the interview - be prepared!
It is rare to find anyone who isn’t affected by Interview nerves. Blood rushing, heart pounding, stomach churning, has happened to us all at some point or another and the statistics don’t make it any easier.
"You never get a second chance to make a first impression!"
"30 seconds can actually make or break an interview!”
Fear not, inretail are here to offer their support and advice.
Planning is absolutely crucial. You absolutely must plan, we cannot emphasise this enough.
Preparation not only increases your chances of being successful; it will also build your confidence.
Who is the Employer - inretail provide you as part of the job brief with some information on the company; however you must do additional ground work, check out their website, and visit their stores, head office. This will enable you to ask informed questions at your interview and get a sense of their employer brand, what to wear to the interview, (smart is safe) and it will also show you are genuinely interested in the company.
Don’t be late - inretail will provide you location details as part of the job brief prior to the Interview, even so please plan your route in advance and allow plenty of time for the unexpected, Nothing is worse than arriving flustered. If, the absolute unthinkable happens and being late suddenly becomes unavoidable, call your inretail consultant so that they can inform your interviewer and explain the circumstances.
Be Confident - It’s your CV; make sure you can clearly and confidently detail your career history. Be prepared to describe your roles, responsibilities and key achievements.
Practice makes perfect, and companies do tend to be interested in the same things, take some time ahead of your interview to think about the types of questions you may be asked. Practice in front of the mirror, or friends. Note your voice, keep it upbeat and lively not flat, and watch your body language, look interested, leaning forward slightly when questions are being asked, don’t YAWN!!
inretail are happy to provide these examples of typical questions and some guidance on the appropriate answer –
1. Describe your career history to date or tell me about yourself?
If asked this question, reciting your CV confidently will help, focusing on your most recent role and be prepared to talk openly about yourself to enable the interviewer to get to know you, making sure you answer in a structured manner, relax but don’t forget the interviewer is on a timeline, keep it relevant.
2. Why did you leave or why are you leaving?
Be honest, don’t slate your last employer, and if you were made redundant don’t feel ashamed, it happens! Be positive about career advancement, it is completely natural to want to advance, in today’s job culture it is a part of life to progress, no more is it one job for life, we have generation X to thank for that.
3. Why should we hire you?
The STAR mnemonic is a very clever way of dealing with these sorts of questions. Look to your CV to help you illustrate the anecdotes, showing your practical approach to problem solving.
Here is an example:-
| The Situation | – | You inherited a minus 10% on last year result. |
| The Task | – | You needed to show a positive result. |
| The Action | – | How you overcame the situation – you conducted staff training. |
| The Result | – | What was the benefit to the company – client conversion rate improved, bringing the result back to positive. |
- 4. Why do you want to join our company?
Talk about their employer brand, opportunity for development.
5. Who would you say are our competitors?
Research the answer, if it’s not apparent, don’t give up, become friendly with the employee scheduling the interview, it is important you know where the potential employers benchmark themselves.
6. How would you describe your management style?
This question is relevant to more senior roles and can be a loaded question, tough or weak, wanting to be neither. Use the star mnemonic to answer, focusing on employee empowerment or difficult trading times.
7. What are your weaknesses and strengths?
Another loaded question, Interviewers love to ask. Be honest, nobody is perfect!
Here is an example of a weakness - putting a positive spin….....
"I’m told that sometimes I am a bit too slow... but that's only because I want to do the best job I can. I guess you could say I'm a bit anal when it comes to perfection."
Here is an example of a strength – trying not to appear too cocky……….
“I really like to be challenged in my job, and I just want to learn as much as I can in my position. At the end of the day I need to be able to look back on my day and feel good about the job that I've done. I guess you could call it sense of self worth. That's why I always put my all into everything I do."
Closing the sale - Be prepared to ask as many intelligent questions as you can, remembering that an interview, by definition, is a two way conversation. Seize some control and ask questions of your own, usually this opportunity will arise at the end of your interview. Asking informed questions at this point shows you have a genuine interest in the position for which you are being interviewed.
Examples of the questions you might ask could include:-
1. What are the opportunities for training and development?
2. What are the organisation’s future plans?
3. What makes this company a great place to work?
4. What are the biggest challenges facing the company?
5. Could you tell me about the next stage of the recruitment process?
Tell the interviewer you have enjoyed meeting them and make sure you thank them for their time (sending a thank you note/email is a nice touch too) leave with a smile, you did great!!!
Now in case it didn’t go exactly to plan and whilst it’s all fresh in your mind, get yourself off to a coffee shop and note down what went well and what could have gone better.
Doing this will help you learn from what went wrong, and equally build on what went well!
You are a STAR! Good Luck from the inretail Team!
For more in-depth interview advice please email inretail by clicking here.