Interview preparation – Win the job before you interview

AUTHOR: David M. Young

Go “above and beyond” and do what your competition is not doing…WIN THE JOB OFFER BEFORE YOU GET TO THE INTERVIEW BY THOROUGHLY PREPARING.

We have discussed some basics of research for an interview. There are also some basic things you can do prior to the interview that will demonstrate you are prepared, capable, and the best candidate for the job. Some of this is repetitive, but combined with the other items, will make sure you are ready. Will this take time? YES…but this is your career. You don’t walk into a test without studying. If you do, you increase your chance of a low score. Your objective in the interview is to walk away with an offer, or move to the next steps in the interview. You want them saying yes. Only then if you are not interested, would you say no. Never “burn a bridge” in an interview.

 

So what else can you do:

• Have your elevator speech ready – combine personal with professional…don’t just go over your resume. Try to make a connection. Volunteer as much personal info (hobbies, etc.) as you feel comfortable.
• Do company research: Website, 10k, news articles, etc.
• Go over your own resume – helps in standard interview to explain job transitions and chronological history (never, ever bad mouth a former employer.)
• Write down accomplishments and achievements (may come to mind as your going over your work history)…they don’t all have to be within work category. This is one of the only ways to prepare for a behavioral interview.
• Be prepared to provide one failure if asked – state what you learned from it or how you overcame it.
• Write down three or four strengths. (What’s your greatest strength? Why should we hire you? What skills do you bring to the table?) Make sure that you have an example for each one.
• Be prepared with one weakness – Turn it into a positive. Be honest.
• Motivations, Likes, Dislikes, Goals (only time goals are bad are if they’re inconsistent with what company wants.)
• Always brush up on any specific technical skills that may be needed.
• Be prepared to ask questions: They may ask you if you have any (you better if they do!) or there may be an opportunity you can take near the end of the interview.
• Company questions: (have some prepared from your research) Growth plans, culture, mgmt style, questions that show you did your homework.
• Position specific questions: What will I be doing 1 year from now? What does it take to succeed here? What is the career path?
• Interviewer specific questions: What brought you to the company and what has kept you here? What do you like/dislike about company? What made you successful? What’s your mgmt style?

 

 

 

 

Interview preparation – The Company

AUTHOR: David M. Young

Should you know about the company before an interview? Technical candidates will focus more on the technology and what is being offered for them and their career, will they expand their skills, responsibilities, training, and basically what is in it for them based on a job description.

But numerous times I have been told by a hiring manager that they liked a candidate, but the candidate had no idea what the company did, and a lack of basic research concerned them about the candidates true interest in contributing to the company and the organizations goals.

So, YES, you should know about the company. But don’t limit this to just opening the company’s website. Walk through the following to expand your knowledge:

• Check the company website. Know their history, growth through the years, and leadership.
• If publicly held (you will generally find a stock listing on the website), then research their stock price (and if you want an A+, look through their past filings).
• Look for information on them on websites like Hoovers or Dunn/Bradstreet.
• If privately held, look for them on corporationwiki.com by searching for individuals who are owners or leaders.
• Search for relevant press releases in major newspapers or trade publications.
• Look for the company on LinkedIn and learn about the people who you may have 1^st, 2^nd, or 3^rd degree connections.
• Look for other job postings for the same company on the varioius job posting boards.
• Check salary.com for past information on salaries and comments (don’t let negative comments scare you. Often times the only people who post are those who have an ax to grind.)

Take notes, you may find some questions that you’d like answered based on what you read.

Ask questions that focus on responsibility, not just what is in it for you. Yes, none of this may come up…but … if prepared; this simple research may distinguish you from other candidates with similar experience and backgrounds.

Interview preparation – The Phone Interview

AUTHOR: David M. Young

Phone interviews occur in almost every job interview process. This is not just the first introduction. It may be the follow up with someone from Human Resources, could be during offer negotiation, and could also be based on location.   But, it is common for a phone interview to occur early on in the process to provide some sort of initial introduction for confirmation of skills in a resume, or could even just be a brief conversation for interest, soft skills, and assessment of personality fit with an organization.

A phone interview is important. Anyone who just “shows up” on the phone is putting themselves at a disadvantage. You should prepare for a phone interview in the same manner that you prepare for a face to face meeting. I will continue to cover details for a face to face meeting interview in subsequent blogs.   At a minimum make sure you cover the basics:

• Know your resume
• Know the job description
• Be ready early ( be near the phone number provided at least 10 minutes early.)
• Dress appropriately (even though it is on the phone, still dress sharply. If you are too relaxed, that will come across in your tone.

In addition, specific to a phone interview also make sure:

• Have a quiet location blocked off. Do not do this in your car, in a crowd, while you shop, or in an environment where others could be walking through or making background noise.
• Smile when responding. Your voice reflects attitude and that is magnified in a phone interview. Smiling may sound silly, but it affects the tone and quality of your voice over the phone.
• Stand up, no one can see you, if you are sitting, your mind can wonder while on the phone. Standing will make sure you focus.
• Have a mirror in front of you. This sounds cheesy, ut it greatly assists with focus and making sure you can see an audience, even if it is your face, it gives you the opportunity to see if you are paying attention.
• Take notes, you can highlight the question asked. But don’t get caught up in your notes such that there are long pauses.
• Pauses are good as it can be interpreted as you are being thoughtful, but be careful, pauses that are too long on the phone can be interpreted as a distraction.

Don’t read too much into the way the interviewer responds to your questions. Some people have great poker faces, or may have bad phone voices.  You create the energy on a phone interview, not the person calling. You may knock their socks off and without seeing them, you’ll never know. Believe you are hitting it out of the park and you will keep a strong energy in the phone interview, even if it is one sided.  And don’t make a decision of interest in a job as the candidate based on a phone interview.  Unfortunately, this is often a one sided conversation.  Even a great company will not try and “recruit” you on a phone call.   Your objective is to pass with flying colors so you can proceed to a conversation where you will learn more about the company.

And ….don’t talk too much. Just because you can’t see how they respond, make sure you are crisp in your answers. You have their attention for 10 seconds, after 30 seconds, they may start to drift off, after 90 seconds you may lose them. So if it is to talk through your resume, be brief on your past work. Highlight what you have done that matches the job description, but don’t’ drone on.

Ask them questions, feel free to get clarification on what they are asking, and make sure you are not the only one talking. What are they looking for, what are expectations of the role, how many people are interviewing, what are possible next steps, and feedback for you are all fair questions.

Don’t worry if it was scheduled for 30 minutes and went 15 minutes. Content, not duration is important.

As soon as you finish the call, write down notes, get their contact information for a thank you email, and prepare yourself for a “face to face” meeting with notes on the phone interview.

Above all else, don’t get bored. If you get bored, you lost the audience on the other end.

Phone interviews are not necessary evils. You can immediately separate yourself from other candidates with a brief time of preparation.

Enjoy it. If you do, the person listening to you will as well.

I’m looking for a job….WHAT NEXT?

Author:  David M. Young

You have decided to look for your next position. It may be you are being forced to look due to layoff, termination, company shutting down/bankruptcy, or life has brought so much change that you need a career change as well. Or, you may be perfectly fine in your current role, but you have decided it is time to see what else is “out there”.  So what do you do next?

I firmly believe if you are really going to be effective as you explore for your next position, you must be intentional, process minded, and diligent. If you just wait for the position to come to you, you may or may not ever find that great role you are seeking.

So, let’s explore the basics of the job search process. In the coming months, this blog will expand on these individual components of the job search in much greater detail. Let’s first layout the “roadmap” that you need to follow at a summary level and then we can expand as we move forward:

Email – Yes, email is a standard, common, and easy to use form of communication in the job search. But all too often, it is not used correctly, over or underused, or confused for actual job search efforts. Email makes you feel like to talked with someone, but you never know what happens on the other end or the impression made with your email. So what are good email tips? Should you use email? Come back and we will explore this in more detail.

Networking – Whether in the job search or not, the most effective individuals in the professional world have some sort of network. It may be as simple as a technical expert who is recognized online in various forums as the answer guy. Or you may have a handful of past and present associates that you keep in touch with. Many folks go to work and go home. We will dive in more detail on making sure that your professional reach is much greater than just those you see regularly. The most effective people in their job search have at least 10 people that are not only aware they are open to another opportunity, but invariably, these people in your network are where you will find your next position.

Resume – In today’s day and time, you must have a resume. It may be as simple as a linked-in profile, or as standard as a hard copy resume. But regardless, your resume should not just be a history of where you have worked. A well written and targeted resume makes the difference between you and the next person. Check back in the coming weeks as we discuss resumes, tips and tricks, as well as provide some sample suggestions on how to have a power resume.

Actively and Passively searching – More to come on this, some say they are not really looking, but open to new opportunities, others are in an all intensive search. Regardless, we’ll give some insight on how to pursue the market regardless of where you are in the job search.

Applying/submitting – Should you submit your resume blindly on line? Should you trust your friend who “knows” someone? Good questions and there are definitely some keys to making sure your resume is seen by the decision makers.

Interviewing – It is both an art and a science. Some are not versed on either, while others feel that once they are in front of the hiring manager, they will get the job. Well, in today’s economy, we are seeing that this is no longer holding true. How can you make sure you get a job offer when you walk out of the interview? Future blogging Insight will give you the keys to getting that offer.

Offer Negotiation – You have the offer, but the job search is not over. How to negotiate, and make it a win/win for all involved. Too many times you try to negotiate and it only ends up as a lose / lose.

Acceptance and Pre-start – You’ve accepted the job, w is the time you impress and differentiate yourself to your new boss.

Resigning your old position – Are you ready for a counter offer? Are you ready to be escorted out? Are you ready to give two weeks but be asked to stay on to complete the project? Don’t burn bridges and be ready to resign professionally.

Starting – The job search process is not over. You have a start date, but the shining stars continue to want the job even after they have it. We will blog with some further thoughts on how to be the best employee the organization has. Become irreplaceable so that you will always be paid well, happy with your responsibilities, and never need to look for a job again.

After the start, what next? – is the job search over? We’ll address this,

The above parts of the job search process will be surgically explored. Come back to https://davidyoungdy.wordpress.com and we will provide more insight for you in the job search.