You're preparing for a Food & Beverage Operations interview. How can you show off your communication skills?

1 Know your audience

Before you go to the interview, research the company and the role you're applying for. Find out what their mission, vision, values, and culture are, and how they communicate with their stakeholders. This will help you tailor your answers and examples to their expectations and needs. You'll also be able to ask relevant and insightful questions that show your interest and knowledge.

2 Use the STAR method

One of the most common ways to answer behavioral questions in an interview is to use the STAR method. This stands for Situation, Task, Action, and Result, and it helps you structure your response in a clear and concise way. You should describe a specific situation where you used your communication skills, what your task or goal was, what actions you took, and what the outcome or result was. Make sure to highlight how your communication skills contributed to the success or improvement of the situation.

3 Demonstrate your skills

Besides telling stories, you should also show your communication skills in action during the interview. This means paying attention to your verbal and non-verbal cues, such as tone, volume, pace, eye contact, posture, and gestures. You should also practice active listening, which involves paraphrasing, clarifying, summarizing, and asking follow-up questions. Additionally, you should avoid using jargon, slang, or filler words, and use positive and respectful language.

4 Prepare for common questions

When it comes to a food and beverage operations interview, you might be asked questions such as how you communicate with customers who have special requests, suppliers to ensure quality and timeliness of deliveries, your team to assign tasks and provide feedback, your managers to report issues and suggest improvements, and how you handle communication challenges or conflicts in the workplace. To answer these questions, it's best to use the STAR method and provide specific examples that showcase your communication skills. Additionally, you should emphasize how your communication skills help you reach the goals and objectives of food and beverage operations.

5 Ask smart questions

At the end of the interview, you'll usually have the opportunity to ask questions to the interviewer. This is an excellent chance to demonstrate your communication skills, enthusiasm, and curiosity. Therefore, it's important to prepare some smart questions that relate to the company, the role, and the industry. For instance, you could inquire about how success is measured within their food and beverage operations, what current or future trends or challenges are affecting their food and beverage operations, how they foster a culture of collaboration and communication among their staff, what skills or qualities they are looking for in the ideal candidate, and what the next steps are in the hiring process. Asking these questions will help you learn more about the company and role while also showcasing your communication skills and interest.