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Probably the most important thing to remember about a job interview is that once you get past Human Resources the people interviewing you are probably amateurs at interviewing. They are pros at whatever their major responsibility is but hiring new employees constitutes only about 2% - 5% of what they do. That means that if you are prepared you have a fairly good chance of subtly controlling the interview by the questions you ask and the way you structure your resume.

Here are some of the kinds of interviews you can expect to encounter. Each takes a slightly different type of preparation and tactics.

1. Standard Interview. This is the type of job interview which you probably expect. It's mostly a "getting to know you" walk through your background, perhaps by way of your resume. If you are actually in a face-to-face interview chances are better than 90% that they already know that you can do the job so this interview has as a primary goal to check out if the chemistry works. Can you fit in with the corporate culture? Are you the type of person who will fit well into our team?

2. Behavioral Interview. This type of interview is the exception to the amateur rule - most of the people conducting behavioral interviews have had specific training to do behavioral interviews. Frequently these interviews are conducted by 2 people with 1 asking the questions and 1 making notes on your answers and, possible, giving you a numerical score. For companies committed to behavioral interviewing, this is a hurdle you have to get over but it is seldom the only interview. You are more likely to encounter occasional behavioral questions in standard interviews.

3. Panel Interview. This type of interview may be conducted just because of scheduling efficiency but it more often has the purpose of observing how you interact with a group of co-workers (either the team you will be a part of or inter-departmental people you will be interacting with) or to observe your presentation style. In all cases, be sure to make eye contact with everyone and include as many of the panel as possible in your answer. And all of them get an individualized thank you note.

4. Sequential Panel Interview. This is when they sit you in a conference room and send in anywhere from 3 to 6 or 8 people in to interview you one at a time. There are 2 keys to this type of interview. The first is stamina - get plenty of rest the night before and don't plan on doing anything that night. And the second - if you use a success story with one person and the same story, from a different angle, is appropriate in talking to another person, tell the second person that you have already discussed this situation from a different angle and with whom so that, when they compare notes they won't be confused.

5. Technical Interview. Obviously this type of interview is a given if you are interviewing for a technical position. However, it may also happen to check out your professional acumen in any profession. This interview won't usually get you the job but it will definitely get you eliminated if you don't demonstrate the level of knowledge that the interviewer knows is necessary for the position.

6. Social Interview. This is an especially common type of interview for anyone in a business development or sales position. If you will be interacting with customers or prospects in public, your potential employer wants to know how you perform in a business social setting. Remember, this is still an interview and act accordingly. Don't order anything sloppy (this is not the time for spaghetti or steamed crabs) and be very aware of your table manners. If everyone at the table orders alcoholic drinks, join in, but just take token sips.

7. Approval Interview. This interview is just to check that the boss's boss doesn't take an instant and strong dislike to you. Here, even more than everywhere else, the important goal is to create chemistry, chemistry, chemistry. This person can say "yeah" or "nay" about your coming on board but is probably not very interested in details. Best way to handle this interview is to follow the interviewer's lead.

Regardless of the type of interview you encounter, the bottom line is chemistry. If they like you they will overlook all sorts of deficits but if they don't you could walk on water and they wouldn't care.

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