We all celebrate. Business organizations engage in meetings with their clients. And there are various social programs too. All these are events and need the services of a specialized professional who can manage, supervise and coordinate these events. This professional is referred to as an Event Manager or Planner. The primary responsibility is to ensure that the event runs smoothly and there are no issues whatsoever.
An event manager can work on a freelance basis wherein he or she will get paid based on the per-event managed. Alternatively, he can also find a permanent opportunity with any body corporate at a fixed pay. The interview process for this position is quite tricky and there are several in-depth questions that check your core knowledge as well as your personality.
Prepmycareer has always aimed to prepare you for your upcoming interview sessions using some of the best resources. Below is a list of the most frequently asked interview questions, for your reference.
21 Best Interview Questions To Study
1. What Do You Understand By The Term “Sponsorship Negotiations”?
As an event manager, you will certainly be required to crack deals with sponsors. An interviewer wants to know your level of acquaintance with the same.
Sample Answer
Sir, sponsors are the business organizations who are willing to advertise their businesses at events, especially sports, movies, and cultural events, where the footfall is very high. They pay lucrative fees in lieu of this, which funds the overall organizing costs of an event. It is necessary to enter into careful negotiations with these sponsors and try to crack a deal that is profitable for both the event management company and also the sponsors.
2. List A Few Steps That You Undertake To Make An Event A Hit.
This question checks what are the various steps that you undertake to attract more and more people to your event, so as to make it a hit
Sample Answer
Sir, I do the following:
- I always send reminders to the attendees of the event, the previous day, 3 hours before the starting of the event, and also at the last moment. I send these reminders using SMS and Emails
- To ensure that all the special guests attend our event, I personally call them to be assured of their presence
3. What Are The Various Event Management Software That You Are Aware Of?
Everything moves around technology nowadays. It is necessary that you understand the functioning of the various software available in the market in the niche of event management.
Sample Answer
Sir, I am aware of the latest and most widely used event management software, such as:
- Eventbrite
- Boomset
- ConfTool
4. Share A Working Day In The Life Of An Events Manager.
This question checks how in-depth knowledge do you possess of your profession.
Sample Answer
Sure, sir, It is:
- Organizing the event just before its start, by making sure that everything is as per the layout designed
- Managing the budgetary requirements and logistics team
- Ensuring that all the team members have taken their respective positions
- Make sure that there are no hiccups during the practical execution of the event and everything runs smoothly
- Analyze the reports and check out for deficiencies
5. Budgets Play An Important Role In Event Management. Share A TIme When Real Expenditure Exceeded Your Budget.
This question requires you to share a real event in which the actual expenditure exceeded the budgetary requirements.
Sample Answer
Sir, an event is a real-time activity and there are always some issues and unforeseen problems that materialize in an unexpected manner. I experienced the same while I was working with an event management company. The real expenses exceeded 25% of the original budget because there were some defects in the generator, that were purely incidental and were not at all expected.
6. Name Any Three Traits That Every Event Manager Must Possess.
This question checks your level of understanding of your own profession.
Sample Answer
Sure, sir, these are:
- Leadership
- Effective communication skills
- An eye for detail
7. How Can You Use Social Media In Your Job?
Event managers to expand the reach and popularity of an event cater to social media. Just share how do you use it to market an event.
Sample Answer
Sir, social media handles are some of the best ways to market an event and enable it to reach a wider audience. I always use popular social media sites, such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to make engaging and attractive posts using the official account of the company. In the posts, I always ensure that the full details of the event along with the primary purpose of it are totally explained. Moreover, I always prefer to use a lot of graphics and pictures in my post.
8. If You Were An Animal, What Will You Be?
This is a personality evaluating question, which might seem easy to the unprepared candidates. However, a veteran will understand the total worth and difficulty level of it. Always share a corporate-friendly animal, and learn a few of its positive characteristics.
Sample Answer
Sir, in my opinion, honey bees are my favorite ones and if God would ever give me a chance, I would simply love to replicate them. The honey bees are the busiest and the most hardworking animals out there and if I am able to work even at 20% of their ability, I will be able to offer a lot of productivity.
9. What Can You Offer Us That Someone Else Cannot?
This question aims to test your personality and approach. As an ideal response, you are required to share some of your unique characteristics that are found rarely, or in other words, are peculiar to you. Further, you are always advised to share those traits that align and correspond with the job description.
Sample Answer
Sir, God made us different and we all have some unique and special attributes present within us. In my opinion, I have the ability to communicate with my fellow workers with ease. I can take orders, give orders, assess the situations, and perform effectively. I believe, my strong persona and management skills make me unique and different from others.
10. We Believe In Performing Tasks That Maintain “Quality”. How Do You Interpret The Term “Quality”?
This is a word-based question, in which you are required to interpret a single word. “Quality” is a corporate-friendly term and you are required to share your own version of interpretation of this term.
Sample Answer
Sir, Quality is a technical term and has innumerable interpretations. However, in my opinion, every task is a quality task, if it is performed with caution, care and it matches with the expectations of the clients. Furthermore, a quality task is always at par with the established standards.
11. As An Event Manager, You Will Perform A Variety Of Tasks. How Do You Prioritize?
This question requires you to state your prioritization technique. You can always arrange your tasks in a specific order, on the basis of their difficulty levels, with the toughest being performed at first, only to be followed by the easier ones. Or, you can arrange the tasks on the basis of their time consumption. Whatever suits you at your workplace, you ought to share it with your interviewer.
12. Describe Yourself In One Word.
This is a personality evaluating interview question and requires you to summarize the whole of your personality in a single word. The best way to answer this question is by analyzing your true self and then getting a list of words that matches your findings. Post this, just share that word with your interviewer and provide a justification or proper reasoning of the same.
13. What Is An Ethical Team Culture?
Nowadays most business organizations prefer to work in a team environment, wherein they set up teams on the basis of the nature of tasks involved, the education levels of employees, and also their attributes. This question requires you to share what in your opinion is ethical team culture. In other words, what are the various attributes or qualities that you prefer your team members to have? Give a proper answer and justify the qualities that you have selected with proper reasoning.
14. What Are Your Strengths and Weaknesses As An Events Manager?
This is a common interview question and marks its appearance in almost all the interview sessions held across the world. The best way to answer this question is by conducting deep scrutiny of your personality and then noting at least three strengths and three weaknesses that are closest to you. You will certainly be required to explain your answer using reasons and logic.
15. What Are Your Salary Expectations?
It is a common habit of the interviewers to ask about your salary expectations during an interview session itself. It is always advised that you share a salary figure that is based on some deep research of the industry to which you belong. Quoting any salary figure that is random and is too high or too low from the median salary would deplete your selection chances.
16. When Can You Start Working With Us?
There is nothing technical in this interview question. Through this question, an interviewer requires you to share a date, on or after which you can resume working with the business organization. It is true that immediate starters are always preferred, but you are always requested to share a true date of your start. Further, this question in no way guarantees your selection and you must not lose focus considering the same.
17. Event Management Involves A Lot Of Skills. How Do You Manage Work Related Stress?
Stress management is a common expectation of business organizations. They expect each of their employees to have developed strategies that help them to reduce and manage their stress levels. You can always manage your stress using deep breathing exercises, meditation, yoga, or maybe a positive pep talk. Just share a strategy, that suits and matches your style.
18. Not Every Event Is A Success. How Do You Manage Failure?
Success is not a guarantee and there will always be instances in one’s life when he will fail despite working hard. Hence, we can safely assume that struggle is guaranteed but not success. However, a struggling individual is always outrightly rejected by our community which adds to pain and agony. There will always be such instances in your personal life, and you got to have developed techniques to manage and handle work-related failure. These techniques are demanded as an ideal response to this interview question.
19. What Are The Various Factors That Motivate You To Work?
We all get motivated by a few factors that prompt and stimulate us to work hard at our workplaces. An interviewer is always interested in knowing these factors, for evaluation purposes. These factors are most personal to us and are influenced by our financial conditions, circumstances, and living situations. Hence, always prefer to give a genuine and original answer, instead of going towards the generic one.
20. Why You Chose Us?
Through this question, an interviewer wants to know your level of seriousness and commitment towards the business organization. The best way to prepare for this interview question is by noting down all the relevant facts and details about the company. Add your personal interests in your noting, and try framing a structured answer for this question.
21. Do You Have Any Questions For Us?
This question marks the end of your big day as it is the last interview question. Attempt this question in the best possible way and you can go home. Through this question, an interviewer wants to know the various doubts or apprehensions that you might be having regarding the work profile, the organization, its working culture, etc. You can always ask a few questions based on the model questions mentioned below:
Model Questions
- What are the various incentives that are offered by the company for handling more than stipulated events in a month?
- Events run beyond normal working hours. Please share a list of all the overtime allowances that are given by the company to its employees.
- Is it the policy of the company to give training and other developmental opportunities to its employees?
References
- https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/joms.12620
- https://www.theseus.fi/handle/10024/503545
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Sandeep Bhandari is the founder of PrepMyCareer.com website.
I am a full-time professional blogger, a digital marketer, and a trainer. I love anything related to the Web, and I try to learn new technologies every day.
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