Application Process & Interviews at Optus

HR is well known to be slow and drawn out process. Takes months to backfill positions

Application > psychometric testing > video interview > assessment centre (group work + solo interview)

Started with the initial application followed by a one-way interview where you answered some questions to a camera. I always hate these. Then this was followed by a coding test for technical roles which was very reasonable and not too high pressured at all. Finally, there was an assessment centre with a group interview activity in the morning and solo interview with a senior leader later in the day. The experience in these interviews was quite relaxed. The best part of the recruitment process was the very speedy turnaround. Interview was on Wednesday and was offered the position on Friday. The whole thing was very efficient compared to some companies which took months with no progress (Deloitte).

The assessment centre was brilliant and the hiring staff were incredibly polite & professional. Major kudos to our HR team.

A little lengthy but means they get good applicants so can't complain

Did an initial application, moved on to an online interview, I did an assessment centre, and a final interview. The assessment centre in particular was a huge factor in choosing Optus, because the general vibe of the acquisition team was cheerful and lighthearted, and showed the general culture that Optus has, whereas in other assessment centres, the acquisition team would only speak to each other when discussing the assessment and seemed very intense.

My experience was 100% online, took away some of the stress of meeting in person but also had added stress of relying on technology for what was very important to me. there was online testing, group assessment and to finish an individual interview.

The recruitment process was long but fair.

Definitely could been improved with the timing, would rather have had responses back within the week on regards to the next stage.

The Assessment Day consisted of an individual assessment. A group assessment and individual interview. Multiple stakeholders from across the business participated in the assessment day. Everyone who was running the assessment was actively engaged and went to great lengths to describe the orgganisation, the culture and what the Grad program would offer. You could tell that grads were really valued by the business.

I remember it being overall quite good for my intake but I know for others in the most recent intake there were some issues with hearing back. But I think that was for one particular space/team that had issues and the others were fine.

The interview process is quite straightforward and standard. The interviewer was fair in the process, and were very diligent in responding to queries throughout the process.

For the graduate program, it was quite simple. I did an aptitude assessment, video assessment and then assessment centre. The questions were quite standard and communication with hiring managers and grad co-ordinators were good.

The hiring process was very professional and well handled however had very long windows of uncertainty between interview and the contract.

Group interview and then solo interview. Interview process was pretty standard and quite smooth. Some lack of transparency regarding placements in business units - i.e. some people interviewing for different roles than they were placed in (Applied for marketing got put into a different business unit)

The process was very similar to other graduate programs. There were multiple stages with an interview, assessment centre and an at home assessment. The time between each stage was very quick and the HR team extended the offer not long after the interview.

for graduate programs, it was quick but was a bit unclear towards the different streams

The grad program had a lot of stages and when I did my interviews they were all online which had its own challenges. But overall it worked out really well and I felt supported throughout the whole journey.

Stage 1: CV and cover letter submission Stage 2: Online/psychometric tests + Online interview Stage 3: Assessment Centre

Steps are: CV submission, IQ and EQ testing and then a a half day assessment centre.

My experience, describe a time you were under pressure etc. standard interview questions.

Behavioural questions e.g. "Outline a time when you had to pivot halfway through a project. Outline the situation, the actions you took and the result"

Lots of questions about customer service and customer experience during the one-on-one interviews. I think there was one about a way you think technology can change the world. For the one-on-one it was more of a discussion with my interviewer going through my resume and asking some questions about uni projects and any past experience (including my non-technical experience at coles).

Why Optus? What are your key strengths? What are you passionate about?

If i could solve one problem in the world what would it be?

Asked about myself, asked what experiences I had been in that contained diversity, asked about times that I took initiative, times that I practiced leadership etc.

I don't recall.

Usual interview questions, how have you gone above and beyond. What are your key interests etc.

Can't remember.

They where behavioural style questions that were aligned to the company values. They essentially gave you an opportunity to demonstrate how you would be a cultural fit. There were also a number of questions around why you wanted to join the company and why you wanted to join the particular business unit that you had applied for.

Questions regarding difficult situations and how they were dealt with, times I worked in a group, times I had to find the answer/s to issues I hadn't experienced before, times where dealing with a customer/person that was being difficult.

What would you bring to the company? How do you hand x situation at work? What are you strengths and weaknesses? Are you willing to learn, if so what would you like to learn?

Standard interview questions

It was a while ago now but just your general interview questions as well as how we show the Optus behaviour of Take Ownership and Follow Up.

We were mainly asked questions geared to the STAR format: Such as: Tell me about a time when you had to manage a project... Tell me about a time when you failed... etc.

basic interview questions, group case study, individual case study on Optus's TOFU principle

"Why do you want to work here" "Tell me about your education and your work experience" "Describe a challenging situation you've had at work, how you solved it and what was the outcome"

Why I would like to work for my current companyWhich field of emerging technology interests me the most - Projects I have worked on - Questions about company values

I can't remember aside from one, which was a case study about how you'd approach something by TOFU-ing (take ownership and follow up).

tech background behavirol questions 5 years plan

Find the company values and link every answer back to those values.

Collate as many examples to questions like the above as possible from a range of scenarios e.g. university, work, social, extracurricular. Try not to have all your examples be "impressive" rather than real

Probably think of your answers to questions with a customer-focussed approach. That was a big part of the interviews. Even in technical roles, maybe be thinking about how your role could help the customer experience by providing better service and limiting outages.

Bring your most authentic self to the interview.

Be ready to learn as much as you can, I encourage them to try to get a little bit of retail experience so that they can have prior understanding of the products.

Just be yourself and don't focus so much on what your university degree is. In a corporate role you are hired as a person not a student of XYZ. be personable and show the interviewer the best. most driven side of you.

Be yourself!

Prepare by knowing what you want to do and how you are going to get there.

Understand our values and be prepared to present what you can contribute to the company.

Take some time to learn about the history of the company, any big projects/releases that they are currently working on. It is also good to ensure that you review the company values and think about how they align to your values, and how you might be able to demonstrate this.

Research the company you apply thoroughly along with the language and etiquette they express in emails and interview to determine how casual / formal you should be. Also regardless of in person or online interview make sure you look presentable. Also be transparent and have an open mind if you express this you become a lot more approachable.

Know about the company, know what you can bring

Show genuine interest in the company and the area you are applying for. Note the values and behaviours so that you can use these in the interview process.

Really get to know the history of the company and study on our values. Our values are critical in how we operate and understanding these will really determine the success of the candidate.

Use your learnings and experience in work/university/life to your advantage and ensure you are open and honest with your experiences. If in a group assessment, ensure you promote communication and group involvement, rather than just focusing on trying to seem knowledgeable and impressive, as working within a team is more important.

Get to know the company and their values / goals / mission. know Why you want to work for the company.

I think authenticity and friendliness is really valued here. Also, a lot of focus is placed on your approach to things - e.g. how would you consult stakeholders? How would you approach solving a business problem?

Focus on your engagement and ability to provide deliverables for the organisation.

Look at the values in the job description and see how you can align with them in your own way and also find something unique about yourself and be clear about your skills and goals

Look into the company values and prepare examples of where you have displayed them.