I believe the interview is the place and time to show your thorough preparation and some of the soft skills that are required in any job. For instance:
- by being on time, you show how punctual you are;
- by researching about the organization, you show how responsible you are;
- by checking the financial reports of the organization, you show how resourceful you are;
- by asking the right questions, you show your analytical skills.
Note, actions speak louder than words (in your resume). Here are four tips that I used myself during the preparation for various interviews and saw the impact of them as an interviewer:
Tip 1
Know the mission, vision, and value of the organization you are applying for. When I was a part of the interview panel, I met candidates who did not know anything about the organization. Believe me, it does not leave a good impression. It is a red flag simply because it shows to the interviewer that you are not serious/passionate about the role or the organization. I believe, it is fair that any organization wants people who are sincerely interested in the job and the organization.
Tip 2
Share a personal story and tie it with either one of the values or mission and vision. It is innate that everyone loves to listen to stories. So, use this technique to show how personally you are involved in the mission, vision, or values of the organization. Personally, I always check the values, mission, and vision of the company as I found that working for a company with which I have common goals or values always feels fulfilling.
Tip 3
Review the financial report/strategy plan of the organization. It is usually under the “About Us” section of the website. This is something I do whenever I prepare myself for an interview. First, I started doing it out of curiosity, and then I realized that interview panels look almost always impressed when I bring up the numbers from the report or ask questions related to it. So, why don’t you do it, too?
Tip 4
Prepare questions to ask the panel. The final part of the interview is the time to firm the impression you have made so far. Thoughtful questions are the right way. You can start with some general questions and ask the interviewer(s) to share what kind of work culture they have or ask about the team/department you will be joining by slowly moving to more work-related questions. You can ask what kind of challenges they are experiencing as a team, what exciting projects they are working on or planning to work on in the next 3–6 months. And if they did not share already what would next steps in the recruitment process entail, this is a good time to clarify. So you know when to expect an update.
These are some simple and very doable steps for you to impress your next interviewer(s). Please feel free to share if any of these steps helped you. Good luck with your next interview!
