Procter & Gamble

Competences and qualifications

P&G asks for a minimum of:

• 280 UCAS points
• An achieved or expected 2.1.

Degrees can be in any discipline except for product supply roles, which require an engineering degree, and research and development roles, which require a degree in either science or engineering.

The company has a set of core competencies against which it recruits and develops employees. It calls these ‘success drivers’ and categorises them under the following headings:

1. P&GMinds

The success-drivers are‘P&GMinds’, ‘P&GPeople’ and ‘P&GAgility’.

• Curiosity and creativity
• Ability to come up with new ideas and solutions
• Attention to detail
• Commercial awareness and business acumen.
2. P&GPeople
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills
• Team working skills and ability to build trust
• Leadership skills and ability to inspire others.
3. P&GAgility
• Ability to read and anticipate market trends and adapt accordingly
• Flexibility to change track and meet problems head on
• Ability to work under pressure
• Personal motivation and ability to meet deadlines
• Excellent problem solving skills.

In addition to these, graduates can stand out with highly developed language skills, should they have them. In the past, Procter and Gamble relied upon graduate recruitment alone. As of early 2011, the company has started to use an apprenticeship scheme to plug the gaps it was felt graduates were lacking in. As such, many graduate roles and defined by their particular ties to working with international clients, as so capabilities in second or even third languages are required.

Application tips

Applicants should start by looking for appropriate roles via the job search function on the company’s careers website, making sure to tick the 'new university graduates' and 'full time' boxes in the search criteria.

The process then consists of three stages:

• Application stage: online application
• Assessment stage: online questionnaire and 65-minute reasoning test
• Interview stage: round one and round two interviews.

Filling out the application

Applicants are required to register with the website in order to apply. They are then directed to the form and taken through some basic questions relating to personal details, ethnic background and educational history.

At this stage applicants need to attach a covering letter detailing their motivation for applying, along with a CV. The letter should be addressed 'Dear P&G Western European Talent Supply Team'. The CV can either be pasted into the form or attached.

Scenario-based questionnaire

Applicants receive an email confirming receipt of the application. They are then asked to complete a questionnaire.

This gives a series of scenarios and asks candidates how they would respond. It is based on the company’s system of competencies and values. The test is designed to ascertain if candidates are a good fit for company culture and to evaluate their academic and leadership abilities.

Applicants need to respond to a series of hypothetical scenarios.

To help them succeed in the test, candidates should visit the P&G 'what we look for' page. This allows them to familiarise themselves with the company’s purpose, values and principles (‘PVP’) and to consider how their past experiences can be used to illustrate their compatibility with P&G.

Reasoning tests and interviews

Candidates who progress to the reasoning test and interview stages will be invited to specific locations (eg company offices) to complete these. More complete details on these are contained in the assessments and tests and interviews sections of this insight, respectively.

Interviews explained

P&G stresses that its interviews are designed to be a two-way process, with a chance for candidates to ask questions about the company and the role applied for. There are two rounds of interviews.

Round one

The first-round interview takes place at a P&G location. Candidates are interviewed by a senior manager and asked scenario-based questions looking for details on personal skills. The interviewer aims to compare the candidate against the company’s required competencies.

The interview typically lasts up to an hour.

Scenario-based questions analysing personal skills.

Questions to consider

• What skills can you bring to P&G?
• Describe a time when you have had to overcome a problem in a professional environment.
• Describe a time when you have worked with or led a team to tackle a problem.
• Describe a time when you had to persuade or influence people.
• How have you worked to resolve a problem or conflict involving a customer or client?

Candidates may also be asked about P&G as a company and why they have applied for a specific role.

Round two

Successful interviewees from the first round will be invited to a second interview. This is conducted by two senior managers from the particular function applied for. It involves further competency questions, of a more challenging kind, and specific questions about the role and what the candidate expects to do.

Possible questions

• Describe a time when you had to combine two different approaches or perspectives to solve a complex problem.
• How do you deal with heavy workloads and tight deadlines? How do you go about prioritising work?
• Describe a time when you had to respond to constructive criticism.
• Have you ever not met your expectations with regards to a particular goal? How did you deal with it?
• Describe a time when you came up with an idea that lead to a successful project taken up by colleagues.

Assessments and tests

Candidates who are successful at the online application and questionnaire stages are invited to a testing venue to take a reasoning test. These take place at company offices, university campuses or venues such as hotels.

The reasoning test lasts 65 minutes and consists of 40 multiple-choice questions in three categories.

1. The numerical reasoning section poses questions that test candidates’ basic arithmetic skills.
2. The logic-based reasoning section gives candidates paragraphs of information, followed by a series of statements. They are required to indicate which statement is the only one that can or cannot be logically concluded from the paragraph.
3. The ‘figural reasoning’ section is essentially an abstract reasoning test. Candidates are presented with a series of shapes, each with one missing element. They need to spot the patterns within them in order to ascertain what the missing piece should be.

P&G provides a practice test and advice on how to tackle the real thing. This can be accessed via its careers website.

Those who pass the reasoning test are put forward for a first-round interview.