Tag: job interview preparation

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How to Prepare for Your First Job Interview

Many graduates every year make a beeline for the campus placements.

While not all of them end up getting a job, most lose out during the selection process. One of the common causes are lack of preparation for the job interviews. Fresh graduates are not aware of what goes into a successful job interview preparation process and end up either relying too much on academic credentials or their raw intellect.

Let’s break down the elements of the interview preparation step by step.

Learn about the company:

Before anything else you should try to know more about the company you are applying to. Knowing organizational philosophies, details of the work culture and other contributions to the society helps a lot in interviews. It’s likely you will be asked questions like ‘Why should we hire you?’ or ‘Why do you want to work with us?’ You should also understand what company is looking for and what skills and personality you have. If you are those who do not get so well with others but you have strong technical skills and have a strong academic profiles, a software engineering job might be a good fit. Also a product job is better suited for such a profile than IT services job.

Find a practice partner:

Interviews need to be practiced thoroughly and you need to be able to get comfortable with the interview setting. Find someone who is willing to help you and practice with him – be it a friend, teacher or your parents.

The best partners are your friends from your college or university who studies the same course. There are plenty of resources that can point you to questions that are likely to be asked and you should develop answers for them and let your practice partner evaluate your performance.

You should try to improve your answers and iron out the kinks every subsequent practice session. If possible you should record these mock interview sessions and evaluate your own performance yourself as well. If you are not able to find a partner despite your best efforts, practice your answers in front of the mirror. That way you can observe your body language and get comfortable with yourself.

Get appropriate attire:

While we all know we should not judge books by their cover, looks matter nonetheless in interviews. Choosing the right dress for the interview requires you to know about the organization. If the environment of the organization is casual then you can be a bit more casual but if there are strict dress codes in the workplace then you need to dress in formals. Many traditional organizations have color codes as well and you should try to fit in with the dress code as much as possible. Talking to current employees is best way to know about the culture of the company.

Creating the right impression:

You need to be prepared for not only the questions that are likely to be asked at the interview but also the right approach. Get your soft skills polished and speak confidently and clearly. Do remember to greet the interviewer and always maintain eye contact. You should practice these little things in your mock interviews as well.

Other than these courtesies you should also know how to present yourself to the interviewer. Self-confidence is the key to cracking any interview and you need to ensure that you present yourself as a skillful individual with the right mindset that matches the wavelength of the organizational policies.

Most importantly, you need to be yourself. Any experienced HR professional will be able to identify if you are giving a false representation of yourself or not. Ensure that you are honest in your approach and you will be able to sail through the interview.

Mention references:

We often think of references as means of getting an unfair advantage over others in an interview but it’s not so. If you know someone who works in the organization you are applying to, do not shy away from taking their names. If you have taken any degree course recently include your professors or teachers from these courses for references.

Those who have taken part-time courses, can include the reference of their batch-mates if they are from same organization. These courses generally attract experienced candidates and you will find many of them have worked in your target jobs before taking up the course. But do not fake it – it’s more than likely that the interviewer will contact your references and ask about your skills and capabilities.

Mind your body language:

Your body language is as important as your knowledge. You should not be too aggressive or too passive when it comes to communicating. You need to have the right balance in your approach. While being too relaxed during the interview and cozying up in the chair might make the interviewer feel you are being too casual in your approach, being too rigid and uptight will make the interviewer feel you are nervous. Your body language should be friendly and it will allow both you and the interviewer be comfortable while conversing.

Arriving for the interview:

Now that you know how to prepare for the interview, it’s time to take care of punctuality. You need to ensure that you arrive at least 15 minutes in advance even if you know the interviewer is someone who tends to be late. You should have sufficient time in hand when leaving your home and on the off chance that you end up getting stuck in major transportation problems you should inform the HR personnel or the organization ahead of the allotted time. If you feel that you will not be able to attend the interview you should let the respective people know and request a reschedule.

Exiting the interview:

Once the interview is complete you should shake hands with the interviewer and also thank everyone who was responsible for conducting the interview. Ideally you want to make a lasting impression without being too aggressive. After you leave the interview you should leave a thank you note via email as well as snail mail. Simply put in a few words of appreciation for the opportunity provided and wait for the interview results!

Author Bio –

Paresh – I have been writing online for last 4 years now and I have written extensively about career options for graduates and experienced professionals. Beyond that I enjoy reading about latest tech advances. I also enjoy building new products using the latest technologies.

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How to Answer The Interview Question Tell Me About a Suggestion You Have Made

More and more, organisations are looking for employees to share ideas, suggestions, to be innovative and creative, due to the fast-paced changes within job sectors created by globalization, new entries and technology.

When asked an interveiw question on ‘suggestions’ you will know that this organisation is forward-thinking.

This question also tells you the company is looking for team players and creative people.

Use a real-life example of when you put a suggestion forward, the situation, how the idea developed and the outcome.

Answering ‘suggestion’ Interveiw Questions.

Situation – initially start the interveiw question by describing the problem the company was facing.

This could be, as an example, a new product from a competitor that was going to reduce company income in your organisation. Or how global events were affecting sales or production.

Developed – next explain your process for finding a solution (the suggestion you took to an employer) Use detail here; talk about two different ideas and how you looked at the opportunities and threats for each option.

Talk about any research you undertook or challenges you faced. SHow that it wasn’t just a lightbulb moment and that you thought about the suggestion or idea.

Outcome – end with the positive outcome, how the idea was initially tested and then implemented, and how the idea helped the company financially.

 Example Answers

“In my previous company, the management team was asked to suggest ideas how we could break a new policy to the workforce, that long term would save jobs but the short term could potentially upset some of the workforces. Having had previous experience in change management I knew change management theories that could be easily administered. With the orgnasiation being a smaller family-run company with no experience of change management, I went away a created a project plan including a comms and risk plan. The whole project was detailed out with step by step guides on how to implement the changes. The manager was really impressed with the detail and research and implemented the project plan that resulted in a smooth change with no staff losses or grievances.”

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Preparing for Interviews

Job Interview Preperation Techniques 

Before the interview you need make several preparations to ensure you make the most positive impression during the interview.

Travel.

Plan your travel, ensure you know where your interview is being held and complete a mock run; there is nothing worse than arriving late for an interview. Ensure you have set your alarm clock.

Clothing.

Plan what you are going to wear, your interviews clothes should be smart and need ironing the night before, this will give you time in the morning to relax and re-read your CV.

Always ensure you shower and shave before each interview, most of us will sweat during the interview and there is nothing more off-putting to an employer then a smelly candidate.

Practice Interviews.

Practice the interview questions and answers, think about the job you are applying for and the skills and qualities needed for this job role, the interviewer will ask questions based on these.

Re-read your CV or application form and ensure you are familiar with the information you recorded.

Ask a friend to interview you; give them a list of questions to ask you as this will help you plan timings and the delivery of your answers.

Plan questions to ask the interviewer; ask about the company, the workforce, opportunities for promotion and training.

During the Interview.

Shake hands with the interviewer and introduce yourself.

Waited until you have been asked to be seated.

Answer all questions with a detailed sentence, never give just a “Yes” or “no” answers. If you use a “yes” or “no” answers, add the reason why; “yes, because….”

Ensure all your questions mention at least one skill and quality that is needed for the job role you are applying for. You can find this information on the job advert and job specification.

Be positive with all your answers, this is not the time to be shy.

Always be polite, friendly and smile.

Have questions prepared to ask the interviewer and ask the interviewer to repeat any questions you did not understand.

Keep eye contact with the interviewer.

At the end of the interview, shake hands and thank the interviewer for their time.

After the Interview.

Take a deep breath the interview is over.

Think back to the interview, review your interview questions and answers-which questions did you answer well? Which answer need improving?

Write down any questions you didn’t expect to be asked and think of positive answers, as you may be asked this question again at your next interview.

Continue to job search until you receive a job offer in writing.