Be Prepared For Your Interview

Let's assume that you've heard of a great opening that fits both your interests and abilities. You dig out the resume, put together a cover letter, and you're ready to fax it over to Human Resources. Right? Or is there something wrong with this picture?

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 know anything about who's going to be reading them and what their needs are. Tailor that letter and that resume to the specific interests of the company, and you have a huge advantage before you even set foot in the door.

What kinds of things are important to learn about the company? First, you will want to find out their "corporate personality", their style. Each firm is different, and these sometimes-subtle differences can have a strong influence on their hiring practices. You might also want to get a handle on their benefit package, salary options, and promotion policies.

It's helpful to get information on your prospective position, too. How long has it been open, why did the last person leave, how much turnover has there been? If it's a new position, you might want to know why it was created, what specific need is being met or problem being solved. Was it a controversial decision to create the opening? This can really influence hiring decisions.

Discover the hiring process

Another area of interest for your research project: 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.

Now, having mapped out your agenda, how do you go about getting all this helpful information? A good early step to take is to go to the corporate headquarters. Start by walking around the lobby; buy a magazine or a cup of coffee, read the directories and get a feeling for the atmosphere.

See how people are dressed. Do they look stressed out and rushed? Are people relaxed; are they kidding around and greeting each other? Can you see differences in dress and behavior that might correlate to different levels of management?

Be sure to take advantage of any public opportunities such as tours, open houses, workshops, etc. With this legitimate reason to be there, be sure and watch what goes on as carefully as you can. In addition to people watching, observe the office layout; how they divide up their space tells you a lot about a company.

Casually look at bulletin boards or notices. Visit Human Resources and pick up an application, or a brochure on their benefits package. If it's a really big company, you might need to make a few trips before you've soaked up as much as you can from this kind of expedition.

Use the Internet

Next comes information gathering through the Internet and library. 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?

Many companies have a public information department that can give you material dealing with these issues. If not, it may be on their web site, or in the library. Look through old newspapers or magazines; you can find announcements and articles that flesh out a sketchy summary of who they are and where they came from.

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