FDM Group Interview Questions & Answers

After an initial application, there is a short 15 minute telephone interview clarifying details and assessing interest in the company/ sector/ role. My assessment day was two days later and comprised of two five-minute interviews, a numerical test, a test on set notation, and an aptitude test. The two interviews were standard and friendly, and were focussed mainly on personality and approach.

Would you sacrifice quality to meet a deadline?

Do plenty of prep before hand, the questions aren't hard but it's definitely worth a look over! It is also important to be open, friendly and enthusiastic. The training scheme means you can pick up any technical knowledge you need so their real focus is on hiring those with great inter-personal skills and an ability to learn fast. The technical and business pathways are assessed together but not ranked together meaning there is no need to panic about not knowing all the technology ins and outs.

The numerical test is GCSE maths, the set notation test is given alongside an instruction leaflet and the video provided before the day is very useful. The aptitude test has some basic coding questions, some logic puzzles, and a number of IT questions (inc IP4vIP6, SQL, bits in a byte, etc.). A little Google research was enough to get through this!

I had an initial telephone interview which consisted of questions such as, why would you like to work in IT? Why would you consider a career with FDM? Where do you you see yourself in 5 years time? The phone interview lasted approximately 20 minutes.

After the phone interview I was invited to an assessment day at the FDM offices in London. The day consisted of 3 tests, including an aptitude test, a maths test and a venn diagram and probability test. Each exam lasted an hour apart from the maths test which was 30 minutes. I then had 3 short one on one interviews with members of the senior management team. They asked questions about my degree, why I wanted to work in IT and some questions on my personality.

The questions were mostly quite straight forward, some questions such as 'How would you describe your perfect day at work?' were not as straight forward as they first seemed.

Be confident and have a positive attitude even if you feel the process isn't going as you initially planned. Prepare for the venn diagram test with some revision on probability and standard notation. I practiced all of the test styles before the interview a few times to make sure I didn't get a nasty shock!

3 short interviews, 3 exams. I then took an extra exam for an accelerated training program that focussed on my knowledge of pseudo code and problem solving skills.

I was one of the first candidates to experience the new interview process.

I originally applied in January, but my application was deferred until May because I don't finish my course until September. However, they have start dates throughout the year and they suit it to what is best for you.

I applied through graduate-jobs.com and then a recuiter rung me shortly after. I had my telephone interview in May, which was more of an informal chat explaining what I did my degree in and what work experience I had. Then I was invited to video interview.

The video interview is a new process they've introduced and it's quite strange. I had never done a video interview before, so I found it quite daunting, especially because there is no one else at the other end of the video. You have 45 seconds thinking time, then the video will automatically start recording and you have 60 seconds to answer the question. There are only 6 questions and it's all over quite quickly.

I was then invited to the assessment centre in London. There was a tour, brief introductions, then a presentation about FDM. After that we had a Venn Diagram/Set Notation test (1 hour) and an IT aptitude test (1 hour). We had a break for lunch, then came back to do the maths test (1/2 hour) and then had the three 5 min interviews. They ask you 4 questions in each interview, such as "Why do you want to work for FDM?", "Why did you choose your degree?", "What is the best way to learn?" and "What are the most important issues the IT industry is currently facing?"

They will get back to you via email within 48 hours. I found out I was successful the next morning :)

What are your thoughts on organisational change?
Would you sacrifice quality to meet a deadline?

Make sure you prepare, learn statistics about the company and learn about their core values, their clients and their culture.

They're all really friendly, so it's not daunting.

The three 5 minute interviews went so quickly. But make sure you give examples and expand on your answers because they don't prompt you to. So don't just give yes and no answers!

Venn diagram and Set Notation Test for 1 hour - they give you a booklet to help. They basically want to see that you can follow instructions and to see if you looked at the YouTube video links they give you in the Assessment Centre Guide.

IT Aptitude Test for 1 hour - this was not as bad as I was expecting. There were some IT questions that I had to guess, but as it's positively marked, you can't lose marks for answering a question incorrectly, so it wasn't too bad. It's a combination of logical reasoning, IT and business questions. There was a weird one where you had to guess what the word "sleepily" meant in a language they made up. But other than that, they were relatively straight forward.

Maths Test for 1/2 hour - I was most nervous about this because if you fail this test you have to retake the whole assessment centre. However, they give you links to BBC Bitesize to help. You need to know Pythagoras' Theorem, long division, long multiplication, simultaneous equations, square roots, cube roots and basic arithmetic. But it's honestly a lot easier than I expected and it's only GCSE level.

What do you do when you have a deadline approaching and you still have tasks to complete?

The interviews were conducted between three members of staff, each of which asked four scripted questions. The interviewers were thus not expanding on their questions that is up to you to do. Each of the three has a specific topic, your university degree, why you want to work for FDM and in the I.T sector, and personal questions about you as an applicant.

Typically, the questions were easy to answer and designed to show your personality. The hardest of which was the question "would you miss a a deadline if sticking to it meant compromising on quality" obviously there is no perfect answer to such questions.

Each interview lasted between 5-6 minutes depending on how long you as an applicant talked for and expanded on your answers (some people had as little as 2-3 minutes).

Would you be willing to miss a deadline if meeting the deadline meant compromising on the quality of the finished project?

And:

What would you do if we locked you out of the office for 2 hours and were not allowed to work?

Ensure you revise your maths skills a lot before hand. While the maths is not hard if you have not done any mental arithmetic for some time you will not score well. The venn diagram and set notation test can be learned in an afternoon and once you know it it is very easy. The interviews are difficult to prepare for so go in with some preparation but be willing to think on your feet.

There were three exams, maths (30 mins), aptitude test (1hr) and set notation and venn diagram (1hr). The hardest of which is personal to you, I found the maths test the hardest having never particularly been very good at it but the second two relatively easy.

The phone interview took 15 minutes asking questions such as why you want to work in the IT industry; what attracts you to FDM group; and general questions to gain a quick insight into basic competencies to assess your suitability for FDM.

If you were successful you would be invited to an assessment centre which included 3 separate tests and 2 interviews. The interviews revolved around 3 specific themes: FDM and the IT industry; your degree and career history; professional and personal motivations

The 1st interview was with the account manager of Hong Kong (Held over Skype), which was used to assess my knowledge in general topics within project management as well as my competencies.

Whilst the 2nd interview was with face-to face with a UK manager. This was a very relaxed conversational approach towards the interview that felt like they genuinely wanted to get to know me on a more personal level with regards to the themes describled above

What are the most important issues the IT industry is currently facing?
What is the reason for the current oil prices for hitting its current all time low (This question was a real curveball)

To prepare for the tests, you can use google to help to find suitable resources to ensure you are well prepared.
As for the interviews, I would recommend researching their company as best as possible using a SWOT analysis to gain a general background of the company as well as opportunities and threats that can affect the IT industry.
Read up on top news stories within current affairs as a few curveballs could be thrown into the mix.
And most importantly BE POSITIVE!!

Within the assessment centre we were asked to perform 3 tests:
Numerical (30 minutes) - which included basic arithmetic maths
Basic IT aptitude test (60 minutes) - this included situational questions, logical and verbal reasoning, as well as some basic programming questions
Venn diagram test (60 minutes)
For the most part these tests aren't too difficult as long as you spend a minimum of 2-3 days preparing for them to familiarise yourself with the terminology as well as how the questions are asked, though its important to note they are a tad tricky.

PRE ASSESSMENT CENTRE
Initial telephone interview was very relaxed, basic questions such as 'why IT'.
One way video interview consisted of around 4 questions such as 'why FDM?', ''Tell us about yourself'. Given 60 seconds to answer each question with prep time before each question.

ASSESSMENT CENTRE
3 interviews lasting 5 minutes each, see below for more info.

Would you sacrifice the quality of work to meet a deadline.

Technical and business pathways are assessed together so do not stress if you lack knowledge of coding. Be confident and friendly, show an interest in technology and a willingness to learn. Don't be afraid to engage in conversation with interviewers. Professional dress code.

Introductory presentation. Short exercise where candidates introduce themselves to the group.
Venn diagrams/set notation test. Information booklet provided for test and revision material given prior to assessment day was very useful.
Maths test. GCSE level maths.
Aptitude test. General knowledge, logic, basic coding and IT questions.

3 interviews (5 minutes each): Very friendly interviewers. Each interview has an un-assessed practice question.
Interview topics: -Interest in IT/FDM
-Degree/education
-Personal qualities

I had an initial telephone interview with one of the graduate recruiters, which took about 5-10 mins. They asked me basic questions like what I knew about the company, why I wanted to work there, she also asked me about my experience on my CV.
At the assessment centre we had three 5-minute interviews on a rotational basis. The first one was quite competency based where they asked questions like describe a time you've had to solve a problem at work and what would you do to build a relationship with someone at work. The second interview asked me questions about my background and my CV so questions like why I picked my degree and my dissertation topic and if I could change my degree what would I do instead. The third interviewer asked me questions like why I wanted to work for the company, describe my best day at work, what success meant to me and a time I had used IT for a solution.

The most difficult question asked was why I wanted to work for the company because I don't come from an IT background, but I just gave an answer about the opportunities the role would bring.

Make sure research the company, and show passion, enthusiasm and willingness to learn because they accept people from all backgrounds so their just looking for people with that extra spark.
Also, brush up on your mathematical skills if you haven't used maths since GCSE because they say the numerical test is GCSE level, however I found it quite hard and I did Economics at degree level. Also, do some research about IT because there are few basic IT questions like what is HTTP, SQL, and some coding stuff aswell.

There was a group of about 21 of us, at the start of the day we each had to stand up and introduce ourselves to the group, we were then taken into a room where we watched a video about the company and then a woman came to talk about the company and asked us if we had any questions and we were given a chance to read a sample contract. After that were split into two groups where one group would have the interviews first and then the tests later then we joined together to do a venn diagram test together.

Describe a situation where you had to show responsibility.

I applied in January and my application was deferred to March. First of all, I had my phone interview which was based on my knowledge of FDM and the IT industry, my academic history and some personal competency-based questions. Having done a bit of research on the company, it was fairly easy to pass that stage of the interview. It lasted about 15 minutes.
I was fortunate enough to get an invite to the assessment centre in the Manchester academy on 31st March. There was a group of about 8 people attending, I was the only girl, although in the IT industry a minority of girls is common! The day started off with presentation of the company and the graduate scheme, each candidate had to give a short introduction about themselves, and the route they were interested in applying to, i.e. Technical or Business. I recommend researching your preferred route in advance to the interview! The unpaid training process of 2-3 months was also explained. We then had three separate 5 minute 1:1 interviews based on the same general areas as the phone interview. In preparation, I had a look at YouTube on how to answer interview questions, which might sound a bit daft but it really benefited me as someone who has not experience in professional interviews. I also developed a SWOT analysis of FDM for an insightful overview ot the company.
We then had three tests: 1) IT and Aptitude (1 hour), 2) Maths - Mental arithmetic to GCSE standard (1/2 hour), and 3) Venn Diagrams (1 hour). My advice on these is to put a good amount of revision in using the information they send by email. As someone who doesn't come from a strong IT background, I definitely recommend doing a bit of additional research on the basics, such as common IT abbreviations, e.g. http. The Maths tests was pretty straight forward, know your basic long division and multiplication, fractions, ratios, Pythagoras, etc. I've never come across Venn diagrams until this interview either, and yet again, they're not complex providing you do a bit of a brush-up on them, although they do provide a booklet on them to support you through the test. Whilst these tests do sound daunting, I was advised that only a 50% pass mark is required.
The assessment centre started at 9am and finished early at 2:30pm. We were told that we would hear if we were successful or not by email within 48 hours. I heard back the next morning on 1st April with good news. I'm now awaiting a phone call to arrange a start date.

What do you think of organisational change? What is the best way to learn?

Perhaps I'm stating the obvious, but prepare!!! Know the company, and know what you want from the company. In your responses to the interviews use your experiences and give suitable personal examples!

Introduce yourself in morning presentation.
IT and Aptitude test
Mental Maths test
Venn Diagram test