Interview guide

So you’ve been selected for an interview, the real work begins now! Don’t leave anything to chance, follow these tips to help you before the interview and on the day.

Performance at interview never comes down to luck, it always comes down to preparation. The more preparation you do the more confident you’ll feel, the more confident you feel the more relaxed you’ll be and the better you’ll perform.

An interesting quote from Jeff Withers, Master NLP Practitioner; “Success is something that is created in the mind before it shows externally in the various guises that other people recognise as success. An individual needs to have a clear image of what he/she wants in order to be able to manifest the outcomes”.

What to do before the interview

• Know the company. Inevitably one question you will be asked is “what do you know about us?”. There really is no excuse for not being able to answer this confidently, even a cursory look at the company website will provide enough information to provide a good answer. You don’t have to know the last year’s turnover but knowing what they do, the services they provide, products they manufacturer is a bare essential.
• Know the job description. You will have been provided a job description prior to the interview. It’s there to be read! Make sure you familiarise yourself with this and where your skills match the requirements but also areas where you feel you can develop. Be sure to have a few role specific questions to ask and this is a great place to start.

On the day of the interview

• This sounds silly, but make sure you have breakfast or lunch depending on what time your interview is. You’ll need energy for those grey cells to be working!
• Don’t be late! Know where the interview is being held and give yourself 15 minutes for any unforeseen delays. At the same time don’t be too early. Arriving at the office 45 minutes before your appointment puts of pressure on your interviewers who also have their day jobs to do.
• Dress to impress. If you turn up looking like you’ve not made an effort to be professional, don’t expect the interview to last long. If you’re unsure, always go more formal and less formal.
• Understand the question asked before starting with your answer. Don’t feel you have to answer immediately, if you need to take a few moments to get your answer in order do so.
• Make sure your answers are concise or in other words, don’t ramble.
• Be sure to have a few questions of your own. Maybe two about the company in general and two about the role specifically. This shows you have prepared in advance and shows your interest in the opportunity.
• Thank the interviewers for their time.

Remember interviews can be stressful but with these tips hopefully you can conquer your nerves!

Some interviews will involved Competency based questions, here is some further information on that style of interview.

If stress is an issue then take a look at this guide on reducing stress levels, from the team at Morgan Lovell.

We hope this interview guide helps you land that dream job!

Bowen Eldridge Recruitment is specialises in Accountancy Practice, Finance and Marketing recruitment.