I applied online. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Waitrose (Northampton, England) in Jan 2019
Interview
There were online interview tests - if you passed these tests you would be invited to a group assessment. The group assessment was fun, and you just need to make sure you talk and you communicate with others with focusing on the task in hand. You would either have a one-on-one interview before or after where they asked the usual basic interview questions.
I applied online. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Waitrose (London, England) in Jul 2018
Interview
Had an informal interview with one of the managers. She was very friendly and encouraging. I was supposed to have a group activity but due to lack of attendance is was just an individual interview. I had heard that the group interview was about what you would do in a situation and how you would go able solving a task.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
When have you made a mistake? Then what did you learn from it?
Thank you for your review and congratulations on your offer! We are pleased to hear that you found the interviewer friendly and encouraging. Wishing you the best for your new role.
I applied online. The process took 3 weeks. I interviewed at Waitrose (Exeter, England) in Jan 2019
Interview
Weak group assessment and 101 interview. Applied online, passed the situational judgement test, was called for a group assessment day. 3 of us were there. We were led to a room, after waiting in the cafe area, and given some papers to read, told we had 5 minutes to read them and then she'd be back. Back she came and we had 15 minutes to discuss and solve the 5 issues with the given scenario (all to do with stock control and display). The woman that led this was a stern-faced woman - who made it feel more like you were on trial for something - not a pleasant or welcoming person at all, rather put the fear in to you. For that my, otherwise, happy-go-lucky, confident and bubbly nature took a dive, The 1-1 was even worse, led by a woman who was clearly filling in for someone as the interview was very weak and the questions asked were irrelevant, also very silly. One: How would you sell a product to a customer? Well it depends what the product is, and it's a very hard question to answer to give any real value to it. She also was unwelcoming and didn't put you at ease at all. These interviews are unfair as they don't get to see the real person. I've always won most jobs on my bubbly, outgoing and positive, friendly nature, I've never failed an interview in all my life. I failed this one - their loss. On reflection, the vibe of the place had me decided it wasn't a place I'd want to work day-n-day out, as much as I like shopping there. I'll stick to being a customer. I think I was saved. Waitrose: Your Exeter store needs better, fairer led interviews with nicer people. I've read mostly good things about the interview process and friendly staff, that was not my experience at all.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Name a situation you found hard and how did you resolve it?
Hi There.
Thank you for taking the time to leave a review based on your recent interview in Waitrose & Partners Exeter. We are really sorry to hear that it wasn't the experience you were expecting. Nor is it one we would want our candidates to go away feeling disappointed with.
We always aim to make candidates feel welcomed and at ease during the interview process. After all, we want to set our candidates up to succeed in the process. It is a shame to hear that you did not feel this way on this occasion.
Please be assured that we will be sending your comments to the branch for them to be aware of. We take all feedback, both positive and negative, seriously and use it to continuously improve.
Thank you again for your review and the time you invested in the interview process.
- Tom (Partner at the John Lewis Partnership)