Full transcript
0:00My name is Paris Young. My CIPD
0:02membership number is 90087585.
0:08I'm studying my foundation certificate
0:10in people practice. The date is Thursday
0:1420th of November 2025 and I'm going to
0:17conduct a remote interview via Zoom for
0:20the position of people assistant at
0:22Jimmy Joe for task two three core four
0:25essentials of people practice.
0:29The candidate that has been selected for
0:31the interview using the short listing
0:33matrix against the essentials and
0:34desirable criteria. They have been
0:37provided with a copy of the job
0:38description, advised of the date, time,
0:41and method of interview and sent an
0:43invitation for Zoom.
0:46I've checked the technology and prepared
0:47a quiet space to conduct the interview.
0:50The candidate is aware that the
0:51interview will be recorded and has
0:53provided their consent.
0:55I'll be using the STAR model for
0:57questioning and have prepared these in
0:59advance.
1:00I'm interviewing Chloe Watson and the
1:03application reference number is 0001.
1:06Chloe scored eight against the selection
1:08criteria.
1:10Hi Chloe, my name is Paris Young and I'm
1:12the people adviser here at Jimmy Joe
1:14where I've worked for the past 3 years.
1:16It's great to meet you today. Just
1:18before we start, um I'd like to just
1:20outline how the interview will run so
1:22you know what to expect and then I'll uh
1:25also begin with explaining a little bit
1:27about Jimmy Joe. Um ask some questions
1:30based on your application for um your
1:32experience followed by some of the
1:33questions about the people assistant
1:35role that you've applied for. Um I'll be
1:37taking notes throughout and then towards
1:40the end you'll have the opportunity to
1:41ask any questions that you may have and
1:43then finally I'll explain what the next
1:45steps of the process is.
1:47So, how does that sound just before we
1:49start?
1:49>> Yeah, that's absolutely fine. Thank you.
1:52>> Amazing. Um, so just a little bit about
1:55Gemma Joe. So, we're one of the largest
1:56insurers here in in the country as part
1:59of an international group offering a
2:01range of insurance products from home,
2:04car, van, travel, and pet insurance. Um,
2:07we have over 5 million customers and
2:10more than 2,500 employees across the
2:12entire UK. Um, so the role that you've
2:15applied for today, the people assistant,
2:17it's a it's a key role in our people
2:19team. It'll be supported all of the
2:21areas of our employee life cycle. So
2:23this would include the HR
2:25administration, the recruitment, um,
2:27supporting the on boarding, payroll,
2:30employee relations, and maintaining any
2:32confidential uh, employee data. Um,
2:36people assistants here play a truly
2:38essential role in keeping the people
2:39team running smoothly and ensuring that
2:41our employees receive professional
2:43support throughout their entire time
2:45here at Jimmy Joe. Um, so that's just a
2:48little bit about Jimmy Joe. Um, so I
2:51think just to start off, if you could
2:52maybe just tell me a little bit about
2:53yourself, your background, and what's
2:55brought you here today for applying for
2:57the people assistant role here at Jimmy
2:59Joe.
3:00>> No problem. That's absolutely fine. Um,
3:03so I currently work as a call center
3:06agent at Downtown Insurance Group. Um,
3:09I've spent the last three years helping
3:12customers with their insurance policies
3:14and making sure all information is
3:16accurate and confidential. Um, I'm
3:19applying for the people assistant role
3:21because it's a great opportunity for me,
3:23I think, to build on my current skills.
3:26Um I bring a combination of customer
3:29service and administrative experience
3:32from my insurance role. Um where I
3:34handle obviously the queries, process
3:37information accurately and maintain
3:39confidentiality.
3:40Um yeah, I've just I've developed really
3:42strong communication and organization
3:45skills from this role. Amazing. Amazing.
3:48Okay, so it sounds like you're really
3:50ticking off uh all of the essential
3:52needs and that we would like here for
3:54the position. So that's that's
3:55fantastic. And I also can see that
3:57you've recently completed your CIPD
4:00Foundation certificate in people
4:01practice. So well done. Congratulations
4:04on that. Um so what what interested you
4:07in moving from insurance into a people
4:10career?
4:11>> So I've really enjoyed the people side
4:14of my insurance role. So the
4:15communicating, the problem solving, and
4:18supporting others. Um that's what kind
4:20of inspired me to complete my CIPD
4:22Foundation certificate.
4:24and move into HR hopefully. Um, I'm
4:28especially interested in the recruitment
4:30side and the onboarding. Um, and my
4:33current role has given me, as I said
4:35before, a strong communication and
4:36accuracy skills. Um, which I think are
4:39really good foundations for a people
4:40career.
4:42>> Amazing. That that sounds really really
4:45good. Um, okay. So, you've told me a
4:47little bit about your, you know, career
4:49motivations. Um, I think I would like to
4:52kind of hear a little bit more on if you
4:53could maybe tell me a time when you've
4:55had to record or update any information
4:57accurately under pressure.
5:01Okay. So,
5:03sorry, I'm just thinking. So, recently
5:07we had a day when a new insurance
5:10product launched um and I received a
5:12high volume of calls from customers
5:14wanting to update their policies to
5:16include it. Yeah.
5:17>> Um, while on a call, I had to quickly
5:20and accurately update each customer's
5:22policy details in our internal system
5:25and track the changes in Excel. Um, so
5:29to make sure I didn't make any errors
5:30under pressure, I verified all the
5:33details with the customer um and then
5:35cross-checked them against existing
5:37records um and entered that information,
5:40you know, carefully into the system. Um,
5:43after completing the updates, I ran spot
5:45checks and used like Excel filters to
5:48flag any inconsistencies.
5:50Um, so that approach helped me keep
5:52accurate data even though it was
5:55particularly busy day.
5:56>> Yeah. Oh, amazing. Um, to be fair here,
5:58we we do use still use Excel
6:00spreadsheets for quite a lot of things
6:02as well. So, it's good to know that
6:03you've got some experience with u some
6:05Microsoft Office applications. Um, and
6:07we do have an internal CRM that we also
6:10have running alongside Um, so no, that
6:13sounds that sounds all good and
6:14positive. Um, and what about maybe if
6:16you can describe a situation in your
6:17current role uh where you've had to
6:19handle confidential customer uh
6:22information.
6:24Okay. Uh, so in my current role um at
6:27Downtown Insurance Group um I once had a
6:30customer call to update their policy
6:32with sensitive personal information um
6:34that included their bank details and
6:37medical history. Um while processing
6:40that update, I I carefully followed
6:41obviously the company procedures for
6:43data protection um and ensured that the
6:46information was entered accurately um
6:48into our secure system and only
6:51accessible to authorized colleagues. Um
6:54that situation reinforced the importance
6:56to me of discretion, attention to detail
6:59and following the company procedures.
7:01Um, so skills I know will be essential
7:04obviously for handling confidential
7:05employee data here at Gemma Joe.
7:08>> Oh, amazing. That sounds all good. So,
7:10yeah, but we're pretty similar. We have
7:11our policies and procedures in place
7:13that we would expect uh all of our
7:16employees to follow. So, it's good to
7:18know that you've you already got some
7:19experience with following um your
7:21in-house policies and procedures. Um,
7:24okay, fantastic. So maybe if you could
7:26maybe tell me about a time that you've
7:28dealt with any challenging customers um
7:31and how you sort of achieved a positive
7:33outcome.
7:35>> So a few months ago um a customer called
7:38quite upset because their home insurance
7:41claim hadn't been processed correctly.
7:43Um which obviously isn't ideal
7:46especially in in sort of distressing
7:48times. Um I listened like carefully to
7:51her, asked any clarifying questions and
7:54checked her policy um details on our
7:56system. I leazed with the claims team to
7:59try and resolve the error, you know,
8:00quickly and efficiently for her and kept
8:02our customer updated throughout. By the
8:05end, they were they were very relieved
8:07and thanked me for handling it so calmly
8:09for them. Um but I I learned then
8:11obviously the value of active listening,
8:13patience, and clear communication.
8:17>> Okay, perfect. So we we actually do
8:19offer some in-house training for dealing
8:21with challenging um customers. Um so
8:26that might be something that if you were
8:28interested in maybe uh exploring um we
8:31also have a offer a lot a lot more
8:33training in house as well but definitely
8:35dealing with um people who might might
8:38not necessarily be um more challenging
8:40should we say. Um, so if maybe you can
8:43give me an example of uh when you've had
8:46to work closely with others um to meet a
8:49target. So a bit more of like teamwork.
8:53Yeah. Okay. Um so during a recent
8:57product launch um at Downtown Insurance
9:00Group, our team had a target to update
9:02all existing customer policies within a
9:05week. Um I work closely with colleagues
9:08in the call center. So I coordinated who
9:10would handle which accounts and sharing
9:13updates to avoid any duplication of
9:15work. Uh one main challenge I feel was
9:19managing the high volume of calls that
9:20we were receiving um while ensuring
9:22accuracy. Um but I did overcome that by
9:25staying organized, double-checking each
9:28update and supporting colleagues by
9:30sharing tips on you know how to
9:32efficiently navigate the system. Um
9:35together we completed the updates on
9:37time and the team received positive
9:39feedback um and a small bonus from
9:41management for both speed and accuracy.
9:44Oh, that's nice. That sounds that sounds
9:46positive.
9:48Um perfect. And then on the recruitment
9:50and on boarding um side, can you maybe
9:54tell me of a time when you've supported
9:56um a recruitment or on boarding process
9:58in your role?
10:00>> Yeah. Um well while I haven't worked
10:04directly in recruitment yet um in my
10:06current role I do often support
10:08processes that require you know careful
10:10coordination
10:12um and again attention to detail which
10:14are similar or will be needed in
10:17recruitment and on boarding I feel um
10:19for example I regularly handle customer
10:21updates making sure all the information
10:23is accurate and deadlines are met and
10:26communications are clear um so I believe
10:29those skills would transfer well to
10:31supporting recruitment. Um, for
10:33instance, scheduling interviews or
10:36preparing documentation
10:38um, and ensuring new starters have a
10:40smooth experience because I'm a very
10:42organized person. Um, and I like to be
10:44quite thorough um, and focused on
10:46providing a positive experience for
10:48others.
10:49Oh, amazing. Yeah, I would say
10:51definitely the candidate on boarding
10:53experience is very vital, isn't there,
10:55for when we have new starters and them
10:58just joining the company. So, uh, yeah,
11:00it's key to make sure that it's smooth.
11:02For sure. Um, okay, fantastic. And what
11:06about, um, maybe a little bit more
11:09information on if you have managing sort
11:12of multiple priorities. So, often in
11:15this role, um, it will involve balancing
11:19or juggling, shall I say, several
11:21requests at once. So, um, can you maybe
11:23describe a time when you've had to
11:25manage, um, multiple priorities at once?
11:29Yeah. Um during a particularly busy
11:32period um at my current role um I've had
11:36several customer calls, policy updates,
11:39and urgent email queries um to handle
11:41all at the same time. Um so I started by
11:44assessing which tasks were most
11:46time-sensitive
11:47um such as customers waiting on policy
11:49confirmations or extremely urgent
11:52claims. Um, I use our internal CRM
11:55system and an Excel tracker to organize
11:58tasks, set reminders, and keep a clear
12:02overview of progress. Um, so by by
12:05prioritizing that effectively and
12:07staying organized, I was then able to
12:08respond to all the requests promptly um,
12:11and keeping both obviously the customer
12:13and my colleagues satisfied.
12:16>> Amazing. Sounds good. Sounds like you
12:18were able to uh juggle multiple things
12:21that were on your on your uh lap, shall
12:24I say? Um so what about potentially a
12:28time when you've had to adapt quickly to
12:29a change at work or you know take some
12:31type of initiative to solve a problem?
12:35So once our call center system went down
12:38unexpectedly um and that was during a
12:40really busy morning um which meant I
12:43couldn't access any of the customer
12:44policy details um as I usually would so
12:48that affected my workload extremely um
12:51because calls were still coming in but
12:54customers needed their information
12:55quickly which you know we weren't
12:57initially able to do
12:59>> um so I took the initiative to manually
13:01record the essential details on paper um
13:04while keeping notes of any pending
13:06updates. Um I also communicated with my
13:10team to share urgent queries and ensure
13:13that nothing was missed. So once the
13:15system was back up and running um I did
13:18carefully update all the records um and
13:21then dispose of the data via a shredder.
13:24Um so obviously to keep the information
13:26confidential still and
13:28>> you know put away correctly. Um by
13:31staying organized and proactive though I
13:33did maintain accuracy um and service
13:36quality despite the the big disruption
13:38that we had.
13:40>> Oh amazing. I was going to ask about you
13:42know you said you've manually taken the
13:44data but you've already answered my
13:46question on how you uh stored or
13:48disposed of the of the data. So no
13:51that's that's good to hear. Um, and I
13:54think just uh one of my last questions I
13:56would like to ask is maybe if you could
13:57share an example of when you've
14:00identified a process that could um be
14:03improved or took some steps to, you
14:06know, to to to make it better.
14:08>> Yeah. Um,
14:11so in my role at Downtown Insurance
14:14Group, um, I noticed that updating
14:17customer policy details across our
14:19system and Excel Tracker, um, was taking
14:22probably a bit longer than necessary,
14:25um, because some information was
14:27duplicated or inconsistently recorded.
14:30Um, not necessarily by myself, but just
14:32across the board. Um, when a lot of
14:34people are working together, that that
14:36can commonly happen. Um so I did suggest
14:39a more structured approach. Um so to
14:42create a clear template in Excel um and
14:45agreeing with my team on consistent
14:47naming conventions um and data entry
14:50checks.
14:51>> Um as a result of that we reduced errors
14:53and updates became faster and more
14:56efficient. I feel
14:58>> um that experience showed me the value
15:00of reviewing processes and taking like
15:03small and practical steps to improve
15:05accuracy and workflow um skills that
15:09again I'd love to bring to the people
15:10assistant role.
15:12>> No. Amazing. Now, you do tend to find
15:14the more that you um do a do a role,
15:18there may be gaps in some of the
15:19policies and procedures that you know
15:21that are in place. Um, and who better
15:24to, you know, bring that to light than
15:26the people who are actively doing it on
15:28a day-to-day basis. So, we we do try to
15:31um review our policies at least twice a
15:34year if you know, if and where possible.
15:37Um, but no, it sounds it sounds all
15:40positive and that you've that you've got
15:42quite a lot of experience that you could
15:43bring bring to the team. Um, so that was
15:47that was kind of everything on my on my
15:49side with the question. So, um I would
15:51say thank you so much Chlo for taking
15:53the time to uh speak to me today and uh
15:55for sharing your experiences. Um it's
15:58it's been really interesting hearing
15:59about about your background. Um I would
16:02probably just say so the next the next
16:04step in the process um I aim to sort of
16:07provide feedback um of any of the
16:09outcomes within sort of five to seven
16:11days. So that would either be by
16:13telephone or by email or a letter. And
16:16if successful the next stage would be a
16:20second stage interview and that would
16:21usually be with the people manager. So
16:23ideally it would be a face-to-face
16:25interview. However, we understand
16:27sometimes um you know zoom or would be
16:30the more appropriate way. Um but before
16:33we completely, you know, wrap up, do you
16:36have any questions for me?
16:39>> Yes. Um could you possibly tell me a
16:42little bit more about the people team
16:43structure and who I'd be working most
16:45closely with?
16:47>> Of course. Of course. So um here at
16:49Jimmy Joe, the people team consists of
16:52HR advisers, uh the people manager, um
16:56and people assistants. So there are a
16:58few other people assistants here that
17:00you'll be able to work quite closely
17:01within the team. Um and this this this
17:04kind of builds a nice little network.
17:06Um, so you know, if you ever needed
17:09cover for uh annual leave or you needed
17:12a some far a bit more training, um, that
17:16they would be, I would probably say your
17:18your your network that you would
17:20probably support, um, uh, with with any
17:24of these. Um, but you would also work
17:26quite closely with the PE people
17:27manager, HR advisers. that would be more
17:30on the recruitment side, the on boarding
17:33um which you've said that you've had
17:35limited um experience within but sounds
17:38like you're willing to kind of get stuck
17:40in. Um you'll also learn a little bit on
17:42the payroll support side of things um
17:44and employee relations. Um so sometimes
17:47you may be required to sit in on some of
17:50the cases that we may have. Um so it
17:53kind of brings a little bit more variety
17:54to the role. Um so as well as um liazing
17:58with our employees and managers across
17:59across the business.
18:03Um so yeah that would be generally your
18:06role. [laughter]
18:08>> I do have another question. Um what
18:12would a typical day look like for a
18:14people assistant at Jimmy Joe?
18:16>> Of course. Um so I would say in the
18:20mornings um it would generally involve
18:22sort of going through and checking the
18:23emails that have come in. So um that
18:26would usually be on on our on our
18:28outlook. Um we do have an internal
18:30system as well where we have um request
18:33tickets that may come in. Um so that's
18:36some like ex uh internal portal that we
18:39have. Um so you'll be able to also go on
18:41there and log in and see what inquiries
18:43have come in. Um supporting the managers
18:46and employees with any queries. Um
18:48updating some of the HR records.
18:51um potentially preparing um recruitment
18:53documentation. Um so that will kind of
18:56be your general morning, not all in one,
18:58but you know any of those tasks may come
19:01in. Um so no no two days are the same.
19:04Um and then in our afternoons you may
19:06include some scheduling for the
19:08interviews. So it might involve you
19:11actually having to to make some calls or
19:14follow up on emails. Um potentially do
19:16some compliance checks on on the
19:18interviewees as well. So that might be
19:20obtaining some documentation. Um and
19:23then you'll be supporting some of the
19:24payroll tasks or also potentially if you
19:27are wanting to participate in some of
19:29the uh small projects just to improve
19:32our our processes. Um so I think that
19:35that that will be quite interesting um
19:37especially if you're wanting to expand
19:38your knowledge area as well um and get
19:41stuck in a little bit more on some of
19:43the stuff that we have uh occurring
19:46internally here at Jimmy Joe.
19:49Definitely. Thank you for that.
19:51>> Yeah, perfect. Um, so I'd just like to
19:53say uh thank you so much again for your
19:55time today. It has been great speaking
19:57with you. Um, if you do have any
19:59questions, feel free to reach out to me,
20:01whether that's, you know, on email or
20:03you can always call me. Um, I'm happy to
20:06answer any questions that you may have.
20:08Um, but yeah, in the meantime, um, I'll
20:11be in touch as soon as possible. Um, and
20:14yeah, I hope you have a fantastic day.
20:17Thank you so much and thank you for your
20:18time today as well.
20:20>> Thank you so much. Take care.
20:21>> Thank you. You too. Byebye.