Acing the Interview
By Louise Kursmark
You’re earning interviews for appropriate jobs – congratulations! That means your search strategies are working and you’re sending the right messages to the right people. Now, how can you make the most of these opportunities? How can you be certain you’ll interview well, deliver the right messages, and ask the right questions to evaluate the opportunity? Here are a few ideas.
Research the company – examine its website for mission and values statements, names of top executives, location of its various facilities, scope of its products or services. Read its latest annual report. Look on the Internet for recent press coverage. Do all you can to find out about threats, opportunities, and strategies.
Research the industry – what’s going on that will help you understand the larger environment in which the company operates? What is the competition doing?
Develop some initial thoughts about problems the company might be facing and how you and your expertise represent solutions.
What do you have to offer? Think about what you know, what you can do, and how you can help a company. Make a list of the three, four, or five most important assets you bring to the table – and be sure you phrase these in terms of value/benefit to the company, not simply knowledge or experience. For example, “five years of experience in business development within IT services industry” is not particularly meaningful to an employer. Instead, phrase it this way: “five-year track record of developing new IT services business with Fortune 100 clients in every major market in the Midwest.” Now that’s something a company will be interested in acquiring.
You might come up with six, ten, or even more areas of value or expertise. (Hint: Most of these should be present in your resume.) In preparing for your interview, pare your list to those that are most relevant to the company and the position at hand. Focus your interview preparation on these critical areas.
Prepare CAR stories that communicate your value.
CAR stands for “Challenge-Action-Result.” You might have seen it expressed as a SAR, STAR, SPAR, or SCAR story – the concept is the same. CAR stories – containing a clearly articulated challenge (or situation), then action (what you did to address it), and result (the outcome, phrased as a benefit to the company, its customers, employees, etc.) – are a very valuable interviewing technique. They allow you to present concrete, believable, very specific examples of ways you have used the skills and competencies necessary for success in the role you’re interviewing for.
Some companies, in fact, use a structured interviewing processed called Behavior-Based Interviewing whose core component is exactly this kind of question – “Tell me about a time when…” “Give me a specific example of …” “Describe a situation when…” If you take the time to prepare your CAR stories, you will shine in this type of interview. Not only that, you can use your stories as concrete examples of your skills in ANY type of interview situation, and you’ll have a huge advantage over candidates who simply communicate how they “would” do something or “usually” do something.
First impressions count, so be sure to make yours as positive as possible. Select your interview clothing with care – in general, it’s best to wear a suit, even if casual dress is the norm at the company. Pay attention to small details – shine your shoes, have your hair trimmed, be sure your nails are immaculate. Ask a respected friend for critical feedback about your appearance and presentation. You could be unaware of a personal habit or appearance flaw that might be negatively perceived by the interviewer.
Arrive on time and think of yourself as “under scrutiny” the minute you drive into the company parking lot or step into the building.
In some ways, you’re like an actor – you must be fully “in character” every moment you’re on stage. Don’t vent to the receptionist about your parking hassles. Don’t smoke a cigarette in the rest room or outside the building. Don’t wolf down a sandwich as you enter the building or check your teeth in the mirrored elevator door (unless you’re alone!). Give the entire experience every bit of your focused attention and careful handling.
Of course, one of your final questions during the interview should relate to the next steps in the process – when can you expect to hear back? Not only should you send a thank-you note immediately, you should follow up politely but assertively if you do not hear back as promised. Keep yourself on the radar screen through appropriate, professional communications.
Get help if you’re not landing second interviews and job offers.
If, repeatedly, you aren’t invited for the next step, it’s time to get some help. A brief session with a career/interview coach can be all you need to jump over a hurdle or two and convert those interviews to offers.
