Hindustan Unilever Graduate Trainee Interview Questions and Answers

Round: Resume Shortlist
Tips: A Good Resume is the one with a clear message in one glance. One usually doesn'thave much time go through the specifics. Also, most of the resumes look more orless the same if you start reading thoroughly. So what distinguishes you is howmuch you can convey to a third person in one glance. However a crucial pointthat one needs to keep in mind is - The third person may be an IITian or may benot. So your resume needs to be optimally elaborate and detailed. Good atglance and not boring with details.

Round: Group Discussion
Experience: I sat for only one GD that was for ITC. I did not prepare at all for it andrelied mostly on my speaking cum shouting skills that I developed over theyears, thanks to my fundae sessions and most importantly TAship sessions. Ienjoyed the GD which was a problem statement on a guy's death with a briefdescription of the circumstances, and was asked to discuss who was guilty forthe guy's death. I enjoyed the discussion, and found the problem pretty exciting, but only to find out later that it was a routine problem for GDs.
Tips: My agenda was simple for the GD - I took it as yet another discussion session.Hearing others opinions and pointing out mine. Occasionally I also asked thequite ones to share their views. There are often several tricks that seniorstell the juniors - start early, take the lead, try to summarize, take everyonealong etc etc. I like to put it this way - Don't speak non-sense, do speak somesense, let others speak, try to distinguish the sense and the non-sense fromothers views, and encourage the quite ones to speak a bit in order to have asensible and wholesome group discussion. If you think you can lead, then lead.If you think you might want others opinions to kick start your thought process,then wait for some points from others. So basically do what seems sensible to you, but do something!

Round: HR Interview
Tips: Before I forget, usually at the end of interviews, the interviewers ask you if you have some questions about them, be prepared with some questions which can be like - what do you usually look for in a good candidate, what is the work culture at the company, the career path of the individual in the company or otherwise etc etc. You can google things, or you can be innovative. Innovationmight pay off very well or it may just kill your chances. But that's life -more risk, more reward.Andanother point, some of your interviews might be telephonic - in such cases,many more factors come into picture which might spoil the mood of theinterview ( I would let you to think about the possible glitches that you mighthave because of this technological advancement). But as usual, I would advice you to keep calm and just give your best.

General Tips: There are many things that I would like to convey to the students regarding the placement process.On the preparation side, one must give his best - visitwebsites, read blogs, attend presentations and various related sessions, ask seniorswho have been placed, talk to anyone who you think can provide some help. Thesepractices will give you enormous data - and your job is to filter and use it wisely,at your own discretion. Read relevant material from books and internet,practice problems and tests, do mock interviews and GDs with your friends,prepare your resume well - in short – do what is to be done. Depending on jobprofiles that you target, the preparation keeps varying, askaround and workhard.With that beingsaid, I would like to say that placement is not simply about merit -independent ofwhether you appreciate this fact or not. Various companies valuecompatibility over the merit of thestudent (which is quite logical thingto do!) and sometimes you may under-qualify and sometimesover-qualify on thosestandards - and rarely will you be just at an optimal level. Consequently,manyresults(in fact most, to be even more precise all except one) will not goin your favour - either accept them or challenge them (if you think you havebeendenied of something that you truly deserve) but never lose your heart- this is simply a welcomesong to the real world. In the long run, thisshort and (most likely a difficult and) tough experiencewill prove to beone of the most memorable and a great learning experience.In a nut shell"Keep Calm and Give your Best! - Karm karte raho, fal ki chinta mat karo."
College Name: IIT BOMBAY