Sharp Recruitment - Recruitment to Recruitment

Preparation for an interview is evidence of your professionalism, interest in and commitment to a company, but above all is indicative of the way that you are likely to work.

Research
Research involves finding out as much as you possibly can about the company, the people you will be meeting and the role in question.

Your consultant at Sharp will provide you with detailed information on each organisation which will include information on the company to give you a general understanding of their business, who their competitors are and where they are positioned in the market place.

It is imperative that you also make sure that you visit the company website before attending your interview.

There are additional things that you can do, which may really set you apart from other candidates, such as going through any recent articles in which the company is featured or talking to contacts you have that may have or still work for the company.

Planning
As well as fully researching the company you will need to plan how you can use this research during the interview. You should try and use the information that you have gathered to arrive at a clear picture of where you think the company is going and where you might fit into these plans, as well as try to make a list of questions, which will demonstrate your research and allow you to gain further important information which will be imperative to your own decision making process.

You should also anticipate, practice and plan answers to questions that they are likely to ask you during the interview.

First Interview
First interviews are crucial. Statistics show that most interviewers make a decision within the first few minutes of meeting someone as to whether or not they like that person and consequently would want to work with them. Here are examples of some of the most important things:

Be on time
Be polite to the receptionists and support staff - they can be very influential
Dress smartly and professionally
If you are a smoker try to refrain from smoking just before you go into your interview
Smile and give a confident, firm handshake
Thank the interviewer for taking the time to meet with you - polite but not obsequious
Have an easy topic of non-work conversation ready as an ice-breaker
If the interviewer does not take the initiative immediately, open the conversation
Listen as well as talk (remember 2 ears, 1 mouth!!!!)
Be friendly and appear enthused

Once the interview begins, pay attention to body language. Here are a few useful pointers

Be relaxed - sit neither too formally (i.e. stiffly) nor too informally (i.e. slouching)
Position yourself so your body is facing the other person, don't angle yourself away
Make regular eye contact; though don't hold it for too long.
Don't cross your arms, as is considered defensive
Smile - not as much as a game show host, but try and come across as friendly
Lean slightly forward to show interest
Use hand motions to emphasise your points, but do so sparingly
Above all model your own body language after that of the interviewer - research indicates that interviewers favour candidates whose body language is similar to their own.

Common Questions Asked at Interview

What makes you interested in working for this organisation?
Give me an example of failure and what you learnt from it.
What is your best achievement?
Where do you see yourself in five years time?
Give me an example of where you have shown leadership skills.
Could you give me one more reference?
What is your best quality and why?
Would you accept a lower position?
What goals did you set yourself in your last role? Did you achieve them? If not, why not?
Give me an example of team working.
How would your best friend describe you?
What has been your best success and why?
What problems do you encounter in your current role?
What can you do to help our company achieve our corporate goals?
What have you done to increase your current company’s income?
What have you done to decrease costs in your current company?
What have you done to increase workflow in your present organisation?
What is your best reference and why? What is your worst reference and why?
What have you done to stand out amongst your peers?
Describe how you would go about three of your main duties?
Which career accomplishments are you most proud of and how can it benefit our company?
What type of decisions do you make?
How do you feel about routine work?
How do you feel about project work?
How would you describe your personal values?

Sales Scenario Questions

You may be also asked to give examples of how you would handle certain sales scenarios. Below are some examples for you to think about.

If a candidate you have been working on is offered a position with one of you clients and at the same time is offered a position through another agency – how would you persuade them to take your client role?
If a client wants a discount on rates or fees what would you do?
Do a cold call/new business development call role play
Pick a job that you have at the moment with a client and sell me a candidate that you feel is suitable for this position.
How would you build a desk from scratch?
How would you go about acquiring candidates?

Some examples of questions you can ask your interviewer

What training is provided?
How often are the appraisals?
What are the promotional aspects?
How would you describe the culture/social side of the company?
What is the vision of the company?
What would you expect of me in the first 3-6 months?
What is the background of some of the other employees in the organisation?
How do they generate their candidates – e.g. advertising budgets?
What is the average consultant and team billing?
What is the top biller in the company achieving?

This should give you some guidance as to how to prepare for your interviews, however remember that the examples given are just a starting point and you should remember to tailor your questions towards the specific company that you are interviewing with.