TIPS FOR PREPARING FOR THAT ALL IMPORTANT INTERVIEW. 

Going to an interview can be daunting particularly if it has been a while. The recent pandemic has caused a shift in the interview process, often with first interviews taking place via Teams or Zoom followed by a more formal interview in person.  
While it may seen that the employer is holding all the cards, don’t forget this is an opportunity for you to find out a little more about them, their values and if they align with your own. 

Here are some tips for you to consider to make it go well on the day.  

Don’t just wing it: The market is full of potential applicants for the role who are eager and keen to have the role you are interviewing for. Do some homework before you turn up. Effort always pays off. 

Dress code: Plan what you are going to wear. Be business-like, professional and wear a suit, ironed shirt and clean shoes go a long way. Attend the interview as if you were meeting a customer and you won’t go wrong…. even if you turn up and it is dress down Friday and they are all in Hawaiian shirts, shorts, flip flops and crop tops (True story).

Plan how you will get to the interview: How are you going to get there? Walk, drive, train, tram, tube? Take the time to see how long it will take you to get there, plan your route and if taking the public transport check there aren’t any strikes. Just don’t arrive late for the interview. 

Job description: Read and understand the job description. Know your strengths and weaknesses and offer suggestions on how you will overcome the areas you are weak in. Try to work out what the important areas of this role are and expect to answer questions about these. 

Company and their website: Study the company website before you attend the interview. It is important that you know what they do, who they do business with and how. It is useful to be able to comment on the website if asked and also look at their LinkedIn page if there is one. 

Don’t be afraid to ask questions: Think about what you want to know. Interviews are best when they come across as conversations, so don’t be afraid to ask questions as they come up as they will be relevant to the topic being discussed.  There are plenty of questions you can ask and these will be covered in another blog. At the end of the interview, don’t say you don’t have any questions, better to say, thanks but you’ve answered all my questions. 
At the end of the interview, thank the interviewer for taking the time to interview and be interested in you and don’t be afraid to ask what the next steps are and when you will hear from them.

Remember to Smile: However nervous you may be at an interview, take a deep breath and remember to smile. It will go a long way. 

I hope this has provided some useful and practical tips and I look forward to hearing from you. Maythorne-Exportjobsonline is always keen to help individuals looking for roles in Export and International trade.

We place exporters 1st. It is what we are best at. 
Susan Wilson 
susan@exportjobsonline.co.uk
www.exportjobsonline.co.uk
Susan is a director of Maythorne-Exportjobsonline.