According to this job candidate, the interview difficulty was about average, but the experience was positive overall. Here are some useful tips to consider if interviewing at WalMart, as well as some of the questions you may get asked if interviewing for a retailer management position:

Insights about interview process:

• Interviewed by 3 people; only one person asked questions, but all three took notes.
• Each job candidate evaluated using a number score system. The job candidate adds, “don’t know what scoring scale represented and wasn’t able to see clearly what they were writing as I was seated opposite of table”
• In total about 5 pages of questions were asked (guestimate is about 10-15 questions)…took about 1 1/2 hours.

How was the interview acquired: Applied online.

Interview duration: WalMart responded to the online application approximately 1 ½ weeks after submission; interview took about 2 days to complete.

Interview questions:

All questions that were asked typically had 3-part answers. For example, they asked:

• Name a time when you found it hard to be courteous. How did you handle it? Why did you handle it that way? If you had to do it again would you handle it differently?
• Explain a time that you had to meet a deadline. What was the reason for the deadline? What was the quality of work?
• When did you have to follow a plan to reach a goal and failed to do so? What would/did you do different the next time?

The reviewer adds: “You’ll want to be tentative in listening to the full question and answering it in full… My guess is if you did not answer the question in full the first time you ‘lost points or rec’d lower points’ than if you’d answer the question in full first time. They’ll keep asking the same questions until you provide a Full (3 part answer). I gave all customer service or team lead/management oriented answers and examples to all the questions. I omitted personal experience examples and kept all examples job task related.”

Other important notes about interviewing at WalMart:

“I asked after interview was complete if this was standard process for a Cashier position. Was told yes, they just implemented a new interviewing process to attract quality talent. Basically told me that their process is now geared toward finding folks who want to grow in the company and not earn a paycheck for 3-6 months and leave.”

Keep the interview reviews coming – you never who you might help!

What’s it Like to Interview at WalMart? is a post from: Glassdoor Blog

Related posts:

1. April Review of the Month: What it’s like to Interview at Amazon
2. Interview Questions and Answers: Think you can do better?
3. Tips For Closing The Interview – Advice For Job Candidates

Editor’s Note: Sadly, this post was prophetic – it was written before we received the very sad news this morning that a Wal-Mart employee was trampled to death as people rushed into a Long Island Wal-Mart on Black Friday.  Glassdoor extends its deepest sympathies to those that were injured or died, and their families, in this senseless violence.  [11/28/2008 10:20am PST]

Black Friday, the traditional start of the holiday shopping season which falls the day after thanksgiving, may be particularly hectic for Wal-Mart employees this year. That’s because high jobless rates and record low consumer confidence will cause holiday shoppers to seek out deep discounts in order to stretch their holiday budget further. Wal-Mart, known for its low prices, is a natural place for discount seeking shoppers to turn. This added influx of holiday shoppers may be bad news for Wal-Mart employees, who are already “Dissatisfied” with the overall work experience at Wal-Mart, which rates lowest among employees of major retailers on Glassdoor.com

We compared employer ratings of frontline sales associates at major retail chains and found Wal-Mart to be at the bottom of the list of places to work, with overall scores of “Dissatisfied”. Other retailers, Best Buy and Nordstrom topped the list with overall scores from their sales associates of “Satisfied”.

Retail Chain	Sales Associate’s overall employer rating:
Best Buy	3.7		“Satisfied”
Nordstrom	3.7		“Satisfied”
Circuit City	3.0		“Neutral”
Target	2.7		“Neutral”
Wal-Mart	2.3		“Dissatisfied”

Looking a little deeper, we find that Wal-Mart sales associate’s rate Wal-Mart particularly low for Employee Moral and Fairness and respect:

Sales Associate’s category ratings of their employers

So what’s to make of all this? Well, if you find yourself holiday shopping at Wal-Mart this year, please try to be extra kind to the sales associates – chances are they are they may be having a bad day.

Black Friday may be extra hard on Wal-Mart employees… is a post from: Glassdoor Blog

Related posts:

1. Wal-Mart Behind The Scenes: An Employee Perspective
2. Macy’s Hiring 78,000 Workers; Employees Reveal Life Beyond The Sales Floor
3. Retail Industry Report Card; Overstock.com & REI Highest Rated Retailers