Part One: Be Prepared For Your Interview Launch a research campaign If you are an aware job seeker you will first begin a research campaign designed to significantly improve your chances. Don't send out a cover letter or resume before you have researched the company. Tailor that letter and that resume to the specific interests of the company and ensure that it is addressed to the right department. What kinds of things are important to learn about the company? First, you will want to find out their "corporate personality", their style. Each organisation is different, and these sometimes-subtle differences can have a strong influence on their hiring practices. It's helpful to get information on your prospective position, too. How long has it been open, why did the last person leave? If it's a new position, you might want to know why it was created. Discover the hiring process What is their hiring process like? You might want to know who will interview you first, how many interviews you are likely to have, and who makes the final decision. Any information you can get about these key players will be incredibly helpful. Use the Internet Next comes information gathering through the Internet. Check out their website, follow the links and get a feel for how they use this resource; are they comfortable with the web, do they keep their site up, how sophisticated are they in their approach? What about the company's history? How long have they been around? Have they been through a growth spurt of rapid expansion that may have had a big impact on their functioning? Who is their primary market? What are their goals and objectives for the future? Do they have a Board of Directors? If so, who's on it? How big are they now, and how big do they want to be?
Part One: Be Prepared For Your Interview
Launch a research campaign
If you are an aware job seeker you will first begin a research campaign designed to significantly improve your chances. Don't send out a cover letter or resume before you have researched the company. Tailor that letter and that resume to the specific interests of the company and ensure that it is addressed to the right department.
What kinds of things are important to learn about the company? First, you will want to find out their "corporate personality", their style. Each organisation is different, and these sometimes-subtle differences can have a strong influence on their hiring practices.
It's helpful to get information on your prospective position, too. How long has it been open, why did the last person leave? If it's a new position, you might want to know why it was created.
Discover the hiring process
What is their hiring process like? You might want to know who will interview you first, how many interviews you are likely to have, and who makes the final decision. Any information you can get about these key players will be incredibly helpful.
Use the Internet
Next comes information gathering through the Internet. Check out their website, follow the links and get a feel for how they use this resource; are they comfortable with the web, do they keep their site up, how sophisticated are they in their approach?
What about the company's history? How long have they been around? Have they been through a growth spurt of rapid expansion that may have had a big impact on their functioning? Who is their primary market? What are their goals and objectives for the future? Do they have a Board of Directors? If so, who's on it? How big are they now, and how big do they want to be?