You’ve identified your ideal employer. Their trainee scheme, or the position they’re recruiting for, looks perfect. And with your technical smarts, qualifications and dozens of hours spent on activities demonstrating your commitment to a cause, you seem to be the perfect candidate.
However, if you don’t communicate all this clearly and effectively, and you don’t present yourself in the best possible light at your interview, you run the risk of missing out on a golden opportunity.
At the Career Forum, consultants from recruitment specialists Robert Walters will once again be on hand in their role as “CV Doctors”, as well as be conducting the interviews to determine who will get through to the final stages of the Shadow a CEO Programme.
Tiffany Wong, associate director of the human resources and transactional services divisions at Robert Walters, is someone with a wealth of experience when it comes to avoiding application pitfalls.
Wong advises candidates to make sure they put the character traits that the employer is looking for front and centre on their CV. “If you know the company has a very team-based environment, it would be good to mention if you’ve played team sports or joined in any team competitions.”
There are other several other types of experience that should also be highlighted or, if there’s still time, acquired. “These include if you’ve worked in a company as part of a project team rolling out or implementing new projects, worked in an international environment and dealt with people of different nationalities, or you’ve led discussions on new projects.”
Wong advises job applicants to tailor their CV to different employers, or at least make sure their mission statement or cover letter states why the firm should hire them. “However, I would advise not to oversell yourself, because employers will do reference and background checks to authenticate your information,” she warns.
When it comes to the interview, Wong says presentation and communication skills, as well as personality, are the qualities that will give one interviewee the edge over another – especially if they are fresh graduates or early on in their careers. But it is also vital, she advises, to thoroughly research prospective employers.
“Read their website, know what their business is all about, what their company values are, and what their mission statement says – and ask yourself how similar or different these values are from yours.”
Finally, Wong offers a five-point interview checklist: double-check the location so you can get there at least 15 minutes early; stand up when you meet and greet the interviewer; take the initiative to shake their hand and introduce yourself; at the end of the interview, stand up and thank the interviewer for their time; and send a “thank you” email afterwards – this gives you a legitimate excuse to follow up.
