Hi interview-preppers! My name is Anie, and I work as an International Recruiter and Business Manager at Nordic Jobs Worldwide. In my daily work day I conduct many interviwes, and follow up my candidates who have interviews with clients. I have candidates for interviews at all sorts of jobs, and many ask me how they can best prepare. Following are my best tips and tricks for doing great in any interview.
1. Know the job
The first one may seem obvious – but trust me on the importance of this point. It is of the utmost importance that you know the position you are in applying for. What are the tasks? What are the expectations? This way, it will also be easier for you to know why you are the right candidate for the job. Additionally, knowing information such as starting dates, working hours and having some idea about relocation is always a plus. Of course – you will not know it all, and the things you do not know you can ask either your Nordic Jobs Worldwide recruiter or in the interview. This shows that you have done your research and reflected upon the role.
2. Know the company
This point is more important for some companies than it is for others, but it is always a bonus and can really seperate you from other applicants. What can you find out about the company? Is it big? How was the revenue last year? Where was it founded and by who? Where is the main office located?
3. Prepare for general questions
This is a great way to handle those pre-interview nerves. I always recomend that candidates really prepare well for general interview questions. And when I say prepare, I mean think about them, write your answers down, and make sure you practice saying them out loud, both in your native language and in english. The exact questions you practices will perhaps not be asked in the interview, but it is likely to be a variation. Here are some examples of questions you can use for practice:
· Why have you applied for the job?
· Why are you interested in moving abroad?
· Why are you the right candidate for this position?
· What in your previous work/education makes you qualified for the job?
· What personal qualities do you have that will benefit the company?
· Why did you leave/are you leaving your previous workplace?
4. Prepare for situation-questions
Additionally to the general questions, many interviews will ask you to respond to a hypotethical situation or ask about a situation that you have been in in the past which will be relevant for the job. Prepare in the same way you prepared for the general questions. Some examples might be:
· Have you ever had a difficult situation with a customer? How did you solve it?
· A customer asks you what Wifi is. How would you explain it to them?
· Tell us about a situation where you handeled stress well.
· What advice would you give to your former manager and why?
5. Make sure everything is in order.
It is so important to check if everything is in order before an interview. Make sure you go over this checklist.
· Make sure you know how the interview will be conducted. Is it over phone, over Teams, Skype, or something else? Make sure you know how to use that portal before the interview so that you will not have to figure it out a few minutes before.
· Make sure you have a properly working camera if the interview is over a platform using camera. Also, put some thought into your background. If its messy – blur it.
· Make sure your microphone is working and that you have already tested.
· Make sure you have good internet connection
· Make sure you have a quiet place to conduct the interview.
· That the computer is charged/connected to a power source.
Those are my best tips for now! If anything feels unclear, ask us for help 😊 We are on your side! And of course – good luck on your interview!
Anie Weidal Business Manager and International Recruiter
