Students from Hong Kong who are about to graduate and looking for jobs are often concerned about interviews. If they have never interviewed in Hong Kong before, they will definitely feel uncertain and not know what aspects Hong Kong interviews focus on, and how they differ from interviews in mainland China. Hong Kong interviews tend to delve deeply into the content of the resume, placing more emphasis on what you have done before, what successful plans (strategies + results) you have, what you learned from them, how you applied it to your work, as well as reasons for leaving previous jobs, past salary levels, etc. Most questions revolve around the resume, and they will thoroughly inquire about each work experience and even the companies you worked for, in order to assess the interviewee's abilities and character. Therefore, it is essential to prepare the content written on your resume very well. In addition, understanding the position you are applying for and your future plans are also commonly asked questions. A particularly notable point is that in Hong Kong, there are many anti-discrimination regulations that protect job seekers, so resumes generally do not need to include age, marital status, gender, etc., nor do they need to attach personal photos (except for companies with Chinese-style management).

In mainland China, in addition to the resume, there is more focus on what you can contribute to the company after joining, so you must also understand the industry dynamics of the company and the daily work of the position. It is best to have unique ideas, and the rest is just the accumulation of general knowledge to cope with written tests, situational questions, logical reasoning, etc. In addition, common questions include the ability to handle work pressure and whether you accept overtime. The resume also needs to include a lot of personal information and must attach a photo.

From my personal experience, interviews in both places actually pay more attention to the interviewee's past experiences and reasoning abilities. Companies in Hong Kong tend to emphasize learning ability, while companies in mainland China tend to emphasize work ability.

Hong Kong companies place more importance on the interviewee's macro perspective. For example, I previously interviewed for a digital marketing position, and the interviewer asked me many questions related to both regions, including topics that seemed completely unrelated to the job, such as my views on Z port transportation, logistics channels, elections, the 13th National Congress, and news regulations in both regions. Therefore, companies in Hong Kong value whether the interviewee has a broad cognitive ability.

Mainland companies place more emphasis on the interviewee's insights, abilities, and understanding of the company in their primary job. For example, I previously interviewed for an administrative position at a major tech company. The first round was a video interview, where the interviewer asked many questions, such as what they think administration should do, why they want to join the company, what activities they have planned in the past, and situational questions. The second round was a group interview, including an English self-introduction, group discussion on situational questions, and planning and budget allocation. The third round involved communication with higher-level supervisors.

Whether different or similar, the most important thing is to remain calm and honest. Do not let nervousness affect your performance, and do not present yourself as overly perfect and confident, to avoid creating a significant gap in expectations later on. You can be neither humble nor arrogant. I also hope that everyone does not compromise on job offers that do not meet their expectations due to anxiety about not finding a job.