How to Nail an Interview
What is interviewing?
You’ve got an interview, congratulations! They are clearly interested in you. Not all people who apply for a job will be interviewed, so if you’ve made it to this stage, then you’re considered a top candidate.
Interviewing is a process of formal conversations where you’ll be asked questions, and your responses to those questions will help the hiring manager assess your fit for the role.
There are three phases to any interview: preparing for the interview, being interviewed, and then what to do after the interview.
Preparing for the interview
Research the company: It’s critical to do homework on the company that you will be interviewing with. When researching the company, look through their website. Try and locate an “About Us” type page and read through it. Look through their current products and services. Try and locate any recent news articles. Understanding who the company is before going into the interview will help a lot. In fact, a common question that many recruiters will ask is “What do you know about our company?” You’ll be able to ace this question by showing how much you know about them.
Research your interviewers: You’ll also want to try and get a sense for the people who you will be meeting with. Typically, you’ll know beforehand the name of the people you’ll be meeting with. But if you aren’t provided this information, feel free to ask politely. Once you have a sense for who will be in the interview, do a quick search on LinkedIn and try and get a sense for who they are. What is their role? Are you able to get a sense for their work style or personality? Knowing who will be interviewing you can help tremendously when preparing for an interview. In some cases, you may have something in common with an interviewer like maybe you attended the same school. Those common connections can help during the interview if you’re able to weave it into the conversation.
Review the job description: Pull out the job description and take the time to read it thoroughly and really reflect on what the employer is looking for. Reading through it, focus on requirements related to education, skills, and experiences. Read through the job duties. Make a list of all this points and show how you’ll be perfect candidate for each point. For example, if they’re asking for someone who has experience with management, note the number of years that you’ve worked in management and any major accomplishments you’ve had related to management. Then back up those accomplishments with numbers. For example, “I’ve worked in management for 5 years, managing a team of 15 analysts and during those 5 years, I successfully reduced turnover from 10% to 3% per year while maintaining or coming under budget each year.” With this approach, when you go into the interview, you’ll be prepared to more easily articulate why you’re exactly who they are looking for.
Job description continued, review your Brag Book: when reviewing the job description, think through times when you really knocked it out the park. Think through the problem that you were presented with and how your actions saved the day. Review your Brag Book for these major success moments.
Follow up with your referral: if anyone had a hand in helping you land this job (for example, someone in your network), share the good news with them that you have an interview and thank them! Ask them if they have any insights or advice. Because they may ask if you know who you’re meeting with, I suggest reaching out to them shortly after the interview is scheduled, but not before you’ve done some homework. This way your referral may be able to share some helpful insight and can possibly coach you on the most important things to bring up, or pain points the organization is experiencing that you can weave into your interview. Always thank them for their help, and even consider scheduling a time to meet up with them after the interview for coffee to share how you thought the interview went.
Practice interview questions: Before the interview, you’ll want to spend some time thinking through how you would answer common interview questions like “Tell me about yourself”, “Where do you see yourself in the next 5 years”, or “What is your greatest strengths and weaknesses”. If you’ve gone through the Personal Branding article, these should be easy questions to answer as they are really asking about your brand. Take your elevator pitch and tailor it to the role and organization, making sure to emphasize your excitement for the role and how it will help you continue to grow as a professional.
During the interview, you’ll be asked behavior related questions like “tell me about a time you had limited time to do something difficult, what did you do”? Or “Can you recall a situation when you had a disagreement at work, what did that look like?” What they are looking for is how you operate in a variety of conditions, specifically how you work with others and how you operate under pressure. The best way to answer these questions is using the STAR method, which stands for:
Situation: Provide context of what was going on
Task: Describe the task or challenge that you faced and what was your role
Action: Describe the action that you took, be specific, and ideally tie the skills you used to the job description to further show how you’re the right candidate
Result: finally, describe the result of your action
You’ll want to have a few examples in mind of when you had an active role in a challenging situation and how you made the situation better. Remember, the more specific, and the more direct of an impact your actions had on improving the situation, the better. Bonus points if you can show how you solved the situation by using a skill they are looking for from the job description.
Besides these common questions, you’ll want to prepare for any job or industry specific questions. One tip is to do a Google search for questions that relate to the job, like “management interview questions”. If you’re interviewing with a large and well known company, it may be worth your while to research typical questions they may ask. The more you can anticipate questions that you’ll be asked and your best answers, the more comfortable you’ll be during the interview and the best you’ll do.
Prepare questions to ask the interviewers: Usually toward the end of the interview, you’ll be asked if you have any questions. It’s a good idea to have some questions prepared for your interviewers. If you’re struggling to come up with questions to ask, a few easy ones that work are: “What would a typical day look like?” or “What’s your favorite thing working for this company?” The more specific you can be, the better. With enough practice you’ll be able to take mental notes during the conversation that would be great to ask questions about. For example, if the interviewer mentions a big project coming up, you could ask them how this role could support that project.
Practice with a friend or family member: Once you’ve thought through how you’ll respond to the common questions, and how you’ll tackle the questions that you can’t anticipate, it’s now time to do a mock interview with someone you trust. You want someone who will give you honest feedback and be able to provide helpful critiques. You’ll want their feedback on what they thought of your body language and your answers? If the interview will be done virtually, it’s a good idea to get comfortable being on video and ideally making it a habit to look into the camera so your interviewers will connect more with you.
Print 5 copies of your resume to share and 1 copy for yourself: It’s always a great idea to go into an interview with copies of your resume ready to share with your interviewers. At the beginning of the interview simply ask if anyone in the interview would like a copy. You may end up not handing them out, but at least you’ll be show that you’re prepared. It’s a good idea to have a copy of your resume for yourself that way you have it as a reference. If you think you’ll be nervous and struggle to recall your past experiences, consider highlighting key points on your resume that you’ll want to highlight.
Prepare your list of references: You may be asked for a list of references during the interview, so it’s best to have them ready and available. You’ll want to include their name, role and organization, when and how you worked with them, and their contact information. Print out a few copies to provide the interviewers with if you are asked for them. There are a few key points to keep in mind with references: (1) ensure that they are aware you are interviewing and may be contacted for a reference, (2) confirm that each reference is OK being put down as a reference, and (3) do your best to ensure the references you are providing will actually give you a good reference. There have been situations where past colleagues who applicants may have thought they had a good relationship with are secretly holding on to something. And there have been instances where some past colleagues have simply been jealous and provided a bad reference to sabotage an applicant’s success. There’s nothing worse than being the perfect person for a job only to having it derailed by a bad reference.
Make sure you have a notepad and pen ready to go: it’s completely acceptable to take notes during the interview. This can help reinforce your interest in the role. It can also help you jot down great follow up questions that come about during your interview. It’s also a great way to write down specific things that you can include in your after interview thank you notes.
Plan your outfit: make sure to have your outfit planned out for the interview in advance. When scheduling the interview, it’s a great idea to ask about dress code. It’s advisable to dress at least as nice, or possibly one notch nicer, than the interviewers. But you should never dress more casually than the interviewers.
Plan out how to get to your interview: if the interview is in person, plug the address to Google Maps and plan out the best route to get there. Also consider where to park. For example, if your interview will be held in a downtown corporate office, they are notorious for having tricky parking situations that require extra time to park your car and to walk to the reception area. Knowing how you’ll get to the interview will help avoid unnecessary stress getting to the interview and get you started on the right foot. If it’s a virtual interview, then make sure you have downloaded, installed, and can access the software they’ll be using (Zoom, Teams, etc.). Also, ensure that your environment is setup for success by ensuring it’s clean and looks good on camera, that you have good lighting on your face, and that your Wi-Fi signal is strong.
The interview
The big day has arrived, and now it’s time for you to shine! You’re going to do great because you’ve prepared. You’ve been rehearsing answers to questions. Your clothes are laid out and ready. You’ve got copies of your resume. And you know who you’ll be meeting with and have done research on the company.
Look your best: make sure you’re practicing good hygiene and you’ve got on the right outfit for the interview. Today is your time to shine and bring your best self. Take the time to do it right so you can ensure you’re making the best impression possible with your interviewers.
Arrive Early: plan to arrive 15 minutes early. The interviewers should never have to wait for you.
Put your phone away: I love my phone just as much as the next person, but when waiting for the interview to start (and of course during the interview) make sure your phone is on silent and not visible.
Make a strong first impression: Smile, shake hands, acknowledge everyone you meet, introduce yourself, remember the names of the people who you meet. From the time you leave your home and return back to home, maintain a positive attitude. Sometimes it helps to get psyched up so that they can feel your excitement for the opportunity. This extends to everyone you interact with, not just the interviewers. Some hiring managers will ask for impressions from people who did not sit in the interview including anyone who you met at the front desk.
Make a strong introduction: Usually at the beginning of an interview you’ll be asked to introduce yourself. This is not the time to go through your resume top to bottom. Rather, this is the perfect time to share your elevator pitch where you share who you are, what you’ve accomplished, why you’re the perfect person for the role (using the points from the job description), and to express your interest in the role and organization. Ideally this should take no more than 30 seconds. Your goal is to keep them hooked and wanting to know more about you and your background, which they’ll learn about through their follow up questions.
Keep it lighthearted and conversational: the best interviewers are able to strike the perfect balance between being professional and friendly. They are comfortable during the interview and set everyone at ease. They are able to turn the interview into a positive and pleasant experience. Keeping it lighthearted yet being respectful and professional is a strong combination. It’s probably best for most of us to avoid makes jokes during the interview as they can unintentionally be offensive. The best candidates I’ve had a chance to interview came to the interview prepared, we’re comfortable being there, didn’t speak nervously and quickly, they asked good questions throughout the interview, and were generally conversational. It was like having a pleasant conversation in the context of an interview. I actually enjoyed interviewing them and was able to get my questions answered. Admittedly though, this takes a fair amount of practice. So, if you don’t nail this the first time, that’s OK.
Provide thoughtful but succinct answers: the best approach when answering your interviewers’ questions is to provide them with a thoughtful response but keep it succinct. Avoid rambling. Often times, less is more with your answers. If they want more information, they will ask follow up questions. If you’re able to specifics and numbers in your response, do it. Compare these two responses:
“When I first started, we were losing lots of people. I ended up making changes that reduced turnover on my teams and they are also happier today.”
VS.
“When I started, we were hemorrhaging people with a 50% turnover. Within 1 years, I implemented a new training program and was able to advocate for retention bonuses. Today, our turnover is at just 5% and job satisfaction has increased 30%”.
I know which one is more meaningful and impressive to me!
Your interviewers are not just listening for what you say, but also how you say it. The way you respond will speak to your communication style and strengths. This is an opportunity to show just how great of a communicator you are. A great response shows them that (1) you listened to and understood what they asked, and (2) you were able to form a great response. We’re in an increasingly more connected, complex, and technologically advanced world, and it’s more important than ever to be great at communication.
If your interviewer asks you whether you have a skill, answer honestly. If you have the skill in question, highlight that and share how you’ve used it recently. If you don’t have the skill, you’ll want to be extra thoughtful in your response. You can share that it’s something you’ve been working on or would love to work on. Being honest is the best policy, but so is doing your best to spin all of your responses positively in your favor as much as possible.
Take notes when appropriate: don’t go into the interview like you’re going to take meeting minutes writing everything down. Rather, keep an ear out for high points during the conversation: things you found interesting or would like to get more information on. This could include the names of your interviewers or things they’ve shared about themselves, their role, or the organization. Or it could be questions that come up during the conversation. Taking notes shows your engaged but you’re also doing yourself a favor as it’s difficult to remember everything.
Ask your questions: it’s very common toward the end the interview to have the interviewers ask if you have any questions. Make sure that you have some thoughtful questions ready. Some of the best questions were ones that you came up with during the interview. That said, if the meeting is running out of time (or over time), this is not the time to ask a battery of questions. I’ve been there where we’re over by 15 minutes, and the person I’m interviewing begins asking a series of questions. Not being respectful of your interviewers’ time is not a good look. If you find yourself in this situation, asking what the next steps are is usually appropriate.
Asking About Next Steps: if next steps have not been discussed yet, make sure and ask briefly what the next steps are, like when you can expect to hear back from them.
Wrapping Up: this is your final time to shine, like closing arguments in a court case. Depending on how much time you have left, you may need to adjust how brief you are. But this is the time to reinforce how you’re a strong candidate and how your background matches well with the job description. If you can weave in any challenges that they are facing into your wrap up and how you look forward to helping solve them, that’s powerful. Finally, thank each person for their time, reiterate your excitement for the opportunity, and share how you’re excited to hear from them.
After the interview
Phew, you’ve made it through the interview! Take a deep breath and pat yourself on the back. Interviews are a lot of work to prepare for and to be present for. Regardless of how the interview went, there are a few things that you’ll want to make sure and do:
Sending thank you notes: Sending thank you notes is super easy and quick to do. But it’s often not done. I’ve interviewed dozens of people over the past several years and can count on one hand the number of times that I’ve received a thank you note after an interview. It doesn’t guarantee a job, but it’s certainly appreciated. And for those who have sent thank you notes, it’s created a connection that has helped the candidate in the future. For example, it seems that those who have sent me thank you notes are, for one reason or another, the same ones who I’ve had some future interaction with including me recommending them to other hiring managers when roles open up on other teams. You should try and send your thank you note before the end of the day, unless the interview is at toward the end of the workday, sending your thank you note the following morning is acceptable.
Ask for feedback: If you end up hearing that you did not receive the job, thank them for their time and then ask for feedback on what to work on in the future to improve your odds of landing a similar job. I’ve had candidates ask for feedback after I’ve let them know we’ve passed on them, and they’ve been very receptive and appreciative of the feedback. This leaves a positive impression on the interviewers and can only help you grow as a professional.
If you had a referral, follow up with them: let them know how it went, and thank them again for their time, and consider meeting up with them for coffee to maintain the relationship.
What to do next?
Start by preparing for the interview by doing research on the company, those who will be attending the interviews, and reviewing the job description. Connect with your referral by thanking them and asking for any advice they may have. Practice great responses to interview questions. Think through what the interview will look like and how to be successful. With preparation and practice comes success. You got this!
