I posted my resumee and cover letter to the Target careers website for an Executive Team Leader posting in my area. The following day, I was e-mailed by a recruiter for the local Target division asking if I were interested in the ETL position, that I looked very qualified, and to set up a phone screen. I e-mailed her back immediately with my availability for the week to talk with her, and she e-mailed me back promptly with a phone screen time the following day.
Following these questions, she asked me if I would be available for a phone interview. Since both her and I were free while we were talking on the phone, she decided to give me the first phone interview directly following the above phone screen. Now, I'm a great interviewer, and I actually look forward to meeting people and talking with them. So, having a phone interview was a little more difficult, as most communication is non-verbal. My advice to you is, if you're as uncomfortable as I am with phone interviews, practice talking in the mirror or with a friend over the phone to get yourself warmed up. Use the questions I will post here or ones that are given from previous posters as a guide.
The phone interview consisted of 5 behavior-based questions that start with "Tell me about a time when..." The key to success with these questions is to have applicable, positive experiences to link with each question. Also, they look for a distinct structure to their interview responses, called the STAR method. STAR stands for Situation, Task, Approach, Results. They want you to emphasize the "Approach" and "Results" and how YOU personally were devoted to the success of that task.
Between the first phone interview and my first in-person interview, I was e-mailed a link for an online IQ test that plays another important role in the Target hiring process. Don't be arrogant about this test: IT IS HARD! My best advice is that you practice on some other online test before you take this. I'm not sure how much this is weighted into the interview, as it was never mentioned again after I took it, but it is difficult if you're ill-prepared. You've been warned.
The following week, I went to a local Target and interviewed with the STL and one of the store's ETLs. The STL asked me all the questions from a pre-written Target interview packet, and the ETL who sat in on the interview wrote everything I said down. These two individuals were very easy to talk to and seemed very interested in everything I had to say.
Again, Target's looking for concrete examples and how YOU contributed. Be sure to maintain eye contact with everyone in the room, smile a lot, and emphasize the Target core values (Fun, Fast, Friendly) in your stories. At the end of the interview, I asked both the individuals some questions, thanked them for their time, and asked for feedback. They said I did great, and would forward my interview responses to their team leaders.
The following week, I drove to a neighboring city where the division office is located and interviewed with the District Team Leader. Prior to the interview, I got to meet the two women in HR who helped me with scheduling interviews and who also interviewed me over the phone. I thanked them profusely, and they were both very appreciative of my thanks. Now, I'm not sure if this happens in every interview, but prior to the interview with the DTL, I was given a packet with information for a drug test, as well as the sign-off for my background check and credit check. I was told "Assuming everything goes smoothly today, we want you to have this drug test information handy so we can get you in for a drug test ASAP if you're made an offer." I signed the background check and handed that in while I was in the office.
The DTL interview was a little more difficult with the question prompts. They dealt more with diversity amongst team members, your style of management, and what you believe your biggest weakness is and what steps you've taken to address that weakness.
Following my interview with the DTL, there was about a 2-week wait before my final phone call with the state HR rep. The final phone interview was mostly just a re-hashing of the very first phone screen, questions like "Tell me about yourself", "3-5 years with Target" etc. She closed the questions by asking my salary expectations, and if I would be willing to relocate in the future should the opportunity arise (which I answered yes to, obviously). She said she would call my recruiter, tell her we had a great talk, and I should be hearing back in 1-2 days. I got a call back about 4 hours later with the job offer. I was required to submit a drug test within 24 hours of my offer. I gave my notice at my current job that day, and gave Target my start date.
