5 tips to nail your interview!

You built an impressive CV, followed our tips for matching your skill set to the job description, and hit apply. A few days later, you get an email telling you that you have been selected for an interview with the hiring manager. Now, do you prepare for it or just wing it?

We often forget that there are multiple other candidates vying for the position. You need your own strategy to overcome the odds. That’s where the STAR model comes in.

What does STAR stand for?

Situation: The challenge you are faced with.

Task: Understand your role and responsibility in that situation.

Action: The steps you are taking or had to take.

Result: How did your actions impact the outcome?

By applying the STAR model in your responses to questions posed during the interview, you will more effectively communicate to the hiring manager how you will fulfil the requirements as outlined in the job description. Here are 5 essential steps that will help you nail your next interview:

Research the Company

It is important to educate yourself about the company’s values, initiatives, mission, and various projects/sectors. Scroll through their social media feed to gain a grasp of their culture, recent accomplishments, and initiatives. Use this thorough research to inform the responses you make during the interview. It shows a level of preparedness other candidates may not have.?

Keep your story relevant.

Not one interview goes by without the most open-ended yet impactful question, one that can easily set you off on a tangent. The question being, “Tell us about yourself?”.

Approach this by identifying key narratives that define you as a person and not just a candidate. But keep your story short, to the point, and relevant. The trick here is to use your research to highlight how your personal strengths can add value to company and team. Remember, they are not interested in the timeline of life events, but what makes you, you!

Know your skills well. Know what to learn even better.

As you prep for the interview, you will likely identify some skills that you have not yet mastered. However, when questioned about these specific skills, be open to discuss them as a learning and development (L&D) opportunity. Highlight, what you have already done to start building these skills and communicate your openness to any L&D opportunities the company offers.

How well do you handle different situations?

Situational questions have become a vital part of the interview process. Candidates can often be guilty of quoting experiences from their CVs when faced with situational questions.

Instead, use the STAR model to pick a set of unique experiences from previous jobs and use them to highlight what challenge you encountered, how you had to take responsibility, what actions you took and why, and finally, what was the outcome of those actions. Sprinkle the example(s) with relevant numbers, and scale wherever possible. Your example(s) must clearly show the significant impact you will make in the role you are interviewing for.

Keep smart, thoughtful questions at hand.

At the end of the interview, you will be asked if you have any questions. Use this as an opportunity to make another meaningful impression. Your question(s) should showcase a willingness to learn and your interest in the role, the company, and the team. Employ the STAR model to devise your questions. Here are some ideas:

• What challenges will this role entail and require me to solve?
• What learning opportunities does the company offer?
• Is there a road-map laid out for the successful candidate as to how they can progress their career in the company?
• What metrics would I need to meet to prove successful in the role?

The STAR model as highlighted in the above steps can significantly improve your preparations for every part of the interview. With the right preparation, you can stand out among your fellow candidates and nail your next interview. Good luck!

Ethos Engineering is an active employer. Explore our careers section here: Open roles!

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