Having been on the other side of the fence many, many times, I did my utmost best to be as fair as possible with the candidates and I thought I would share with you today my take on do's and don'ts of applying for a job.
Some real basics to start with. When you see a job application, read it thoroughly, and then, if you know the company who is recruiting, research them. Look at how they write and their tone when speaking to their customers, and match that.
Always, ALWAYS send a covering letter if you really want the job. Some jobsites allow you to fast-send your CV, but does that tell the recruiter why you want to work for them? Does it hell! It tells them nothing about you. Emphasis in your covering letter how the skills you have match the skills they are looking for. A covering letter is so much more important than a CV.
If the recruiting company has asked you to complete additional questions or tasks when applying, then make sure you provide the relevant information. They don't want a three page essay, but they don't want a one word answer either.
For example - What do you like about our company?
A good answer will show that you've researched them, picked out their USP if they have one and shown enthusiasm for that.
A bad answer will say "You pay well" or "Remote working" or worse still, talking about a different company!
So that's the first stage, and sit back and wait for the next stage.
With the job I am recruiting for, the next stage required candidates to answer some questions that would show their ability to understand our website/help pages and show their tone to our customers. We sent out five questions and gave a strict and short timescale to get them back.
Don't make excuses if you're going to send it back later than the deadline. Just don't do that. If you can't get the answers over in time, then unfortunately my dear, this one isn't for you.
When you answer the questions, mirror the tone you have seen elsewhere on the website or app. Don't over use exclamation marks. Don't be abrupt and definitely don't get the answer wrong or leave it blank. These tests are set not to catch you out but for you to prove that you can read and understand.
The next stage of our interview process was a video interview, one on one. In this stage I was looking for candidates who were passionate about our product, enthusiastic to get involved and could demonstarate the skills they put on their CV that made them get this far in the process.
If your interview is a virtual one, always check you can log on to the provided app/website beforehand. Don't turn up late, but if you do for technical reasons, do apologise. These things happen, but a quick apology and we can get on with the interview.
Our product at work is an App, I would expect everyone wanting to work for us to have downloaded the app and played around with it a lot before the interview. It doesn't matter if the app is suitable for you as an individual, the idea is that you put yourself in the shoes of our customers in order to talk freely about what you like and don't like. It's perfectly acceptable and required to have an opinion. I particularly liked the candidates who created pretend children to test different aspects of the app on.
Those candidates who said they were scared to download the app because they didn't have children, well I'm so sorry but fear does't cut it in this environment.
Talking passionately about that app shows that the candidates like our product and genuinely want to work for us. Mentioning our competitors and pointing out how we are better than them is an even greater trait.
Swearing in an interview is a no-no. Even if you feel that we are on a comfortable level, we've had a little laugh and chatted quite informally about a subject, telling me that your colleague was "pissed off" with you doesn't really work in an interview for a professional product.
Always, ALwAYS have some questions to ask. Again it shows that you are actually interested in the company and have done some research, and never say that the main reason you want the job is because it is remote working. That is a bonus and something that is offered to the person who wants to make the company greater before thinking about answering emails in their pyjamas. If you are nervous, knowing that you have questions to ask will ensure that you're not sitting in silence. Think of things that you have done that you are proud of and see how they would fit in with the interview questions. Try and offer as much information as you can without overkill.
Also, it's ok to say how much money you are expecting. It's not a secret, and the reason a lot of company's don't specify salary is because they want the right person rather than the right £ bracket. Be open and honest and explain why you want that amount. It's definitely not a taboo subject.
Finally, if you're not successful and don't get through to the final stage, ask for feedback. Feedback is vital to take forward to the next job interview and gives you the chance to review your method and tweak it to be more suitable. Feedback also lets the recruiter know that you really were genuinely interested and your name will be remembered for future roles.
I hope this helps and in these awful times of redundancies and economic uncertainty there will be a lot of people up against you but spend time on every single application you submit and the rewards will be reaped.
Good luck out there guys.
Much love
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