3 tips – Preparing for Interviews
After spending years interviewing and meeting countless candidates there are some simple ways to prepare for an interview so that you can present yourself as a polished professional. Though these may sound obvious to most, you would be surprised by the number of candidates that I have met that have done none of the below!
- Present yourself for an interview in a way that you would like to be considered.
Although I recognise that this may reek of judging someone based on their first impressions, an interview scenario can be a prime situation when this happens. When you consider that the panel conducting the recruitment process will likely be meeting a number of candidates during the recruitment process it is important to stand out for the right reasons. I am not taking about discriminating here in line with the nine grounds found in the equality legislation as I am completely opposed to this and will never support any form of discrimination. I am instead talking about ways to present yourself in the most polished professional light you can to an interview panel to ensure you are prepared and are ultimately considered for the role you are applying for.
There are ways that you can do this:
(a) Consider where you are interviewing e.g. you need to do your research to know if you should be ‘suited and booted’ versus turning up in causal attire. Regardless of how formal or informal the company is, you need to make sure you are well groomed so that you are portraying yourself as a professional .
(b) Do not bring in a take-away drink with you. This does sound ludicrous to have to mention but you would be surprised the number of candidates that do this. Although I appreciate you might need a caffeine kick before an interview, it gives off a negative image that you are not taking the interview process seriously.
(c ) Consider what you would like to know about the company so you have some questions to ask the panel. It is always ideal to have a few questions to ask at the end of an interview. This shows that you put some thought into preparing for the interview. If you find that your questions have been answered naturally during the interview itself, just say that you have wanted to ask x and y but they have been answered.
- Know something about the company you are interviewing with
Although this may sound obvious I always say ‘companies are like people, they all have egos’. So it is important to remember that when you are going into any interview process to make sure you know something about the company and if possible the members of the panel that are interviewing you. This is one way to stand out from the other candidates going through the same recruitment process i.e. instead of being the individual who knew little about the company or just regurgitated what was on their company website, you are the candidate who stood out due to your knowledge and understanding of what the company does. This is a great opportunity to be a memorable candidate following an interview.
- Answer the questions asked in a concise clear manner.
There is nothing worse than being on an interview panel where the candidate who is being interviewed cannot give a concise clear answer. Instead the candidate gives long winded answers that involve a number of different tangents providing no information that the panel was looking for. This can result in a candidate that could be well suited for a role based on experience or education to be ruled out based on their poor communication skills.
My advice when answering a question in an interview is
(a) Make sure you have understood the question, if you are not quite sure what is being asked, clarify what you have heard or ask for the question to be repeated. It is a lot better to clarify your understanding rather than answer a question you have misheard or misunderstood
(b) Start with a high level statement, follow on with an example of where YOU have completed the question and close with what you have learnt or taken away from it. This three tier approach to answering a question gives a very detailed thorough answer to any question asked during an interview.
For example:
Question: Tell me about a time where you had to work with a difficult team member
Answer: [High level statement] I have had the pleasure of working with mainly professional people where there were little issues. However, like us all I have had to work with a few difficult team members. [Example of where YOU have completed the question] How I approach this is trying to build a good working relationship with the person so we develop a mutual understanding or respect for one another. If this doesn’t work I will always remain polite. There was one occasion where I had to speak with my manager to seek support to get an issue resolved. [What you learnt from example] What I leanrt from working with this person was to always be professional, to keep an email trail of requests or unpleasant email communications and seek support from my manager as needed.
For further support and information on answering interview questions do not hesitate to get in touch to see how I can work with you.
© myHRguardian 2016