By Liz Christianson
We’ve spent a considerable amount of time discussing the current state of the job market, the essentials of getting your resume noticed by hiring managers, and the importance of cultivating your professional network. Now, let’s look at what to do when all of that comes together and you get the call for an interview. This post has 5 tips for nailing that big interview with the people who make the hiring decisions.
Do Your Research
In this context, doing your research involves studying the employer’s website and any social media feeds they have. You’re looking for clues that indicate you would be a good fit there. For example, is the company well-established, or are you likely to be laid off in the first 6 months? Next, look for any awards, innovations, or current events attributed to the company. Also, look for things that correspond to the role you hope to fill. You’re looking for possible talking points during the interview to show your interest in the role. This also helps you formulate questions for the end of the interview. More on that later.
Prepare Your Elevator Pitch
If you aren’t familiar with the term Elevator Pitch, it refers to your ability to pitch an idea to a potential customer in the time it takes to ride the elevator from the lobby to the office floor. Take a few minutes or a few hours to perfect a 30-second introduction to yourself that sells your skills, qualifications, and interest in the position for which you’re applying. This will prepare you to answer the oft-dreaded question, “Tell us a little about yourself.”
A lot of people, especially introverts, tend to freeze up when being asked this question in an interview. What does the hiring manager want to know? In the simplest terms, they want to know what things about you make you the perfect fit for this job and this company. Instead of giving you a cookie-cutter answer, Jobhunter will show you the list of don’ts.
Do not: rehash your resume, discuss irrelevant personal details, or discuss controversial politics. You don’t want to ramble or give a chronological history of your personal life or your work history.
Best advice is to stick to your Elevator Pitch to that less-than-a-minute speech that highlights who you are, what you do, why you want this job, and wrap with why you’re excited to have the opportunity to work with this team.
Deploy the STAR Method
To be truly prepared for this interview, you need to know your resume in every detail. It should be easy since you’re the one who put it together, and you know your own work history, skills, and experience better than anyone. The interviewer will ask you questions about that experience based on what they skimmed on your resume. They will want to know how you fit the job, so you also need to know the job description as well as you know your resume. The job post generally has the basic expectations, and you should be prepared to talk about how you can meet or exceed those expectations. One question you may be asked to ascertain if you can meet those expectations is, “Tell us about a difficult situation you faced at work and how you dealt with it.” Here’s where the STAR Method comes in.
STAR stands for Situation, Task, Action, and Result. You’ll want to describe the difficult situation and your role or responsibility in the resolution. Tell the interviewer what you did to resolve the situation and what the outcome was. You’ll want to highlight an example of how you solved a problem in such a way that the outcome was beneficial to the company, either in terms of cost-saving measures or a customer relations win.
First Impressions
It’s difficult to decide which tip should be the first tip in nailing an interview because all of these tips are important. However, let’s refer to the interview prep as the background work. You’ve practiced your elevator pitch, memorized your resume, the job posting, and how you fit the role. You’ve even studied the company’s digital footprint. Now, you’re ready for the Big Day. It’s time for the actual interview, and as the saying goes, you never get a second chance to make a first impression. Here are a few tips on making a solid first impression:
- Dress appropriately: You want to wear clean, neatly pressed, professional attire, even if the company’s dress code is casual. If it’s casual, you don’t need to wear a suit, but consider a button-down shirt and slacks. Don’t forget about your shoes. Make sure they’re clean and in good condition.
- Make eye contact: You don’t need to turn this into a staring contest, but even if making direct eye contact is uncomfortable for you, you should look your interviewer in the eyes when you first greet them.
- Project an attitude of enthusiasm: In addition to eye contact on first greeting, smile confidently, and greet the interviewer with a firm handshake.
- Be prepared for small talk: This is a way for you and the interviewer to relax a little before the upcoming conversation. The “nice weather we’ve been having” moment is a chance to show off a small part of your personality. But don’t let this go off the rails. For example, complaining about the traffic might indicate you’d be unhappy with the commute, or might be that employee who is always running late. Stick to things like asking the interviewer how their day is going, light non-controversial current events, or something positive you’ve seen about the company on the news recently.
- Body Language: Be conscious of your body language, from the time you walk through the door until you’re back in your car on the way home. Again, we’re going for an attitude of enthusiasm for the job and the company, along with confidence in your abilities. No slouching or fidgeting.
The Closer
Once you’ve completed the interview and the hiring manager has a good idea of who you are and what you do, they should offer you the opportunity to ask any questions that weren’t answered during the interview. Part of your research into the company should have provided you with those questions to ask. (And if everything you planned to ask about has been answered, you can always ask for more clarification.) You should have prepared two or three questions to ask, either specifically about the position or career growth within the organization. You’ve spent 90% of the interview describing how you are a good fit for the company. This is the portion of the interview where you get to decide if the company is a good fit for you. If you’re stumped, you could always ask, “What persuaded you to interview me?” According to Indeed Career Tips, this question is a gold mine because it gives the candidate insight into what the interviewer cares about. Also, if there was any hesitation about fitness, the candidate can address it right away. Asking this question with confidence can set you apart from other candidates in the right way. The final thing you need to do to wrap up this interview process is the thank-you letter. You should send it within 24 hours of the interview, thanking the interviewer for their time, and pointing out one or two things you discussed in the meeting that make you excited to work there. A time-saving tip is to pre-address the envelope for the thank-you note so you can jot down your thoughts right after the interview and drop it in the mailbox on your way home or back to the office.
In Summary
When you finally get the interview, some things to keep in mind for success are to do your research into the company, know your resume and the job posting, practice your elevator pitch, understand the STAR Method, and make a great first impression. Being fully prepared for your interview will make you stand out to the hiring manager and may be the key to landing your next dare-to-be-great situation. Good hunting!