Well I was going to save this news till Monday (when I start), but thanks to the help of our fellow W's here I did in fact GET THE JOB which I spoke of in the following thread (which you can go to by clicking on the magic
Some excellent EXCELLENT EXCELLENT advice given, and I can't think you guys enough for it. I highly encourage you to follow the advice laid out in that thread, Crimedog, it helped me out EMMENSLY.
I'll add one more to the list though; tie a good tie knot. Square or double windsor perferably. If you can't tie a good tie knot, then let someone else tie a good tie knot for you. Us men, we don't "accessorise" often, so it might be good for the ONE thing we do we get it done right =)
I'll be praying for you, Crimedog. Hopefully you will join me in the land of "SOON TO BE EMPLOYED!!!~!!!!!!"
(edited by El Nastio on 22.3.06 1244) To celebrate the passing of the Troll Amnesty (and for otherwise no reason at all), I present to you the very best of Trolling here on The W. This Troll Moment of the Week is brought to you by;
"los_ortega" , who brought us such pieces as wisdom as: "what do you think?Hogan commerial sucks, and so does CRZ. i didn't know grammer was a big thing here at the "W". fuck this site, i'm out"
For that matter, if you're under fifty you can get by with a four-in-hand, provided it's done solidly. That's the knot also known as "the one everyone does".
Anyway, the other knots are here. And let's face it, if you can manage to tie a full Windsor, the interview itself should be a snap by comparison.
Dag, now I want a job interview, just so I have an excuse to wear a tie. { Sorry, you must be logged in to see this text! }
And don't forget, nothing settles down a nervous executive quite like some good old fashioned ethnic humor (not true).
ETA: But if they ask you what your biggest flaw is, don't say "I'm a perfectionist." Nobody buys that hooey.
Scope out the place before you go. If you can get inside without drawing attention to yourself, try to get a feel for the culture. Is it really stiff or is it loose? Do you know anyone who works there already?
If it is a big enough place, you may just want to go eat lunch near the place for a few days before hand to try to get a feel for the specific neighborhood. Try to gauge how the people that will be hiring you will be dressed, then go for something near that but job interview-y.
Your line of work is very different than a call center, so my call center advice is probably not the best. Try the specialty sites for your industry (forums, etc) to see if you can find some suggestions there.
For a communications position, think about all of the scenarios that they will throw at you, and see if you have anything like that in your past. They will be trying to lead you to show that you can / can't do the job with their behavioral questions, so if you can anticipate where they are going, try to give them a sound bite to hang on to. Remember that most people don't take complete notes during an interview, but they will write down quotes as you say them if they are very bad or very good.
Remember that when you are answering behavioral questions that you shouldn't focus on all of the details of the specific incident. No one is listening for a good story, they are just trying to ascertain how you will react in their environment in similar circumstances.
If you are given a question that requires a negative answer, try on the first one to turn it into a positive outcome. Look for signs of a BS meter going off, and tone it down if necessary.
I'll ask our corporate communications people what they look for in a candidate if I have a chance later today. I've never hired for that position before.
For myself, whenever I've had to hire someone I most often look at their resume. I have been able to get a got idea if their background will fit what I need. This varies a lot depending on the position I am trying to fill. So, you should probably feel pretty confident just based on the fact that they are willing to take their time to interview you.
Personally, I don't like to spend a lot of time interviewing multiple candidates. Other folks I work with have different attitudes about this, and like to be able compare/contrast different candidates.
It sounds like this is pretty much an entry level position. You should express an eagerness to learn, show that you have been able to learn new applications or procedures etc. quickly, and how to relate them to each other. Each project you work on will likely be different, but there are often similarities between them that will help you get a better sense for the bigger picture.
The questions I most liked hearing from candidates for entry level positions are about how much of this is "on the job training" vs formal training program, how much experience the rest of the staff will have, and how long it takes most people to "get up to speed". Some folks are more comfortable in a formal training environment, others learn better by actually working on the projects. Neither approach is good nor bad, but be prepared to discuss whatever you feel more comfortable with. If you can include some understanding of this concept in your discussions, you will make a good impression.
Keep your questions to what the job entails, how many folks on the team, etc. to show you know you can help them, and are eager to be productive right away.
The candidates who don't ask any questions always made me nervous. The ones who only asked about how many other people are being considered and what is the decision process / anticipated timeline, also fail to impress, but if they ask these among other questions about the group, it demonstrated a curiosity and eagerness to show they can fit in.
I am personally not a fan of follow-up thank-you letters, but that has more to do with the field I am currently in. For an entry level position in communications, I would agree it's pretty much required. If you can't get business cards, take names/notes - on the back of your own resume, so you can send a thankyou letter - but depending on how many people you meet, I would only send one letter to the person in charge, and ask that you convey your appreciation to the others with whom you met.
Alright, I'm gonna do it. Did anyone see the 2 hour finale last night? I am glad Ms. Bubbly did not win. That chick was just too damn young to get married. She needed to go back to Florida and cook for a couple more years.