Interview in HSBC Bank Cyberjaya - Global Contact Centre
I would like to share my experience of attending a job interview in HSBC Bank Global Customer Service Centre some time ago, when I was still jobless. I was not hired of course but I am glad that now I am already employed in a well-established company in Kuala Lumpur. The journey of interview in HSBC Bank is a tough one and I hope my blog will give you a somehow plain picture on how is it like.
I received a phone call from their HR Department just two days after I applied for the job vacancy via Jobstreet website.I believe the staff who called me is an international executive of HSBC as her slang was different and I find it difficult to actually understand what was she saying. As the first step, a short interview was done over the phone by the lovely lady, Miss Monica. After a quick interview session, I was selected for the walk-in interview which was scheduled two days after the phone conversation. I made all the necessary preparations. I photocopied my certificates, identity card, previous employers' payslips and so on as per requested by HSBC's HR team. Next, I explored my wardrobe for a good pair of formal wear that can be used to attend the interview. And what, all set. I selected a black shirt with white collar along with a long slack pants. All my documents well-arranged in my clear folder. That night I went to bed early.
My interview was scheduled to begin at 10am. Honestly, I expected that it would be the stereotypical one-to-one interview session. But to my surprise, when I went to the interview location, I saw about 20 more candidates, well dressed waiting at the lobby. By looking at the files they were holding, I understood that this is a group interview. Once all of us were gathered there, one of the HR Executive, a young and fine-looking Malay lady took all our documents and explained to us briefly about the company and it's customer service centre. Not long after that, all of us were brought to a room which has computers. It was an online English test. Each of us sat infront of a PC and was instructed to answer all the questions provided in the online portal. The English test consisted of comprehension, grammar,vocabulary and also listening questions. We were given 40 minutes for this section. I would say that this was one of the toughest English questions I have ever encountered in my entire life. So, if you are planning to try a job here in HSBC Customer Service Centre, please sharpen up your English Language skills. The scariest part was, only the candidates who passed the test will be allowed to continue with the next step of the interview. I expected all of us to pass through this but too bad there was a girl who failed and she was sent back. I felt sorry for her.
The second step was, all of us were brought to a different room that was occupied with hard phones, which means the old-styled telephones we had in our homes back then. We were separated into groups and each group was given one telephone to be utilized. We were given a topic each and was given 15 minutes to write an essay on the topic given. Those were like the usual English essays topics. After 15 minutes, each of us were given a number which we then need to dial and speak with the person on the other side. This part of the interview gave me chills. We need to introduce ourselves to the person on the phone. They were the staffs of HSBC from all around the world. After the introduction, we need to elaborate further on the topic was given to us accordingly and answer the questions that were asked by the mysterious person on the phone. The same rule applies in this part of the interview too, which is only the candidates who pass this level gets to move forward to the next phase. In this part, 5 of the candidates failed and was sent back. It was already about 1pm this time and we were allowed to go for lunch as the next phase is said to begin at 2pm. There are few restaurants just across the office. You'll have to walk out of the premise, cross the road and walk a little further. There will be few restaurants where you can have your lunch or if anyone accompanies you for the interview, you can let them wait there as well, just like my boyfriend did. He waited at one of the restaurants there while waited for me to be done with my interview with HSBC.
Around 1.45pm, I walked back to the office. All set for the next phase. We were not told about the elements of this phase earlier. After lunch, we were just told to wait at the lobby and wait for the executive to attend to us. About 15 minutes later, the same Malay lady came and explained to us more about this phase. This is where the real interview begin. This phase consisted of two elements. A team leader will have a role-play session with the candidate based on our previous working experience and also role-plays related to the situations that HSBC Customer Care Consultants face everyday in their job. After that, the candidates will be directed to the next room where few HR officers, managers and senior executives will interview us. One best part of this phase is, there will be no disqualifications. The candidates who were selected for this phase, will get through this journey until the end. When my turn came, I was nervous and I would say this was one of the most challenging interview session ever I have faced. The role-play was done. The questions that was thrown to me by the Team Leader who role-played as the customer was super tricky. For every solution or answer I gave, he trapped me with another confusing question. At the end of the role-play, he informed me that do not get terrified as this is how an international customer would talk to a Customer Service person. As we know, this interview is for Global Support where the agents need to deal with customers worldwide like America, Australia and etc. After the role-play, I was immediately sent to the next room to meet with the officers. The usual interview session was done with questions about us, academic qualifications, past job experiences and also why are we interested to work in HSBC Bank. It was a very quick one. About one hour later, all of us were dismissed and the executive informed us the selected candidates will be contacted in 2 weeks time. Honestly, I knew I would not be selected. I went through the theorical tests gracefully without any fear. But, the role-play session actually made me realize how tough the field would be and one should have a very strong soft-skill to deal with international customers especially in a bank and finance line. But, at the end of the day, if you are hired. Every task, every emotional abuse you go through will be worth your penny. They offer an awesome salary package but also expect the equal workload.
I left the place about 6pm and reached home almost 8.30 at night. Travelling from Cyberjaya to Shah Alam was a complete hassle especially during weekdays where the traffic jam will be on its peak. Even though, I knew I would not be hired. I learnt many important things in HSBC Bank which I believe would be helpful in my next career hunt. I made some good friends and some good experience. Today, I am already employed in a different company.
Happy Staff of course ☺
I hope this blog would be helpful for you guys who are planning to apply for a job in HSBC Global Suppport Contact Centre, or you guys who already shortlisted for the interview and waiting for the fine day. Lol.. 👱👱👱👱
I received a phone call from their HR Department just two days after I applied for the job vacancy via Jobstreet website.I believe the staff who called me is an international executive of HSBC as her slang was different and I find it difficult to actually understand what was she saying. As the first step, a short interview was done over the phone by the lovely lady, Miss Monica. After a quick interview session, I was selected for the walk-in interview which was scheduled two days after the phone conversation. I made all the necessary preparations. I photocopied my certificates, identity card, previous employers' payslips and so on as per requested by HSBC's HR team. Next, I explored my wardrobe for a good pair of formal wear that can be used to attend the interview. And what, all set. I selected a black shirt with white collar along with a long slack pants. All my documents well-arranged in my clear folder. That night I went to bed early.
My interview was scheduled to begin at 10am. Honestly, I expected that it would be the stereotypical one-to-one interview session. But to my surprise, when I went to the interview location, I saw about 20 more candidates, well dressed waiting at the lobby. By looking at the files they were holding, I understood that this is a group interview. Once all of us were gathered there, one of the HR Executive, a young and fine-looking Malay lady took all our documents and explained to us briefly about the company and it's customer service centre. Not long after that, all of us were brought to a room which has computers. It was an online English test. Each of us sat infront of a PC and was instructed to answer all the questions provided in the online portal. The English test consisted of comprehension, grammar,vocabulary and also listening questions. We were given 40 minutes for this section. I would say that this was one of the toughest English questions I have ever encountered in my entire life. So, if you are planning to try a job here in HSBC Customer Service Centre, please sharpen up your English Language skills. The scariest part was, only the candidates who passed the test will be allowed to continue with the next step of the interview. I expected all of us to pass through this but too bad there was a girl who failed and she was sent back. I felt sorry for her.
The second step was, all of us were brought to a different room that was occupied with hard phones, which means the old-styled telephones we had in our homes back then. We were separated into groups and each group was given one telephone to be utilized. We were given a topic each and was given 15 minutes to write an essay on the topic given. Those were like the usual English essays topics. After 15 minutes, each of us were given a number which we then need to dial and speak with the person on the other side. This part of the interview gave me chills. We need to introduce ourselves to the person on the phone. They were the staffs of HSBC from all around the world. After the introduction, we need to elaborate further on the topic was given to us accordingly and answer the questions that were asked by the mysterious person on the phone. The same rule applies in this part of the interview too, which is only the candidates who pass this level gets to move forward to the next phase. In this part, 5 of the candidates failed and was sent back. It was already about 1pm this time and we were allowed to go for lunch as the next phase is said to begin at 2pm. There are few restaurants just across the office. You'll have to walk out of the premise, cross the road and walk a little further. There will be few restaurants where you can have your lunch or if anyone accompanies you for the interview, you can let them wait there as well, just like my boyfriend did. He waited at one of the restaurants there while waited for me to be done with my interview with HSBC.
Around 1.45pm, I walked back to the office. All set for the next phase. We were not told about the elements of this phase earlier. After lunch, we were just told to wait at the lobby and wait for the executive to attend to us. About 15 minutes later, the same Malay lady came and explained to us more about this phase. This is where the real interview begin. This phase consisted of two elements. A team leader will have a role-play session with the candidate based on our previous working experience and also role-plays related to the situations that HSBC Customer Care Consultants face everyday in their job. After that, the candidates will be directed to the next room where few HR officers, managers and senior executives will interview us. One best part of this phase is, there will be no disqualifications. The candidates who were selected for this phase, will get through this journey until the end. When my turn came, I was nervous and I would say this was one of the most challenging interview session ever I have faced. The role-play was done. The questions that was thrown to me by the Team Leader who role-played as the customer was super tricky. For every solution or answer I gave, he trapped me with another confusing question. At the end of the role-play, he informed me that do not get terrified as this is how an international customer would talk to a Customer Service person. As we know, this interview is for Global Support where the agents need to deal with customers worldwide like America, Australia and etc. After the role-play, I was immediately sent to the next room to meet with the officers. The usual interview session was done with questions about us, academic qualifications, past job experiences and also why are we interested to work in HSBC Bank. It was a very quick one. About one hour later, all of us were dismissed and the executive informed us the selected candidates will be contacted in 2 weeks time. Honestly, I knew I would not be selected. I went through the theorical tests gracefully without any fear. But, the role-play session actually made me realize how tough the field would be and one should have a very strong soft-skill to deal with international customers especially in a bank and finance line. But, at the end of the day, if you are hired. Every task, every emotional abuse you go through will be worth your penny. They offer an awesome salary package but also expect the equal workload.
I left the place about 6pm and reached home almost 8.30 at night. Travelling from Cyberjaya to Shah Alam was a complete hassle especially during weekdays where the traffic jam will be on its peak. Even though, I knew I would not be hired. I learnt many important things in HSBC Bank which I believe would be helpful in my next career hunt. I made some good friends and some good experience. Today, I am already employed in a different company.
Happy Staff of course ☺
I hope this blog would be helpful for you guys who are planning to apply for a job in HSBC Global Suppport Contact Centre, or you guys who already shortlisted for the interview and waiting for the fine day. Lol.. 👱👱👱👱
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