Interview Process
Preparing for your interview
At the interview
Questions you may be asked at the interview
Questions to ask at the interview
What to expect at a second interview
Negotiating your remuneration package
Preparing for your interview
Ensure your interview is successful
The interview is one of the most important events you will experience, because the thirty minutes to one hour spent with the interviewer may determine the entire course of your career. Also they can be stressful for many people, as being judged and assessed tends to provoke the stress response. Unfortunately, when we become anxious, one of the first things to fail is our memory, with our thought processes not as sharp as they would be otherwise.
Interviewers are aware you may be a little nervous, and may attempt to settle you with humour and rapport building type questions, other interviewers will launch into the process without preamble. Preparation as per the preceding section will engender confidence, which will manifest both verbally and non-verbally. Preparation will also reduce the chances of you fumbling on a question.
Another important fact to remember is that the interview is a two way thing and gives you the chance to find out if the position and employer live up to your expectations, too.
Prepare for the expected
Know what the interviewer is looking for, and making sure that you are ready to prove that you’ve got it:
- Assess yourself for the job in the key areas of skills, qualifications and so on
- Work with your recruitment consultant to know as much as you can about the company, role, interviewers character and style and your interview technique
- Consider the key areas on your CV that they are likely to want to ask you about
- Think about whether your CV shows everything that the interviewer is looking for and if anything might rightly or wrongly give your interviewer cause to worry about your ability to do the job
It is wise to prepare in advance of an important interview, because the more prepared you are the better your chances of getting the job.
The interview is the chance to sell yourself to your interviewer who is looking at what you are the competition have to offer. They will then make a decision as to who is offering the most appropriate attributes for the role. Your role in the interview is to demonstrate and persuade them that you are better than your competitors.
You need to;
- Set your objective
- Research the company
- Prepare your own case
- Be prepared for the interview
Set your objective
An objective is a destination and the objective needs to be well planned so you know not only where you are going but also how you are going to get there. Your objective should be specific to you and if you have any more information you can add in terms of the interviewer’s specific priorities you can add this to your objective.
A clear well conceived objective helps to keep you focused. If any activity doesn’t help you meet your objective, don’t do it. Use the time for something that will further it. For example you should look at researching the organisation to which you are applying. You need to do enough research to demonstrate that you have done your homework.
Research the company
The interviewer will expect you to have done some research into their company, because that they want to see that you are:
- Putting some effort into winning the position
- Interested in their company
- Showing enthusiasm
Also unless you have researched the company how can you be sure you want to work for the company, if you are offered the job, unless you know something about the company? Please find below some material that your recruitment consultant should be able to provide you with or you could get hold of to help you find out about the organisation:
- Sales brochures
- Customer newsletter
- Website address
- In - house magazine
- Newspaper and trade magazine articles
- Annual report and accounts
Most companies have websites and also you could call to request some information to be sent to you and say “I’d like to find out a bit more about your organisation before I come for my interview. Please could you send me some information?” They will be happy to do so and impressed at your initiative.
Prepare your own case
If you attend the interview without any preparation and answer each question as it’s asked, you’ll probably do fairly well. However, you may have missed an opportunity, something you might have said but forgotten to mention, might tip the balance against you. Also you have no idea how tough the competition is and what if it is strong?
So make sure it doesn’t happen and prepare by making a mental list of all of the most important points you want to make, all the things that will inform your interviewer that you are the best person for the job. Tell them about your key strengths and if your strengths can be objectively measured – qualifications, skill at giving particular advice etc. some of which will need to be illustrated with examples. So think of examples in advance of the interview.
Suppose you consider diplomacy to be one of your key skills and when they ask you about it (and they will if its one of their key requirements for the job), it’s not enough simply to assure them that its something your good at. Even if it was important to in your last job, that doesn’t prove that you were good at that part of the job, you need to give them strong examples. You may be able to think of an example to illustrate your strengths on the spot when you’re asked. But if you prepare in advance you can come up with the best and most relevant one to the position you are applying for.
Once you have made your list of strengths you also need to go through the job description in much the same way, finding examples to demonstrate that you have experience in all the key areas of responsibility. Your interviewer might be interested to see some evidence to back up strengths and experience that you tell them about. While they are unlikely to expect to see anything other than perhaps proof of qualifications, they may well be impressed by anything else you can offer them such as;
- Testimonials from satisfied customers
- Copies of key reports you have written
- Examples of past work
- Press cuttings you have generated
- Seminars/events you have organised
This demonstrates to them that you really are as good as you look. Only take with you information that is portable and would fit into a neat folder. Then let the interviewer know what else you could send them, or bring to a second interview if they want to see it.
Be prepared for the interview
Now you should have all the advance information you need, and your preparation is in place. The final step is to be ready for the interview on the day itself and this must start by being on time. Try to arrive a little earlier so that you can find the building and then go for a walk, or grab a coffee, but at least you are close by and not having to rush. However, don’t make the mistake of being too early, aim to arrive 5 to 10 minutes before the meeting. But being as little as one or two minutes late may matter a lot especially if your interviewer is keen on good time keeping.
Of course there are times where no amount of forward planning could have got you to the interview on time. Please find below a check list of things to help you ensure that you are on time;
- Leave plenty of time to get there
- Take with you the letter inviting you for the interview, know the exact time and place of the interview, take directions sent to you, the interviewers full name, the correct pronunciation and the interviewer's title
- Make sure you know how much time has been allocated to your interview
- Enquire about parking if you’re travelling by car and think it could be a problem
- Take a mobile phone, or money for phone calls, in case you need to ring for directions. Then if you do still run late, despite all your precautions, at least you can phone ahead and let them know what’s happening
As well as making sure you arrive on time, you will also need to take with you:
- Your portfolio material
- A notepad and pen for jotting down notes during the interview
Your interviewer will form a large part of their opinion of you on the basis of a very small proportion of the time they spend with you. In fact, the first few moments will tell them a great deal about you, so you need to ensure that you send out the right messages. Here are some of the key factors that impress:
- By the way you greet them
- Firm handshake
- Being smartly and appropriately dressed
Factors that least impress:
- Lateness
- Sloppy appearance
- Poor grooming
- Too much perfume or aftershave
Before the interview
For an interview it is advisable to be dressed in a dark business suit, a white or plain shirt conservative tie, dark socks, clean, polished, black shoes and a neat haircut. When it comes to the specifics of the outfit you choose to wear, here are a few more pointers you may find useful:
- Don’t let your appearance overpower your personality. You can wear bright clothes but don’t wear something so unusual it steals all the attention. It’s you applying for the job not your clothes!
- Avoid any extremes of fashion
- Avoid strong perfume or aftershave
- Don’t wear too much jewellery, or jewellery that is too large
- Avoid large patterns in bright colours, unless restricted to a small area such as a tie or scarf
- Dark colours will lend you more authority than pale ones
When you arrive for the interview ask the receptionist to direct you to somewhere where you can freshen up.
Tidy your hair and check your clothes, and double check your;
- Teeth (especially if you have just eaten)
- Nose
- Jewellery
- Zips and buttons shirt or blouse (make sure they’re tucked in)
- Make up
It is worthwhile, if you’re a woman, taking a spare pair of tights (if you’re wearing tights). Likewise if you’re a man, it’s worth bringing along a spare tie just in case you spill food or drink down the first one. Alternatively don’t put your tie on until you reach the building.
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