Hi gang,

I'm about to attend a group interview at VanCity Savings very soon and I'm wondering if anyone has any advice on what to expect.

I applied for a CSR position and I've already had a phone interview which went well.  The next step is this group interview downtown and I'm getting anxious.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

Cameron

Anyone?

Hi Cameron,
Make sure you follow up after the interview by sending an email and thanking them for having you in for the interview. You also want to reiterate that you are interested in the job.

Dear **********,
Thank you for the opportunity to meet with you this afternoon / morning. I enjoyed talking with you and learning more about VanCity and the CSR position. I understand you have a large number of canadiates to choose from. I believe my skills, experience, and dedication to hard work will make me a valuable addition to the team.I hope you will agree.

- off the top of my head, but you get the idea. I'm on the phone right now...

Say something original in your thank you note. I guarantee you 98% of the thank you notes will be the same-o regurgitated one like the above one. Take a risk, maybe add some humour to it to make yours stick out.

Eye contact. 

Neat appearance.

Lean forward as if interested.  Don't slouch, don't fidget.  Smile and nod.  Smile at others in the group.

Do NOT glance at your watch, even surreptitiously.

Good luck  :)

Alright... I'm going to share the magic. At the end of the interview ask the interviewer is he or she has any hesitations about offering you the position. Explain that the reason you are asking is because if there are any concerns you would like to address them. If they say there are no hesitations you then politely ask if you will be receiving a job offer.

It works. I've done it, friends have done it. It works.  Some people say it is too bold, but like Virgil said - "fortune favors the bold".

why would you want to work at VanCity? sure they get rated high by their own employees but my experience is that the people there aren't the brightest most ambitious crew. If you want a stable job without the benefit of really really driven people then go for it.

and come one... it's a CSR position. your appearance is gonna be the biggest thing. Just bullcrap about how you wanna do the Canadian Securities Course and you see yourself building a career at the bank. Basically just lie and tell them what they wanna hear. Then, get in.. see how you like it and decide if you really wanna build a career with them.

I'm so against VanCity though, i don't konw about their branch people but their head office people are not very bright. I really wasn't impressed with the HR person who was in the meeting either. and NO i wasn't applying fo r ajob with them.

Language guy

Attention: REGISTER / LOGIN to view the image!Posted - 1/2/2006 6:12:27 PM why would you want to work at VanCity? sure they get rated high by their own employees but my experience is that the people there aren't the brightest most ambitious crew

Boy you can sure say that again!
The Branch I go to is staffed with some of the most outstanding dummies ever to trip over their own feet.
No one with any brains stays more than 6 months-tops.

Cameron,

Here are some suggestions to prepare for an interview.
1.  Make sure you do your research...this is very critical.  Go to the vancity website and google online about vancity.  Interviewers will be impress that you do your homework about their company.  Learn as much about the company ahead of time. 

2.  Prepare questions for the interviewers.  Many times the interviewers will ask you if you have any questions...and make sure you have a few good questions prepared. 

3.  Practice answering questions.  What I mean is that many times there are many standards questions that interviewers ask such as tell me alittle bit about yourself...so practice at home. 

4.  Look presentable.  Be confident.  Be on time.

Good luck!

Thank you .............."Sick of Stupidity" - this advice will help many people. I think it would work especially well when you are being interviewed by more than one person. That is indeed magic. Also Vancity like many companies is big on sales skills.....they will realize you have that "not afraid to be assertive" attitude when it comes to promoting their products.  I work for Vancity now and they are big on cross selling.

Also, when it comes to the "why do you want to work for Vancity" portion of the interview you should talk about all the wonderful things Vancity does to give back to the community (and they do). Their "values". You can research this on their website.

From:  "Sick of Stupidity":

Alright... I'm going to share the magic. At the end of the interview ask the interviewer is he or she has any hesitations about offering you the position. Explain that the reason you are asking is because if there are any concerns you would like to address them. If they say there are no hesitations you then politely ask if you will be receiving a job offer.

It works. I've done it, friends have done it. It works.  Some people say it is too bold, but like Virgil said - "fortune favors the bold".

"thanks for taking the time to interview me, and the ten other assholes there too. I found the interview awkward, and the guy next to me had BO. "

make sure you know vancity specific products and push how good a sales person you are with examples how to back it up.

Sick of Stupidity

Attention: REGISTER / LOGIN to view the image!Posted - 1/2/2006 5:53:28 PM Alright... I'm going to share the magic. At the end of the interview ask the interviewer is he or she has any hesitations about offering you the position. Explain that the reason you are asking is because if there are any concerns you would like to address them. If they say there are no hesitations you then politely ask if you will be receiving a job offer. It works. I've done it, friends have done it. It works.  Some people say it is too bold, but like Virgil said - "fortune favors the bold".

I do this too.  And yes it does work.

Thanks everyone,

This is all much appreciated.  Honestly, I hate group interviews and I'm not looking forward to this one.  I wish I could just say my bit and get out of there feeling good about the process.

Best of luck to you Cameron.  Let us know how it went.

I remember my group interview with 3 others that lasted for about 4 hours.  We sat at a rectangular table and questions went back and forth from various decision makers. 

Alright... I'm going to share the magic. At the end of the interview ask the interviewer is he or she has any hesitations about offering you the position. Explain that the reason you are asking is because if there are any concerns you would like to address them. If they say there are no hesitations you then politely ask if you will be receiving a job offer.

It works. I've done it, friends have done it. It works.  Some people say it is too bold, but like Virgil said - "fortune favors the bold".

Try this when being interviewed for a real job and they'll laugh you right out of there

Rudolph... I guess most people who have asked that question and gotten high paying jobs don't have real jobs. Everyone is entitled to find what works for them.

Cameron; best of luck. Don't let anyone discourage you by saying it's "just a csr position". It may not be the greatest job, but it's a starting point and everyone needs to start somewhere.

That's exactly right.  I have the education for a potentially better position, but I don't have the financial experience to back it up.  So, I'm stuck at the bottom trying to work my way up.

I get nervous when a questioner wants a grand story as an answer.  It all seems like shameless self-promotion that you would think is mostly bull$&!#.

Anyway, I'm just weary of the whole process....

Well, I have good news!  The group interview was a piece of cake and now I'm going for a branch interview.... uh oh, scary!  Any thoughts gang?

haha, that mean you will 99 % get the job. branch interview is only a routine, the branch management will hire you unless you make a bad move or not on time. They cannot overturn the whole process and say you are not good...


BTW, been there, glad I get out quick. Vancity is a waste of your time unless you want to treat it as your career in the long long term.

Tell me, who is buying Vancity credential fund? In this market, not many people will invest in mutual fund, other Big banks already has their problem to promote their regular mutual funds...


And Vancity mortgage product is not competitive in the market, not aggressive...

You will not be successful in the financial field as an investment bank or a lender. If you would like to start from bottom, please start from a regular bank, at least down the road, you will more be recognized.

Cameron can describe exactly what it is that you did during the group interview? and any pointers would be greatly appreciated.. Thanks

by the way, what type of pay can a csr get? 2nd year student looking for part time work in a bank.

The keys to successful interviewing:

The 4 P's of interviewing:

preparation, practice, personal presentation, and pertinent questions.

i wanted to know if anyone know how much a csr at vancity gets paid and also how many interviews are there in total.

There are 3 interviews in total: Telephone interview, Group Interview, then Final Interview. At the Final Interview, you meet with the BM and MSM and they ask you typical interview questions. Vancity is a great company to work for.

anyone here working in the vancity call centre?

is it hard to get in?

i hear they start you out at part time,how quick is the transition to full time?

what do people working full time clear every 2 weeks in the call centre?

4 hours are you joking, what kind of job was it for?

News: Apple Mac OS X Code Name Snow Leopard
Mesothelioma Information
Canada Immigration