In these short pages, we provide a sample answer for each interview question in relation to the industry shown. We then analyse the answer, pointing out valuable information so that you can adapt the answer to your specific circumstances.

Finance - What Are Your Weaknesses?

Answer

One thing I've noticed in recent times is that I'm a bit behind on the main software packages used in the industry. During the course of my studies we mainly used Page and Lang Finance Software, but they have released a new edition that I'm not familiar with and which requires some training to get me up to speed. I figured this would slow me down, so I enrolled in night classes in Page and Lang 2.0.

I thought I could give myself a head-start if I was successful with this job application. I am currently eight night classes away from completion, so I am still at a basic level of understanding, but I bought a personal subscription for home use to accelerate my learning.

I have sometimes found myself getting impatient when a team project is getting closer to its due date. I'm not one for being late with things so I often get irritated with overdue projects. To try to avoid this, I like to be more proactive with my colleagues throughout tasks, encouraging them as much as I can to get the project over the line.

Analysis

The Interviewee lets the employer in on a very interesting fact - they have very little up-to-date knowledge of the new software being used in the industry. The Interviewee then shows the steps they are taking to combat this weakness. It shows great initiative to keep themselves in the loop. This is honest and extremely helpful for the employer to be aware of. It's not a deal-breaker by any stretch of the imagination and will definitely bring the employer round to see how genuine the Interviewee is, as this is not the type of weakness that an employer would expect a candidate to mention.

The Interviewee was intelligent with their answer. Using the new software was an excellent choice as the time-frame to mention something like that would have been small - a candidate could only say this if the software was very new to the Industry. Anything more than a year on the market, and it wouldn't carry much weight in the interview and probably backfire.

The Interviewee's plan was to highlight something that is fixable and can be worked through easily and they did just that. 

The second weakness that they touched on was impatience. When the Interviewee highlights this weakness, they mention that they notice it when coming close to a deadline. They also accompany the weakness with a solution that they're using if they ever face the issue again.

Overall, the Interviewee kept it concise and answered well. They seemed to have followed through with how they prepared for the question. They kept it on point and relevant to the job, which would have pleased the employer.

Good luck!