I've an interview!!!

thepurplegoldfish

It's been so long since I last had an interview, so I wanted to know whether you had any advise.

Clearly I know the basics, turn up 10 minutes early, smart, washed, clean shaven, polished shoes (You can always 'tell' a person by their shoes), take a copy of your CV (and a pen) incase they've lost the copy you sent them (always be prepared).

What else can I do to make the most of the interview and to demonstrate my professionalism and my 'want' for the job? What questions should I ask them when they ask?

Thanks in advance for taking time to reply.

claire16c

The questions should be something you really want to know, don't ask a question for the sake of it. Yes you should definitely have a question, but don't ask something you could find out easily yourself or something inane. I mean, what do you want to know about the job? Ok youve got a job description but is there something you are thinking about? Remember an interview is also making sure they are the right company for you.

It really relates to the job role too, for example in my line of work it I asked things and later on when I was the interviewer, had questions such as asking about possible future progression or training with the company, is there possibility of working on different departments etc. That might not apply to your role though of course.

I actually saw someone on a tv show the other day say 'So when do I start?' !! I actually thought this was pretty funny myself but not sure Id advise it unless you knew they had a very good sense of humour!

When I've interviewed people the worst thing is when they hardly know anything about the company so make sure youve done your research on that. And if there is a list of skills/experience they have asked for, try to have an example of when you have done each of those things.

And I guess, just don't worry too much, they are human and really want to find someone right for the job, theyre not there to scare you I find people who come across enthusiastic and talk enough (but not too much!) come across well. And if you don't understand a question you can ask them to explain more, we used to have to ask a few weird questions because HR gave them to us, and I found some were a bit silly so I didnt mind if someone didn't 'get it' first time.

browneyedbazzi

As mentioned above, the right sort of question to ask will depend a lot on what the role is and what is important to you and the employer.

I work in a job that has a strong emphasis on partnership work so I tend to ask about the relationship between the existing team and relevant partners. (Often with a line in first about how good my relationships with partner agencies at my current job are and how I find that highly beneficial)

Out of interest I also often ask the interviewer to describe the existing team and relationships within the team. (this question can backfoot them a bit but I think it's a good one and shows that you intend to be a team player and value a team with positive working relationships etc).

Given the current economic climate etc (and because I work in the public sector) I also ask about how the vacancy came about (retirement, sacking, someone resigned, growth etc) and about how it is funded.


Good luck with the interview!!

Sambucus_Nigra

a - what are the qualities of the person you are looking for to do this job?
b - is there anything else you want to know about me?
c - this is just the job I'm looking for, I'm really interested, what are the next steps?

PlutoinCapricorn

You mention turning up 10 minutes early: do you know the area and have you allowed for travel delays? I know people who have made a trial run in advance, just to ensure they now where to go. I have also seen interviewees who got lost or delayed on the trains and arrived late.

It makes a very good impression when the interviewee mentions something in the news that might affect the company. Or perhaps there might be something on the website that is unclear or out of date.

thepurplegoldfish

Thanks for all the information, I'm going to do the 'dry run' to the interview location the day before, as I've never been there before and I don't know the local area. There's a few things in the above posts that are very good, once again thanks.

I'll keep you posted as to how it turns out. If anyone has any advise they'd like to share feel free the more the merrier.

hello2007

Relax you will be fine.

t0rt0ise

I always walk about on google street view to find the place and then when I get there, and I often do a dry run beforehand, the area is already familar.

anna_grant

Most interviewers will use competency based questions - asking you for examples of times when you've expereinced certains types of situations which are relevant to the job.

For instance, in the partnership example above, they may ask:

'Can you give me an example of a time when you've had to work in partnership with another part of the organisation you've worked it?'

And then they'll dig further into that subject.

Another example may be 'Problem Solving' - 'can you give me an example of a time when you've had to use problem solving techniquess? How did you analyise the problem?'

Do you have a job description for the new job? A person specification listing the competencies? If so, try to think of examples which match those. Google competency interview questions and you'll get some idea.

It's been mentioned above but it is so imprtant to research the company you're going to. Ensure you know exactly what they do, what the potential challenges are for them at the moment in their marketplace, how many staff they employee, their main competitors. When a ran interviews for a previous company for IT staff, I would be really put off by people who couldn't answer the question 'So, what do you know about xxxx? Why are you interested in joining xxx?'

Oh - on that last question. It seems really obvious but what the interviewer is interested in is what you can bring to their compnay. The number of people who have said to me 'I want to expand my knowledge and experience by joining your company.' At the moment, I don't care about that. I want to know how you can add to my company. Once you've joined and I believe you can add value to the company, then I'll look at developing you.

And good luck! The fact that you so want to make a good impression and are asking questions on here speaks volumes

Oh - one last thing. Be nice to the receptionist - it's amazing how many report back.