How To Make An Interview

Does This Really Work

Yes, but dont just take it from me. There are many people who have been doing this type of preparation for years.

Take Kelly Stamerra, a senior hospital pharmaceutical sales representative, for example, who says, It started out as just a way to look and sound more credible when I was just starting out, but after a while I realized not only was it keeping me on track, but it directed the conversation. I felt so comfortable discussing the information I had put in there because I had taken the time to think about it, so I never went down a rabbit hole.

The result?

I call it my lucky presentation, Stamerra explains. Hands down I would not have gotten the jobs I did without it. As I continued to apply for promotional positions, it made me sound polished and professional and I quickly moved into specialty positions. It is my security blanket. Honestly, I would feel naked going into an interview without it!

Find Out The Type Of Interview You Will Be Going On:

There are several common types of interviews such as one on one, group, and behavioral. You shouldnt assume you will get a certain one. Dont be afraid to ask your recruiter what kind of interview will have if you dont know the interview will be more beneficial to both parties if you are prepared.

READ MORE: 6 Interview Types You Must Know as a Candidate

Experiment With Memorization Methods

Memorizing is often misused in the process of studying. Some people memorize whole sentences, paragraphs and lectures without grasping their essence.

However, memorization can be useful when you need to learn definitions and classifications really quickly. Dont avoid this technique if you want to fill your brain with information without wasting any time.

Try this if you want to memorize more and faster: How to Memorize More and Faster Than Other People

Read Also: Best Interview Attire For A Woman

Where Do You See Yourself In 5 Years

Employers are asking you this question to see if you have somewhat of a plan for your career. It doesnt have to be completely mapped out in a step by step manner but, a general overall plan is good to see. It means you are goal oriented and are working towards something.

Dont worry about answering in a way that states you are planning on sticking with the company until you retire. Rather, focus more on how its important to you to continue to learn and get better and better at what you do. Companies like to hire self-motivated people.

What Does Being Prepared For An Interview Really Mean

For many, the idea of being prepared for anything is a bit ambiguous.

Is there a specific point that separates the prepared from the ill-prepared? Do you have to dedicate a certain number of hours to the process of getting ready? Is there a critical step you have to make to cross the threshold?

Technically, the answer to those questions is no. In many cases, being prepared means youve done some due diligence. You know how to talk about your achievements in a way that entices the hiring manager. You can sprinkle in relevant tidbits of information based on research.

Essentially, being prepared means youve taken whatever steps were necessary to set yourself up for success, allowing you to arrive at your interview brimming with confidence. Youve dedicated time and attention to the process.

Even if the idea of being prepared isnt highly defined, that doesnt mean you cant do what it takes to make it happen. By following the right steps which well cover in a moment you can do proper laser focused research, prepare and practice relevant and engaging answers, and increase your odds of handling even the trickiest questions with ease.

You May Like: What Should Females Wear To A Job Interview

Dress For The Job Or Company

Today’s casual dress codes do not give you permission to dress as “they” do when you interview. It is important to know what to wear to an interview and to be well-groomed. Whether you wear a suit or something less formal depends on the company culture and the position you are seeking. If possible, call to find out about the company dress code before the interview.

Research The Company And Industry

We often hear from employers that candidates do not know enough about their companies when they interview. Employers gauge how interested you are by how much you know about their organization. This research is an easy way to improve your interview skills.

Find out as much as you can about the position, company, and industry.

• Learn about current trends and events that might impact your future employer.
• Review the organizations website and social media activity.
• Try to speak to people in the organization through LinkedIn, peers, faculty, or family to gain insider knowledge.
• Make sure that you reread the job description and can communicate why you would be a good t for the position.

Read Also: Interview With Cfo

What To Wear To An Interview

While many employers expect candidates to dress smartly, a growing number encourage casual wear at work, making it trickier than ever to choose an interview outfit.

What you’ll be expected to wear depends on factors such as the size of the company, the industry it operates in and the culture it promotes. For example, a small creative agency may have different standards to a major accountancy firm.

If you’re unsure on the dress code, ask before attending the interview. The key point to remember is that it’s better to be too smart than too casual. Only opt for a more casual outfit if you’re certain that’s acceptable – if there’s any doubt, go for smart business attire. Whatever you choose, make sure that your clothes are ironed and your shoes are clean.

For telephone and online interviews make sure you dress as though the interview is in person. Sitting in your tracksuit bottoms trying to act professional probably isnt going to go too well.

Job Interview Questions And Answers

Here’s a list of common job interview questions, with examples of the best answers about you, your work history and experience, the job, your goals, the new job, salary, and what you have to offer the employer.

If you’re in a hurry and want to speed up your interview preparation, here’s a list of the top 10 interview questions employers typically ask, example answers, and tips for giving the best response.

Also Check: Women’s Outfit For Job Interview

Create And Distribute A Standardized Evaluation Form That All Interviewers Should Complete

Before your interviewers meet your candidates, dont forget to provide them with a simple method for supplying feedback. Printing and distributing a standardized evaluation form is a quick and easy way to reinforce what criteria interviewers should be judging, meaning interviewers are less likely to rate candidates on their own subjective scales.

Add boxes where interviewers can rank each candidate on things like core skills and knowledge, and add a space where they can include any additional comments. This also makes it easier to fairly compare candidates, since youll be comparing them across the same criteria.

As part of its recent overhaul of the hiring process, LinkedIns Product team now has candidates for product manager roles come in for four back-to-back interviews onsite. Each interview is a one-on-one and focuses on one of the four core competencies that Product is looking for. The Product evaluation form asks interviewers for four pieces of information: 1) a 1-to-5 rating 2) a Yes/No answer to whether they would hire the candidate 3) the questions they asked and 4) their evaluation of the candidates strengths and weaknesses.

Update Your Social Media Profile

If you are on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter or any other social media platform, make sure you have an updated profile. Employers often check your social media presence to get an idea about your personality and background. Search for your name in Google to see what results turn up. If there is anything unpleasant, prepare yourself for a response if the interviewer asks about it.

Also Check: Questions To Ask Cfo In Interview

How To Create An Interview Process

The interview process refers to the stages businesses implement to interview and evaluate new employees. A good and clearly defined interview process can save you time and recruitment costs, identify top talent, and help create a positive interview experience.

• Completely free trial, no card required.
• Reach over 250 million candidates.

Prepare To Describe Your Work History Briefly

Most interviewers will ask you to give a quick walkthrough of your background at the start of the interview. Thats why I mentioned reviewing your resume beforehand. Its a pretty commonly overlooked but its one of my favorite job interview tips and its so easy to do!

If youve prepared a good, brief narrative of your career, you can impress them right off the bat. What got you interested in this field? What have you accomplished recently?

But it has to be concise. Nobody wants to hire somebody that rambles on or sounds scattered, and thats the biggest mistake people make with this relatively open-ended question.

Spend most of your time on the recent portion of your career. Go through the beginning rather quickly. 2-3 minutes total should be your target.

Read Also: Interview Questions For A Cfo

How To Prepare For A Job Interview

Your success in a job interview depends a great deal on how you prepare for it. Interview preparation primarily involves researching the job and the company and thoughtfully considering your answers to the interview questions. In addition to pre-interview preparation, there are certain aspects you should prepare for during and after the interview . In this article, we take a look at the steps involved in preparing for a job interview and some actionable tips to improve your chances of success.

Get Your Interview Clothes Ready

Don’t wait until the last minute to make sure your interview clothes are ready. Have an interview outfit ready to wear at all times, so you don’t have to think about what you’re going to wear while you’re scrambling to get ready for a job interview.

Regardless of the type of job you’re interviewing for, that first impression should be a great one. When dressing for an interview for a professional position, dress accordingly in business attire.

If you’re applying for a job in a more casual environment, such as a store or restaurant, it’s still important to be neat, tidy, and well-groomed, and to present a positive image to the employer.

It is also important to think about your makeup and accessories when dressing for an interview.

Don’t Miss: What To Wear For An Interview Women

Get Feedback From Each Interviewer While Its Fresh And Dont Let Them Discuss Candidates First

Collecting every interviewers standardized evaluation form is a good first step. Make the form simple and keep track of who completes them and who doesnt. , including would you hire this person and whats your assessment of their strengths and weaknesses. Since theyve started keeping tabs on how often each team member completes the form, 93% of the time interviewers have completed the evaluation.

Sometimes, youll want to dig deeper and, to get the full scoop, youll need to talk to interviewers. Since theyre probably busy people, try to block off some time on their calendar to chat right after the interviews are over. Otherwise, you might find yourself chasing them down for days, increasing the chances that theyll forget key information.

Theres also the possibility that interviewers may discuss candidates with each other before they pass their assessment onto you. This can result in conformity bias, where people change their opinion to more closely resemble the group consensus.

To avoid this, remind interviewers that they shouldnt talk about candidates until all feedback has been gathered and hold your debriefings individually rather than as a group. The sooner you can gather feedback, the more unfiltered and genuine it will be.

Practice Answering The Most Commonly Asked Questions

Many people are asked a question during an interview and are unsure about how they should answer it. That is why you may want to practice answering questions that are commonly asked during an interview. Why do you think that you will be a good fit for this job? What are some of your strengths? What are some of your weaknesses? Why do you want this position? Those are examples of questions commonly asked. Your interviewers may also ask you to tell them about yourself.

Recommended Reading: System Design Interview Preparation

How Did You Hear About This Position

Although at first glance this might seem like a straightforward question, you should grab any opportunity you can to show your interest in the company.

Even if you havent been continuously refreshing the companys website for job listings, make it seem like you have . Show excitement and curiosity.

If someone inside the company told you about the position or recommended that you apply, definitely make sure to mention that.

Youll have a much better chance at getting hired if someone credible can vouch for your skills.

So, mention his/her name and his/her position inside the company and give their reasoning for inviting or recommending you to apply for the position. Tell the hiring managers what excites you about the job opportunity or what exactly caught your eye.

Possible answers for “How did you hear about this position?”:

• Sample answer 1:

Ive known about for a long time – Im a big fan of your products. I even own one of your latest phone models!

I love the companys passion for creating super intuitive, beautiful hardware, and I would love to be a part of it.

So, when I saw your job ad at , even though I wasnt actively looking for a job at the time, I couldnt help but apply!

• Sample answer 2:

I heard from Jim Doe, my old colleague and college friend, that was looking for a new sales director. He encouraged me to apply, saying that my experience managing a sales team at would be helpful for .

Empower Candidates By Explaining The Star Method Of Answering Upfront

Another way to streamline your interview process and avoid rambling answers is to outline the STAR method of answering at the start of every interview. Explain that this is a recommended way of answering behavioral questions concisely yet thoroughly, using four simple steps. These are:

• Situation: What were the circumstances? What was the challenge?
• Task: What goal were you working toward?
• Action: What did you do specifically to address the situation?
• Result: What was the outcome? What did you learn?

Equipping candidates with this technique further bolsters their trust in your company and allows you to gather the information you need in a more effective manner. Alternatively, you can send information about this method in your preinterview email or include it on your website. That way if a candidate uses it, youll know theyve done their homework.

Recommended Reading: Cfo Interview

Properly Introduce Yourself & Your Co

Whether its in person or over a video call, start the interview by introducing everyone to each other. Put the candidate at ease by explaining who you are, what your role is, and a little about the company.

You should also lay out what the interview process will look like. Showing you have a plan will reflect positively on your organization and it will keep the interviewee relaxed.

Distribute Your Interview Guide

• Hiring managers

Also Check: Design Interview Preparation

What Would Your First 30 60 Or 90 Days Look Like In This Role

If youre applying for a senior or leadership role, youre probably going to get asked this question.

Chances are, at this stage of the interview, you already know a lot about your future position and the company.

Now, its time to show off your knowledge in your field, and explain how youre going to start making things happen at the company.

So, heres how to answer the question:

For the first 30 days:

Youre probably going to need to get to know the company first. Youre going to be learning as much as possible, including information on:

• What does the company do?
• What are the key processes?
• What does your department do?
• What are the current problems and challenges?
• Where can you help?

Then, during the 60 days:

Youll start start making things happen. From all the info you gathered, suggest a handful initiatives you could take on:

• Youd audit the company email marketing strategy and suggest improvements
• Youll help come up with better ad copies for Facebook marketing
• Youll help the team with their ongoing marketing initiatives

Within the first 90 days:

Youre already have started making an impact. Describe several things you think are going to be functioning better:

• Online ads are going to be performing better by 10-20%
• Email marketing operations are going to be more streamlined, taking significantly less manpower