The successful job interview: Whose job is it anyway?

Dear Coach:


Our Campus Job Center has set up interviews with some major companies in January. Lots of my classmates are signing up. How do I make myself stand out?

Lost in the crowd

Dear Lost:

How do you make yourself irresistible (or at very least interesting) to recruiters? Three ways.

* Change your perspective from a student consumer to a supplier of services.
* Put yourself in their shoes.
* Do everything in your power to reduce their risks for hiring you.

As a college or university student, you’ve spent your last four years or so as a “buyer” of educational services. You’ve paid tuition, evaluated the performance of your instructors, expected them to see you during their office hours, and certainly expect to receive a diploma. Of course, you’ve done your part by studying and passing your exams, but if you’re like many students I’ve interviewed, you may be carrying the expectations of your experience at school into a job interview. When you go on the job market, you are no longer “buying” a service. You are selling one – yourself. It’s no longer someone’s job to meet your needs. It’s your job to figure out how to meet theirs.

So put yourself in the recruiter’s shoes. She has to see the benefit of spending her limited time interviewing you. One hiring manager in a small architecture firm told me recently, “During my last interviewing round, I was shocked by how many new grads had only two questions for me – how much do you pay and how much vacation will I get?” If you begin to think like a seller of services, you understand that the interviewer gets no benefit from giving you a great salary, a short work day and fascinating projects. To sell a recruiter on giving you her time, attention and interest, you have to show her how you can benefit her firm.

That means, before you arrive at the interview you’ve done some research and given some thought to what, you have to offer. Look at the company website and any recent articles written about it. Know the trends in the industry. Then figure out how hiring you will benefit the bottom line or improve performance. What new directions is the company taking that you might be able to contribute to? What volunteer and summer work experiences can you bring to the table that will make you a great employee?

Finally remember that human beings – including your interviewer – are wired to avoid risks. Once you’ve shown the interviewer that you have something to offer, do your best to show her that buying you is a safe purchase. What kind of risks is a recruiter worried about? She’s wary of someone who has never demonstrated that they have any kind of work experience. Summer employment and letters of reference for example show her that you show up consistently and have gained some specific skills her firm can use. She’s worried about hiring a prima donna with limited ability to work in teams. She’s worried that she might hire someone who is not committed to doing a good job.

If you were selling a cell phone, say, you wouldn’t expect your buyer to figure out what features your phone has to offer. You’d have to tell them the benefits. You’d have to ensure them that your product had few risks and was backed by a reliable company. As a job seeker, you have something to sell, just like a business selling a product.