Interview Preparation Tips
Use this document to help you prepare for and successfully conduct an interview with a food and beverage manager at a golf club or resort facility.
1. SCHEDULING THE INTERVIEW
• Plan for a one-hour interview
• If meeting in person, coordinate a convenient time and location for the interviewee – work around their schedule
• Be prepared for meetings to be scheduled in the early morning or late afternoon, probably outside normal business hours
• Find a meeting location where you can meet in private and not be disturbed by telephones, people, etc.
• If the interviewee is not available to meet in person, interviewing by phone or online (e.g. Skype, Google Hangouts, etc.) are acceptable alternatives
2. PREPARATION
• Research the golf club/resort facility and the individual as thoroughly as possible before the interview (e.g. website, annual reports, brochures, additional company material that you can access, etc.)
• Read current and relevant articles from magazines, newspapers, books, etc. that you may want to refer to during your interview
• In addition to asking the required questions provided, develop a list of questions that you plan to ask during the interview. Use the information found in the “Instructions” section in Assignment 1 (Part 2) and consult the next professional tip on “developing a list of questions.”
• Via research and prior to the interview, answer as many of the basic questions as you can and confirm your findings during the interview
• Before the interview, send the interviewee a summary of the project and its purpose and a list of the 8-12 interview questions that you plan on asking
• Make sure you know your questions – do not strictly rely on your notes (practice)
• Allow yourself some time after the interview so that you can summarize your notes
3. DEVELOPING A LIST OF QUESTIONS
• Use the aforementioned preparation tips and course content/activities as a basis for developing your questions
• Begin the interview with a few warm-up, easy-to-answer type of questions (e.g. overview of interviewee responsibilities, plans for the current year, new business, current activities, employment/career background, etc.)
• Develop questions that allow you to learn the facts, but also provide an opportunity for the interviewee to expand on the subject matter (i.e. open-ended format)
• Ask questions about how the individual makes decisions and their business strategy (e.g. menu design, hiring, purchasing, food and alcohol products, etc.)
• Be sure to discuss how they build/maintain the business. In particular, focus on day-to-day business, special events (e.g. corporate events, weddings, holiday parties, etc.), tournaments, special menus, etc.
• Customer service should be a key topic. In particular, focus on how they achieve it, training, criteria for hiring waiters and bartenders, experience needed, and handling customer complaints.
• Legal liability – how they prepare themselves for dealing with intoxicated guests, the training they provide staff, policies, etc.
• Focus on their relationships with other members of their department and with kitchen and wait staff
• Discuss their role as a member of the club management team and their relationship with other managers
• Discuss the different roles they play (i.e. leader of their department, mentor/coach, team member, addresses performance issues)
• Discuss their day-to-day challenges and opportunities and long-term challenges and opportunities
• Conclude the interview by seeking advice for developing a strong relationship with the food and beverage department
4. PROFESSIONALISM
• Be confident and professional
• Dress appropriately for the interview (i.e. business/golf attire)
• If meeting in person, arrive 10 minutes before the scheduled time, or be prepared if you conduct the interview by phone or online.
• Before the interview, send the interviewee a summary of the project and its purpose and a list of the 8-12 interview questions that you plan on asking; use the list of questions as an outline for your conversation with the interviewee
• Listen carefully – be sure not to force the interviewee to repeat themselves, as you have limited time and this may annoy the interviewee
• Monitor the time in your interview so that you can ask all the necessary questions
5. INTERVIEWING
• It is important to outline the interview and set expectations – begin with introductions, agenda for the interview, and warm-up questions
• As you begin the interview, be sure to summarize the purpose of the meeting. You might also want to inform them about the Golf Hospitality Management course at McMaster University Continuing Education.
• Base the interview on the questions that you developed prior to your scheduled interview
• Bring an additional list of questions to provide to the interviewee – provide guidelines for the session (even if you already forwarded them)
• Develop questions that allow you to learn the facts, but also provide the opportunity for the interviewee to expand on the subject (i.e. open-ended format)
• Keeping in mind the framework you developed for the interview, try to build on points of interest that the interviewee may bring up while answering your questions
• As you ask the questions, remember that the interviewee is the “expert” in the area
• If the interview seems to be going off-topic, try to bring the interviewee back to the list of questions
• Be prepared to take notes, but you may also want to ask the interviewee if you can record the interview (Note: do not count on the tape)
6. FOLLOW-UP
• Ask the interviewee if you can phone them or someone else to clarify any points
• Ensure to follow-up with a thank you note to the interviewee
• If appropriate, offer/send the interviewee a copy of your report
