Your Interview Guide...

The interview gives the employer and potential employee a chance to discuss the position and exchange information, and enables each party to see if there is a good 'fit'. Whilst interviews can often be nerve-wracking, there are many ways to make them as painless and successful as possible. By reading and adhering to the following points you should be able to make the most of any interview.

Interview Preparation

During the interview by demonstrating your understanding of the company, including it's history, the markets they operates in, including their future plans and most importantly the role you will be doing, will increase your chance of success.

We recommend that you do the following:

• Check out the companies website as well as industry generally including competitors.
• Publications that the company may produce including reports and statements.
• Use search engines and relevant industry websites for information on the company.
• Remember your recruitment consultant. They will have developed a relationship with the employer and understand what they look for, what your interviewer maybe like, as well as understanding the clients business.

First impressions do count, particularly in an interview situation - being prepared is important, if you make a poor impression you may struggle to get through to the next round. Make sure you know your CV, also be prepared with some questions that you would like to ask. Your Recruitment Consultant can help you with these.

The Interview Day

• Ensure that you arrive for the interview on time - if you are going to be unavoidably late, call your consultant, it maybe worth doing a dummy run if you are unfamiliar with the area or make sure that you have a map & detailed instructions.
• Dress appropriately; your consultant can give you advice on what or what not to wear. On arrival make sure that you are polite to the people that you meet, you never know who they are, Shake the interviewer's hand firmly, smile and thank them for meeting with you.
• The interviewer will most likely set the tone and pace of the interview so let them, don't get caught off guard. Remain confident - you have been invited to an interview so the employer already feels that you have something positive to offer.
• Remember to listen carefully to what is said and make your answers are considered and relevant, speak clearly at all times. Its ok to take time to think about your answers, don’t rush it, take your time.
• We cannot know all the questions that an interviewer is likely to ask, but generally they will want to test your character or your technical knowledge. Some of the questions they may ask are:
• How would you describe yourself?
• What motivated the decisions you have made so far in your education/career history?
• What are your main weaknesses and describe a time that you overcame them?
• When have you shown tenacity in a business environment?
• What has been the most difficult decision you have made in your career?
• What are your motivations for joining us?
• If we hired you, what long-term benefits would you provide the business?

Remember play to your strengths and not to your weaknesses

As mentioned previously having questions for the interviewer will demonstrate your interest and also redirect pressure from you. Ensure that your questions are probing and intelligent, some areas that maybe worth covering are:

• What would your career path be within the firm? Perhaps ask for an example of someone who has done this role previously.
• What kind of training does the company offer?
• Recent news that you heard about the business within the media - where do they see the organisation heading?
• What support structure does the company offer - will they sponsor for additional professional qualifications, etc?
• Why did the interviewer join the business?

Make sure that your questioning is pertinent to the role. There are, of course, some things that you do not discuss during the interview process. If you are using a recruitment consultant then they will negotiate your salary and benefits for you under your instructions with your potential new employer.

Interview Close

Whilst first impressions count, so do the last ones. On leaving the interview room, ensure that you leave on an upbeat note. You should ask when you should expect a decision; if you feel that it is appropriate you could also ask how they thought you performed. Do not express any misgivings you may have about the role to the interviewer - talk them through with your recruitment consultant. Above all, leave on a positive note.

The above is a guideline, but by following them you can maximise your potential during interview. And remember, the employer has requested that YOU attend the interview; they already feel that you can do the job. Now you just have to prove them right.

Further information about the interview process and effective interview techniques can be obtained from your Recruitment Consultant.

For your information certain companies use Numerical and Verbal Reasoning tests during their recruitment process. For Practice Tests www.shldirect.com

 

'Placing Talented People into Rewarding Companies'