implementation of the discussed partnership at a macro level, and get the product team involved at a stage when there is a verbal agreement on terms, and implementation needs to be finalized.

Maintain a balance of thinking at a macro / company level, and executing at the micro/departmental level. Should be able to follow and/or define the rules of engagement between different departments.

Is the person always up-to-speed on what's going on in their particular industry? To what level of detail? Does he have an opinion on What, Why and How of the current happenings, and future possibilities related to X?

Should know basic legal terms, and identify red flags within T&Cs, Privacy Policies, and other legal documents.

Is the person able to confidently present, communicate, follow-up and do what's required to close a deal?

Candidates without specific examples often do not seem credible. However, the example shared should be fairly inconsequential, unintentional, and a learned lesson should be gleaned from it. Moving ahead without group assistance while assigned to a group project meant to be collaborative is a good example.

Say that you feel that business development is the heart of a healthy businesses and it is extremely rewarding to see a business grow on the back of your decisions and actions.

Interviewers expect a candidate for employment to discuss what they do while they are working in detail. Before you answer, consider the position you are applying for and how your current or past positions relate to it. The more you can connect your past experience with the job opening, the more successful you will be at answering the questions.

It should be obvious that it's not a good idea talk about non-work related activities that you do on company time, but, I've had applicants tell me how they are often late because they have to drive a child to school or like to take a long lunch break to work at the gym.
Keep your answers focused on work and show the interviewer that you're organized ("The first thing I do on Monday morning is check my voicemail and email, then I prioritize my activities for the week.") and efficient.

Analysis of sales data should help to identify possible new markets. This would be followed up with some market research.

Try to include improvement activities that relate to the job. A wide variety of activities can be mentioned as positive self-improvement. Have some good ones handy to mention.

If you have a proven track record in sales, say so and give some examples. Mention how you are a good listener, good at interpreting a person's motive and intention and that you feel confident in closing deals.

Speak about specifics that relate to the position you are applying for. If you do not have specific experience, get as close as you can.

To answer this effectively it is best to say that you find that working with others is the most enjoyable and fulfilling way to develop new ideas and implement solutions. Say that working in a team environment allows many different skills to be brought together to produce better results in less time.

A loaded question. A nasty little game that you will probably lose if you answer first. So, do not answer it. Instead, say something like, That's a tough question. Can you tell me the range for this position? In most cases, the interviewer, taken off guard, will tell you. If not, say that it can depend on the details of the job. Then give a wide range.

A typical interview question to determine what you are looking for your in next job, and whether you would be a good fit for the position being hired for, is "What challenges are you looking for in a position?"
The best way to answer questions about the challenges you are seeking is to discuss how you would like to be able to effectively utilize your skills and experience if you were hired for the job.
You can also mention that you are motivated by challenges, have the ability to effectively meet challenges, and have the flexibility and skills necessary to handle a challenging job.
You can continue by describing specific examples of challenges you have met and goals you have achieved in the past.

You should be anxious for this question. It gives you a chance to highlight your best points as they relate to the position being discussed. Give a little advance thought to this relationship.

► How have you changed in the last five years?
► Tell me about your proudest achievement.
► What was the most important task you ever had?
► How do you react to instruction and criticism?
► How would you describe the experience of working here?

Just try to stay focused on the job you're interviewing for. Connect your ability to the company's requirements. Discuss any attributes that may set you apart from other job candidates.

► Which subjects did you enjoy during your qualifying degree?
► What quality of yours or personal trait matters the most in your career?
► What do you see yourself doing within the first days of this job?
► What do you consider your most significant accomplishment?
► What's most important to you in a new position?

► Give me an example that best describes your organizational skills.
► Give some examples of teamwork.
► Tell me about an important goal that you set in the past.
► Why did you decide to pursue this career?
► How do you feel about taking no for an answer?

► How did you handle meeting a tight deadline?
► What do you think, would you be willing to travel for work?
► What parts of your education do you see as relevant to this position?
► What support training would you require to be able to do this job?
► Do you have the qualities and skills necessary to succeed in your career?

► What qualifies you for this job?
► What interests you about the translation business?
► Have you worked in a legal capacity before?
► Have you ever worked with subtitling or transcription services?
► In your business development experience, how many calls did you typically make per day?
► Are you fluent in any other languages?
► Do you have long term interest in building this kind of business?
► Have you worked with senior management before?
► Do you have any administrative or assistant experience?
► Where do you want to be in 5 years?
► Tell me about your experiences in college.
► Do you think your current projects with other employers will impede your prospects here?
► What kind of salary are you looking for?
► When are you available for full time work?
► Do you have any questions for us?

► Tell me about an important issue you encountered recently.
► Do you prefer to work in a small, medium or large company?
► Tell about a time that you had to adapt to a difficult situation.
► Time when you made a suggestion to improve the work.
► Your greatest weakness in school or at work?

► How do you go about relationship selling?
► How would you handle an objection?
► How would you handle rejection?
► What is your strongest sales skill?
► What do you like about sales?
► What do you dislike about sales?
► Describe your sales experience.
► Describe how you would handle the negotiation phase of a sale.
► Tell me about the most difficult sales call you ever had to handle.
► Everyone experience "call reluctance" from time to time, how do you overcome it?
► When is it time to let go of a potential sale?
► Tell me about a time when you handled an unhappy customer.
► Who do you report to at your company?
► How do you go about achieving your goals?
► Who are the customers you are targeting?
► What clients have you brought on?
► How big is your book of business?
► How many clients do you manage?
► How do you build rapport with your customers?
► What do you enjoy doing the most, managing clients or developing new territories?
► What sales achievement are you most proud of and why?
► What are the most common objectives that you face?
► Tell me about a difficult sale and how you handled it. How could you have prevented the problem from arising?
► Give me an example of when you had to deal with an angry customer?
► How often do you prepare sales reports and how do you do that?
► How active are you in civic, networking, etc.?
► How do you seek out new customers?

► What is more important to you: the money or the work?
► Have you done this kind of work before?
► Example when you went above and beyond the call of duty.
► What kinds of situations do you find most stressful?
► Tell me about how you worked effectively under pressure.

► Why should we hire you as a Business Development Manager?
► Describe your results with generating new contacts and potential clients.
► What do you know about securing bid opportunities related to construction and renovations of hotels and high-end retail stores?
► In your view, what is the most important aspect in the development of a strategy to recruit and secure new business? Why?
► What do you find most challenging when facilitating meetings with clients and negotiating contracts. Why?
► Tell me about a meeting in which you supported someone else's ideas. What did the person say, and how did you support him/her?
► Of which proposal assignment or achievement are you proudest?
► What was the toughest academic decision you made? How did you arrive at that decision? What alternatives did you consider?
► Tell me about a time when your enthusiasm dropped after an especially long workday. When did it drop? What did you do?
► It's hard to "stay on top" of everything going on in an area. Describe a time when you didn't observe a developing problem. What happened?
► What are your standards of success in your job? What have you done to meet these standards as a Business Development Manager? Give a recent example.
► What is your experience as a Business Development Manager ? Tell me about some specific things you did.
► Tell me a bit more about your background with maintaining strong working relationships with corporate clients.
► How do you ensure success when you retaining and growing the existing client base?
► How have you established priorities to implement a new vision or directive? Give an example.
► What qualities do you think make a great Business Development Manager?