Our Guelph staffing agency is similar to any job agency in Guelph in the sense that we help our clients put their best selves forward. While staffing agencies typically help clients and employers find a temporary solution, the process doesn’t discriminate against employers who are looking for a temporary hire to shift into a permanent hire, nor do we turn down people who need assistance in finding a job that is the perfect fit for their skills. Our Guelph staffing agency treats every client with the same respect and integrity, as any potential employer should when conducting interviews.
Whether you are interviewing with Task Force for a temporary job, or if you are interviewing with a Fortune 500 company for a permanent position, there are a few things you should be doing in preparation for your interview and what you should be doing after a job interview.
7 Tips To Use When Preparing For a Job Interview
1) Treat Every Interview Like It’s The Most Important Interview On Your List
Remember when we said we treat every person interviewing with Task Force the same as any employer would? That’s because everyone and every interview should be treated with importance and respect.
Imagine if you showed up to an interview at Google with a bad attitude, a sloppy overall presentation on paper and in appearance? It sends off alarms to Google that you aren’t going to treat the job with any care either!
For all jobs, no matter how temporary, how big or how small, you need to put your best self forward. This means that you need to treat every interview like it’s exactly the job you want. By doing this, you translate with a tone of seriousness and respectability to the employer, giving you a better shot at actually landing the job.
2) Dress Up For The Occasion
This falls into treating your interview with importance…but it does deserve its own category. In preparing for a job interview, you’ll want to dress up for the occasion.
We’re not suggesting you put on an Oscar-worthy gown, but definitely dress to the atmosphere of the job. If you’re going to be working in a factory, you may want to avoid a suit/dress but still look presentable with a dress shirt and dress pants. Try to keep your presentation as natural to your every day self as possible in terms of your hair, makeup (if you choose to wear makeup) and shoes. This allows your authentic self to shine through.
3) Know What You’ve Said About Yourself In Your Resume
Perhaps one of the most important steps that will be tested on in your interview is how well you know yourself and what you’ve said about yourself in your resume.
It sounds silly. Why wouldn’t you know yourself enough to talk about yourself in an interview?
But you’d be surprised at what can happen.
Spare yourself the embarrassment of not knowing what you’ve written, and actually read through your resume prior to your interview. If it’s clear that you haven’t written your own resume or if you are lying about your qualifications, the employer will notice, especially if you can’t back up what’s been put on paper. When you run through your resume make sure you can tell your own narrative from the points you’ve included.
4) Read Over Your Resume And See If There’s Important Points The Employer May Ask You To Expand On
This pairs with the point above, but when you read over your resume, you’ll want to make sure that you can expand on the points you’ve included. Resumes are the sample of who you are, which is what first attracts an employer, but the interview gives them a clearer image of your capabilities.
If they want to know more about your time in a previous position or what exactly you mean when you say you have a certain skill, it’s important that you have can speak about it. If there are any stories about the skill that can demonstrate how you’ve used it, it can be a great tool to use in the interview.
5) Prepare Yourself With Answers To Common Interview Questions
While every interview is different, there are common interview questions that pop up for all job agencies, staffing agencies and recruiters. Here are a few of the common ones:
- What qualifications do you have that make you a good fit for this position?
- What is one of your weaknesses?
- What would you do if there is conflict amongst coworkers?
- How do you think you could achieve x effectively?
- What do you think is your strongest work quality?
- Why should we hire you over another candidate?
By preparing with some answers to these questions, you won’t feel caught of guard and you’ll have an idea on how to word your answer.
6) Know Something About The Company You Are Applying To
It’s great that you have enthusiasm about the position you are applying to, but you need to back up your enthusiasm with some knowledge about your potential employer and their company. Because they are giving you time to interview for this position, you need to show that you have invested your time in learning about their company and how you fit into their company structure.
Plus, it saves you from humming and hawing at questions they may ask about your knowledge of the company. Back to the Google example—if you don’t know what function Google serves as a company, the employer may question if you are knowledgeable enough about the area of work.
7) Most Importantly: Get The Directions To Your Interview In Advance And Leave Yourself Time To Get There
And the last (but maybe the most) essential way to prepare for an interview is to know where your interview is taking place, and being there on time.
In some circumstances, you may get lucky and have a phone interview at a scheduled time agreed upon by you and the potential employer. But in most cases, employers want to meet with the candidates during their hiring process to conduct an in-person interview.
Make sure you have the address and directions to get to the place, along with a phone number of the employer. If you know that traffic is heavy at certain times, be sure to leave a bit earlier in anticipation. If you do get to your interview early, be sure it’s in the 10-minute time frame—otherwise, the interviewer may not be ready (remember, it’s part of their workday too!) On the other hand, if you know you’ll be running late, be sure to give them a quick call to let them know the situation. This shows that you are conscientious of their time too.
What To Do With Feedback From An Interview
No matter the outcome of your job interview with a staffing agency or a company, there will likely be feedback from the person in charge of their hiring process. In a case where they hire you, the feedback from the interview may be tips about how you can use the skills you talked about in your new position.
If they choose to hire a different candidate, they will usually give you tips on what you did well in the interview, and some areas that you can improve on. Sometimes, these areas are as basic as speaking with more confidence, but other times, it can be the employer needing someone who is more experienced with the tasks required. While you can’t change how much experience you have, you can take note of this for similar positions and work on your skill set and apply it towards future jobs.
In any case, being well prepared for an interview will help you in gaining employment and finishing your job search. For any questions about staffing solutions in Guelph or for finding a job in Guelph, please don’t hesitate to contact us at Task Force. We are always happy to help our clients find jobs and prepare for job interviews.