Interviews - the basics¶
Nothing should be an unnecessary surprise when you attend an interview.
The advice on this page is not the proverbial rocket science. It’s not particularly interesting and you’re not going to see any surprising insights here, but it covers some basic things you must get right, by doing nothing more difficult than being prepared.
The preparedness you demonstrate in an interview speaks for itself. It will be noted. You’re not going to get the job just because you were well-prepared, but plenty of candidates who would otherwise have been considered a good fit have lost out because they were not.
Being ready on time¶
It’s shocking how often candidates turn up late to online interviews, where all that is needed of them is to join the video call. How is that possible? There are many things that are out of your hands in an interview, but being there on time is not one of them.
One reason is that in reality, the instant access is not that instant at all. We forget how much time is lost clicking and fussing and waiting for things to load, or to work.
“Sorry, my Google account logged me out and I had to log in again.”
“Sorry, I don’t know what went wrong - my microphone was working properly with MS Teams last week/yesterday/earlier today!”
“Sorry, I had to install the new Zoom update before it would allow me to join the meeting.”
“Sorry, I don’t know why it won’t let me share my screen.”
“Sorry, I discovered that <platform> isn’t compatible with my browser!”
The word “sorry” is a terrible way to introduce yourself to an interviewer. You might be able to recover from a fumbling start, but don’t put yourself through that. Meanwhile, “Candidate was late/was unprepared/hadn’t tested their set-up/was flustered” is a black mark on anyone’s scorecard.
You need to be ready and waiting before the interview is due to start. That means being there a few minutes - not a few seconds - in advance. “Ready” means that your camera and microphone are working too. If you are not sitting brightly in front of your camera five minutes before the appointed time, you should consider yourself late.
Things an online interview reveals¶
Even though you’re not meeting in person, an online interview can actually give away more about you.
You’ll probably do it at home - in which case the interviewer is going to see right into your life, and will get an idea of what things will be like when you’re working that would never otherwise be revealed. Even the basics, like whether you are sitting in a quiet study or at the kitchen table, whether your Internet connection and AV set-up are adequate, are going to inform the employer’s impression and judgements.
You can control those things to some extent, so get used to seeing them through other people’s eyes, and prepare and manage what you can.
For example: what’s behind you, and visible on camera? Don’t show them an untidy mess of things - half a television, trailing wires. Blur the background, in that case. (But perhaps it’s a bookcase full of books - let them see that.)
Children and other family members should be neither seen nor heard.
What the camera sees is the stage on which you’re performing, so pay attention to it.
Manage risks you can’t control¶
In some neighbourhoods, services can be unreliable. You can’t control the availability of power and network, but you can manage the risk.
Don’t put yourself in a situation where the interviewer is wondering whether you’re actually going to be able to make it to work on a regular basis.
Everything ready to hand¶
Have everything ready to hand. The job description, your CV, your notes, the answers you sent in with your initial application. It’s not impressive when the interviewer mentions something the candidate wrote in their application and a look of panic crosses their face, because they can’t even remember saying that.
When you’re faced with a question like: “Can you show me an example of your work?” you don’t want to get into a scramble to find something. Have it all ready. (In any case, you should be the one leading that conversation: “I’d like to be able to talk you through some examples of my work”.)
Who are you meeting?¶
They know all about you, or at least all there is to know about you from the mass information you have supplied them with.
Make sure you know something about the person you’re meeting. Look them up. How long have they been at the organisation, and where were they before? What products and projects are they involved in? What professional topics do they write or speak about?
Why are you meeting?¶
There is no such thing as “an interview”, i.e. a generic interview. It’s always an interview with a particular purpose – a basic introduction, a technical skills interview, a communication skills interview – an interview concerned with something.
Just because they don’t tell you what it’s going to be, don’t imagine that it’s going to be some sort of general chat. Better to ask them.
If they really don’t have a purpose in mind, you’re going to have an aimless chat rather than an interview, and you can safely conclude they don’t really know what they’re doing.
Have things written down¶
Have all these these written down. They are part of your interview kit.
Don’t just write them down any old way, use the notes and sentences method.