interview advice

Interviews.

Conversations with purpose.

Those who naturally interview well are likely to know it. For one thing, they often get offered the job. For another, they probably enjoy the process. This section therefore aims to do the near impossible: to persuade people who think they loathe interviews to look positively on them.

First, refer back to the definition above: an interview is a conversation with purpose. The purpose of this conversation is twofold: for an employer to judge the quality of a candidate, and just as importantly for a candidate to take a closer look at the people who might become his or her employers and colleagues. In other words, it’s not only you who’s under the microscope here. Remember that at least half of this process is necessarily under your control, and use it to find out the things you want to know.

Secondly, remember what the conversation is about. Since you’ve gone to the trouble of applying, it’s fair to assume it’s about a job you’re genuinely interested in doing. So this is your opportunity to explain why you’re interested, and what makes you think you would do it well. It isn’t the Day of Reckoning in terms of your entire persona, employability and value to society.

With these comforting thoughts in place, what further steps can you take to do yourself justice on the day? As with CVs, the sheer quantity of advice available is staggering; but even more than is the case with CVs it tends to be obvious, trivial and/or wrong.

The truth is that the factors to consider are as varied and unpredictable as the people involved: people conduct interviews, people like you, with all the likes, dislikes, quirks and personal schemata that being human entails.

And that is why we simply ensure you are fully briefed and thoroughly prepared before we send you in.