do your research before all job interviews
A final note about the importance of researching the employer and their markets and issues before interviews.
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First, research can enable the least qualified, least favoured, least likely applicant to succeed and beat off the most likely interview opposition candidates. Doing good relevant research is the singlemost powerful thing you can do to improve your chances of getting the job. It's that important. No research, no views. No views, no value. No value, no job. It's simple: Do your research and apply your experience, capabilities and thoughts in preparation for the interview and you will have good views that will be valued. If you offer good value you'll probably have the job.
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% Y& c6 F2 M8 \8 J l# g5 xSecond, the above applies to any organisation or employer with whom you have an interview; any size, any sector, commercial, not-for-profit, even the corner shop. If you want the job - do the bloody research. This is not to say that people who don't do their research don't get jobs, but the fact is that any person who's done good research and thinking will virtually always get the job over someone who has not bothered to.7 U* d( @ K; B: B5 L. O
7 Y! J5 D4 s' _$ M" l/ Q- \If you are an external applicant bear in mind that you are likely to be up against at least one good, favoured, known internal applicant, who already knows and understands lot about the organisation. Your aim is to present yourself as a more attractive option than the internal applicant. You will do this by researching the employer organisation so well that you know it better and more incisively and more strategically than the best of the internal applicants. Your objectivity and neutrality, and your external experience, will enable you to see many things that even the best prepared internal job applicants cannot see. Use this opportunity to make a great impression on the interviewer or panel.
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If you are being interviewed for an internal job promotion, bear in mind that the best external applicants will be doing all they can to demonstrate that they have a keen knowledge and appreciation of the employer organisation and its markets, etc. If you are complacent and think that you know it all already then you will be bitten on the bum. Someone from the outside will impress the interviewer more than you because they will seem keener, and will be seen by the interviewer to have a fresh pair of eyes too, which can be very appealing to recruiting organisations. When preparing for an internal job promotion interview or groups selection you have a great opportunity to ward off any threats from external well-researched applicants by doing lots of your own research and thinking. This will put you ahead of external applicants because you will also have the internal political and systemic insights that are so difficult for external applicants to discover.
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; p" [1 P" V) M5 dInternal or external job interviews - whatever - do your research.
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Doing plenty of good quality creative research on the employer organisation, their history, market sector, products and services, people issues, organisational priorities, strategic challenges, competitors, threats opportunities, challenges, etc., helps enormously to convince an interviewer that your are the applicant who wants and deserves the job more than anyone else., z' E+ R* u: g8 r6 s K
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Imagine you are a strategic advisor - remove yourself from the detail and grind of the job role basics. Go deeper - think about what's going on in the department or organisation at a higher strategic level, or whatever aspect of performance that your capabilities can best understand and influence - think about and be prepared to talk about how you can bring best possible benefit and value to the situation.
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( {0 b( C( y" u0 C# x DInterviewees who possess good knowledge and understanding are able to ask really good questions about the role and the organisation. They can discuss how to develop and improve performance, how to exploit opportunities, diffuse threats, and to help the department and the organisation meet their aims.
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You will be asked questions, obviously, many of which will invite you to demonstrate all the fantastic research and thinking that you've done, and the ideas that you have for helping the organisation and its people to perform well and improve.
