5 Strategic Tips to prepare for your next Job Interview

The main thing that an interviewer needs to know is that you can meet their needs and provide a good return on investment. They also need to know whether you’ll be a good fit for their culture and have shared values. Ultimately, you must provide a compelling enough case for them to feel confident hiring you. To do this, you need to market yourself!

If they’ve called you in for a face to face, they already feel you’d be a good fit. They want you to shine at the interview so they can end their search with you. This post will help you do that, drawing on the strategies and preparation that have gone into each of my 17 recent interviews;

1.      Research the company.

I can spend up to three hours on research on the following:

·        Competitor analysis

·        Financials including Companies House on-line (if in the UK)

·        Values, ethos, history and brand

·        Products, services, target market and impact such as awards won

·        New product launches and Social Media

·        Recent organisational change

·        Their management team and length of service.

2.      The Job Description

·        Read it through carefully several times

·        Think about the over-arching themes and whether they meet your key objectives (outlined in my last post) in terms of experience and future growth

·        For each job description requirement, match and expand on your experience using the STAR method. This helps provide concrete examples or proof. STAR is the specific situation, task, action and result of the example you are describing. The use of ‘I’ is very important here (unless part of your response relates to what you and the team achieved together) because the interviewer wants to know how you specifically meet their organisational and role requirements.

Example STAR response:

Situation (S): Advertising revenue was falling off for my college newspaper, The Review, and large numbers of long-term advertisers were not renewing contracts.

Task (T): My goal was to generate new ideas, materials and incentives that would result in at least a 15% increase in advertisers from the year before.

Action (A): I designed a new promotional packet to go with the rate sheet and compared the benefits of The Review circulation with other ad media in the area. I also set-up a special training session for the account executives with a School of Business Administration professor who discussed competitive selling strategies.

Result (R): We signed contracts with 15 former advertisers for daily ads and five for special supplements. We increased our new advertisers by 20 percent over the same period last year.

·        Think carefully about which aspects excite you (and you’ll grow from), where you’re not so strong (and any skills-gaps), the overarching themes, and begin to formulate your pitch.

3.      Your Pitch:

·        This is your professional bio and executive summary – learn it by heart. It should briefly state any key experiences relevant to the position’s requirements. For example, if two of the themes are Sales and L&D, you’d say; “I have 20 years’ experience in Learning and Development, and 30 years in Sales; from the sharp end selling insurance, to Sales Director level and everything in between, including Sales Training”. Next, drill down into these overarching themes with at least 3 STAR examples for each, relating them back to the job description.

Ask yourself “Does my pitch reflect my expertise?” “Am I positioning myself as senior enough?” “Is it to the point with no unnecessary waffle?” “Am I clearly demonstrating my impact?”

4.      Your Agenda. This underpins and guides your interview responses and is your strategy to position yourself as different to everyone else. It’s designed to make the maximum impact whilst keeping you and the conversation on track and targeting the interviewers’ questions. You should have at least 10 STAR examples memorised, and aim to weave each into the interview, regardless of whether broad or specific questions are asked. My Agenda has my 10 STAR examples and a piece on my character suitability for the job. I include some of the things I’m passionate about, for example; AI/Machine Learning, personal and professional development and recent research on Leadership. I then relate each to the job description, align them with the Organisation’s values and my personal/character suitability for the role with a simple, benefit-driven statement.

5.      Are we a match? I assess this using Sunnie Giles Leadership Competencies to determine whether the organisation might be a good fit for me.

Her 5 leadership competencies are:

·        Demonstrates strong ethics and provides a sense of safety

·        Empowers others to self-organise

·        Fosters a sense of connection and belonging

·        Shows openness to new ideas and encourages organisational learning

·        Nurtures growth

Have around 10+ questions ready to ask. Some of mine come from research on the company, others from the job description. Many are broader, designed to help me get under the skin of the company so that I can visualise what it might really be like to work there.

Lastly, be yourself; be upfront, honest and transparent. Know your worth, prepare, then go out there and calmly demonstrate it.

I’d like to thank City CV for their valuable webinar on Interview Preparation. Their ‘Agenda’ and STAR suggestion were both used to great effect. Good luck with your next interview!

Alison Roberts is an ex-entrepreneur with 35 years’ experience as a Global L&D Leadership Consultant, Sales Director/Trainer, Account Manager, Executive and Business Mentor and Public Speaker. She is passionate about Women in Leadership and specialises in developing and empowering future leaders and high-potentials. She is at her best when solving complex problems and challenging the status quo. Connect with Alison on LinkedIn, Facebook and the Web  

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