Talent Drive founder Martin Smith reflects on his own personal, and his candidates and clients interview experiences to pull together a list of 5 classic interview tips.
Active Listening:
The most powerful tool to interact with people, and the best way to ensure a positive two-way interaction with the interviewer is active listening. When interviewing for a job you really want, it’s always tempting to talk at the interviewer about all the wonderful things you have achieved BUT remember the question they asked you.
A clever technique is to answer the question in the first line of your response and then elaborate on the point afterwards, so the interviewer feels you have addressed the question straight away. For example:
Question: “what is your biggest challenge in your current role?”
Answer: “The biggest challenge in my role is that a lot of my stakeholders work in other offices so they aren’t as accessible as I would like. I find this challenging because I like to interact with my stakeholder group face to face, and believe that there are huge benefits to building rapport with them, and understanding their needs. It enables me to act as a business partner to them and be better within my Procurement role.”
See how the question was answered straight away, but then was elaborated on in order to further expand on your knowledge and experience? Every hiring manager wants to hear that you like to interact with stakeholders and be a business partner. This might be textbook, but it works!
Keep your answers succinct:
You will be amazed how many interview rejections are based upon candidates not being succinct with their answers. We are in a digital age where some scary studies have shown that due to the ever increasing speed we are used to getting information via smartphones and the internet, the average attention span of a human being is less than that of a goldfish. Yes, a goldfish.
Therefore, it is more important than ever to keep the interviewer engaged. Make your answers relevant and to the point. Watch out for the question: “talk me through your CV…” Answer this with the role, key responsibility and move on. Remember they will have already read your CV (hopefully!) so there’s no need to go into too much detail here – you’re only adding value to what they’ve already read. They can always pull out areas of your CV to question later in the interview.
Do your research:
I vividly remember an interview I went to years ago where I didn’t research the company I was interviewing for, and I felt so uncomfortable when the interviewer asked me “What do you know about us?”. Needless to say, I didn’t get the job.
You would be amazed to know how many people interpret research as a quick “google search”. Have a look at any recent news articles on the company – what are they doing for CSR? Have they won any awards lately? How are their shares performing? Is there anyone you know that works there that you can call up understand more about the culture and environment? Research your interviewer on LinkedIn to understand their background, too. This doesn’t take long, but that research will give you the confidence in the interview and show the hiring manager you have a genuine interest in the role and more often than not it opens up genuine conversation that can put you at ease and give your hiring manager a taste of you as a person not just an interviewee.
Be passionate:
Passion for the job you do can never be underestimated in an interview. Hiring managers want to know you have a genuine interest in your role, to see that you take pride in the impact it has on the business – so do ensure this comes across. You can show this by talking through demonstrable achievements you are proud of, why you are proud of them and the impact they have had on you, your team, and the wider business.
Be positive:
As soon as you set foot in the building, put all stresses and worries to one side and go in with a positive mindset. Remember, the interview really begins as soon as you walk up to reception. It has been known for hiring managers to go and ask reception what their initial interaction with the candidate was like – so make sure your positive mindset shows through, and remember that the interview has already begun.
Be very careful not to be overly negative about your current business. There is nothing wrong with saying “there is a lack of opportunity for me to progress” or “morale is low due to change of leadership and style”. However, comments like “My boss is a bully” or “I don’t get on with my team” often reflect worse on you than they do on your former boss or team. At the end of the day, nobody wants to hire someone who they perceive as being negative!
I hope this helps, and good luck in your up and coming interviews!
Any questions? Contact info@talentdrive.co.uk
