A successful interview process is the key to getting hired and it is vital you are prepared and organized for each interview. Preparation is the first essential step towards a successful interview.

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PRE-INTERVIEW STRATEGY

Research the Company

With most companies providing extensive information on the Internet, make sure you visit the Company's website.

You should know about the company's products or services, markets, sales volumn and growth. Check out its plant locations, recent stock market activity, and its standing in its particular field.

Once you've found out as much as possible about the company and the job, you're ready for the next step in your pre- interview strategy.

Review Your Resume

Prepare a brief resume (two pages at most) showing your work experience chronologically and highlighting at least one major accomplishment you have held in the past 10 years.

If at all possible, choose examples that show experience that could be of special value to your prospective employer. Proofread your resume carefully for misspellings and grammar, and be sure it is formatted correctly and easy to follow.

Identify Your Strengths

When preparing for an interview identify your four or five most valuable strengths, along with an example of how you've demonstrated each. Think in terms of your responsibilities and your accomplishments and how you achieved them. Explain how this would be a benefit to the company you are interviewing for. In the interview, make sure to share these four to five strengths.

Questions to Ask the Interviewer

Prepare the questions you will be asking during the interview. Remember that this is a "two-way street" The employer will try to determine through questioning if you have the qualifications necessary to do the job. You must determine through questioning whether the company will give you the opportunity for the growth and development you seek. The questions posed by the candidate should be thoughtful and probing.

Sample Questions to Ask During the Interview

1. What are some of the more difficult problems facing someone in this position? How do you think these could best be handled?

2. In what ways has the company been most successful? What are the best-selling products and services? What is the company's growth plan?

3. Where could a person go who is successful in this position and within what time frame? What would be a typical career path?

4. What is the culture of the Company?

5. What kind of training program is there?

6. How is one judged? How is success measured and determined?

7. Why do you like working here?

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TYPES of INTERVIEWS

There are two types of interview styles used today, the 'Traditional Job Interview' and the 'Behavioral Job Interview'. (Please click on either type below for a more detailed description as well as some Sample Questions.)

The Traditional Job Interview - uses broad-based questions such as, "why do you want to work for this company," and "tell me about your strengths and weaknesses."

The Behavioral Job Interview - is based on the theory that past performance is the best indicator of future behavior, and uses questions that probe specific past behaviors, such as: "tell me about a time where you confronted an unexpected problem," "tell me about an experience when you failed to achieve a goal," and "give me a specific example of a time when you managed several projects at once."

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DO's & DON'Ts in an INTERVIEW

Here is a list of Do's and Don'ts that will be very helpful to follow and should be reviewed before going on an initial interview.

List of Do's and Don'ts