Interview techniques for securing your new job
Job interviews can be a nerve racking experience at all seniority levels. Whether you’re a junior just going into the oil and gas industry or a senior level candidate – thorough interview preparation is key to comfortably selling your talents and securing the role you want.
As executive recruiters, we follow up with clients after interviews on a weekly basis – so we’re well equipped to understand what makes a candidate stand out, and what makes them a turn off to a potential employer. Here’s some useful techniques we’ve learnt, for acing your interview:
Early is on time
A good motto to follow here is ‘on time is late, early is on time!’. Companies generally won’t take your excuse of bad traffic or unreliable public transport as a good enough reason for being late – even if it wasn’t your fault. Don’t take the risk and just aim to get there early – then at least you have time to look over your pre interview notes. Plus, if you arrive early you can feel relaxed, rather than starting the interview in a hurried and apologetic manner. If you do end up being late, despite aiming to arrive early, then a courtesy call to us is vital for keeping up the client relationship.
Don’t skip on the detail
One thing that’s sure to leave a bad impression is when interviewees lack depth to their answers. Where possible, give specific examples relating to your current or previous jobs, explaining clearly how you’ve added value. If you can explain your success in figures, then even better! This helps the interviewer feel confident in your abilities.
Before your interview think about some detailed case studies you could provide on your own experience, utilising the STAR methodology below to help you recall a detailed account:
Situation: A sentence about the thing you were trying to achieve. i.e I was asked to develop a new business pipeline
Task: What steps did you take to achieve this goal?
Action: What challenges did you face or what pushback did you receive from colleagues?
Results: What was the outcome?
Keep it professional when it comes to the why
A question you’ll definitely be asked, why do you want to leave your current job? This is the time to flex your professional abilities – be honest, but don’t cross the line into gossiping about your boss or colleagues – otherwise they may wonder if you’ll bring drama into the workplace.
Show how your values align
Talk about the company’s core values and explain how these are aligned with your own approach to work. This shows you’ve done your research and would fit in well with the company culture.
Exercise your ability to negotiate
It’s important to get across what you want from a new role early on, but employment is a two-way street so the agreement has to be mutually beneficial for both parties. This is where some compromise may be required – showing you can negotiate fairly will present you as a good team player and an attractive employee to have on board.
Finally
A mixture of good punctuality and ensuring you have pre-prepared answer plan in place is a winning strategy for impressing your interviewers.. and securing your new career opportunity. If you’re working with ABN Resource, you can also feel confident in the knowledge that our clever candidate assessment programme has matched you with this potential employer – so we know you’d make a great fit. The rest is up to you… good luck!
Thanks for reading – see more insights on job search, recruitment & industry news on the ABN Resource blog. If you’re looking for an oil and gas recruitment agency with the right skills and tools to find your perfect job match, get in touch with us on enquiries@abnresource.com or use the request a call back feature below.
