Congratulations for being invited to interview. In this memo, I'll share some practical tips to make the most of this opportunity!
(🤦 Please do not behave like Dwight in his interviews!)
There are only two questions you are certain to have at every interview: "Can you please introduce yourself briefly?" at the start and "Do you have any question?" at the end. Make sure to nail them 🎯.
When you prepare, you should focus on three things: the company and the hiring manager and preparing questions to ask.
There are usually several rounds, starting with one introduction call ☎️ with either HR or HR and the hiring manager. After that, there is always a call with the hiring manager alone. That call will last 30 to 60 minutes and help them decide if you could be a good fit for the position. It is a fit call, not really a technical call. Most organisations will have three to six further rounds with different members of the hiring team, and sometimes, they will include a coding challenge. The more junior you are, the more those conversations will be technical. For more experienced hires, your discussions will be more focused on past projects.
When you apply through structured programs (summer internships or graduate programmes), there will be assessment centres, which are always very standardised. This means that you will take all those interviews within the same day or even half a day before you interview. There will be no specific hiring manager, but you will be assigned one manager from one of the hiring teams for the fit interview.
You must be well-rested on that day 😴. Make sure you had enough sleep. You can hit the gym to relax, but no need to hit your personal best. Also, allow enough time for the interview to run over time. This is important because, most often, a previous candidate might take longer than expected, or you might even stay longer with the interviewer. You want to make sure that you can spend as much time as necessary for them to evaluate your profile. My other tip, because I can get quite stressed, is not to read my notes before. It helps to keep my mind clear. It's much more essential to provide natural answers than something that sounds too rehearsed or robotic 🤖.
In terms of how you dress up, please always overdress. It's better to always dress up one notch too much than to underdress. It does not matter if the interview is in person or by video call. This means you should wear a suit, and it's not a time to showcase your fashion sense. It's always better to be on the conservative side, which means a dark suit and a white shirt. In terms of jewellery and accessories, keep them to a minimum. It's not a time either to show off your most expensive watch.
If you interview in person, bring one paper copy of your CV per interviewer, plus a spare one.
Be on time ⌚. Always register yourself 10 minutes before the appointment time. You should be polite with all the staff you encounter, even if they're not the hiring manager. It also shows that you respect the organisation as a whole, and some companies will explicitly ask the reception staff how you have behaved. Polite conversations also get you in the rhythm for the interviews and warm up your vocal cords. I also like to stand when I have to wait in a room. It puts you in a more "ready" posture. But you don't have to do this, that's just me! Most organisations will offer you refreshments. Always pick water 🚰. This is not a time for you to enjoy a selection of food or waste valuable interview time asking for different options. Water will keep you hydrated, especially if you have a dry throat. I recall one experience when a candidate asked for a very specific non-diary drink. This was an embarrassing situation because we wasted 10 minutes before the interview started and eventually could not accommodate. When we start the interview on an awkward note, it's hard to put it back on track. You can go to Starbucks and get whichever fancy personalised drink you like afterwards (my favourite it bubble tea! 🧋).
📵 Also, remember to switch off your phone.
It's hard to over-stress how important your mindset will be for the interview. You should always be smiling, and always be positive 😁. Remember that this is not a test. There is no right or wrong answer. The whole point is to see how you would behave as a colleague and how you react when facing complex problems. In particular, for technical interviews, the problem you're asked might not even have an answer. ⛔ Do not criticise the interviewer or the questions. This is not a time for you to blame the questions for being too hard or inadequate. You should not make that judgment. I have faced candidates who, out of anxiety, started to say that the questions were too difficult: this is inappropriate. As much as we cannot tell a client their problems are "bad", you should not tell your potential employer their questions are "wrong". It's also crucial that you do not blame your program or your former employer for being underprepared. This is unwelcome negativity and doesn't showcase you as a competitive professional.
When you face difficult questions during the interview, try not to leave too many blanks in the conversation. Up to 10 seconds is adequate for you to collect your thoughts. You can drink some water during that time. However, staying silent for a couple of minutes while you draft on a piece of paper is awkward. Your communication skills are also assessed, especially in the financial industry. This means that when you don't know something, you should say it. ⛔ ever, ever fake some information. The problem is that many candidates, out of anxiety of appearing unknowledgeable, start to make up things on the spot. Interviewers will notice. What is much more critical for us is to see what type of questions you would ask. When you think, have doubts, or are trying things and meet dead ends, you should express your thoughts clearly.
You will not get the job for spinning out the correct answer out of nowhere. If there is even a correct answer, you might get the job for asking the right questions, showing your collaborative mindset and your communication skills.Thank the interviewer. Do not ask "How did it go?" When you leave the room, do not slam the door. Make sure to thank also the staff at the reception or the coordinators of the assessment centre.
After the interview, I recommend that you drop a thank-you note on the next day by email ✉️. If applicable, reply to the email that was either sent by HR or by the manager inviting you to the interview. This is not the time to ask questions about the job or to chase. Remember that ghosting is actually quite rare. Once you have taken the first interview, they will let you know the next steps in due course.
It is also not appropriate to reach out to interviewers on LinkedIn to connect, or to email them separately. Most companies have strict policies that do not allow staff to reply to those requests, and you will not have an answer there.
Remember that despite being quite stressful, the interview process is like a matching conversation between you and an organisation. If there is no match, this is not a place where you will thrive. It's in your best interest to keep this conversation as honest and open as possible.
Good luck, you've got this! 💪
If you've found this helpful, check out my other tips here!