JLR Interview Questions & Answers

At the assessment day there was a group exercise, a role play (negotiation), an interview and an in tray exercise. The interview had 12 competency questions, based on 4 of JLR's core values.

It started at 8 and finished at half 3.

The interview questions were a long the lines of "Tell me about a time when..." so it's good to have a few examples of these things.

Tell me about a time that you've made a bad decision.
What are the main challenges facing JLR?
As a purchaser, who will be your customers?

The application form wanted no information about myself, just grades, previous jobs etc so they choose people for the assessment day purely on the online tests. Make sure you practise a few times beforehand.

Have some good questions to ask at the end of the interview, my interviewer really opened up when he was answering mine and looked as though he was enjoying it.

The group exercise was to choose the best car to produce for a new market abroad.

For the role play I was given 30mins to prepare my negotiations from a booklet, and then had 30mins to negotiate then had to write a report for my manager about the meeting.

The in tray exercise was similar to ones online.

AC consisted of one 1-on-1 interview. This was mainly competency based, marking specifically against their high performance behavioural values (detailed on their careers site). The questions were easy to answer, not awkward and too specific (which I had feared as the high performance values seemed strange to mark against). So on the competency side of things, it was nothing out of the ordinary - how did you motivate a group when it was failing etc. There were one or two questions based on market knowledge, I feel this is an area where a candidate could particularly shine.

What issues effect JLR currently?
How is the automotive industry changing?
What have you read about JLR?

You are told you will have to do a technical presentation but you are not told the subject. In fact the subject is completely up to you (they recommend a technical project which you HAVE COMPLETED)

an ideal project would be a university engineering project.

They looked for things such as how you planned the project, what issues you faced, how you carried it out and the results and applicability of the conclusion. You can prepare this before the AC for an edge (even though you are not meant to - most people had preprepared)

was quite a relaxed environment and I felt as though the organisers really tried to get the best out of you, rather than trying to catch you out.

There is no telephone interview and the only interview you can expect to face is at the assessment day. The interview is usually one on one, although on some occasions a senior manager may have come to visit and decided to sit in on your interview. This was the case for me, however, they are merely there to observe and wont ask questions. The interview lasted for about 45 mins and the interview spent a good time trying to get to know me on a personal basis, my motivations in life as well as the odd question about JLR. This was pretty informal and relaxed. The rest of the interview was competency based.

Why would you be a good asset for Jaguar Land Rover?

Research the company and the current automotive sector. Practices psychometric testing extensively.

The organisation was very professional providing the candidates with refreshments through out the day. Every candidate will have a personal time table handed to them, which details what they will be doing for the day and when. My first task was a group exercise and this was completed with 5 other candidates. The exercise had a lot of information, however, this was all pretty straight forward. My task was to make a case and back it up and for the whole group to come to a unified decision. Secondly, was the role play exercise. I had to deal with an angry senior manager and solve their problems. Then it was the psychometric testing. This was very hard and consisted of a numerical, verbal and logical testing, lasting for a total of 1.5 hours (30 mins each test). Finally, was the telephone interview.

The interview was fairly intense. It lasted for one hour and consisted of 8 questions. The first question was the hardest which I have written down below. However, this question was tailored to the sector my interviewer was from in the company so they are all different. Overall a good experience. My advice would be:
Be yourself
Enjoy it
Smile!
Be nice
Don't be too serious

You are working for JLR. You are designing a software system for one of the jaguars, who is your customer?
Clue.. Not the purchaser of the car.

Be yourself! Don't go crazy on bigging yourself up in the interview,, after all its only words.. They want examples of what you have done that makes you a motivated person. In the group exercise, don't act like Billy big cock,, they will see right through it.. Listen to other people's opinions, have a good discussion and not be too quiet.

The assessment centre was a very relaxed but intense day. There were 2 groups of 12, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, I was afternoon. The centre consisted first of all of a group exercise. We were sat round a table in a group of six with 4 assessors sat in the corner making notes. We had to discuss which radio would be best for a new car. This lasted one hour and in my opinion was the hardest part of the day.
The second part was the interview as discussed above.
The third part was an 'in tray exercise' : multiple choice, we had to reply to emails with the correct response. In between these assessments we relaxed in a room with free coffee.. I just chatted to the other candidates. Overall I enjoyed the day

Standard interview questions. Why Engineering? Explain a time where you have demonstrated willingness to learn ect...

Interview is based on the JLR competencies.

12 questions in 45 mins. 3 competencies where tested, 4 per competency.

Ive gone into more detail about what the day entailed further down in the review. The whole day was quite relaxed not as stressful as I first anticipated. The staff are enthusiastic as should you be.

No difficult questions.

The interview is the main thing that you can prepare for. Recap on work/projects that you have completed, try and find areas in you work that fit within the JLR competencies framework (because this is what the interview is based on) and know the company, it's markets, products ect. There was ample time to have a conversation with my interviewer about the company. Having done the research I was able to contribute and show my enthusiasm for the company.

2 groups of 12. One was the morning group and another (the group I was in) was the afternoon group. First course of action was an introductory presentation and general administrative stuff.
Next was a light lunch where we were able to talk to some of the current apprentices.
After lunch, straight into the interviews. Assessors introduced themselves before taking us off for a 1-on-1 interview. Standard interview, nothing to catch you out. Do your research have something to talk about both you and the company prepared.
Next, Fact finding mission. Given a document which details a problem. Based on information provided, I was tasked on asking a number of questions to determine the fault of a product. Immediately proceeding this the assessor asks me questions about what I've found out.
After that was a group exercise, They're looking at how you communicate with others ect.
Finally a practical assessment. I assumed the role of a test engineer, testing a procedure. As well as carry out the procedure I had to highlight any shortcomings in the document.