Auto Trader UK Interview Questions

Application

I applied in-person. The process took 4+ weeks. I interviewed at Auto Trader UK (Manchester, England) in January 2018.

Interview

Quite a long interview process which is not particularly efficient:
- initial call with a recruiter on experience - lasted about 1.5 hours
- first face to face interview with 2 of the team leaders: presentation, role play, another interview on experience and an interview with a fellow account manager. For me this was the best part of the process because it really shows the preparation and motivation of the individual. It lasted about 4 hours
- numerical reasoning and personality test - that part was a bit strange, never had it before in an interview process but fair enough. It went fairly well but make sure you prepare really, really well for the numerical reasoning test as it’s not easy. For the personality test there’s not much preparation needed, just honest answers
- second face to face interview, this time with one of the directors- positive experience, we went through the results of the personality test and she also gave an explanation of the department structure. Again experience related questions. It was just an hour.
- last face to face interview with another team leader and shadowing a fellow account manager. Overall it lasted about 2 hours.

At the end I received no offer and feedback that my commercial knowledge and experience were not good enough. Overall, I was a bit disappointed to have gone through all of these stages and at the end to get feedback which relates to probably the most important skill for any account manager. If they had doubts about that, then they shouldn’t have invited me for a second interview.

Interview Questions

Application

I applied online. The process took 4+ weeks. I interviewed at Auto Trader UK (Manchester, England) in December 2017.

Interview

Online application form, telephone interview, assessment day, 1-1 interview. The process lasted 4-5 weeks in total. It was challenging and a thorough process, but gives a real opportunity to delve into what you can bring to the role. The interviewers and HR were genuinely friendly and extremely professional.

Interview Questions

Application

I applied online. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Auto Trader UK (Manchester, England) in November 2017.

Interview

Simple online application. Half an hour telephone interview then followed up by 3 hour assessment day at Manchester HQ (45 min written test, 45 minute excel test, tour of office whilst they score tests, 45 minute interview itself straight after tour). Overall 4 weeks start to end. Poor communication after my assessment day. Had to chase up by email, couldn't get through on phone number provided. Took them nearly 2 weeks to get back to me after the assessment day. Convoluted interview process probably putting candidates off. Interview didn't really focus on values (brief provided stated this would be the focus of the interview). Had to focus answers on context, action and result.

Interview Questions

Application

I applied online. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Auto Trader UK (Manchester City Centre, England) in October 2017.

Interview

Initial phone screen, then one onsite full day of interviews. First onsite interview was a pair programming exercise, then they'll let you know if they'd like to continue the day depending on how you performed in that first interview. Then if successful, you'll proceed onto the competency/values based interview, where the format was questions like "tell me about a time where...", all revolving around their company values. Then you'll have some lunch and be invited to spend some time with one of their 'squads', which is great and very original. All companies should really allow every interviewer to spend time with their prospective new team so that they can really see if they'd like to work there! After this, you'll have a final chat with a more senior leader in the company.

Interview Questions

Application

I applied online. The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Auto Trader UK (King's Cross, England) in September 2017.

Interview

The first stage was an online test, which included about 50 questions. This followed up with a telephone interview to discuss my options with my recruiter and go through my CV. I was then asked to come in for an assessment day, which included an interview, presentation and group task. After passing these, the final stage was an interview with two directors.

They were extremely polite and very welcoming. I really loved their ethos, however, I messed up the final interview. After speaking with the recruiter following the interview with the directors, he was shocked that I didn't perform well as I did in all previous tests. He then asked why it didn't go well. After explaining my reasons he said he will go back to the directors, however, they had to open up the process again to find other candidates. He said if they don't find a suitable candidate, the directors may consider me.

Firstly, I appreciated that they still wanted to consider me, but I felt like I was their fallback option if they couldn't find anyone else, which was fairly insulting. I also found it quite unprofessional how they took weeks to communicate with me and I had to chase them on numerous occasions to find out. They still haven't contacted me about the last process, so I assume I didn't get it.

They really need to think about their recruitment tactics, as it's not fair to mess people around. However, I really appreciated the opportunity.

Interview Questions

Application

I applied online. I interviewed at Auto Trader UK (Manchester, England).

Interview

The whole interview process began by submitting a quick online application - you have to submit your CV and answer two short essay-type questions about your personal values and why you want to work for Auto Trader.

The next day, I was sent an invitation to complete 3 online tests - Numerical Reasoning, Verbal Reasoning, and Inductive Reasoning. The tests weren't too difficult but it certainly requires some practice, especially if you are not familiar with this type of assessments. I think the purpose of these tests were to weed out incompetent applicants.

After that, I was contacted to schedule a phone interview with one of the recruiters. The recruiter was very friendly and made the whole process very enjoyable. The conversation was mostly about why I want to work with them, their values, how they do things as well as questions about my previous experience at university (incl. projects and how I handled some difficulties) and outside of it. As they emphasised right at the beginning, it's not really a Q&A type interview but more like a conversation.

Next step - assessment day in their Manchester office. They keep the assessment day small as there were only 4 of us that day. Everyone was super friendly (both staff and other candidates) and there was no "Hire me, I'm the best!" mentality. The whole day lasted about 6 hours and included things like introduction meeting, pair-programming test (I recommend researching what this is and what is the purpose of this type of tests), values-based interview with 2 members of staff, lunch break, office tour and spending time with 2 teams to ask any questions you have.

After the assessment day, regardless of the result, you will receive detailed feedback on how you did during the interviews. If you were successful, you will be invited to the final stage interview which is a phone interview with one of the senior leaders. This was a general chat about you, your past experiences and what your career aspirations are. Person I was speaking to was also very friendly and just wanted to get to know me better.

They made me an offer very quickly (I think it was the same day or so) and I didn't even think twice about accepting it. The offer was generous and I knew since the first phone interview that I wanted to work here.

Overall, I could not ask for a better recruitment experience. The company is absolutely amazing, especially for new grads who are very keen about starting their career in tech. Offices are stunning and people seem to love their job.

What I really liked is that all the interviews made sense. They didn't focus too much on what you know but how you do things and how you fit in. The cultural fit is extremely important and it was emphasised and reflected in every question/task. And they don't ask you silly questions like "What is your biggest weakness?" and such.

Perhaps the whole process was a little bit too long with too many stages (compared to other new grad schemes) but, then again, this is understandable as they want to recruit the right people and the process was quite enjoyable anyway. The HR team was brilliant - communications and decisions were made quickly.

Keep up the good work!

Interview Questions

Application

I applied online. The process took 4+ months. I interviewed at Auto Trader UK (Manchester City Centre, England) in August 2017.

Interview

It was a long process, starting with an online application, followed by a telephone interview, then followed a series of online tests, before being invited to an assessment day and then finally two more online tests and a final interview with a member of the OLT (Operational Leadership Team)

Interview Questions

Application

I applied online. I interviewed at Auto Trader UK (Manchester City Centre, England) in July 2017.

Interview

Had an online application to fill in and 2 essay-like questions to answer along with sending my CV. The next stage was online tests (numerical, inductive and verbal reasoning). Then there was a telephone interview stage where I was asked about my CV and experience for the role, but also was given information about the business and the next stages.

Now there was an assessment centre day in Manchester (4 people in total). Atmosphere was really relaxed and friendly with a brilliant ice breaker to begin the day. The office is probably the best office I have ever seen and the people were easy to chat and get on with.

The day was split into:
- an office tour (30 mins),
- a programming test (1 hour) [looking for 'methods and thinking behind solutions', take your time]
- values interview (1 hour), [competency questions about their 5 values with 2 employees (1 tech., 1 non-tech.)]
- chat with two squads/teams (2 hours) [ask questions and find out about day to day work life]
- lunch (1 hour)
- then a feedback session after (30 mins).

Had a fantastic day and afterwards got a call soon saying I had been invited to the final stage (a talk with a member of the Operational Leadership Team). This too was relaxed and just wanted to find out a bit more about you as a person.

Got offered the job on the same day and immediately accepted. Salary and benefits were generous. Can't wait to start in October!

Interview Questions

Application

I applied online. The process took 2+ months. I interviewed at Auto Trader UK (Manchester, England).

Interview

Arrange a phone interview by email but they didn't ring on the agreed date. A week later they rang an rearranged. Interviw took place and I was advised I would hear within the week. 2 months later and I still haven't had a response (I'll assume I have got any further 😀). Extremely poor experience that doesn't bode well for what it may be like to actually work here.

Application

I applied online. I interviewed at Auto Trader UK (Manchester, England) in May 2017.

Interview

Initial online application. Then telephone interview. Then Whole day interview. First had group task in which all applicats had to put a list of things in priority and justify why. There were 8 of us and around 12 people watching. It was extremely intimidating. 5 of the applicants already worked there so knew all the lingo, what autotrader would actually do in that situation, and how to play up to their cringey culture. Then interview, lasted over an hour. Was quite informal. Then assessment. Had to reply to tweets and reply to customer complaint. The day was frustrating as the job was listed as a graduate job but no one there was a graduate. More than half the applicants were internal so already fitted in to the company culture which was thing they were looking out for, and knew company policy and lingo. Culture was try hard Wouldn't recommend.

Interview Questions