Interview Preparation is KEY.

With many companies running lean these days, everyone’s time is compressed. We’ve had any number of candidates tell us they were surprised to get only a 30 minute interview with a decision maker instead of an hour. And unfortunately, they hadn’t even gotten to “the good stuff” yet.

Now more than ever, it’s vitally important that you go well prepared to your interview. You will instantly show respect for the interviewer’s time by not asking basic questions about the company that you should already know the answers to through your research. And you won’t waste time talking about work experience from 5-10 years ago when the most important and relevant things happened in the last 2 years.

I often ask candidates to spend 5 minutes walking me through everything I see on the resume leading up to their current position. It’s so obvious when someone isn’t prepared to do this. I’ve had folks say to me, “Well, my work actually began 20 years ago at…” First of all, that’s not what I asked. And second, this story takes 20 minutes, not 5. If I only had 30 minutes to meet, then this person certainly won’t have sold me on why they’re right for the job today.

A well prepared candidate will hit 1 highlight at each position that directly relates to the position they’re interviewing for, quickly explain why they moved on from each role, and be done in 5 minutes. Practice this at home until you’ve got it down. When someone does this correctly, it shows that they took the time to think about their background and relevant experience, instead of overwhelming me with information that isn’t pertinent to my current need.

Also, prepare your KEY STRENGTHS & ACCOMPLISHMENTS and continually weave them into the interview. Focus on the things that have made you stand out, preferably stories from the last 2-3 years. These have been tough times for most companies and people, but don’t use that as an excuse to only talk about the BIG successes and wins from 5 years ago. Talk about how you’ve creatively won new business, or cut costs to do more with less money, or got really hands on with things you haven’t had to do in a while. The possibilities are endless, and you much stay positive!

Check out our Blog on PAR Stories for more help in preparation.