A good interviewer knows the importance of asking questions that require you to think on the spot. Often referred to as situational, competency based or behavioural question, the employer is attempting to see your skills and attitudes in action. This is clearly a much better technique than just asking you to name your skills, so you can understand why interviewers do this.

The problem for us, the interviewees, is how do we prepare for a random question? We talked to James Rudall, Managing Director of Conversion Consulting (a leading outsourced inside-sales company), to get under the skin of what the interviewer wants:

What is your most important interview question?
How would you calculate the number of petrol stations in central London? Candidates are told they may use the whiteboard and if required, involve all the people in the room.

Why do you ask this quite bizarre question?
We want to understand how a candidate reacts to a pressure scenario, given they are not warned before-hand. Do they stumble and waffle? Or do they step up to the challenge and attempt to find an answer.

If you think a cover letter is a formal approach reserved for old-fashioned application processes, then you should banish your pre-conception. When you email your CV to a recruiter or employer you must include text in your email. This is your cover letter. Every single application or e-correspondence you make with a prospective employer forms part of your ‘pitch’.

This week, we talked to Keith Corbin, who spent 15 years within senior HR management roles at Thomas Cook, to ensure employers agree with this sentiment. Here is Keith’s advice:

In my experience the cover letter is alive and kicking and still an important part of the job search process. If the CV can be described as a foot in the door, then the cover letter could be described as that vital first impression of the person at the door.

Making that first impression with a prospective employer in an age of social networking becomes ever more vital. Suspend your judgement and make sure that your cover letter gets you through the door before your competitors.

Whether cleaning onions off the floor of a kebab shop or a broker in an investment bank, getting promoted is a big task. ‘Big’ but not ‘difficult’. As with most work issues, there is no rocket science involved and people with plans outperform others.
The good news is there is a blue-print for success.

1. Start now. Devise your plan and stick to your commitments. Even if it’s the first day of a new job, start now. It takes time to get recognised, let alone rewarded.

2. Make sure you pass the ‘attitude’ test. This is the biggest hurdle. Every day you need to be positive, prepared, punctual, willing to go the extra mile, show leadership, hard working, well presented and considerate of others. It sounds a lot but it boils down to taking pride in and being committed to your work. And doing this every day.

3. Identify problems your promotion will solve. When you get promoted, how will you tackle the problems? Focus on the people who will directly benefit from your new abilities and start letting them see what you can do.