The "Career Objective" Question

Submitted by Magnus Nesheim
in
Career Management
Hi, I am preparing for an interview, and one of the questions i believe i will get is "What is your career objective"? How do I formulate the answer, and how much weight is normally put on this answer? [u]Some background info[/u] I am 24 years old. I have a BSc in Marketing/Brand Management from a large known business school in Norway. The last year I was NCO/ Commercial Director of a nationwide Student Association at a norwegian business school. I am currently starting up my own consulting business. The company I am preparing for is P&G. In advance, thank you for all advice.
Submitted by Will Duke on Thursday September 20th, 2007 1:32 pm

Hmm. What IS your career objective? Or, more accurately, what ARE your career objectives?

What do you want? Who do you want to be when you grow up? What do you like to do?

Submitted by Craig Cleveland on Thursday September 20th, 2007 1:35 pm

In the Interview, when you answer the question (per Will's comment), you can follow it up with examples of how you've been acheiving those career objectives.

CC

Submitted by Magnus Nesheim on Thursday September 20th, 2007 4:23 pm

Thanks for your quick respons

In medium future i would like the following
- Management position
- Marketing/Business development
- International exposure

In the long term i would like to start up my own company.

But I have just finished school so I wouldn't be surprised if some of them changed.

Submitted by Asterisk RNTT on Thursday September 20th, 2007 6:28 pm

What they are asking is "Do you have a plan and can you share some things with me that shows it is feasible?"

If you answer, I am hoping to be a pirate and hunt for buried treasure, I don't think they will be impressed.

If you answer "In five years, I see myself as a brand manager. I am looking for a company that is going to provide me with world class training, along with the opportunity to develop myself while I hit my targets and make positive contributions to the company. Some opportunities for lateral promotions and exposure to other business units will help me better understand how P&G works and will allow me to make more significant contributions down the road." Etc etc etc

Good luck!

Submitted by Mark Horstman on Sunday September 23rd, 2007 11:56 pm

Magnus-

Some of the above is helpful.

It's a little disingenuous to ask what you should "say" when you admit that your long term goal is to start your own firm.

If you truly believe that, say that. If you're worried that that will hurt your chances, that's different.

Of course, you could define short term as, say, 3 years, and long term as 10. If that's the case, you might could avoid talking about your own firm, if that were truthful.

The ethical thing to do would be to make sure that this answer is the same with every company with whom you interview.

Mark