Fearing the interview process will not bring you closer to success.
You have to prepare for the process so that it doesn’t bother you too much when you are about to appear for an interview.
Take a look at the following set of interview questions and answers:
Economic Development Specialist Interview Questions and Answers
What were your principal duties while working as an economic development specialist in the past?
As an economic development specialist, I have been busy creating and implementing targeted marketing plans, aimed at influencing and building relationships with prospects, consultants, and company decision makers. This included evaluating economic, statistical, and demographic data to analyze the best way to attract, retain, and expand businesses, coordinating activities through federal, state, and local government agencies, identifying and recruiting likely business prospects, acting as the first point of contact to respond to business queries, promoting retention and expansion of the business and the industry within the assigned area, and maintaining effective liaison with all members of the workgroup, that is working toward socioeconomic development.
What skills do you possess which make you an excellent person to hire at this position?
I am a highly analytic individual, who takes great pride in the knowledge of principles and practices of economic development, redevelopment, and reuse, along with exceptional comprehension of business retention and recruitment programs. Moreover, I possess demonstrated expertise in applying policies and standards pertaining to planning processes, and can effectively interpret graphs and statistical data. In addition to this, I am well-versed in analyzing, and systematically compiling the technical and analytical information, along with ensuring that grant proposals and reports are properly created.
What do you find most challenging about the job?
To be perfectly candid, working as an economic development specialist is challenging on many levels. I am afraid there isn’t just one area that I can identify which is more challenging than the other.
And how do you handle these challenges?
I handle these challenges with a lot of ease. Since I am great at prioritizing my work effectively, challenges are something I welcome. I believe that one cannot lose out if one is organized, and this belief has made me quite successful until now.
Can you recount a time when you were stumped for ideas when dealing with a problem?
Quite recently, I found myself in a situation where a manager who was essential to the program that I was leading, proved to be quite non-cooperative. After trying all the ways I knew to obtain information from him, I managed to generate the data that I needed, leaving the said person in quite a quandary about his role in the company. But this idea was developed after trying to deal with the problem for 3 weeks.
What is the one project that you are quite proud of?
I am presently leading an education and outreach program to provide professionals with information on the importance of economic development. The fact that I am the mother of this idea makes me quite proud.