Interview tips from an experienced recruiter Thursday, 13 July 2006 Quick Reference Guide
Introduction So we have helped to secure you an interview. Now it’s up to you to convince the employer that you are the best person for the job. It’s time to sell your skills, your experience and most importantly sell yourself! Although your technical abilities are most important, interviewers don’t only consider your qualifications and on job experience. Employers also use interviews to assess:
Preparation Even if you are a successful contracting professional, and have attended countless interviews it pays not to be too complacent. Always spend some time preparing for the interview – the extent of the preparation is up to you, but make sure that you are ready. Some helpful preparation tips: Where to go? Do you know exactly where you need to go? Address? Floor? Contact name? If you do not have all the information make sure that you ask. Find your way. Do you know how to get to the interview? If you are not sure take the trip the day before if you can. Make sure you know how you are going to get there and how long it will take you. There is nothing worse than panicking the morning of the interview because you’re not sure how to find the office or you thought there was a bus at 9.00am and in fact it left at 8.50am – do your research and make sure that you can get there in good time. If driving, make sure that you know where you can park. This will also help to calm nerves as you will have 1 less thing to worry about on the day of the interview. Who are they? Find out some background information about the organization. Make sure that you know something about their products, services, systems/applications, technical environment. What you don’t know – ask in the interview. Questions please? ”No, I think we’ve covered everything” is not something that an interviewer want to hear when they ask if you have any questions. Make sure that you have some questions prepared, and make sure that they are relevant – it always helps if you are actually interested in the answer. Try not to ask the same old questions. Think about things that you really want to know about your potential employer Refresh Make sure that you re-read the job description, your application and your resume before the interview as you will be questioned on these. Practice. If you are not confident or do not have much experience of interview try to practice with a friend or family member. Make sure that you treat this as a practice and not a rehearsal – don’t try to memorize answers, instead use this exercise to get you thinking. Wearing out. Make sure that you know what you are going to wear. If possible a day or 2 before the interview make sure that everything is clean, pressed and shoes polished. At that stage you still have time to do something about it. Interview Day Depending on the time of the interview will depend on you exact routine, but here are some basic point to remember: Have breakfast. As they say – breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Feeling hungry during an interview is not a good feeling. Having a healthy breakfast will help your concentration and will eliminate any embarrassing grumbling noises from an empty stomach. Dress to impress. No matter what the job, always dress to impress. Wear you best suit for the occasion – make sure that your clothes are clean and pressed. Neutral, clean colors are best. It is said that colored shirts on men show confidence, but be mindful that heat and stress cause perspiration and if invited to remove your jacket, a colored shirt may disclose your anxiety more than a white shirt. A white shirt is by far the safest option. There are mixed opinions about jackets – on or off. I personally would keep the jacket on, unless specifically invited to remove and hang it up. Correct use of jacket buttons on sitting and rising is a nice touch that is noticed. Be kind on the nose. Try not to eat right before the interview. If you find that you do not have a choice make sure you do not eat or drink anything right before the interview that may linger on your breath – i.e. onion, coffee etc. Also do not smoke before going into the interview. Before going into the interview have a mint to freshen the breath. Chewing gum is an alternative, but make sure that you find a bin outside the building and discard the gum before you go in. Interviews are a No Gum Zone! Be early. It’s better to be early than late. Aim to get to the interview at least 10 minutes early. If transport dictates that you either get there 30 minutes early or 2 minutes early, always take the 30 minute option. Obviously you do not want to arrive 30 minutes early, so take a walk around, clear you head, relax, read through your resume again, re-read the job description. Arrival. 10-15 minutes before the interview go directly to the floor/office specified and notify the receptionist of your arrival. Most offices will have a waiting area. The table will more than likely have some publications on it. Usually there will be a number of publications relating to the organization – i.e. a departmental magazine, a technical publication or annual report. These will normally be accompanied by a few general interest magazines such as ‘Home and Garden’, ‘TV Weekly’, ‘Women’s Day’ etc….. Always pick up one of the publications that relate to the employer. You may learn something important in the minutes before the interview, or you may just get a better feel for the organization. An interviewer will notice which magazine you were reading, and it will go in your favor. Do not be afraid to refer to the publication during the interview if the opportunity arises. For example you could start a question in the interview with “I was just reading the departmental news letter in reception and it mentioned <xyz>, I wonder if you could give me some more information about this?” This instantly shows the interviewer that you have a genuine interest. A firm hand. When greeted by the interviewer, make sure that you give a firm handshake. Be mindful that there will be at least 2 people in most interviews, sometimes 3. As you are introduced, shake hands with each person in turn and try to repeat their name as you do so. In the interview.
This is just a small sample of possible questions: Specific to Testing Roles
Good luck! |
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