Episode 05

Sarah goes for her interview. How do you think will she do?

Do the preparation task first. Then watch the video and do the exercises. You can also read the transcript.

Preparation

Transcript

Marcia: Hi, Sarah. I'm Marcia Boardman. We spoke on the phone ...

Sarah: Oh yes, I remember. I was having a bad day!

Marcia: ... and, erm, this is Philip Hart, our CEO.

Philip: Hello!

Sarah: Hello, it's very nice to meet you both. 

Philip: It says on your CV that you do voluntary work.

Sarah: Well, when I have time, yes! I do work at a centre for children with difficulties.

Philip: That must be very interesting.

Sarah: It's rewarding and challenging.

Marcia: Sarah, can you tell us a little bit about your current position?

Sarah: I'm assistant sales director for a chain of language schools.

Philip: So this post would be quite a change then.

Sarah: I don't think so, honestly, because the skills are the same, despite the product.

Marcia: Why are you thinking of moving on?

Sarah: Well, I've come as far as I can in my current position, I feel, and I'm 28 now and would love to take on some more responsibility.

Marcia: OK, um, let's move on to managing people. Can you give us an example of when you had to deal with a particularly difficult managee?

Sarah: Well, yes, I had two people working for me who didn't get along at all. They had no shared values, different temperaments and used to argue a lot. It looked like it was impossible for them to work together. So, I sat down with them and we talked about their differences and their problems, and after that things went much more smoothly.

Philip: How would you deal with a rapidly changing and uncertain global market?

Sarah: Oh, that's actually something I wanted to talk about in my presentation, but I'd say to stay flexible and to diversify markets and sales strategies.

Marcia: It says on your CV you speak French and Spanish.

Sarah: Yes, I do. I lived in both France and Spain for a while.

Philip: Any plans to learn other languages?

Sarah: I'd love to try!

Marcia: Erm, OK. Can you tell us about a time you had to close a particularly challenging deal?

Sarah: Well, the biggest contract I won – and the thing I'm most proud of professionally – was with a large university in India, to provide language training. The contract was full of technicalities and the client was very picky! But I still pulled it off.

Marcia: OK, erm, do you have any questions for us?

Sarah: Yes, about your ethical policy and your carbon footprint. I was wondering whether you are planning to reduce your carbon footprint and whether all your products are ethically sourced.

Philip: That's a very good question and that's something we're moving towards at the moment.

Marcia: OK, well, let's move on to the presentation.

Task 1

Task 2

Discussion

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Worksheet79.62 KB
Average: 3.9 (11 votes)

Submitted by A_Ichiro on Sun, 30/06/2019 - 04:09

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Sarah is a much maturer person than I thought. I thought she was careless when she did not ask Marcia to call back later in a noisy place. In the interview, she was able to attract the interviewers dressing and behaving properly, confirming her ability with examples.

Submitted by nguyennga1994 on Sun, 03/03/2019 - 16:31

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Definitely, Sarah gonna get the job, and i deeply looking forward her presentation . She will show something in particular.

Submitted by Vuqar on Fri, 22/02/2019 - 12:11

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I think that, Sarah won the competition.
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Submitted by Olena_Sh on Fri, 15/02/2019 - 13:06

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hi I think, it's perfect example of a successful interview This job will be for Sarah, I expect

Submitted by Lusine on Fri, 25/01/2019 - 21:55

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I think she was very smart dressed and answered all the questions very cleverly and with modest. She will get the job!

Submitted by Luis Tomas on Wed, 05/12/2018 - 03:10

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Thank you! Definitively Sarah will get the job.

Submitted by fludzinm on Sun, 02/12/2018 - 22:17

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This video presents a job interview. I think that Sarah is well prepared for this conversation. She is behaving professionally. I think that she has a chance to get a job.

Submitted by JOSEROA on Thu, 21/06/2018 - 15:08

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I like the context of the video. Yes, I think Sarah will get the job due to her favorable attitudes.

Submitted by pedimitris on Mon, 18/06/2018 - 18:46

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A great example of a good interview preparation.

Submitted by Jolie.nguyen on Sun, 17/06/2018 - 16:39

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I think she will have this job.. And the most difficult question for an interview is "Do you have any question for us?", I feel that.. :))