For those of us following this series of The Apprentice, we are looking forward to what is surely one of the most entertaining episodes of every series – it’s Interview Week!
The final five candidates will be summoned to Lord Sugar’s newly refurbished offices in the City, where they are joined by some of Lord Sugar’s closest associates, who are ready to put the candidates through their paces in the toughest of interviews.
As each candidate goes head to head with a business heavyweight and attempts to prove their worth in the fight of their lives, we wonder how our candidates would cope if put under the same amount of pressure as the final five!
The key to coming across well at interview is preparation, preparation and preparation!
A lot of work has already been done – you’ve impressed the recruitment agency (that’s us so congratulations), you’ve impressed your potential employer with your experience and CV and, most importantly, you’ve secured an interview.
Now the really hard work starts. Don’t just sit back on your laurels and wait for the allotted day of interview and hope it all goes well – NOW is the time to do the all important prep work.
Follow these simple tips to help get organised and to make your interviews as stress free as possible.
Be prepared!
- Make sure that you do your homework – familiarise yourself with both the company and your interviewer if you know who they are going to be. Appearing knowledgeable about the company where you would like to work proves that you have both taken the time to do some research and also have some genuine enthusiasm.
- Make sure that you have a copy of your CV and any other documents that you have previously supplied to the recruitment agency or company directly so that you can refer to them if needed.
- Make sure that you know where you’re going to no last minute ‘how do I get there?’ panics on the day.
On the day…
- Make sure you give yourself plenty of time to get there – being late is a big fat NO!
- Turn your phone off before you go in.
- Make a good first impression – walk in with confidence, give a firm handshake and smile 🙂
- Have a short pitch prepared so when asked about yourself and why you are interested in the job, you are ready with a confident answer.
- Focus on skills and attributes that are relevant to the role and the company and have some real examples ready of how you may have used those skills in the past.
- Avoid negative statements even if asked about weaknesses.
- Try not to get flustered – remain calm and don’t fidget in your seat if you get nervous – but don’t be TOO calm – sit up straight and remain attentive at all times.
- And make sure that you listen to the interviewer and answer any questions as succinctly as possible – don’t go off on a tangent.
…and afterwards
- always follow up after the interview – send the interviewer a thank you email or a hand written note within a couple of days of the interview. Thank them for their time and reiterate any relevant points that were discussed.
- And whatever you do, do NOT talk about the interview on social media – remember that everyone (including the interviewer) can see that.
And good luck!
Image credit: Radio Times
