Monitoring & Evaluation Specialist Interview Preparation Guide

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You may say that you thrive under certain types of pressure. Give an example that relates to the type of position applied for.
Mention pressures you face on the daily, such as dealing with deadlines on a regular basis.
Try not to use an example where you created the pressure yourself, by waiting too long to start something, or by handling a task irresponsibly at the beginning. For example, working under pressure to meet a customer's deadline could be a good example, but not if you had waited too long to start the project.
Pressure is actually a catalyst to my work. When there is an imperative deadline, I refocus my energy into my work which in fact, has helped me to produce some of my best works. (Give examples) I guess you can say I thrive under pressure.

You have to relax during the interview and try to be friendly. You should put up a warm smile on your face occasionally and try not to be to formal and yet again too informal. Try to treat the interviewing panel like they are actually your work colleagues no matter how intimidating they may appear.

There is absolutely no harm in displaying some of your big achievements to the interviewing panel. More especially if it is really related to the kind of programme they intend to implement over the years. Take for example, if they are recuiting a Monitoring and Evaluation Officer for a gender programme they are about to implement and you were fortunate to have conducted a gender evaluation as a consultant months before the interview, why not show them your Evaluation Report.

Make sure you answer questions in a clear and confident way. Interviewers are interested in a Monitoring and Evaluation Officer who is able to communicate clearly. Why is this so important? Well when you will be called to do a powerpoint presentation on your Monitoring findings infront of a wide audience, you have to be able to communicate it in a clear but effective way. When the interviewers ask you questions, answer the question as it comes and don't include things that are not related at all to the topic. Be yourself.

I have been working with computers since 2001. I also have a degree in network support/computer repair. I have built my last 3 computers, have work with Dell as an employee. So I have around 15 years experience working with computers.

Usually interviewers want to test your intelligence by giving you a practical situation. If you are called to explain your experience in the Monitoring and Evaluation field, make sure you explain things in a practical way. For instance, imagine if the interviewers asked you whether you have conducted a Baseline Survey before in your life. You are not only going to say yes, but you will briefly explain how you did it and what were your findings. It is usually interesting if you conducted a Baseline Survey for a prestigious organization.

► Everyone should learn from his mistake. I always try to consult my mistakes with my kith and kin especially with elderly and experienced person.
► I enrolled myself into a course useful for the next version of our current project. I attended seminars on personal development and managerial skills improvement.

• How did you gain the technical knowledge you need to do your job?
• How long did you have to study before you took your [Name of Specific License] exam? How many times did you take the test?
• Give me an example of an especially difficult assignment or project. What was your role? What did you do?
• Have you received any commendations for your performance?
• It says on your application that you have used specialized computer software. Describe a typical project.
• What do you think is the most important development in your field today? What impact do you think it will have?
• How do you keep informed about what's happening in your field?
• To what job-related organizations do you belong?
• What job-related publications do you normally read?
• Have you recently attended any conferences or seminars in your field? What did you get out of them?

• You've probably had this experience: You worked hard on something, only to be told to change priorities and do it some other way. How did you handle that?
• Which supervisors have you found easiest to work with? Most difficult? Why?
• What kinds of problems have you had in switching from one job to another?
• How do you handle breaks in routine, interruptions, and last-minute changes?

• What are some of the most important documents you have written? What kinds of problems did you have writing them? What kind of reception did they receive?
• What is the most difficult writing assignment you have undertaken recently? Why was it so challenging? How did you handle it?
• Have you ever written instructions to be followed by employees or customers? What did you do?
• Recall an important report you had to prepare. How did you go about planning and organizing it?
• To what kind of audience do you address most of your written work? What level of language do you use?
• Have you ever had to write technical material for lay people? Please give me an example.

• Describe a project or idea you originated in the last year. How did you know it was a good idea?
• What do you do to keep informed about possible work-related problems?
• Have you ever recognized a problem or opportunity before anyone else? What happened?

Some questions don't fit neatly into a job competence category, but are commonly-asked to give you a better feel for the candidate. These questions routinely focus on applicants' abilities to perform a self-analysis of their skills and on their expectations coming into the job.
• What skills do you enjoy using most? Why?
• What is your greatest strength, and how do you take full advantage of it?
• What's the greatest asset you currently bring to your company?
• What is your greatest weakness, and what have you done to overcome it?
• Why should I hire you?
• What makes you stand out among your peers?
• If you started working for us tomorrow, what could you contribute immediately?
• Are you familiar with the corporate culture here? How do you think you'll fit in?
• What would be the ideal way you'd envision spending your first day here?
• What do you feel an employer owes its employees? How about what employees owe their employers?
• Paint a picture of the corporate culture you'll create if we hire you. Do you operate under a more centralized and paternalistic agenda with power centralized in the hands of a few, or do you constantly push responsibility and accountability down the line?

• Have you ever had an experience in which you were glad you had paid attention to some particular detail? Please describe it.
• Have you ever found an error in your own work? How did it happen? What did you do about it?

• How would you define a good job in your line of work?
• What personal performance standards do you set for yourself? What have you done to meet them? What do you do if you find yourself falling short of a standard?
• Do you make extra efforts to meet deadlines? Describe what you have done to complete a project or report on time.
• If you were going to evaluate your own performance, what factors would you consider most important?
• What are the important things your department has contributed to the organization in the last year?
• Are you satisfied with your department's performance? Why or why not?
• What's your definition of the word success? And how about failure?

• Have you ever had to get a point across to different types of people? What approach did you take?
• Give me an example of how you would explain a complicated procedure to someone who was new to the situation.
• Have you ever given instructions to someone, and then learned he/she did it wrong? Why do you think that happened?
• Describe a decision you made based largely on data you obtained by asking questions.
• How do people react when you ask questions? How well do they seem to understand what you want to know?
• Can you give me an example of a time you had to pitch a proposal to a group of your superiors or co-workers? How did you do? Why do you think things went that way?
• Have you ever done any public speaking? How did you handle the assignment? How did it work out?

• Under what kinds of conditions do you do your best work?
• What kinds of conditions do you find the most difficult?
• What kinds of pressures do you feel in your job? How do you cope with them? What frustrates you the most?
• Describe a situation in which you were under particularly great pressure. How did you deal with it? How successful were you?
• Do you often take work home? Why?

• Describe the procedures you have used to keep track of things that require your attention.
• Describe a typical staff meeting in your department.
• What do you do to keep track of your subordinates' progress on delegated assignments?
• What procedures do you use to evaluate your subordinates' performances?
• What do you do when you find that a subordinate is not meeting your standards?

• How would you handle a performance problem with your best employee? Your worst employee?
• What have you done to make your subordinates' jobs easier or more rewarding?
• What have you done to make your group work more smoothly and efficiently?
• Describe a situation in which one or more subordinates had roles in the decision-making process. How did you make use of their contributions?
• In your mind, what is the greatest thing that distinguishes a superior employee from someone who gives typical good performance?
• What factors do you consider most important in judging a subordinate's performance?

• What was the toughest decision you had to make in the last year? What made it so difficult?
• Describe a work-related problem you had to face recently. What procedures did you use to deal with it?
• Are there any occasions when you feel you make up your mind too quickly? Too slowly?
• Have you ever delayed a decision so you would have more time to think? Give me an example.

• Give me an example of your ability to facilitate progressive change within your organization.
• Tell me about the last time you inherited a problem unit - one suffering from poor productivity or low morale. What was the scope of the project, and how were your direct reports affected?
• Did you create a culture of open information, sharing, and increased accountability by giving responsibility to your subordinates, or did you focus more on establishing their parameters and controlling the decision-making process?
• How do you typically stay in the information loop and monitor your staff's performance?
• How do you typically confront subordinates when results are unacceptable?

• Describe your normal methods of assigning work to subordinates.
• Who is in charge while you are gone? How do you inform this person of the limits and responsibilities you expect him/her to observe?
• Have you ever moved up to a position where you had to supervise former peers? How did you handle it?
• Describe a project that required a major effort by many members of your staff. Who did you ask to participate? Why did you choose them? What assignments did they have?
• You've probably had a situation in which you delegated a responsibility, but the work wasn't done as you expected. Why do you think this happened? What would you do differently next time?

• What part of your work has given you the greatest feeling of achievement and satisfaction?
• What part of your work have you found to be the most frustrating or unsatisfying?
• Why did you choose this particular line of work?
• How did you hear about this job?
• Why did you choose to interview at our organization?
• Why do you want to work here?
• Where do you see yourself in five years?
• What types of work do you like best? Why?
• What types of work would you prefer to avoid? Why?
• Describe your work ethic, with examples.
• What interests do you have outside work that might positively affect your on-the-job performance?

• What is the highest level of school you completed?
• What educational training have you had that helped your career?
• I see that you attended [Name of College/University]. Why did you select that school?
• What courses did you start and then later drop out of? Why?

• With what other departments did you normally work in your previous job?
• How did events in your department affect other parts of the organization?
• Tell me about a problem you have had that would affect more than one department. How did you try to solve it?
• What other departments have been most useful in providing information or helping with problems? Least useful?
• What contacts do you make with other departments while setting goals?

• Have you ever had an experience in which you failed to see an idea or gain cooperation the first time, but succeeded later? What was the difference?
• Tell me about a time you had to surmount an obstacle to reach a goal. What was the problem, and what did you do about it?