Five top tips for interview success
Interviews can be stressful, there’s a lot on the line as you prepare to showcase your skills and personality to a potential employer, so it's important to adopt strategies that will set you apart from the competition and make the experience a little more enjoyable. Across my ten years in recruitment I’d say there’s five simple things you can do to navigate your next interview with confidence.
Tip One: Research the company
Before rocking up to the interview, make sure you have done some background research on the company you are interviewing for:
Engage with people within your professional network to connect with both current and former employees.
Stay informed by exploring recent articles they have published and dedicate time to do thorough Google research on the company.
Go beyond the information on their official website, and dive into their company LinkedIn, or other social media channels
By researching you are putting your best foot forward by gaining a comprehensive understanding of the company - you’d be surprised how many people skip this step.
Tip Two: Own the job description
As well as having a complete understanding of your role set out in the job description, focus on the challenges you'll have to overcome in the role. Come up with examples of challenges you’ve overcome and what the outcome was. For example, if you know the role will require you to work across multiple teams, speak of your past experience successfully working across teams and how you approached it. That way, you’re not only aware of the role responsibilities but also the challenges you could face.
Tip Three: Know your interviewers
Look further than just the job description, take a look at who will be interviewing you - these are your potential future team-mates. Do a deep-dive into their bio’s on their career page, or browse their LinkedIn profile. You may find something you can relate with, such as a shared hobby or work-related interest.
Tip Four: Understand your unique selling point
Put your best foot forward. A great way to do this is to understand your ‘selling point’ - why should they hire you over someone else? To work out your selling point
Look at their values and vision as a company, what core qualities and mindsets do people have at the company? If they align with yours, emphasise those qualities with examples.
Read through the responsibilities of the role and find key areas that you see repeated across their website, job description and socials that will make you a good fit
Ask people who you have worked with what your super skill is - when did they see you having the biggest impact in your work? What type of work energised you? Not only will this help you hone in on your unique selling point but it will also give you examples to share
Tip Five: Go with confidence
How you present yourself in an interview is an important aspect in making a good impression.
Wear clothes that you feel comfortable in, so you can feel confident and distraction-free
Arrive at your interview with time to spare, or if it is an online interview make sure you have your laptop ready with plenty of charge
Adopt a positive mindset - entering the interview with a positive mindset and approach will help you come across as an enthusiastic and valuable candidate for the role
