Employer Spotlight: What employers say about interviews
part 1
by Briana Beebe, Vice President, Director of Recruiting & Retention, Farm Credit East, ACA
Students should always be prepared for interviews, even if it is an informal conversation at a career fair or a formal interview. Some of the best words of advice I have ever gotten is “you are always interviewing, whether it is to be considered for a new opportunity, invited to join a workgroup, or to get the next position in your career path.” Here are a few things to keep in mind to prepare for an upcoming interview.
Learn about the company. Review the company’s website, press releases, recent news and events and annual reports. If applicable, talk with another employee you may know or do other research to show your interest in the company. You can get a good idea of the company’s culture and core values from a lot of their marketing and external publications. Read their mission, vision and values statements if available and make sure they line up with what is important to you.
Do some research on the position you are interviewing for. You can usually contact the recruiter or someone in the human resources department and ask them to send you a job description or other information they may have about the position. You will still have the opportunity to ask questions during the interview, but you want to make the best use of your interview time and not ask questions about information you could have read yourself or obtained from the job description. That will also show your initiative to contact the company and be prepared for the upcoming interview.
Know what the company can deliver. Read up on some basic details about the company’s products and/or services. Understand who their customers are and any other pertinent information about what the company does and who they serve.
How will the company benefit from your employment? Think about how some of your experiences, classes, internships, clubs, leadership positions, etc. may be beneficial to that company or position. Try to highlight those key points or experiences when answering your questions during the interview.
Be sincere and honest. Don’t memorize certain responses and try to use them even if they don’t really fit the question you were asked. It is better to have a thoughtful answer than a pre-rehearsed or canned response that doesn’t reflect the actual question.
Know your skills. Think about the key competencies of the job. Many of these may be highlighted in the posting/job description. Think about how you can portray those skills, experiences or classes to show aptitude in those areas. Students usually have to meet the minimum requirements (GPA, classes, etc.) to get selected for the interview, so when meeting with a potential employer, showcase your intellectual curiosity, independent thought, professionalism, varied life experiences and leadership potential/opportunities. Make it apparent how your work ethic and core values match with the company. These are the attributes that are harder to identify from the resume.
Always be formal and maintain professionalism during the interview. You can take cues from the interviewers, as to the tone of the interview. While it is good to show your personality, it is always safe to be more formal than the interviewer.
Don’t be afraid to take a moment to collect your thoughts. Don’t just talk to fill time or silence. Make sure you are listening to the question and your response hits the key points they were asking. This will show your attention to detail and listening skills, as well as the competencies/experiences you highlight in your answer.
Be thoughtful about the questions you ask. This will show the interviewer what is important to you. It is an opportunity to ask a strategic or big picture question. You can worry about some of the other details if you are extended an offer (unless it is something that you think the employer should know about ahead of time).
These tips can help you prepare for an upcoming interview, but just remember that you are always interviewing. Whether it is for an internship, full time position or any other future position you may want to have with that company, you should always look professional, be prepared, ask good questions, highlight your experiences as it would pertain to the position and be knowledgeable about the company.