PRESENTING YOURSELF WELL AT THE INTERVIEW

The following list of ten interview tips was prepared and issued by the Canada Human Resources and Skills Development Centre, so we must assume that it will lead you to the sort of interview behaviour favoured by the Canadian employer.

Ten interview tips

• 1.Dress neatly and appropriately. Do they wear suits, or dress casually?
• 2.Map your route in advance so that you arrive in good time.
• 3.Don‘t smoke or chew gum.
• 4.Greet the interviewer with a handshake.
• 5.Don’t sit until the interviewer sits or asks you to.
• 6.Be calm, poised and efficient.
• 7.Answer questions honestly and concisely.
• 8.Show enthusiasm and interest.
• 9.Bring copies of your resume, letters of reference or certificates that are relevant.
• 10.Focus on a specific job or jobs. From an employer’s point of view an applicant eager to accept ‘anything’ may do nothing well.

Some of those are pretty obvious but they will give you an idea of the Canadian attitude.

CASE STUDIES

Samantha turns a deficit into an asset

Samantha attends an interview for the position of senior dietitian. She has not met the interviewer before. He expresses concern that she might find working practices rather different from those she has been used to in England. As she will need to deal with both patients and management in the new position, he fears this may be a problem.

‘I can see that the set-up here is different, and after being here for a while I think I’ve got quite a good handle on it,’ Sam replies. ‘But I regard that as a challenge rather than a drawback. As you can see from these references, I have worked in a variety of health care situations and I feel that adaptability is one of my strong points.’

When asked about her long-term plans, Sam does not mention that she intends to return to England in a few years’ time, but instead enthuses about the lifestyle in Vancouver and how well she feels it suits her.

The interviewer, who is already impressed with her credentials, feels that Sam has the right attitude to adapt to different working practices and offers her the position.

George does his research

George Robins is asked to come for an interview at Eastern Audio, a small recording studio which supplements its trade by bulk CD duplicating. George studies the market carefully before his appointment and when asked what he feels he could contribute to the company is able to offer an informed reply.

‘From what I understand, Eastern Audio doesn’t have a lot of competition locally so there is ample opportunity for expansion. However, a major concern must be the falling market in CDs, due to the growth of downloading music from the Internet. I have some ideas as to how to tap into that market and have some design ideas that may interest you.’

George goes on to explain that he would be happy to put in extra time to develop those ideas and adds that he has already discussed this with his wife, who is supportive.

Eastern Audio’s engineering manager is impressed with George’s enthusiasm and commitment and feels he would make a useful addition to the team.

Lucy gets the wrong impression

In a heavily forested area an entire department of the provincial government is devoted solely to preventing and containing forest fires. Lucy is delighted to be asked to come and speak to the personnel manager about a clerical opening in the department. However, it soon becomes obvious that the job demands greater clerical skills than she possesses. Lucy is disappointed as the ruggedness of the area really appeals to her.

‘Perhaps you would be interested in another temporary position we have,’ suggests the manager. ‘I’m afraid it’s only for two or three weeks and it can be pretty back-breaking work. We need to get all our seedlings planted before the end of the month. And believe me, that’s a lot of seedlings.’

Lucy is very happy to take on this part-time job. She reckons she doesn’t mind a bit of hard work and relishes the idea of finally getting out into the great outdoors.

The information interview

There is another sort of interview: the purpose of an information interview is to have an informal talk with someone who works in the field which interests you. You attend simply to gather information, and neither party feels pressured into either asking for a job or offering one. But it can lead to openings and will provide you with the names of the people in a position to hire, as well as some inside knowledge of that particular company or field.

You must not, in these circumstances, present yourself as looking for a job. You want to find out:

• how the organisation works
• what jobs may be suitable for you
• what additional skills you may need
• how to get to talk to the person who does the hiring.

The panel interview

This is an increasingly common type of interview and can be rather daunting. Various different employers arrange to hold interviews together. Their aim is to reduce costs in time, money and human resources. What it means for you is that you are facing several interviewers at once and trying to make an impact on some or all of them. Easier said than done. The upside is that you will be making yourself known to several potential employers at once.

The key to handling these interviews is to maintain your own focus. Try to ascertain before the interview which of the interviewing employers are most likely to be interested in your skills and concentrate on communicating with their representatives. Although it is not easy (and may cause you to end the interview with a sore and spinning head!), make as much eye contact as possible with those you have identified as good potentials. When asked a question, reply mainly to the person asking it, but try to include all those present in your response.

The telephone interview

This is another form of interview that is becoming more common. Once again, it is often done to help employers cut resource costs. It is most often used as an initial interview and usually followed (if successful) by a personal meeting.

Basically, the rules here are pretty much as in a face-to-face interview. The main differences are that you cannot have eye contact and it can be difficult to maintain concentration and focus. Nevertheless, you still need to present yourself professionally and confidently. The best idea is to prepare yourself just as for a personal interview, with all relevant documents and information easily to hand. Set yourself up somewhere you will not be disturbed by family members or visitors. Have a desk or table in front of you for your papers and sit straight in your chair rather than lounge. Believe it or not, your posture can be heard in your voice.

ACCENTUATING THE POSITIVE

One of the first questions the interviewer is likely to ask is why you have moved to Canada. Make sure that your reply is positive. Don’t say derogatory things about the UK or your life there as that will only establish you as a moaner. Point out instead the opportunities that are available in Canada and your own goals for improvement. Show yourself to be a go-getter. Be careful, though, not to give the impression that you are likely to flit off to pastures greener. Indicate commitment to your new life in Canada. Most Canadians are proud of their country and will be pleased that you wish to be a part of it.

The prospective employer may feel that your lack of working experience in Canada could be a disadvantage. Turn this around by pointing out that you can bring a fresh outlook and new ways of looking at things. Canadians are not averse to change for the better! Remember that most Canadians (the Anglophone ones, anyway) are attracted to things British. If you are going to be working with the public this could be a distinct advantage.

Showing you are adaptable

Draw attention to your adaptability. It is a valued trait in the Canadian job market. Many companies are small (less than 50 people) and job descriptions tend to be much less structured than you may be used to. It is often the case of everybody ‘mucking in’ to get the job done or the product out. This is true even in larger companies, many of which down-sized during the recession and now do not have sufficient personnel to deal with the recent rapid recovery of the economy.