How to Answer Interview Questions About Your Previous Job

How to Answer Interview Questions About Your Previous JobHow to Answer Interview Questions About Your Previous JobIts easy to talk at interviewabout what you liked about your previous job, but you need to be careful when responding to questions about the downsides of your brde position. Its leid the time to vent, so heres what you need to know about answering this type of question. Some of the common ways interviewers inquire about previous jobs include What did you most like and dislike about your previous job?What did you enjoy most in your last role?What did you dislike about your last role?What were the best and worst aspects of your last employer? What the Interviewer Really Wants to Know By asking about your feelings toward a previous job, ahiring committeeoften isnt that interested in the list of actual likes or dislikes you can provide. Rather, theyre trying to judge your character by listening to the tone and attitude with which you respond to a tricky question. Details of your likes and dislikes can also reveal whether youll be agood fit culturallyat the company at hand. How to Answer Questions About Your Previous Job Thebest strategy to use in this case is to focus on the positives of your previous job and totalk about how your experiences there have prepared you to assume a progressive and challengingnew role with a different employer. You dont want the interviewer to think youll also speak negatively about this job or the company should you eventually decide to move on after they hire you. Neither do you want to provide them with the first impression that youre a complainer, hold grudges, or are difficult to work with. When youre asked at ajob interviewabout what you didnt like about your previous job, try not to be too negative. If the interviewer presses you to say something negative- or if you feel that your answer will not be complete without a nod toward the negative aspects- keep it focused on tasks, situations, or company structure, and not on people. Bonus points if its something that will be easier at the new company. For example I often found myself frustrated by the limitations of our content management system- it was slow and also prone to crashing. Thats why I was so relieved to hear you say that ABC Companys had recently been updated. Examples of the Best Answers I enjoyed the people I worked with. It was afriendly and fun atmosphere, and I actually enjoyed going to work each morning. I felt thatthe leadership team was great too. They knew all of their employees on a first name basis and tried to make those personal connections. I also enjoyed the fact that the office tried to do community outreach with local organizations. ExpandWhy It Works This answer is so revealing Personal connections are clearly a priority for this candidate. This honest-seeming response says a lot about the candidates values as an employee. Plus, the overall tone is really positive. One of the reasons Im leaving is that I fel t I was not challenged enough at the job. As a new employee in the working world, the company offered me a great opportunity for a good entry-level position- one that Ill always be grateful for. However, after being there for so many years, I felt I wasnt able to fulfillallofmy potential because of a real lack of challenge. There was no room for advancement in the company. While I did enjoy working there and appreciate the skills I developed, I feel myskill setcan be better employed elsewhere.Somewhere my capabilities are more recognized, and wherethere is the opportunity for growth. ExpandWhy It Works Seeking more challengingwork makes a candidate seem like a hard worker. This person also seems quite loyal (After being there for so many years). Thats a good thing, since employers can be wary of hiring people who wont stick around. Through my experience at ABC Company, I learned a lot aboutdifferent management stylesand strategies for maintaining cooperation in a large group project setting. I feel that as valuable as that experience has been, I am eager to work on more specialized projects onwhich I will have the opportunity to be more of a leader than was going to be possible there. ExpandWhy It Works This answer keeps the focus on the positive aspects of the previous job. In a situation where the new role offers leadership opportunities, this answer will make a candidate appear a strong fit. While the people at XYZ Company were terrific to work with, I felt that the opportunities for me there were limited by the structure and size of the company. I believe that a larger company with an international presence can offer challengesandopportunities unavailable at a smaller firm. The position with your company is a great match for my skill set, and I feel that I would be an asset to your marketing (or HR or IT) department. ExpandWhy It Works This answer focuses on a negative structural aspect, making it clear why this job would be a better fit. Tips for Givin g the Best Answer Display positive energy.Your skills matter a lot, but employers are also looking for candidates who have enthusiasm, dedication, and energy. Avoid complaining in your response. Instead, focus on good experiences at your current (or former) employer. Mention positives that demonstrate your culture-fit or skills.Your mention of a positive aspect of your former job should ideally advance your candidacy. If what you liked was Free bagels on Thursdays that may be honest, but it does not show youre a good fit for the job at hand. End on a positive noteabflug off by mentioning a positive. Then mention the negative and try to pivot back around to something positive. You can do that by talking about how you managed the aspect you disliked, or bymaking a connection to the job youre interviewing for. Focus on tasks over peopleThis is not the time to complain about coworkers or your manager. Instead, talk about structural problems or characteristics of the company, unavailabl e opportunities, or tasks that were frustrating. What Not to Say Dont bad-mouth an employer or your peers.When an interviewing committee sees that you refuse to bad-mouth your previous employer, theyll trust that youll offer the same respect and loyalty to them if you become their new employee. Dontchoose a negative aspect that isnt common in the industry.Mention a dislike thats present at the company youre interviewing with, and you could disqualify yourself as a candidate. Be honest.As you can see, you want to be strategic in your response. But make sure also tobe genuine. If you truly loved your job let that shine through, and be specific about what made it so great. And if an aspect was frustrating, do mention it- without letting it overpower your response. Possible Follow-Up Questions Being asked what you liked and disliked about your former employer isnt the only question where you may have to tread carefully during a job interview. Here are othercommon interview quest ions and answersthat an interviewer will ask not only tolearn more about your skills and work background, but also to measure your personality and positivity What wasthe most/least rewarding at your last job?Why are you leaving your job?What interests you about this job?How is our company better than your present employer? Key Takeaways STAY POSITIVE.Do not vent or complain in your response. Keep it positive to help show that youre easy to work with and not prone to holding grudges.FOCUS ONWHATOVERWHO.Reference negative aspects that will be solved in the new job and avoid bad-mouthing the company or its employees.SHOW YOUR FIT WITH THE COMPANY/JOB.When you talk about both the positive and negative aspects of previous roles, you have an opportunity to further your case as a candidate. Take advantage

New System Aims to Cut the Cost of Solar Power in Half

New System Aims to Cut the Cost of Solar Power in Half New System Aims to Cut the Cost of Solar Power in Half New System Aims to Cut the Cost of Solar Power in HalfSolar power has many advantages, mainly an endless supply of energy by harnessing the power of the sun. But it suffers from extremely inefficient storage systems, a limitation that has kept prices high and limited the widespread adoption of the technology.alexanderplatz Huang, a professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin and director of the schools Semiconductor Power Electronics Center, hopes to change that with a bold promise for the future of solar cutting the price of the technology in half by combining power generation and storage into one single system.We need to achieve higher efficiency in solar energy conversion, Huang says, referring to the purpose of his teams new power storage architecture, which recently earned a $3 1000000 research grant from the U. S. Department of Energy. And that led us to propose a new design that allows the solar power plant to be connected to the medium voltage system directly, instead of going through another transformer. We also added multi-function capabilities so this project has additional functionality, particularly in the integration of energy storage and to provide other services to the energy grid.For You A New Solar Cell on the BlockMost solar energy storage systems today are based around a solar invertor that is connected to a 480-volt or 690-volt system and then fed through a transformer. But those transformers are massive pieces of equipment, and add substantially to the cost of operation. Its like connecting a dedicated substation to each inverter in order to manage the system. That means the energy generated by the solar cells has to be moved and stored outside of the generators. Its inefficient, expensive and outdated.UTs solar farm at Pickle Research Campus. Image UT Cockrell School of En gineering CommunicationsDr. Huang s team is working to cut the cost of solar power and make it mora efficient by combining both power generation and storage into a single system. Its based around several new types of photovoltaic inverters, or modular, multifunction, multiport and medium-voltage utility-scale silicon carbide solar inverters, better known as an M4 inverter. This design is dedicated to converting the direct current output of a solar panel to medium-voltage alternating current without the need for an expensive and external low-frequency transformer.The basic way this works is were taking DC voltage from the solar and turning that into AC, but in this case the AC voltage is much higher than the DC voltage, Huang says.There is a high-frequency transformer inside the M4 inverter operating at frequencies hundreds and thousands times higher than those found in traditional transformers, which top out at around 60 Hz. This higher-frequency approach can improve the quality of the final product on its own, though the UT teams modular architecture design places several converters in series to further streamline the output quality.The end result is a clean power generation and storage system thats cheaper to operate and easier to maintain over time.But thats just the beginning.By incorporating the transformer functions into the solar power generation system itself, the M4 is also intended to drive clean energy adoption by utilities, offering new functionality and advanced tools that stand to change the way those power systems operate.For example, the lower voltage battery system in the M4 can be charged either via the solar panels directly or by tapping the existing electrical grid. From there, that power can be discharged back to the grid at any time. The battery system provides the buffer that commercial systems need to operate, making solar-produced power available for dispatch at any time, regardless of the weather time of day.It provides a lot of freed om for the grid, Dr. Huang says. When your solar power generation goes up when we have a lot of sunshine, or goes down when we have clouds in the sky, the storage can come in to make up the difference. So from a utility point of view, its more grid friendly. Its a very flexible, controlled system.Although still in the research stages, the long-term plan is to introduce this technology as a lower cost alternative to existing solar generation and storage solutions. One objective of the project is to demonstrate the overall ownership cost of modern solar, particularly the ongoing operation costs associated with clean energy sources.Its not just the initial capital cost, which will be higher than a traditional transformer system, per kilowatt level, but that will be offset by improved reliability, reduced service time, and the multi-port functions that offer additional revenues streams for systems, Huang says.Over time, Huang hopes this technology leads to broader adoption of solar powe r by utilities, driving more and more investment into these types of efficiency technologies. He believes the industry is already moving in this direction and is targeting power plants and commercial-scale installations.The message is that utilities can make use of solar in ways they have not been able to in the past, he says. Future solar energy systems will offer multiple functions and new kinds of connections by combining this kind of solution with new semi-conductor technology. This is just one part of the smart grid of the future.Tim Sprinkle is an independent technology writer.Listen to Episode 1 of ASME TechCast Building the Case for a Diversified Workforce, with Roma AgrawalThe message is that utilities can make use of solar in ways they have not been able to in the past.Prof. Alex Huang, University of Texas, Austin

Survey Majority of managers are uncomfortable with communication (aka doing their jobs)

Survey Majority of managers are uncomfortable with communication (aka doing their jobs)Survey Majority of managers are uncomfortable with communication (aka doing their jobs)To be a good manager to the employees youre in charge of, you need to be a strong communicator to your employees about your expectations, deadlines, and goals. But a newInteract surveyrecently highlighted by Harvard Business Reviewfound that the majority of managers are uncomfortable doing just these things. Otherwise known as doing their jobs.Survey Managers uncomfortable with giving any feedback to their employeesThe Interact survey of mora than 2,000 U.S. adults found that69% of the managers admitted that they were often uncomfortable communicating with employees. Over a third of managers surveyed said that they were uncomfortable giving direct feedback about their employees job performance if they thought the employees would take it badly.Basic communication skills like giving clear directions and speaking fa ce to face were also listed as stressors that made managers uncomfortable. Twenty percent of managers surveyed said that the thought of needing to deliver the company line about an employers change in direction made them uncomfortable.