Interview Advice - A Short Guide To Interview Success

Interview Advice: A Short Guide To A Successful Interview

Ok the letter has just dropped through your mailbox and you have been selected for interview. Well done you’ve followed the job application process wonderfully!!

Now what do you do?

Explore the company

This is an often forgotten strategy and one that as a hiring manager I look for every time I interview candidates.

The least I expect is for the candidate to have looked into what my organisation does. If there is one piece of advice I would give any candidate it's this: Your preparation and research are crucial to your success.

If you research the company it will give you more confidence going into the interview. Additionally you will know what the plans for the organization are, which sector we operate in and who are competitors are. It should also give you more clarity in your thinking about why you might want to work for the company.

Net result? If you are asked at the interview, which invariably you may, an interview question about why you want to work for that organization and what made you apply for the job, you then have the answer prepared because you’ve thoroughly researched the company.

But how do I research the company I hear you ask? Easy.

Interview advice I regularly give to candidates is this.

Check the internet and go to the company website. Here you will have a treasure chest of information, so use it to your advantage. Most company websites provide up to date information on the latest news, newsletters and market sector.

Contact the company and ask them for a copy of their Annual Report. This will contain numerous pieces of vital information on finances, awards and expansion etc.

Ask for other company literature such as their codes of ethics, future plans and organizational ethos.

Really good interview tip I suggest you try and contact the Chair of the interview initially through their Human Resources Dept. Why? Two reasons.

The first one is to let the Chair of the panel know who you are before you attend interview. Don’t take this personally but they won’t be able to speak to you due to interview protocol. They will most likely refer you to someone in the department where the vacancy is.

Secondly when you attend the interview the panel will have discussed that you were the person who contacted the Chair (who is normally the Department Manager for the particular post) and showed real interest in the vacancy and hence your profile has gone through the roof before you even utter one sentence!

Any more interview advice? Sure. Further tips for interview just as important are;

Practice Practice Practice

Practice is one of the most important ways to increase your confidence before the interview.

Do this with a friend or relative in the privacy of your home or other suitable place where you won’t be disturbed.

If it’s available use a camcorder or even a video phone to record your mock interview. Set up a mock interview with a number of prepared interview questions and answers (these can be found on the questions and answer page of this site). analyze your performance, your body language and responses to the questions. This will help you adjust and tweak areas for improvement.

If you want fantastic professional career change advice from one of my colleagues and leaders in the field..... just click here and see Latarsha Lytle's excellent career change options article Your preparation and research are crucial to your success.

You can obtain more interview advice by clicking here more interview tips and advice

Interview Advice and Tips - Questions and Answers

The Complete Job Interview Success Guide E-book
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