How to be more impactful/memorable in your next job interview

I was privileged to be part of a panel interviewing for a few senior operational managers roles. I made a note of things I learned that I plan to put into practice the next time I find myself being interviewed. Hope they are helpful for you too!

1. Don’t interrupt the panel when they are talking/asking questions.

2. Be well prepared with a solid and meaningful reason for wanting the role.

3. Confidently share how your skills and strengths align with the requirements of the job, early in the discussion.

4. Try to be succinct in your answer without rambling and don’t repeat your answer (this one is hard if you get nervous!) I really zone out when a “talker” starts sharing irrelevant information. It makes me think they will not be effective in the workplace.

5. Have straightforward and easy-to-understand examples that demonstrate your current role, ability, and thinking.

6. When unclear on a question, repeat your understanding of the question back to the panel to gain clarity.

7. If possible, try to not pause too long when finding an answer.

8. Don’t bring a “chat gpt” outline of how to do something into the interview and then read it out. Perhaps say, that’s a great question, here’s a great structure that I would follow and then just share the high-level steps and try to identify ways you might customise it for the company.

9. Have specific questions for each of the panel members.

10. When sharing approaches to solve problems – if relevant, use the names of the theories you like to apply and refer to the principles i.e. kaizen.

11. Be clear on the difference between leadership and management, not knowing this means you are still a manager and not yet a leader.

12. Be super positive, but don’t say things like I am so excited (or desperate) to get this role. Desperation shows and unfortunately doesn’t compete with secure and centred applicants.

13. Don’t position yourself as a victim in your current role.

14. Don’t bad-mouth people you work with.

15. Make sure you research the company and the panel members.

16. Dress neatly to show that you care about yourself and your appearance.

17. If you have been in one role for a super long time and you have a good reason, explain why you decided to stay.

18. Have a 1 pager cheat sheet, ready to refer to with your examples of things you have done that are impressive, your questions for the panel, and your values.

19. If you have nice analogies or stories about how you achieved something, use these. A candidate spoke about changing the perspective of their team by using the language of shifting from “police” to “partners” - this really resonated with me.

20. Be careful of using examples that are very personal and not really work-relevant.

21. When asked about managing a budget, share an example where you helped to save money, share parts of the budget that are flexible, and what is not flexible in terms of spend, and share the techniques you have used to manage a budget.

22. Often you use mechanisms/systems to achieve something, like managing people and using the HR software platform. There’s an opportunity to share how you use the system to help you be effective at driving that process. For instance, the system and process help you to manage people in terms of their performance. This might be obvious but is a very effective way to manage.

23. Be clear on what you believe your leadership /management style is and be ready to respond with strengths and weaknesses.

24. Use logical and empathetic examples.

25. Don’t share holiday, or availability expectations in the first interview, unless asked.

26. Don’t use the following as a weakness, “I work too hard or I’m always working”.

27. Find a good answer for an area for development, i.e. I’m focusing on developing my leadership skills or I’m seeking opportunities to coach colleagues and extend my network.

28. When responding, try to not only think about your needs but think more about yourself in the company and what they would need.

29. Don’t use work experiences as examples where the outcome is not yet known, or it took too long or didn’t achieve the result sought, unless they ask for an example of something that didn’t go to plan.

30. Try to read the room and, at the end of their questions to you, be brave and ask if anything was unclear, or if they have any concerns about your ability to do the role so that you can address those points.