Interview tips and preparation

Job interviews are daunting and it’s natural to feel nervous when there’s one fast-approaching. The interview stage of your application is arguably the most important and is your opportunity to demonstrate that you have the skills and experience necessary, giving the interviewer the confidence to offer you the role. 

Here are our top tips to help you prepare for an interview.

If you have any specific questions regarding your next interview, please feel free to contact one of our expert team today. 

Check the interview confirmation

When you receive confirmation of your job interview, it’s important to make sure you clearly understand when your interview will be, the anticipated duration, who you will be meeting, where the interview will take place and what they will be assessing you against.

Refer back to the advert, job specification and person specification for the role to refamiliarise yourself with the requirements of the position.

If anything is not clear in your interview confirmation, speak to your Recruitment Consultant or the internal talent team for clarification.

Research the organisation

Make sure you have done your research about the organisation ahead of your interview. By taking time to look into this and referencing the information you came across during your interview, you are demonstrating you are interested in working for their company.

Conduct research across their website to understand the services or product they offer, the size of their business, their organisational structure, their awards and accreditations, including any awards such as Great Place to Work® or Investors in People, and their values and culture. Make sure you look at any careers pages on their website to understand how they promote their working life to potential employees.

To really get a feel for the company, use all the resources available to you at this stage, look at additional sites such as X, LinkedIn, Instagram, Glassdoor and even Facebook. These can all be valuable sources to gain insights into the company you are interviewing for. They can also give you a better feel for the company culture and values.

Take a look at LinkedIn and search for the interviewers to gain an understanding of their career and background, including length of time with this employer.

Research their main competitors, how they are viewed on the market, and the structure of the business (especially if they are part of a larger group).

Prepare for the interview questions

Review the person specification and make sure you have clear examples of where and how you meet the essential requirements.

Make sure you focus on what you have achieved and delivered. If you worked as part of a team make sure you are clear about what your remit was and how you added value to the project or piece of work, whilst also demonstrating your ability to work as a team.

Prepare for competency questions by recalling scenarios at work which demonstrate your competencies and skills such as teamwork, communication skills, problem solving, leadership, planning and time management. You should find the required competencies listed in the person specification.

It can help to memorise key projects, scenarios, or challenges that you have faced at work to use as examples in scenario based questions. Think about the skills each situation demonstrated, and then pick the most relevant example based on the skills the interviewer is looking for you to demonstrate.

Get everything ready before the interview

Once you know where you are going, it is important to ensure you know how to get there and how long it will take. Look up public transport timetables and make the journey a day or so before if this is possible. Alternatively, if you’ll be driving, do a test run in the car and make sure you are fully aware of how long it will take to get to the destination of your interview, as well as finding out where the nearest car park is (and if you need change for the metre).

When you have sorted out getting to your interview, it is important to think about what you are going to wear. If there is a dress code it is important to stick to this. We would also advise getting your clothes ironed and ready the night before in order to save any stress on the day of your interview.

Alternatively, if your interview is remote, we have tips on video interviews or Teams interviews: how to prepare for an online interview.

Make the most of the time you have throughout the interview

When you are at your interview it is important to make the most of the time you have available. You will more than likely be up against a few other candidates, so you want to perform at your best if you want to secure the job.

Make sure you answer the questions that you are asked, being as concise as possible whilst demonstrating you have the required skills, experience or competencies that are being requested. Most interviews will use a scoring matrix, and all candidates should be given the opportunity to answer the same questions directly related to the job description and person specification.

It can help to consider using the STAR technique to answer competency and example based questions:

• Situation
• Task
• Action
• Result

Your interview should be a two-way conversation, so it is okay to ask questions about the role and organisation to demonstrate your interest in the opportunity.

At the end of the interview, you will be asked whether you have any questions, and it is important to think of a few beforehand. Asking questions will make you seem much more prepared and can let the interviewer know that you are very keen on the vacancy. Some good examples are:

• If you have any advice for the successful applicant what would it be?
• What do you like best about working for this company?
• What is the typical career path for someone in this role?

Take a look at our guide what are the best questions to ask during an interview?

What next?

For more interview tips, visit our Candidate page. If you feel you are interview ready and are looking for a new job opportunity, check out our latest live roles here. Alternatively, you can contact one of our expert Consultants today and they will be more than happy to help you with your job search.