Questions you must ask yourself before a job interview

Are you really qualified for the position you’re interviewing for? Do you know enough about the company you’re applying to? Can you establish rapport with those you’ll be meeting with when you make your first impression?

Going out for job interviews can be a giant stress sandwich if you aren’t prepared. Luckily there are things you can do to get ready for a tête-à-tête with a prospective employer. To get a handle how job-seekers can best arm themselves for job interviews, FORBES chatted with Susan Vitale, CMO of iCIMS, a New Jersey-based provider of Human Resources software that’s been in the game for 17 years. Last year iCIMS generated $110 million in revenue serving more than 3,200 global customers.

Here’s what Vitale had to say about what to focus on before you meet with the hiring managers and prospective employers that decide whether you’ll be accepted or rejected for the jobs you desire.

Know The Company’s Mission

For starters, visit the website of the company whose position you’re applying for and scour the “About Us” section, as well as sections that may describe the soul of the company. “What would really make that compelling for an interviewee is to really understand the differentiators of a company and asking important questions around those differentiators,” says Vitale. With that in mind, an interviewee can develop reasons why he or she would be a good fit to help further the company’s mission.

Understand Who A Company Is Looking For…Culturally

“A really important part of hiring that has changed over time is the importance of a cultural fit,” Vitale says, “And hiring based on that cultural fit as opposed to just looking at what the skills or background or experience of a candidate is on a resume.” Getting a sense of a company’s culture and how one can fit into it can be done by checking out that company’s career page or – if possible – reading about what the company itself has declared about its own culture. Says Vitale: “We have some clients who have a culture that’s very hands-off. That works for some candidates, doesn’t work for others. There’s a great opportunity for candidates to understand company culture via Glassdoor reviews and other sites.”

Other places a candidate can learn more about culture is through a company’s social media accounts, interviews with employees, testimonials from employees or company employee reviews.

Press Releases Can Teach You A Lot About A Company You Might Want To Work For

The press section of a company’s website can tell you what’s been happening lately—new products, new hires, new partnerships, etc. These can give you a sense of how a company is strategically positioning itself in its industry. Assuming you know the industry, an interviewer will probably want to hear your thoughts on the firm’s activity and being able to provide feedback shows even if you would not be directly connected to a new product or strategy that you are paying attention. “Even if you are not a product person whether it’s a software product or a tangible good if you’re a salesperson, during an interview, asking about what that product has done for the business, what the P&L should look like, or something along those lines, shows that you’re connected to a larger mission and not just thinking about yourself as an individual contributor.”

Finding out whether awards have recently been won, or financial milestones have been highlighted in a release, it allows you to ask questions that show you are interested in the company as a whole and not just preoccupied with your own potential advancement.

Know The Industry

Job candidates generally don’t go into a job interview without having an understanding of the industry a potential employer is in. Still, a little extra homework pre-meeting is a good idea. “Most interviewers are not expecting someone to be a bonafide expert before they walk through the door,” says Vitale. “Again, understanding how the company is different within the industry (is advisable).”

Industry news bulletins like, for example, recent acquisitions in the space, can allow a job-seeker to pose questions to interviewers about their impact on the business. It’s a good way of showing that you’re paying attention. Says Vitale: “It shows that you are putting the business first and trying to understand how the larger landscape impacts the organization and not just your personal role that you’re interviewing for.”

Professionally (And Respectfully) Stalk A Company’s Employees And Leaders

A lot of company websites provide sections that display the organization’s leadership. It’s a good idea to look these people up on sites like LinkedIn and see where they’ve been and what they’ve done. Along the way you’ll stumble upon other employees and, through social media, you can learn more about what’s buzzing within the company.

Says Vitale: “Whether it’s Glassdoor or other sites, there are a lot of ways that you can see who works at that company and what they’re promoting. Taking a look at Twitter and Facebook, looking at hashtags or searching for that company’s name within the feeds to see what their employees are talking about can certainly be compelling. Sites like TheMuse.com often have interviews with different employees with video as well as call-outs.”

Connecting with an employee and opening a dialogue can also lead to greater insight into what it’s like to work there. “Not necessarily asking for a favor or a referral,” says Vitale “but just to try and understand what type of personality excels there or what type of personality would struggle there.”

Your Presentation

These days, thanks to technology, job-seekers present themselves to prospective employers in different ways, like video interviews or video cover-letters. The visuals involved, though, are still just as important as face-to-face meetings. “Oftentimes candidates don’t think through what their body language or what’s hanging on the wall behind them during a Skype interview or a full-blown video cover letter. Those things are often overlooked by the candidate, but not by the hiring manager or the recruiter.”

Source: TechGig.com